Start from 42 curated places around Fort Collins, CO, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
The Silver Grill Cafe
Fort Collins' oldest restaurant, open since 1933 on Walnut Street in Old Town, known across Northern Colorado for cinnamon rolls the size of salad plates — baked fresh every morning and served warm with cream cheese frosting. It's a true diner with a counter, booths, and huevos rancheros that hold up against the signature pastry.
Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar
A properly stocked raw bar and oyster program in Old Town Fort Collins, sourcing coasts daily and running a tight sustainable-seafood menu. In a landlocked state it does the work most seafood spots do not: good provenance, turnover, and shuckers who know what they have.
Trails & outdoors
Poudre River Trail
A paved multi-use trail following the Cache la Poudre River for over 20 miles through Fort Collins and the northern Front Range corridor, passing through cottonwood riparian zones, the CSU Environmental Learning Center, and the River District. It's the city's spine trail — flat, well-maintained, and accessible from dozens of entry points.
Horsetooth Falls Loop Trail
A 4.7-mile loop in Horsetooth Mountain Open Space that visits a seasonal waterfall and climbs through open ponderosa parkland to a saddle with views of the reservoir. It is the most popular day hike in the Fort Collins foothills — demanding enough to feel earned, short enough for a half-day trip.
Things to do
New Belgium Brewing
Fort Collins' flagship craft brewery and the creator of Fat Tire, offering guided production tours through the full brewing facility — fermentation tanks, barrel rooms, and the famous packaging hall spiral slide — plus the Liquid Center taproom with limited releases not distributed elsewhere. One of the most thoughtfully run brewery tour experiences in the country.
Odell Brewing Company
One of Fort Collins' original craft breweries (est. 1989), known for 90 Shilling amber and a rotating pilot-batch system that produces small-batch beers tried out in the taproom before any wider release. The giant wood-decked patio with mountain views is the best outdoor taproom setting in the city.
Landmarks & sights
Old Town Fort Collins Historic District
The pedestrian-friendly grid of sandstone storefronts and brick facades that inspired Disney's Main Street U.S.A. — Fort Collins native Harper Goff photographed these blocks in the 1950s to use as reference for Disneyland. The 300-block of Linden Street and Mountain Avenue show the Victorian commercial vernacular at its best, still filled with indie businesses rather than chains.
Horsetooth Reservoir
A 6.5-mile-long reservoir wedged into the foothills just four miles west of downtown, rimmed by 2,700 acres of open space that includes 29 miles of hiking and biking trails. In summer it's Fort Collins' backyard beach — locals paddle, swim, fish, and watch sunsets from the western shore.