Flying in

If you’ll be flying to Colorado, the airport to fly into is Denver International Airport (DEN). The airport is about an hour away from the wedding venue.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1leNVGYlK4IAz_srP282dnEl3rRgAwe4&usp=sharing

International travelers

Australian citizens need to apply for an ESTA. You can do this here: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/

There’s a bunch of scam sites for ESTAs that charge you extra. Use the above URL.

The ESTA allows visa-free travel to the US for trips of <90 days. We recommend lodging the form at least a couple of days ahead of your flight. Use these details for point of contact on the form:

Timothy Fist 1433 R St NW, Apt 3, Washington, DC, 20009 +17206289369

If you’re not an Australian citizen, we recommend checking the specific requirements for your country.

General advice: at the border, when asked, make sure to clarify that you’re traveling for pleasure, and won’t be working while you’re in the US.

Getting around

It’s difficult but not impossible to get around Colorado without a car. We recommend renting a car / sharing a car rental with others. If you’d like to be connected with other guests about booking a shared rental car, add yourself to this spreadsheet and we’ll make sure you get connected.

🚗 Renting a car

Check out car rental options at Denver Airport here.

Another option is Turo, a carshare service that’s sometimes cheaper.

➡️ If you have a non-US drivers license, you can generally rent and drive a car in Colorado as long as your license is in English. If your license isn’t in English, you may also need an International Driver’s Permit (IDP) to rent a car. Check with the car rental company.

If you rent a car and don’t mind offering up an extra seat to another wedding guest who may need one, please add yourself to this spreadsheet!

🚌 Public transportation

There is a bus from the Denver Airport to Boulder (bus AB1), where you can transfer to Lyons. Google Maps is the best way to find specifics.

📱 Ride shares

Uber and Lyft are available, though for a small town like Lyons (where the wedding is taking place), it can be tricky to find a ride later at night. The cost of a ride share from Denver Airport to Lyons is (very approximately) $100-150 USD.

👟 Walking distance

The wedding venue and onsite cabins are located a 5 minute walk from downtown Lyons, which has a handful of restaurants and shops, including:

Coffee shop and bakery
Local grocery store
Restaurants (Taqueria, BBQ, Pizza)
A couple of breweries
Playground

Things to know about visiting Colorado

☀️ Weather

August in Colorado is the end of summer. Temperatures are typically around 70 - 90 degrees F / 21 - 32 C. The heat is dry, which means it tends to cool off a bit at night. If you visit deeper into the mountains, it will also be a bit cooler up there. Afternoon thunderstorms are common this time of year. If you’re going hiking, definitely try to go earlier in the morning - avoid being exposed on a mountain after ~1 pm. Thunderstorms typically roll through quickly; you won’t have a ton of notice, but it’s also likely to be fairly short-lived.

🚒 Fire safety

Colorado has long waged war against the fire kingdom. There is likely to be a fire ban in place during the time of the wedding. Many recent fires have devastated communities in this area, including one in 2024 that came close to Lyons. We won’t have campfires unless the fire risk is very low. Don’t worry too much though, if there’s a nearby wildfire we’ll almost certainly have advanced warning.

🏔️ Elevation

The wedding will be at 5,340 feet / 1,628 meters above sea level. If you visit deeper into the mountains (such as Rocky Mountain National Park) you’ll be exploring at about 7,000 to 14,000 feet (~2,100 to 4,265 meters). Learn about preventing and treating altitude sickness here.

🗓️ Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day is a public holiday in the US, taking place on Monday, September 1st. Some stuff might be closed that day as our nation celebrates the social and economic achievements of American workers. More notably, this holiday also marks the anniversary of Tim and Mollie’s first date.

Cool places to go

If you’re coming from out of town, we definitely recommend seeing more of Colorado while you’re here. Here are some cool places to check out (though by no means is this an exhaustive list):

Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP)

The entrance to RMNP is a 30 minute drive from Lyons. This is a gorgeous place to hike or drive around. Note that the park requires an entrance fee and a timed entry ticket - learn more about the park here.

Estes Park

Estes Park is a mountain town located a 30 minute drive from Lyons. This can be a nice place to stay if you want to explore RMNP. The town has activities for all ages, restaurants, breweries, and of course incredible views, wildlife, and hiking. There’s also a haunted hotel, where the Shining was filmed.

Mountain towns

There are so many cool mountain towns to visit in Colorado, and these places (and the nature surrounding them) are some of the most beautiful places in the US! Here’s a quick list (in order of distance from the wedding):

Steamboat Springs
Breckenridge
Vail
Aspen
Glenwood Springs
Salida
Monte Vista / Alamosa (San Luis Valley)
Crested Butte
Telluride
Durango

If you’re looking to take your roadtrip to other states, definitely consider Moab, Monument Valley, and/or Zion National Park in Utah, Taos in New Mexico, or the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

Red Rocks Amphitheater

Red Rocks is an iconic concert venue located an hour’s drive from Lyons. It’s definitely worth checking out their calendar to see what shows are going on near your visit. The calendar for the coming year is typically released in November or December.

Boulder / Denver

Boulder and Denver in August are known for hiking, mountain biking, rock climbing, and microbreweries. There are more than 150 breweries in this area and more than 150 miles (240 km) of hiking trails.

Boulder is the closest city (more like a college town) to Lyons, about a 25 minute drive South. Boulder has hiking, shopping/thrifting, and restaurants on Pearl Street. It also has a unique location right up against the mountains and Boulder Creek running through it. The University of Colorado is located here.

Fort Collins, another college town located 1 hour North of Lyons, has a similar vibe to Boulder. If choosing between the two, we’d go with Boulder.

A bit farther out from the mountains is Denver (1 hour from Lyons), which is a pretty typical midsize US city. Denver is a good place to catch a Rockies baseball game, experience some immersive art, or find some solid tacos. One thing to note is that the Denver Airport is actually pretty far from the city of Denver, so by traveling to the airport you are unlikely to see much of the city itself (though we wouldn’t stress too much if visiting Denver doesn’t fit into your visit).