How to Spend 3 Hours in Denver: Civic Center, Blue Bear and Larimer Square
Updated October 9, 2026
Three hours in Denver is enough for a free walk across downtown. Start at Civic Center Park below the Capitol, meet the Big Blue Bear at the Convention Center, pass the D&F Tower and end the walk in Larimer Square.
Downtown Denver is compact, and a diagonal walk from the Capitol to Lower Downtown covers a good slice of the city's story. Civic Center Park is the formal heart of town, with the gold domed Capitol on one side and the City and County Building on the other. A few blocks north, a giant blue bear peers into the Convention Center. From there, 16th Street leads to a clock tower finished in 1910 and on to Larimer Square, a block of Victorian buildings saved in the 1960s. Every stop is free and outdoors, and the walks between them are short. The sun is strong at this altitude even on cool days, so bring both water and sunscreen.
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The 3 hour plan, stop by stop
Stops and travel: 1 hr 57 min to 2 hr 32 min of 3 hours
This formal park was laid out in the early 1900s as the centerpiece of a plan to make Denver a grander city. It holds a Greek style outdoor theater, curved colonnades and lawns that host festivals and markets. The Colorado State Capitol stands on its east side. The Capitol's west steps carry markers for one mile above sea level, and a 2003 survey placed the true mile two steps lower, on the 13th step. The Capitol building itself is open on weekdays except state holidays, with free guided tours.
Tip: Walk up the Capitol's west steps and look for the mile high markers, then turn around for the view straight down the park to the City and County Building, with the mountains beyond on a clear day.
- Time here
- 30 to 40 min
- Website
- denvergov.org
NaviTime to head out from Civic Center Park for I See What You Mean. It's a 15 minute walk if you leave now. Here's the link
Better known as the Big Blue Bear, this 40 foot sculpture by Lawrence Argent has stood outside the Colorado Convention Center since 2005. The bear rises on its hind legs and presses its nose to the glass, curious about what is going on inside. Its faceted blue surface makes it look a little like a giant low resolution drawing. It stands on 14th Street, free to see at any hour.
Tip: To fit the whole bear and the glass wall in one photo, stand across 14th Street. Inside the lobby, you can look back out at it through the window.
- Time here
- 10 to 15 min
- Website
- denverconvention.com
NaviTime to head out from I See What You Mean for Daniels & Fisher Tower. It's a 10 minute walk if you leave now. Here's the link
This clock tower was finished in 1910 for the Daniels & Fisher department store and opened in 1911, modeled on the campanile of St. Mark's in Venice. It rises about 330 feet and stayed the tallest structure in Denver for more than forty years. The store closed in 1958 and was torn down in 1970 and 1971 for urban renewal, but the tower was spared. It now rises over a small plaza on 16th Street, with a clock face on each side.
Tip: Stand in the plaza at the foot of the tower and look straight up the brick shaft to the clock faces, then walk two blocks northwest along 16th Street to Larimer Street and turn left for one block to Larimer Square.
- Time here
- 15 to 20 min
- Website
- denvergov.org
NaviTime to head out from Daniels & Fisher Tower for Larimer Square. It's a 7 minute walk if you leave now. Here's the link
Larimer Square is the 1400 block of Larimer Street, where many of the commercial buildings date from the 1870s and 1880s. In the 1960s, preservationists saved the block from demolition, and in 1971 it became the first historic district named by Denver's Landmark Preservation Commission. The oldest survivor is the Kettle Building from 1873, first home to George Kettle's butcher shop. Today, the block is lined with restaurants, bars and shops, with strings of lights overhead.
Tip: Come back after dark if you can, when the lights across the street are on. In the daytime, look up at the upper floors, where the old brick and stone fronts are better preserved than at street level.
- Time here
- 30 to 45 min
- Website
- larimersquare.com
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