5280 Magazine

For over 30 years, 5280 magazine has served its readers as an essential guide to life in the Mile-High City and beyond. Throughout those three decades, the publication has stayed true to its original mission: proudly locally owned and strongly committed to delivering award-winning journalism that tells Denver’s story with authority and style. Each month, 5280 covers the greatest and latest in dining, culture, wellness, travel, and adventure content.

5280 Magazine

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Give Frosty A Glow Up • A professional snow sculptor’s tips for upping your snowman game.

Bottle Shops • BookBar, a beloved Denver bookseller meets public house, will close its doors for good this month. But don’t worry: There are still spots around town where you can imbibe while you browse.

Relic Reborn • The Western Hotel and Spa is a remnant of Ouray’s mining past. Now, it’s set to become a gem of the Western Slope’s hospitality scene.

Defining Itself • CU Denver wants to become the nation’s first equity-serving university. First, it needs to decide what that means.

ON BRAND • How to read the West’s unofficial alphabet.

Take It Easy • A new restaurant in Whittier combines destination-dining fare with the relaxed ambience of a neighborhood joint.

Dry Spell • Home to hundreds of breweries—including several of the industry’s pioneers—Colorado is unquestionably a beer state. But as more drinkers rethink their relationships with alcohol, makers are increasingly crafting zero-proof, lower-calorie alternatives. “Craft beer is not going anywhere, and alcohol is not going anywhere, but the trends show that the popularity of alcohol consumption is dropping off,” says Steve Indrehus, director of brewing operations at Idaho Springs’ Tommyknocker Brewery. Here, five nonalcoholic (N/A) beer-esque beverages to sip during Dry January and beyond.

Salt Life • LoDo’s glitzy Water Grill serves fresh-caught specialties, but is it worth the splurge?

BETTER TOGETHER • Long-standing tradition dictates that seafood is best enjoyed with lighter wines that won’t overpower delicate flavors, but there are many varieties to choose from. Whether you want bubbly or a dessert wine, we tapped Denver-based sommelier Maia Parish to help you pick the right grape to pair with your fruits of the ocean.

Super Someday? • Denver has ample sunshine, temperate winters, a dynamic downtown, and a fanatical football fan base, and yet the Mile High City has never hosted a Super Bowl.

SPRINGS ETERNAL • Everything old is new again at Colorado’s hot springs, where recent expansions and upgrades have created fresh ways of savoring the Earth’s oldest bathtubs.

UNCHARTED WATERS • A change in ownership transformed humble Trimble Hot Springs into world-class Durango Hot Springs Resort & Spa.

BIGGER AND BETTER—BUT STILL PERFECTLY WEIRD • Desert Reef’s recent improvements didn’t alter its personality.

THE NAKED TRUTH • Skinny-dipping in a San Luis Valley hot spring taught me the beauty of being au naturel in nature.

IMPROVING UPON PERFECTION • The already über-luxe cabins at Dunton Hot Springs get a face-lift.

MINING FOR HEAT • Have all of Colorado’s hot springs already been discovered? Far from it, says Steve Beckley, who developed Glenwood Springs’ Iron Mountain Hot Springs and is planning to launch a new hot spring destination in Utah. We asked him what it takes to discover new sources of steamy satisfaction.

KIDS-FREE ZONE • A Glenwood Springs–based hot springs resort isn’t kicking out the kiddos—it’s just making more room for the grown-ups.

OVERLOVED • Rampant abuse prompted “No Trespassing” signs at Rico Hot Springs, where owners devised a friendly way to...