Boulder, Colorado

While Boulder is most notable for being at the base of the Rockies and possessing an amazing outdoor culture, the city of Boulder has become as much a part of what makes this place spectacular as the mountain itself.

Boulder has three major music venues, a thriving culinary scene, some of the best craft beer on the planet (the Brewers Association is headquartered here), fantastic boutique shopping combined with a thriving arts/crafts scene, all topped off with legalized marijuana. For a city with a relatively small population, you’re getting a social scene more akin to cities 5x its size.

While Boulder is most notable for being at the base of the Rockies and possessing an amazing outdoor culture, the actual city of Boulder is as much a part of what makes this place spectacular now as the mountain itself.

Boulder has three major music venues, a thriving culinary scene, some of the best craft beer on the planet (the Brewers Association is headquartered here), fantastic boutique shopping combined with a thriving arts/crafts scene, all topped off with legalized marijuana. For a city with a relatively small population, you’re getting a social scene more akin to cities 5x its size.

Growth is the inevitable outcome for a place as beautiful and compelling as Boulder. That growth comes at a cost. That’s both true, it’s damned expensive to live here, and figuratively true, as newcomers (particularly those damned Californians) flock to the city known as the Berkeley of the Rockies. This creates tension between the newbies and the long-termers, who wouldn't mind things staying more the same. You also get an influx of college students every year, which is both energizing and exhausting for a place whose growth has made it feel like it could probably use a good nap.

Also, if you’re hardcore MAGA, then we highly recommend not putting Boulder (or Berkeley) on your shortlist of places to consider.

Boulder is relatively small for such a well-known place, and as a result, its neighborhoods are less defined than some larger cities. It tends to feel more like you’re living in regions of the city, with North, East, West, and South Boulder, the notable distinctions for where you live. These regions are known for different things: North is the arts scene, East is for breweries and socializing, West offers access to the foothills and hiking, and South is home to the smaller, ethnic restaurants and more off-the-beaten-path shopping. While Boulder isn’t very diverse, it has a bit of cultural diversity in the South region.

Finally, Downtown is dominated by the Pearl-Street pedestrian mall, with lots of loft condo living and apartment rentals. For those looking for extremely short walks to commercial experiences, this is your best bet.

To see what locals get up to for fun in Boulder, check out the calendar of events.

We know that lots of people are bailing on their cities to go to places like Boulder which offer a covid/post-covid respite from their old lives. They plan to work remotely and that all sounds perfect. If however, you ever choose to leave your old gig you could hardly be in a better smaller city than Boulder for finding a new job. This place is jumping with tech and aerospace and creative enterprises.

Also, as long as you’re living here, you might as well enjoy the 300 days of sunshine. After largely being shut in for a couple years it is really nice to go out and get some rays.