Things to do in Laramie
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Laramie
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best months, late June to mid September, byway open, trails and ranch operations running, markets on.
Golden aspen at Vedauwoo and Happy Jack, football Saturdays, fewer crowds, first snows possible.
Worst for a first visit, byway closed, bitter wind and I 80 closures, unless skiing or basketball is the point.
Shoulder month, byway typically reopens around Memorial Day depending on snow, check conditions.
What's on
- Laramie Jubilee Days July, around Independence Day week
Rodeo, downtown carnival, parade, street dances and the Laramie BrewFest, the biggest weekend of the year.
- Cheyenne Frontier Days Late July
The world's largest outdoor rodeo in Cheyenne, day tripped from a calmer Laramie base.
- University of Wyoming Homecoming October
Homecoming and home football at War Memorial Stadium, hotels sell out.
- Albany County Fair Late summer, typically August
The agricultural county at its most itself, with livestock, rodeo and fair food.
Best things to do in Laramie
Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site
Laramie's signature sight, the territorial prison that held Butch Cassidy, restored as a self guided historic site.
University of Wyoming Geological Museum
A free campus museum built around a full Apatosaurus skeleton and Wyoming's rich fossil record.
Laramie Plains Museum
The 1892 Ivinson Mansion, a guided house museum telling the railroad town story through one family's home.
University of Wyoming Art Museum
Free rotating exhibitions of American and Western art in the striking Centennial Complex on campus.
American Heritage Center
UW's archive of the American West, with public exhibitions drawn from ranch, railroad and photo collections.
Laramie Mural Project
More than 20 large murals across downtown telling Laramie's stories, best seen on a slow walk from the depot.
Ames Monument
A 60 foot granite pyramid alone on the high plains honouring the Ames brothers of the transcontinental railroad.
Laramie Railroad Depot
The 1924 Union Pacific depot, now a small museum where Laramie's railroad founding story is told in place.
Where to stay in Laramie
Downtown Historic District
walkable town base, couples and food trips
Restaurants, breweries, murals and the depot on foot, with the university a short walk east. Supply is mainly vacation rentals.
University / Grand Avenue East
families, game weekends and practical stays
Chain hotels near War Memorial Stadium and campus, with parking, pools and breakfast.
Ranch country west
outdoors first and luxury ranch stays
Guest ranch and cabin country toward Centennial and the Snowy Range, quiet with dark skies.
Think twice about
- I-80 / Curtis Street motel strips
Bleak, noisy, wind exposed truck corridors that are car dependent for every meal. Fine for a cheap interstate night, a poor visitor base.
- West Laramie
Residential and isolated at night with sparse lighting and nothing walkable. No safety crisis, just a pointless base for a visitor.
Best restaurants in Laramie
Altitude Chophouse and Brewery
Laramie's best dinner, a downtown steakhouse brewing its own ales, with ribeye, salmon and a dog friendly patio.
Wyoming's Rib & Chop House
Premium steaks and award winning baby back ribs in a casual room that handles big groups with standout service.
Sweet Melissa
Vegetarian comfort food since 1999, famous for its sweet potato black bean burrito and cauliflower wings.
Anong's Thai Cuisine
Beloved Thai cooking downtown, with Panang and Massaman curries, pad Thai and a lunch buffet regulars arrive early for.
Born In A Barn
A barn themed downtown bar grill owning the burger conversation, with Hatch chile burgers and PB and J wings.
Mizu Sushi
A creative downtown sushi bar proving flown in fish plus skill beats geography, best at the bar with the Twister roll.
The Railyard
A newer downtown American bar grill with bison rigatoni, walleye tacos and craft cocktails near the depot.
J's Prairie Rose
A retro pink diner serving the best cheap breakfast in town, green chili burritos, biscuit towers and cinnamon rolls.
Outdoor things to do in Laramie
Vedauwoo Recreation Area
Weathered granite towers famous for crack climbing, with the Turtle Rock loop for hikers, picnics and scrambling.
Snowy Range Scenic Byway
Highway 130 climbs past Lake Marie and Mirror Lake to a 10847 foot pass, the region's great alpine drive in summer.
Medicine Bow Peak
The 12013 foot summit of the Snowy Range, reached by the Lakes Trail past a chain of alpine lakes.
Curt Gowdy State Park
Reservoirs and granite foothills with top singletrack and the Crow Creek Trail to a wade in Hidden Falls.
Pilot Hill
Town edge trails now linked by singletrack to Happy Jack and the national forest, rideable from downtown.
Glenn "Red" Jacoby Golf Course
UW's public 18 hole course at 7220 feet, where thin air flatters your drive under Snowy Range views.
Snowy Range Ski Area
A small, friendly, inexpensive ski hill above Centennial, ideal for learners, families and low stress snow days.
Deerwood Ranch Wild Horse EcoSanctuary
Guided tours of a working ranch hosting wild horses, led by the family that runs the sanctuary.
Best hotels in Laramie
Vee Bar Guest Ranch
A historic guest ranch with riverside suites, cabins and a celebrated riding programme, Laramie's true luxury stay.
Hilton Garden Inn Laramie
The best hotel in town, across from War Memorial Stadium with a restaurant, bar, indoor pool and free parking.
Hampton Inn Laramie
A reliable Grand Avenue hotel with free hot breakfast, an indoor pool and parking that handles trailers.
Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Laramie
Modern rooms and suites near I 80 with free breakfast, a pool and easy arrival and departure for road trips.
Motel 6 Laramie, WY
A basic, pet friendly budget motel with free parking, the cheap bed that leaves budget for food and outdoors.
Is Laramie expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $65 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $130 a person |
| Splurge | $300 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- War Memorial Stadium: weeks ahead
- Glenn "Red" Jacoby Golf Course: a few days ahead
- Deerwood Ranch Wild Horse EcoSanctuary: weeks ahead
- Saratoga Hot Springs Resort: a few days ahead
- Vee Bar Guest Ranch: months ahead
- Hilton Garden Inn Laramie: weeks ahead
- Altitude Chophouse and Brewery: a few days ahead
- Wyoming's Rib & Chop House: a few days ahead
- Book hotels first for UW home football, graduation and Jubilee Days, the town sells out.
- Book Vee Bar summer weeks months ahead and reserve Altitude and Rib & Chop on weekends.
- Book Deerwood tours and Saratoga Resort spa days ahead in summer.
Is Laramie safe?
- Altitude is the main risk, hydrate, take day one gently and use sunscreen at 7200 to 12000 feet.
- Be off high rock and summits before afternoon lightning, and never approach moose at the lakes.
- Check wyoroad.info before winter I 80 or Highway 130 drives and treat closures as absolute.
- Walk the Laramie River Greenbelt by day, it is poorly lit after dark.
Laramie travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- The I 80 motel and fast food exit is not Laramie, do not judge the town from it.
- Vedauwoo at midday from the main lot only is crowded, walk the full Turtle Rock loop.
- Ames Monument alone is 15 minutes, only visit it as a Vedauwoo add on.
- Any winter plan using the Snowy Range Byway or Medicine Bow Peak is impossible, the road is closed.
Getting around Laramie: public transport and more
- You need a car beyond downtown and campus, there is no visitor transit to trailheads.
- Downtown, campus and Grand Avenue are the walkable core, flat but very windy.
- SafeRide runs fare free late night weekend rides within city limits, call 307-766-RIDE.
- Most visitors fly to Denver and drive about 2.5 hours or take the Groome shuttle.
Who Laramie suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Laramie your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App Store