My Lifestyle Review of Denver
Or how I learned to love the brewery
When people asked where I would consider living, Denver was always at the top of the list, so I was glad to try living here finally. After 4 weeks in Denver (and a few days in Evergreen & Golden), here is my review of what it was like to live here.
Affordability (6/10)
I’ve been to Denver about 4 times before this, and always considered it pretty cheap (especially compared to New York). However, on this trip, I was really surprised at how close the price points have now become. Groceries, Food Delivery & even drinks, were not that far off New York (about 80–95% of the prices). Accommodation though was much more reasonable, part of this comes from Denver being much smaller, so the areas people want to live are within walking distance of Downtown. Rent would likely be about half the price in New York and maybe even less for buying, especially as you can get a large 3-bed house, completely detached for the price of a 1-bedroom, small apartment on the Upper West Side.
Friends & Family (3/10)
This was one of the areas, Denver was always going to be far behind London. It was an extra 2 hours (9 total) for the flight, but there are multiple airlines doing direct to Manchester (where my parents live) & London. There is also an extra 2 hours time difference in the clocks, which I didn’t realize how much those 2 hours feel. As I’ve not been the earliest bird during this time, it has been hard to connect with people back in Europe. However, all of the people I have met here have been really nice (On my first day I met someone on opposite balconies who invited me for a drink!), and I can see that I could build a friendship group here — shoutout to Amanda, my mountain travel buddy, who has introduced me to some great people too!
Dating (4/10)
This one quite surprised me, for some reason I thought I would “do well” in Denver — the accent, my English dress sense, traveler…etc. But I don’t think I really connected with anyone here. This is partially because I was spending time with people from my Nomad House and friends who were visiting. I get the impression that relationships are often formed from friends of friends than anything. The one-speed dating event I went to was fun but not at all fruitful. Hard to judge in just 4 weeks, but I am disappointed about how this went.
Culture (7/10)
One of the things I love about a small-medium city is there is less choice. This might sound negative to most people, but I actually think I would go to shows, concerts, and galleries more because I’ll sign up for the newsletters and that will be the one time to see the particular act in 5 years, so I’m either going or missing. In New York there felt like there was so much on that it was impossible to keep up, so I’d see less, ironically. In the city itself, there are several great museums, theaters, and also Red Rocks (see above) that I really enjoyed.
Nightlife / Logistics (7/10)
As a culture, there is a big brewery scene, which to me is closer to Pub culture (which I preferred) to the fancy/dive bar culture of New York. Though I still only drink Lagers/Helles/Pils, each brewery had at least 2 pints I enjoyed. The US has a great musical scene, as it's easier for them to play cover music (and I think they don't pay people enough), which means you can be in a random bar/restaurant and have amazing live music. Alas, Howl at the Moon was closed, one of my favorite bars of all time (with dueling pianos). Cabs are pretty cheap, and to be honest I was happy walking the 20–60 minutes to places. Similar to other cities it has been taken over by the Dart/Mini golf scene too (which would have been great for a date!)
Health & Fitness (7/10)
If you didn’t know, Denver is about a 30-minute drive from the mountains, so is a big hiking city. Most people seem to drive out at the weekend for a long hike and then return for a couple of pints to celebrate. Being a city as well, there are lots of Yoga, Cycling, and regular gyms. I didn’t end up doing anything outside of hiking, but I would definitely join a gym or 2 here (in part to work off the beers). I did, however, find that at most restaurants/breweries it is hard to eat healthily as a vegetarian. There is a big push for burgers here, and although you can get good food in more specialty restaurants, the default is unhealthy. Having said that, I was impressed with how most places had a filling vegetarian meal at least!
Job & Startup Opportunities (7/10)
My first week in Denver was Denver Startup Week. The biggest free startup week in the world (apparently). It was really great to see a city this size, really push above its weight in the startup world. I also learned that if you want to start a Green/Climate Tech company, then around here is the place to be. With its multiple great universities (with big focuses on Climate Change), being a desirable place to live, central location & also a number of government agencies being based here — If I was to try to create a startup in that space, this would definitely be the place to do it. I do think I might be slightly swayed by the Startup Week, but it did seem more impressive than I expected.
The feel of the city (8/10)
Overall Denver is a great place to live, and one that I have given serious thought to. I really thought that Denver was likely to claim my heart! Although I did really like it, I was disappointed by a few things that I did not expect:
- The price of Denver has shot up due to the Pandemic (where people are working more remotely and picking their location more) & the legalization of weed
- It’s not that close to the mountains — yes it is closer than most, and in 30 minutes you can be on a mountain, I wanted to really feel them but in most places, you really can’t see them.
- I didn’t realize how much those 2 extra hours would feel to connecting with the UK :(
As such, here is my updated visualization:
You can see that New York, Digital Nomad & Denver have reduced and London has increased.
From this trip, I have learned:
- Distance from home has a larger weight than I felt before
- I would need a car in most places in the US to get the most out of it
- I think I want to settle down more than keep exploring the world for years
- If I were to live in a major city, I would want to find a place to escape to, ideally with mountains (as being in a log cabin right now, it's lovely!)
- I don’t think New York is on the cards (outside of a job role that required me to be there)
Next up, is Jackson, Wyoming! Any recommendations for what I should do there and around would be appreciated
