Denver

The East's gateway to the Rockies, "Mile High" Denver is where all of the mountain West's natural splendor begins. Set at the eastern base of the range, the city is just a few miles from the ascent into the mountains. Millions of skiers and snowboarders fly into Denver International Airport each year to make the trek.

Denver is Colorado's largest city by far, as well its capital and multi-cultural hotbed. Its position is a strike of luck, literally. No river, railroad or lake caused its founding, but rather it was where the first few flakes of gold were found in 1858, and spread from there. In recent years, it's also been one of the fastest-growing major cities in America too, thanks in part to its location near the Rockies and affordability.

The downtown area with many outside patio and deck bars around the baseball stadium in the historic Ball Park neighborhood is a lively night scene. Patios are a great way to take in the mountain backdrop and dry air, not to mention one of the area's many microbrews. Sports fans especially love Denver, which is wild about its four major sports teams, and is also a regular host to top major golf tournaments on all the pro tours.

However, this isn't a city where you're supposed to sit around and watch other people do stuff. Denver is loaded with urban bike trails, plus hiking trails outside the city limits.

While the city will always be known first and foremost as a ski bum's gateway, it offers plenty of golf in the summer months. Denver has a solid mix of both municipal-run golf courses all the way up to very high-end, famous private clubs into the mountains such as Cherry Hills and Castle Pines. The area offers such a diversity of landscapes for the game, from drier and flat desert-type terrain, to foothills and mountain golf courses to the west.

While the occasional snowed-in Denver Bronco game might lead folks to believe Denver gets pounded with snow, the winters are actually quite mild. Golfers may be able to catch a few pleasant afternoons on a golf course in the winter months, when the ski resorts are packed just a few miles over in the Rockies.