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This year’s family trip was to Colorado. My husbands family planned to arrive on a Saturday and take a bus to Glenwood Springs. Since I finished work on a Thursday, my husband and I decided to fly in a day early to check out more of Colorado’s beauty, and we were not disappointed. So, we started our adventure in Colorado Springs.

We flew in on Friday and rented a car. We had decided early on that with 2 small children in car seats, it would be a smarter choice in the long run to have our own transportation. I highly recommend renting a car if you are traveling with carseats, especially in Colorado where the sites are not all within walking distance.

We drove down to Colorado Springs on Friday night after we arrived and stayed at the Quality Inn Garden of the Gods. We preferred to stay close to the attractions we wanted to see before driving back to Denver that night. We only had 1 day so we wanted to make it count!

Garden of the Gods

When we woke up, we grabbed some free breakfast at the hotel and headed to Garden of the Gods. We decided to do this first before it got too hot for the little ones, and its a good thing we did because it did get hot and there is no shade when walking through the formations.

Garden of the Gods is a National Natural Landmark with beautiful sandstone formations jetting out into the sky. Coming from flat Florida, the formations were breathtaking. It was unlike anything I had ever seen.

Start at the visitor center where you can learn the history of the park. They have a short movie you can watch and you can decide whether you want to walk, take the train, or bike. The train looked really cool but you need to get tickets in advance and it only takes you around the outside of the formations. We chose to walk.

Quick tip, get there early to find parking near the visitor center. We unfortunately did not score parking there. There are lots around the formations but they are small and get taken up quickly too. There is an overflow lot between the visitor center and the formations (which is where we were told to park), its huge but you park in the dirt. This parking lot as well as the visitor center are about a 10 minute walk to the formations but it’s pretty flat so its not so bad.

The main trail is stroller friendly, great for families with little ones and we do not leave home without our Baby Jogger Citi Select Lux. Our double stroller navigated the walkway perfectly. There are other trails you can can hike for families with older kids so make sure to grab a map from the visitor center before heading to the formations.

Make sure to take sunscreen and lots of water if you are visiting in the summer. Its helpful to have a hat but if you forget them (like I did) you’ll still be ok. You might also want a couple snacks for the kids. When you are walking the formations there are no snacks or water. There are porto potties if you need to use the restroom.

You can easily spend a full day touring the formations but we only had 1 day in Colorado Springs and wanted to make the most of it… Also didn’t help that our toddler was having a melt down.

Pikes Peak

Pikes Peak is a famous mountain drive about 15 miles from Colorado Springs. My husband loves cars and loves driving winding mountain roads so this was on his bucket list. The Pikes Peak scenic highway is 19 miles of beautiful overlooks and picnic areas ending at the summit which is 14,115 feet in elevation. That might not seem to scary for some but on some of those twists and turns I was praying for our safety.

I will say, however, that the drive is beautiful. The view from the top is breath taking. In fact, according to Colorado.com it is called America’s Mountain for inspiring Katherine Lee Bates to write the song “America the Beautiful,” and beautiful it certainly is.

Unfortunately the summit was closed when we visited because they were constructing the new building but we made it pretty far up, ending at mile 16. I could not believe my eyes when I saw snow at the top in the middle of June. My husband took our son out to throw some snow balls. You will want to take a sweater because it is quite windy and cold, I mean there’s still snow up there!

You would think the way down would be less scary, but it was not. I had to sit in the back of the van so I didn’t freak everyone out. The kids did great, I believe we did experience a little bit of altitude sickness (which I have never experienced before) but there must be a reason I was feeling lightheaded and nauseous. Then I googled it (thank god for google and webmd), and I felt way better with some food and water.

On the way down they stop you for a brake check. Our van had very hot brakes so they made us stop for 15 minutes before heading the rest of the way down. They have a gift shop and concession stand. Its really cute, looks like a log cabin with a stuffed black bear inside. My son liked touching its fur and playing around it. They also have a picnic area outside if you want to bask in the beautiful nature.

When we finished eating, we continued our drive down. It takes about 3 hours to make the drive. You can make a day of it as well and there are plenty of places to stop and enjoy. With 2 littles, we made the most of nap times and barely stopped.

Pikes Peak does have an entrance fee. It’s $12 for adults, $4 for children, or $40 for a car of 5. There are several ways to enjoy Pikes Peak. You can drive, take the Cog railway, you can bike, and you can even hike up. Whatever you choose, it is definitely worth a visit.

For more travel ideas with little ones, check out this post.