Rick Steves: Harbor-front Makeovers

When Denver International Airport announced in 2015 that it was looking for a local company to build and operate a brewery inside the attached Westin hotel, it was big news. Not only would an onsite brewery highlight Colorado’s exploding craft beer scene, but it would also give DIA some cachet as one of the first and only airports to have a brewery physically located on its property. “It’s a chance to be unique and do something that someone else hasn’t done,” DIA’s then-senior vice president for concessions Neil Maxfield told Westword at the time, adding that the winning brewery would be required to make a signature IPA that would be served only at the airport. But that was one of the last times airport officials had anything frothy to say about the brewery, which has proven to be anything but a party.

There are so many fun ways to enjoy the great outdoors in Colorado, but it’s not always easy to share. It can be alarming to have a mountain biker or horseback rider suddenly interrupt your saunter on a trail (and vice versa). So here’s a small list of Front Range trails that are exclusively for hikers (not counting the occasional dog or adventure cat).

Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we offer our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems). My birthday is close to Memorial Day weekend every year, and I like to take advantage of the long weekend by checking a town off of my Colorado travel list. In years past, my friends and I have soaked up the San Juan Mountain views in the warmth of the Pagosa hot springs and gone whitewater rafting in Class 4 rapids down the Royal Gorge in Cañon City.

A bill that would have quadrupled property taxes for thousands of short-term rentals in Colorado is set to be significantly watered down next week, according to the bill’s sponsor. Since Sen. Chris Hansen, D-Denver, proposed the bill in the fall, AirBnB, VRBO and other short-term rental owners have rallied against the idea, saying it would devastate the tourism economy that ski towns rely on. Senate Bill 33 proposed classifying any property used as a short-term rental for more than 90 days per year as a lodging property beginning in 2026.

A deal for the state of Colorado to purchase the famous Stanley Hotel in Estes Park that inspired Stephen King’s “The Shining” is officially on the table. The Colorado Educational and Cultural Facilities Authority stepped up with a plan to buy the haunted hotel after a deal to sell the Stanley to an Arizona nonprofit fell through, said CECFA Executive Director Mark Heller. Heller said the authority hopes to wrap up the sale in the coming months, securing the government agency as the owner of the hotel and borrower of the bonds that will help finance 60 new rooms, a fresh restaurant and the construction of the Stanley Film Center. Instead of selling the hotel to Arizona’s Community Finance Corporation and taking ownership after the nonprofit paid back the bonds, CECFA will create a subsidiary and become the borrower of the bonds directly instead.

Sam Kemmis | NerdWallet First it was Ubers. Then it was Wendy’s hamburgers (except the fast food chain clarified it was technically dynamic pricing, not surge pricing). But now, the real deal — surge pricing — is targeting your checked bags. JetBlue quietly (sneakily?) introduced “peak” and “off-peak” pricing to its checked bag fees on March 22, a fact the world was alerted to because my editor happened to check the JetBlue website.