I was in Denver for a wedding last summer and had a lot of free time over my four-day stay. I too was downtown without a car.

The 16th Street Mall doesn’t offer much in the way of shopping that you couldn’t find elsewhere. For me, the only interesting stop was Tattered Cover, the independent book store. Check to see if there are any events while you’re in town.

Denverites are very proud of the Denver Art Museum. It doesn’t really rate as world-class, but some of the exhibits on local arts are worth a look.

A quirky museum that is often overlooked is the Kirkland. It’s more of a “cabinet of curiosities”, mostly 20th century painting, ceramics and design from a private collection. I love museums where the odd treasure is hidden amongst the cluttered, random junk.

And that, sadly, is about everything I managed to find of interest. I didn’t need to buy Nikes or Gap jeans. Nor did I want to hang out at the sports bars. I would have liked to sample some of the Mexican food immediately outside downtown, but social commitments prevented me from doing so.

I told my friends and their family at the wedding about the things I’d done, and asked what else I could do in town (my flight wasn’t until the evening, so I had a whole day to kill).

They looked at each other, finally suggested going to the movies, then changed the subject.

Denver is convenient as a stop on your way to somewhere else (skiing or hiking, for example). If you have a sports event, I’m sure you could grab a drink after the game. But other than that, Denver was something of a disappointment for a city its size. Hopefully there are some Denverites out there who will have more helpful suggestions.

Being downtown will be convenient, there’s plenty to do all in close range.

If you’re into museums, try the Modern Art museum next to the main library which is also worth a walk-through.

If you like to people-watch, there’s Sixteen Street Mall connecting the Capitol building all the way down to LoDo (plenty of good food there) and beyond. All along the way there’s plenty of places to stop and relax.

Larimer Square is a favorite too, although I haven’t been here in quite some time.

Cherry Creek ‘hood used to be a must-visit because of Tattered Cover bookstore (but they’ve been replaced with a furniture store), so the only place I can recommend there is the mall (meh).

That should be plenty for a short visit.