Parking in Downtown Denver
Having lived here 3 years and not being a high roller, I’ve figured out some very good parking arrangements (read: cheap) that I’m going to share with you. Some are tips, some are sneaky spots and the last is a service I just discovered that seems pretty worth it. So here it is:
Somewhat Obvious Tips:
- Don’t pay the meters on Sunday or Holidays, it’s free.
- Many of the “loading zones” and “taxi cab” spots have hours posted and you can actually park there in those not specified, read the signs!
- Park somewhere that has street sweeping once a month? Sign up for reminders from MyMotorMaid for free and avoid those pricey tickets (more than a meter ticket!)
- You can actually get a ticket for parallel parking too far from the curb. The rule of thumb is less than a foot, so re-park if you are too far away.
- Check out the Downtown Denver Partnership’s www.experiencedowntowndenver.com map (choose transportation) to find other options.
Sneaky Spots:
- Denver Pavillions Parking Garage (enter on Welton/15th): If you see a movie (or can make it into the theater), you can validate your ticket for up to 3 hours – voila! free parking downtown!)
- Tabor Center Parking Garage (enter on Larimer/17th): Just walk into the Cheesecake Factory front desk and ask a host/hostess for a validation for the parking garage. I’ve never been asked if I ate there and I don’t think they care, but if you feel guilty buy a slice of cheesecake and grab your ticket – it’s much more satisfying than paying for parking!
Cool Service: Park By Phone is a service that lets you essentially phone in your parking lot or meter payment. You just pay $5.95 upfront and then park in any AMPCO system lots (the site has a list). Then when you park instead of paying there you just dial the number for the place and it pays your lot fee for you. The great thing is it’s usually a cheaper rate than what the lot lists, plus you can always pay by credit card (get your points) and don’t have to fumble with cash/change. It’s a 10% surcharge at the end of the month for the service – but my friends who use it say they still spend less overall (the $12 lot down the street costs them $5 a day plus 10%).
Do you know of other sneaky spots that you’re willing to share? Let us know…
If you park in the Independence Plaza lot (enter off Curtis and 16th) you can do the same at Rock Bottom – ask to have your parking punched.
Just so you know, if anybody tries to do the Independence Plaza/Rock Bottom trick, the restaurant ONLY validates your parking after 4:00pm M-F, but all day on Sat-Sun. ALSO, and this is very important for M-F, if you park in the lot ANY TIME BEFORE 4:00, it doesn’t matter what time you leave, even with your parking validated, the lot will still charge you the full $18. No pro-rated parking, no discounts. Ouch.
Hi,
I’m visiting Denver for work and trying to save the government some money (imagine that). Do you all know if there’s plenty of street parking available to leave my rental? I’m supposed to be staying near the Denver convention center and my hotel charges $28/day! That’s more than Washington, DC!
Any help would be appreciated!
Laila
Re: Parking near the convention center. There is a lot that runs along the east side of Speer Blvd between 13th and 14th avenues that costs $3.00 for 6a-6p and $3.00 for 6p-6a. This is just a few blocks from the Convention Center and maybe 5 blocks from the 16th St. mall Free Shuttle. The price does not go up for special events. Pay by cash or credit card.
You also do not need a parking sticker for some of the lots on the Auraria Campus, which is on the west side of Speer, north of Colfax. You can park for $3.00/day if you don’t mind the walk across campus from a west lot.
For anyone who tries parking at Tabor center, validation at the Cheesecake factory is only good for two hours. Beyond that, they charge something like $5 per 15 minutes for a max of $17.99 unless you stay past 4 pm. Then it’s $5. Wish they had made that clearer to us. (Cheesecake Factory gave us the wrong info regarding validation prices.) If we had stayed an extra hour, we would’ve saved ten bucks. Double ouch.
The daycare center is planning a field trip to the Mint and the Capital. Any suggestions where we can park our small bus.
If you park at a meter on Sundays, is the 2-hour limit enforced still?
unofficially speaking, we’ve never seen it enforced. legally, not sure! readers, any input?
Hey Planning on being downtown for the day w/ a bus load from Alamosa. We’ll be there on a Sat. so the kids can explorer downtown. Any suggestions where to park a small bus?
Dont park at 1279 cherokee street parking lot, it is a rip off, the machine informs you if you use a credit card, that it is DENIED and all reality it excepts, you are under the impression that you have to move your vehicle, but the machine informs you that your transaction is denied. I have called several time 303-893-1414, time lot park to call me back and they never do