Things To Do in Highlands Ranch

Denver Patio Ride's party bus moves through the River North arts district and downtown by way of pedaling—any willing pub-crawlers can power the party forward as the sober driver steers and brakes. After jump-starting at Billy’s Gourmet Hot Dogs on Larimer and Broadway, the bus cruises at a low-key 5 miles per hour, stopping at a smorgasbord of bars, many of which pour $5 specials of one shot and one beer. Guides infuse jaunts with historical tidbits, trivia, and prizes, while the solar-powered sound system’s iPod hookup allows pedalers to blast their personal collection of upbeat audio books. No weather other than rain or snow prevents tours, and the bus’s capacious storage space accommodates any party accessory except beer, which is not allowed on the bus. Revelers can rent out the whole bus for large parties, or buy seats on a weekly schedule of public pub-crawls.

Extra Innings Littleton's sprawling baseball enclave sharpens batting and pitching skills with a lineup of seven multiuse training tunnels. Each spacious tunnel is 70 feet long, 25 feet high, and 15 feet wide, leaving plenty of room for wild pitches, fly balls, and improvement. There's no limit on the number of pitches flung by the ball-launching machines, which can be adjusted to spew out blazing fastballs for the pros or gentle, encouraging lobs that help to train new players; tees are also available for the youngest sluggers. If human pitchers want to sub in for Extra Innings' robotic all-star, the facility's protective L-screens stand ready to protect them from line drives as pitching arms practice hurling orbs toward a catching or batting partner.

At the Jumpoline Park, the whole family can escape from the everyday stresses of work, school, and gravity. Decked out in rainbow colors, the trampolines send jumpers soaring into the air, giving them the feeling of walking on the moon, where the surface is made of inner-spring mattresses. Jumping teams lob balls at each other in high-flying games in the dodgeball area, and kids age 7 and under leap safely in their own section, protected from injury by padded walls. But this enclave doesn't house just trampolines. Toddlers play in their own soft-surface area, while parents relax under the skilled hands of in-house massage therapists. During breaks, everyone meets up at the coffee shop for a snack or a cup of frozen yogurt.

With a blazing marquee declaring “Hollywood” in towering neon letters, SouthGlenn Stadium 14 invokes the image of classic cinemas while still using the latest moviegoing technology. More than 2,500 high-backed seats cradle viewers across 14 theaters equipped with state-of-the-art Sony Digital 4K projection systems. Nine of these theaters also surround audiences with RealD 3-D systems, allowing them to revel in the thrills of endless snakes-in-a-nut-can scenes. Before films, the SkyboX Bar and Grill offers up a full-service menu of café entrees and craft drinks, including $1 domestic beers, $2 craft beers, and $1 fountain sodas. Entrees and beverages can be delivered to viewers lounging in Premiere Cinema balcony seats or enjoyed in the Skybox lounge.

Located within the Robert E. Loup Jewish Community Center, JCC Sports & Fitness welcomes people of all religions, ethnicities, genders, and walks of life. Inside, members audition new sweatbands atop Precor, Cybex, StairMaster, and other cardio machines, or head to the weight room to test their strength by arm-wrestling equipment by Cybex and FreeMotion. Between the spinning, heated yoga, and group exercise studios, instructors teach more than 100 group classes each week, but personal trainers are also available for one-on-one or small-group training.

Parents on their way to the full-size gymnasium or indoor or outdoor pools can drop their kids off at the childcare center, or suit up alongside them to wade in the kiddie pool. Steam rooms and whirlpools help men and women relax and shed stress after a long day of work, and men can also head into a traditional shvitz, or steam bath.

Denver Botanic Gardens houses vibrant flowers, lush vegetation, and educational activities for visitors of all ages. Native and adapted plants flourish in the York Street campus, which also houses Mordecai Children’s Garden—a 3-acre lot with alpine gardens, mountain ranges, and cool bugs. The two-story waterfall at Marnie's Pavilion bursts with blooming orchids year-round, and a Japanese garden features Ponderosa pines sculpted to look like bonsai. Visitors stroll through water gardens inspired by Monet's estate at Giverny.

A member of the 1996 Olympic fencing team. A three-time NCAA champion. A former top-ranked fencer in the United States. With those myriad career achievements behind him, Tom Strzalkowski now trains the next generation of fencers at Fencing Academy of Denver. Along with his fellow instructors, Tom designs programs for both adults and children of all skill levels. During group and private lessons specializing in sabers, foils, or épées, the coaches teach fencing fundamentals such as identifying target areas and performing basic lunges. Sessions aim to improve stamina and nimbleness, and also cater to each student's personal goals, from competing in national tournaments to rescuing a significant other from swashbuckling pirates.