Colorado Springs

It's easy to see how this natural landmark earned such an ethereal title: These magnificent red rock formations look as though deities themselves could've carved them. — U.S. News & World Report

Pikes Peak delivers panoramic views of four states, Colorado Springs, and the mountainous Continental Divide. — Travel + Leisure

On 29sq mi at the foot of the Rampart Range, this is the only US service academy in the West. — Michelin Guide

My daughters and their friends get to feed giraffes, pet a wallaby joey, hand-feed a loud flock of cockatiels and budgies, and get incredibly close to a trio of mountain lions. — Afar Magazine

After two boys discovered a cavern entrance in 1880, Manitou resident George Snider began exploring its passages. — Michelin Guide

This grand stone tower was dedicated to a famed American humorist almost by coincidence.   — Atlas Obscura

You might catch a glimpse of some future Wheaties-box material. — Fodor's

Notable for the special exhibits the museum puts together or receives on loan from institutions like the Smithsonian. — Fodor's

The museum’s collection is surprisingly sophisticated, with some terrific Latin American art and photography, and great rotating exhibit. — Lonely Planet

A road threads through the Pillars of Hercules, a slot in South Cheyenne Canyon, and terminates at this impressive 181ft series of waterfalls. — Michelin Guide

The 40 rooms and towers in Phantom Cliff Canyon were dismantled by archaeologists in the Four Corners area at the end of the 19C and reconstructed here as a re-creation of 12-13C Anasazi culture. — Michelin Guide

Multimedia presentations trace the lifestyle of rodeo, "America's original sport" from its 19C origins to the present. — Michelin Guide

This museum, operated by the American Numismatic Association has gold coins from the early 19th century. — Lonely Planet

Today three 18-hole golf courses, 12 tennis courts, four swimming pools, riding stables, nine restaurants and lounges, a conference center and spa make up the 700-room complex. — Michelin Guide

This living history museum near the Garden of the Gods park entrance, is worth a visit for those interested in the lives of Native Americans and 19th-century homesteaders in the region. — Lonely Planet

This 1,600-acre park provides a variety of outdoor activities amid a largely untamed wilderness. — Travel + Leisure

Located in a former Baptist church, this tiny museum and bookstore introduces visitors to the history of Old Colorado City and is a good way to add context to a wander past today's boutiques and restaurants. — Lonely Planet

Once a separate, rowdier town where miners caroused, today the stretch of Colorado Avenue between 24th Street and 28th Street, west of downtown, is a kitchy National Historic Landmark District. — Fodor's