The Ultimate Colorado Road Trip – 10 Unmissable Destinations in 2 Weeks

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Are you planning a Colorado road trip this summer? I’d love to help, because I freaking LOVE Colorado!

My road trip through Colorado has been my favorite of all time. In late 2023, Lala and I started a 2-year road trip all over the US and I’m still at it… and the summer I spent in Colorado was just dreamy.

Any good road trip through Colorado involves lots of hiking, impressive views and polar plunges. That way, you get to experience the majesty of the Rocky Mountains.

So, I’ll be sharing:

• The best hikes and destinations: main purpose = nature
• Where to sleep for free: I paid $0 in accommodations during my road trip
• ALL the details for SO many epic stops

If you love hiking and nature, this road trip itinerary is for you!

Stops on the Colorado Road Trip

Colorado is the best US State (I’ll fight for that statement), so it’s hard to choose where to go.

When Lala and I were planning our road trip, I had to choose places that were accessible (we aren’t pro mountaineers). But, at the same time, we love challenging hikes.

So, we chose these stops (although some happened on a whim, which is part of the fun of road trips):

1. Denver
2. Colorado Springs
3. Great Sand Dunes National Park
4. The Million Dollar Highway
5. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
6. Cathedral Lake & Aspen
7. Twin Lakes
8. Mt Elbert
9. Lake Dorothy
10. Rocky Mountain National Park

But there are a few things that are good to know before, to plan your road trip.

Know Before you Go

Accommodations for the Colorado Road Trip

I spent $0 on accommodations during my Colorado road trip by finding free camping.

It’s actually how I was able to travel full-time for 2 years.

If you’re budget-conscious like me and will do anything (like sleep in your car) to travel, I actually made a map of ALL the free campsites I’ve researched all over the USA.

And you can access the map for free below.

But no worries – I’ll share all the free camping details for every destination in this article, plus some hotel options (because you’re gonna need to get the sand out of your ears somehow)!

National Parks Pass

During this Colorado road trip, you’ll visit all 3 of Colorado’s national parks:

• Rocky Mountain National Park
• Great Sand Dunes
• Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Entering these 3 parks over 4 days will cost $110.

Instead, you can buy the National Parks Pass, which costs $80. It gives you access to all the American national parks for free for the rest of the year.

So, it’ll pay for itself just during your road trip and even more if you visit any national park that year.

You don’t have to buy the National Parks Pass beforehand. Just buy it when you get to the fee station at the first national park on your trip.

How are You Getting Around?

The best way to do a road trip is with your own car because you can set it up your way.

If you want help setting up your SUV for car camping, read my complete guide here. You’ll be set to go without having to go through my mistakes!

But I realize Colorado may be real far for you. In that case…

Pro travel tip: Use Discover Cars to rent rental cars for your road trip, choose full coverage insurance, and opt for trusted companies like Hertz and Sixt. Book your car with Discover Cars here.

Stock Up on Groceries

This road trip takes you through some very remote destinations, where groceries can get expensive.

So, stock up on non-perishables and snacks in Denver or Colorado Springs before you get deep into the Rocky Mountains.

Colorado Road Trip MAP

I created a custom Google Map of my Colorado road trip with all the hikes, viewpoints, and accommodations in this post.

This interactive map is perfect for visualizing your trip through Colorado. Whether you’re hiking to the tallest dune in North America, on America’s best scenic drive or navigating to your free campsite, it’s all pinned and ready.

👉 Open the full map in Google Maps or see it embedded below. Tap the icon on the top left of the map to see the whole menu.

The Ultimate Colorado Road Trip

The itinerary I’m going to lay out is a 2-week itinerary. I’ll explain what there is to do and how long you could stay at each destination.

But I would recommend adding a day or two to rest, because there will be a lot of hiking.

Then, I’ll go over a short 7-day road trip itinerary in case you don’t have that long.

It all begins in…

Day 1, Morning: Denver & Red Rock Amphitheater

Denver is the starting point for your road trip through Colorado.

I’m not a city person, but our itinerary in Denver was great (we got the tour from local friends).

But we really wanted to get straight into nature.

That led Lala and I straight to Red Rock Amphitheater. This crazy concert venue, which is a small part of a much bigger park full of giant, jagged red rocks, is amazing.

But I made a huge mistake – I went at noon.

A park official told us you have to visit Red Rock Amphitheater in the morning because they have an event almost every day, and they close the amphitheater to tourists in the late morning.

So, make sure you go in the morning – or go enjoy an amazing concert!

I didn’t spend the night in Denver, so the free campsites I researched were around Colorado Springs instead…

Day 1 (afternoon) & Day 2: Colorado Springs & Manitou Springs

Colorado Springs is an awesome city with a TON of stuff to do outdoors, but 3 things stood out to me:

1. Garden of the Gods: Colorado Spring’s flagship park, Garden of the Gods is a gorgeous place with gigantic red spires and fins spurting out of the ground. It has a ton of beautiful hikes and is easy to get to since it’s right in the city.
2. Pike’s Peak: This is one of Colorado’s most prominent 14ers (mountains over 14,000 feet) because it looms above Colorado Springs. Hiking to the top is an amazing experience – there’s a 26-mile hike, but I would go for the 13-mile hike, which starts closer to the fun part (the alpine) anyway. You can also drive up to the summit, but you need a permit ahead of time and then you pay an entrance fee on the road to the top.
3. Manitou Springs Incline: I said this itinerary would have lots of hiking! And this one is insane. You climb 2,000 feet (2,744 steps) in LESS THAN A MILE! I felt like puking when I did it, but it was so fun. Parking is very limited, so get there early.

You can find my exact Colorado Springs itinerary here.

After a day and a half enjoying Colorado Springs, it’s finally time to get into the Rocky Mountains.

And it welcomes you with something you’d never expect from Colorado: a giant dune field. And it’s not just any dune field! It has North America’s tallest dunes.

Free Camping near Colorado Springs

We ended up sleeping at a friend’s house in Colorado, so we didn’t end up going to the free campsites we researched.

The one that seemed best was Clyde Campground. There were also several options on Mt. Herman Road, which connects Monument and Woodland Park.

Do some extra research for these on iOverlander, Campendium or on freecampsites.net, where you can see people’s reviews and current conditions.

Day 3 & 4: Great Sand Dunes National Park

This national park is one of my favorite American national parks, and 100% the one where I’ve had the most fun!

I spent 2 amazing days here, and I think it was the perfect itinerary, so that’s what I’ll share with you.

Day 1

My first day in Great Sand Dunes National Park was crowded, so a park ranger recommended we drive to the lesser-known area of the park called the Sand Pit.

It was the best decision ever.

We only saw a few people all afternoon.

The Sand Pit has steep dunes right from the get-go, which means you’re fully in the dune field once you get to the top of that first dune.

And what a work of art that place is! I’ve learned that dune fields are my favorite places to be in nature because of how gorgeous they are.

Two things to know about hiking in the Sand Pit!

1. Don’t go sledding, because the sand here ends in harder-packed sand that can really hurt you.
2. This is the way to North America’s tallest dune. I didn’t know when I went, but I got SO close! There’s no trail, so download an offline map (although sometimes you get signal in the dunes). Then, find Hidden Dune by going to the coordinates 37.775916, -105.531912. It’s a total adventure!

Day 2

Your second day in Great Sand Dunes should be spent sand sledding!

Rent a sled from Great Sand Dunes Oasis, which is right outside the park, for $20.

Then, you’re on your own to enjoy!

This day involves starting early and hiking in the park’s main area. My recommendation is to hike to High Dune, which is the tallest dune you can see from the parking lot.

Funny enough, as close as it seems, it’s pretty hard to get to!

Then, you can practice sledding on the other side of High Dune. Once you’ve got it down, sled right down High Dune.

From then on, the day is all about hiking down and finding dunes to slide down. For the smoothest rides, find smooth sand where people haven’t walked, lay down, and spread your arms out.

End the day with a short hike to Zapata Falls, a few minutes from the park.

If you want complete details and all my tips, read my Great Sand Dunes National Park itinerary!

Free Camping near Great Sand Dunes

This is the day you might want to stay at a hotel, because you’ll have sand EVERYWHERE!

You could find a budget hotel in Alamosa, which has several good options.

Otherwise, if you’re camping for free like I did, there are a bunch of dispersed sites at the Sacred White Shell Mountain BLM. Once you pass the helipad, you can sleep in any of the big sites.

Then, keep heading west towards Durango.

Day 5: Durango & the Million Dollar Highway

Driving from Durango, through the Million Dollar Highway and to Telluride is my favorite scenic drive in the US. I’ve already done it 3 times!

To get started, Durango is just a cool outdoorsy city.

My aunt lived there for years, and my favorite things to do in Durango are:

• Running, walking or biking on the Animas River Trail (right in the city)
• Walking around the awesome downtown area for great food (I love Himalayan Kitchen and Cream Bean Berry)
• Paddleboarding or rafting on the river

But, for the Colorado road trip, Durango is the city where you kick off the Million Dollar Highway.

The official Million Dollar Highway is from Silverton to Ouray, but I like to think of it as being from Durango to Telluride.

The drive takes you through the most epic mountain scenery and gorgeous ski towns. And, though the scenic drive does have a few stops to see the view, the drive really is the best part.

You can read my guide to driving the Million Dollar Highway for all the best stops, what to do and why I love this part of the Rockies.

You just see jagged peak after jagged peak… for a couple of hours.

And then you get to the gorgeous town of Telluride.

Day 6: Telluride

I’ve also been here 3 times, and visiting Telluride in the summer as part of a Colorado road trip is the way to go!

Telluride is awesome because its quaint and beautiful, but the best part about it is it’s closeness to the outdoors.

The town is in a narrow valley with towering mountains on 3 sides. Walking through downtown, you can always see the striking peaks ahead of you with a ridiculously picturesque waterfall right down the middle.

For one day in Telluride, I’d say there are three things you HAVE to do:

1. Walk down Colorado Ave. (downtown) and enjoy the vibes. There’s always something going on and the town has lots of cool shops. The last time I went, there was a great musician just playing on the side of the road, and they have free concerts every Friday from 5-7 pm during the summer.
2. Hike to Bear Creek Falls. It’s gorgeous in the summer, not too difficult of a hike, and the waterfall at the end is thunderous (but not the picturesque one you can see from town). You can also get under the freezing water, which is perfect for a summer road trip.
3. Take the free Gondola to Mountain Village. The best part is the Gondola ride because the view is incredible. It takes you up to the top of the ridge at San Sophia Station (where you could watch the sunset) and then down to Mountain Village. The Village is the epitome of a ski town – it’s just TOO perfect. Walk around, have a coffee, and enjoy!

Free Camping Near Telluride

There are lots of free camping options near Telluride, but the ones closest can fill up quick because there aren’t many sites.

I chose to stay at Lower Beaver Campground. It’s 37 minutes from town, which isn’t super convenient, but I’ll take inconvenience over crowds and fees any day.

Day 7: Black Canyon of the Gunnison

2 hours from Telluride, this national park is not very well known because it’s really small, but it’s SO impressive.

It has Colorado’s tallest single cliff and is ridiculously steep. You can see the north rim from the south rim, which is the most popular area, and it looks so close.

But there’s a 2,000-foot canyon and raging river separating them.

Since the park’s so small, you can see everything in Black Canyon of the Gunnison in a day or even half a day.

The park is pretty much one scenic drive from the Visitor Center, with a bunch of stops and short hikes to outlooks on the way. I challenged myself to see every outlook, and it was great fun.

A Black Canyon itinerary could look something like this:

• Visitor Center and the park’s best hike (Oak Flat Trail)
• Scenic Drive with lots of stops
• Hike to Warner Point at the end of the drive

Read my Black Canyon of the Gunnison itinerary, which has a lot more details. I go over which stops on the scenic drive are most worth your time.

Free Camping near Black Canyon

There is BLM land right next to Black Canyon of the Gunnison, but it’s not where I stayed.

I stayed closer to Montrose and farther from the national park. The free site I chose is called Peach Valley OHV and it’s in the barren hills above of Montrose. It’s well-developed and perfect for car camping!

Day 8 & 9: Cathedral Lake & Aspen

Aaaand we’re back to another ski town; and like before, the best thing to do is find a hike in the nearby mountains!

Now, there are SO many hikes around Aspen, so I tried to find the best one.

I ended up choosing the hike to Cathedral Lake, and it didn’t disappoint.

The hike begins in a gorgeous aspen forest. Then, you hike on a talus field for quite a while until you reach the craziest set of switchbacks. Finally, you’re back in a forest, jump on a big rock to cross a creek, and you arrive at Cathedral Lake.

I was impressed with how big the lake is!

In the end, you hike a total of 5.3 miles and gain 2,000 feet of elevation. It’s pretty tough but not too long.

And then Aspen is another cool (bigger) ski town. It’s nice to walk through downtown, along with a picnic at the park. I actually spent the 4^th of July there and the parade and concert were a TON of fun.

But we didn’t love Aspen because it has an elitist vibe. Lala and I felt looked-down-on, dirtbags that we are.

Speaking of dirtbagging…

Free Camping near Aspen

There aren’t a lot of free campsites super close to Aspen, as is usual in wealthier areas. But the free dispersed sites you can find nearby are pretty good.

The problem is they get pretty crowded because everybody wants to go to Aspen.

I stayed at Lincoln Creek Dispersed Campground, which is 23 minutes east of Aspen. But then you have to drive a long time down Lincoln Creek Road to find a spot.

The problem is that the road gets pretty rough pretty quickly. You can get down it with AWD and semi-high clearance, but a 2WD vehicle isn’t making it.

You could also just drive 1 hour instead towards Twin Lakes, which is what we did for our 2^nd night. We found a great free campsite… more on that below.

Day 10: Twin Lakes & Delicious Coffee

This was a very short stop on my Colorado road trip, but it’s worth mentioning because I had a great cup of coffee.

First of all, the drive from Aspen to Twin Lakes is gorgeous because you drive over Independence Pass. The pass also has some incredible hikes.

Then, Twin Lakes are a pair of big alpine lakes that are beautiful and you can hike around.

What we did was go on a couple short hikes, and then had some great coffee right across the street from the Visitor Center. It’s not a store – it’s two colorful little bus-vans, and it was just a good time.

That’s all we did that day, and it was the perfect rest day for Day 11…

Free Camping near Twin Lakes

The campsite near Twin Lakes was simple but beautiful. And the best part is that it’s surrounded by paid campgrounds, so it feels good to be there for free.

If you search “Parry Peak Campground,” the road to the dispersed sites is right before the entrance to Parry Peak, to the left. The coordinates are: 39.0677201, -106.4058699.

Day 11: Colorado’s Tallest Mountain

15 minutes from Twin Lakes, we were driving towards Leadville and encountered two of our favorite peaks on the whole drive.

We really didn’t know what they were, so we looked at a map. They’re Mt. Elbert and Mt. Massive – Colorados tallest and second-tallest mountains!

It wasn’t in our itinerary, but we decided to climb the mountain the following morning, especially when we realized it was easy to summit.

And by easy, I mean it doesn’t require any technical mountain skills – it’s just a hike, but a hard hike! You hike 9.75 and gain 4,500 feet of elevation, not to mention the 3 false summits you have to pass before getting to the top.

It was the perfect addition to our Colorado Rockies road trip – we got to the tallest point in a state known for its mountains!

Don’t hesitate to do it! My guide on how to hike Mount Elbert shows just how simple and fulfilling this hike is.

Free Camping near Mount Elbert

We spent the night before and after our hike 12 minutes from the Mt. Elbert trailhead. Though there are paid sites right by the trailhead, this road with dispersed sites was perfect for us.

The coordinates for this free campsite near Mount Elbert are: 39.193472, -106.381528 and it’s on FS Rd 152. There are other free options in the area too in case this one fills up (see my free map linked above).

Day 11 & 12: Resting and Lake Dorothy

Take day 11 to rest from all the hiking and then hike to Lake Dorothy in the Arapaho Pass on Day 12.

The hike to Lake Dorothy was recommended by a Denver local – and it was spectacular!

The trail is one of the most popular day-hikes near Denver, so it can get crowded. But it wasn’t crowded at all during the week, which is when we went, even during the summer.

We decided to do this hike because it was easy to access and it gets you up to Arapaho Pass. The pass gets you to the Continental Divide and the landscape is an awesome scene of rugged peaks, snow, pine forests and alpine lakes.

The hike starts at the Fourth of July Trailhead and is really simple. It goes something like this:

• Walk through the forest
• Get to a long section with small shrubs and waterfalls crossing the path
• Hike through a long talus field
• Polar plunge in Lake Dorothy

It really is that simple, except for two forks in the road that might be confusing. I go over all the details on hiking to Lake Dorothy in my short guide!

You hike a total of 7.7 miles with 1,950 feet of elevation gain.

It was my favorite hike during my Colorado road trip!

Free Camping near Lake Dorothy

There are 3 places you can camp for free here:

• The free sites right at the trailhead. They’re first-come, first-served and fill up quickly.
• Just south of Nederland, at the coordinates: 39.946778, -105.517639, there are a bunch of sites, but they were all full when we were looking
• We slept at the Gordon Gulch Dispersed Camping Area, which was kind of far and not very well-kept. But it’s what we found!

We also slept at Gordon Gulch Dispersed before going to Rocky Mountain National Park the next day!

It’s not convenient at all, since the park is an hour away, but there aren’t many free sites near the park. This one was near enough for us and we already knew it, so we stayed another night.

Day 13: Rocky Mountain National Park

This American national park is a great taste of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.

Funny enough, since this Colorado road trip is SUCH a great experience in the Rocky Mountains, RMNP wasn’t as impressive as I thought it would be.

The mountains around it, like at Lake Dorothy and the Arapaho Pass are just as incredible – but they feel more free (no timed entry or crazy crowds). So, if there’s anything I would skip in this road trip, it would be Rocky Mountain National Park.

But we enjoyed our 1 day in Rocky Mountain National Park and Lala got to stamp her national park passport!

Oh, and the timed entry system at RMNP is simple – there are two options:

• The most beautiful part of the park is the Bear Lake Corridor, and permits for this area are harder to come by. This isn’t the permit you need for this itinerary, though.
• The permit you need for the scenic drive and main part of the park is just labeled “Timed Entry” on Recreation.gov. It costs $2, and you can enter the park during a 2-hour period between 9 am and 2 pm.

But you can enter the park without a permit if you get there before 9 am or after 2 pm (just pay the park fee or use your National Parks Pass).

That’s what we did! We got in before 9 and had an amazing day doing the scenic drive and short hikes all over the park.

Our Rocky Mountain National Park itinerary was the perfect way to spend just 1 day in the park:

1. Enter the park before 9 through the Beaver Meadows Entrance
2. Drive towards the Alpine Visitor Center, making LOTS of stops along the way (favorite stops: Many Parks Curve, Forest Canyon Overlook and Roger Toll Memorial)
3. Nerd out at the Alpine Visitor Center
4. Drive the west side of the park, stopping wherever interests you
5. Final destination: Adams Falls above Grand Lake – there’s a great swimming spot if you walk past the falls just a few minutes
6. Drive all the way back to see moose at the Sheep Lakes Information Station at sunset (we didn’t see any)

And just like that, the Colorado road trip comes to an end!

Apart from a delicious coffee in Estes Park (try Inkwell & Brew – I loved it), all that’s left is the trip home to a comfy bed!

Or, if you’re traveling full-time like Lala and I were, the road trip continues. Our next destination was Wyoming and a beautifully impressive road trip that BLEW. MY. MIND!

1-Week (7-day) Colorado Road Trip Itinerary

If you’re short on time, this road trip in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado is possible to do in a week. But you’d have to skip some places or make your stops a lot quicker.

This is how I would organize a 7-day Colorado road trip:

• Day 1: Drive straight to Colorado springs, hike in Garden of the Gods, and walk down Manitou Ave in Manitou Springs. Finish the day by driving towards Great Sand Dunes National Park.
• Day 2: Get to Great Sand Dunes early and spend the morning sledding. Pay Zapata Falls a quick visit and then drive towards Durango, stopping at a hotel to wash off the sand or camping for free near Durango.
• Day 3: Drive the million-dollar highway to Telluride in the morning, go straight to Bear Creek Falls and then take the Gondola to Mountain Village. On the way back, watch the sunset from San Sophia Station.
• Day 4: Drive to Black Canyon of the Gunnison and spend half a day getting to know the national park.
• Day 5: Drive to Aspen, but skip the Cathedral Lake hike. Enjoy the ski town, then drive to Twin Lakes and have a delicious coffee. This is a rest day for tomorrow’s challenge. So, head to the camping near the Mt. Elbert Trailhead.
• Day 6: Summit Mount Elbert, Colorado’s tallest mountain.
• Day 7: You have two options:
  • If there’s no way you can hike again, go to Rocky Mountain National Park and do the scenic drive with short hikes throughout.
  • If you’re feeling up for a gorgeous hike, drive to the Fourth of July Trailhead and hike to Lake Dorothy.

This would be an action-packed road trip, but SO worth doing!

Bonus Destinations on the Colorado Road Trip

1. Colorado National Monument: This gem, hidden right outside Grand Junction, Colorado, is a gorgeous and impressive set of canyons. It’s a park you can visit in half a day (just a scenic drive with viewpoints and short hikes), but worth the time if you ever go through Grand Junction.
2. Breckenridge: This is a well-known ski town and mountain area near Denver, but I happened to skip it during my Colorado road trip! The town is cool, but there’s also lots of hiking and biking in the area, beautiful lakes, 14ers, and a scenic drive through Boreas Pass.
3. Mt. Blue Sky: This14er is one of the easiest to summit, so it’s a lot of people’s first. You can also drive up all the way up on the Mt. Blue Sky scenic byway. The views are incredible all the way, but the top portion is closed until Memorial Day 2026. It’s still worth doing, though! I drove all the way to Lincoln Lake and loved the drive!

Colorado is my favorite American state, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

If you love road trips and are planning one, feel free to check out all my road trip itineraries. My 2 years living out of my SUV was all about getting to know the most amazing places in the US, and living on the road, going from place to place, was the experience of a lifetime!

Or, if you like the idea of camping for free in an SUV, check out my guide to SUV camping with all my experience from living in my Subaru Forester for 2 years.

Until next time!