Boulder sits at the foot of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, where the flat plains abruptly end and the Flatirons — massive tilted slabs of red sandstone — rise almost vertically from the edge of town. Few American cities have a setting like this: you can be hiking in genuine wilderness within twenty minutes of downtown.
The city is home to the University of Colorado and has developed a culture shaped by outdoor sports, academic life, and a counterculture streak going back to the 1960s. Pearl Street Mall, the pedestrian heart of downtown, is one of the most lively street scenes in the American West — street performers, independent shops, good restaurants, and the constant backdrop of the mountains. The Dushanbe Teahouse, a gift from Boulder's Tajik sister city decorated with hand-carved ceilings and ceramic panels, is one of the most beautiful small buildings in Colorado.
For the outdoors, Chautauqua Park at the base of the Flatirons is the starting point for dozens of trails ranging from gentle walks to technical rock climbs on the Flatiron faces. The University of Colorado Museum of Natural History on the nearby CU campus is free and worth an hour. Boulder is an expensive town — the University and the outdoor industry have driven up prices considerably — but the setting and the quality of the hiking are unmatched anywhere along the Front Range.