Denver and the Rocky Mountains are tailor-made for frugal vacations. Scenic campsites, decent fishing, hunting, rock climbing, rafting and hiking are all within an hour's drive. And depending on the time of year, you can find free skiing, hotel rooms at deeply discounted prices, and breaks on meals at the Mile High City's finest dining establishments.

GETTING AROUND

City buses run between Denver International Airport and downtown for $10 each way, $18 roundtrip, with discounts for senior citizens and students up to the 12th grade. Generally, bus fare around town is $2 per trip, and day passes are $6; http://rtd-denver.com/. Downtown, you can easily get by with a little stamina, good walking shoes and a free shuttle that runs up and down the 16th Street Mall from the gold-domed state Capitol to Union Station in the hip Lower Downtown neighborhood, LoDo.

Dozens of miles of bike trails lace Denver and run to its suburbs. The city is working to have 500 loaner bicycles for visitors at no charge this summer, www.bikedenver.org/maps/.

FREE FUN

• Parks: Denver has more than 200 parks, rivers and trail areas. In July, Sloan Lake northwest of downtown hosts an annual Colorado Dragon Boat Festival: Teams of paddlers race to the beat of drums in celebration of a centuries-old Chinese tradition. www.denvergov.org/parksandrecreation.

• State capitol: Climb to the gold-covered dome for a 360-degree view of Denver and the Rocky Mountains to the west. Or head outside to the west steps, where a brass cap marks the spot that's exactly one mile above sea level. Reservations advised; www.state.co.us/gov_dir/leg_dir/lcsstaff/Scrollpages/TourScroll.htm

• U.S. Mint: Tours of the U.S. Mint are offered free from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays, excluding federal holidays. Reservations are required; www.usmint.gov/mint_tours/.

• Denver Art Museum: True, adult general-admission tickets are usually $10 for Colorado residents or $13 for everyone else. But on the first Saturday of every month, they're free. The museum's titanium-paneled addition designed by architect Daniel Libeskind is a work of art itself, jutting across 13th Avenue; www.denverartmuseum.org.

FOOD AND DRINK

Carts along the W16th Street Mall offer fare like hot dogs, paninis, burritos and barbecue.

• McCormick's Fish House & Bar, 1659 Wazee St., attached to The Oxford Hotel downtown, has a happy hour every day from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. (and another happy hour later at night) with items like a half-pound cheeseburger and fries for $2.95. Even ahi burgers are less than $5.

• The Walnut Room, 3131 Walnut St., offers Pabst Blue Ribbon for 50 cents after 9 p.m. Wednesdays; www.thewalnutroom.com.

-- CATHERINE TSAI

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