The road to the top of Pikes Peak is fully paved. You don't need a truck, a high-clearance vehicle, or hiking boots to reach the summit at 14,115 feet. You park, drive 19 miles uphill on a paved two-lane highway, and emerge above treeline into a world of tundra, marmots, and one of the most spectacular views in the American West. This is why Pikes Peak gets more visitors per year than any other mountain in North America — the access barrier is almost zero. Katharine Lee Bates wrote "America the Beautiful" at the summit in 1893. The lyrics reference purple mountain majesties and fruited plains. Looking south from the top on a clear day, with the Great Plains stretching to the horizon and Colorado Springs 8,000 feet below, the song makes more sense than it does anywhere else in the country.
Colorado Springs has two more things going for it that most travelers don't know about before they arrive: Garden of the Gods is free, and The Broadmoor has been one of the best resort hotels in America for over 100 years. The first is the kind of free that makes you feel like the federal government made a mistake. The second is the kind of expensive that's actually worth it at least once in your life — or at least worth it in September when rates drop 25-30% below July peak and the AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts benefits cover a meaningful portion of the nightly rate.
The Complete Rate Breakdown: July vs September
The Broadmoor, Mid-Range Chains, and What September Actually Saves
The Broadmoor (Five-Star independent resort, 185 acres, Lake Circle Drive):
The only Forbes Five-Star resort in Colorado. 779 rooms across multiple wings (the original 1918 building, the West Tower, the South Tower, cottages); three championship golf courses; nine restaurants; full-service spa; private lake; tennis courts; ropes course. Opened 1918; Forbes Five-Star since 1960, continuously. Entirely independent — not part of Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors, IHG, Hyatt, or any major hotel loyalty program. You cannot pay for The Broadmoor with standard hotel points.
July-August peak: $400-700/night (main building lake-view rooms)
September: $280-450/night (25-35% below peak)
October: $300-520/night (fall color demand partially offsets September savings)
AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts eligible: The Broadmoor is one of the highest-value AMEX FHR properties in the US. On a 3-night September stay at $350/night ($1,050 total), AMEX FHR typically delivers: daily breakfast for two ($45-65/person/day = $270-390 value over 3 days) + $100 hotel credit + room upgrade. Total FHR benefit value: $370-490 on a 3-night stay — essentially one of the three nights covered by the benefit value. If you have an Amex Platinum or Amex Business Platinum, September at The Broadmoor is the most efficient use of FHR on any US domestic mountain resort.
Cheyenne Mountain Resort (IHG One Rewards, south Colorado Springs, adjacent to Pike National Forest):
Full-service resort; mountain views; multiple pools; golf; 316 rooms. The most comparable mid-range resort to The Broadmoor in the Colorado Springs market.
July: $200-350/night
September: $140-220/night (30-35% drop)
IHG One Rewards points: 30,000-50,000 peak; 20,000-32,000 September
IHG Premier credit card free night cert: covers September comfortably.
The Mining Exchange, A Wyndham Grand Hotel (downtown, 1902 historic building):
Converted Colorado gold and silver mining exchange building; 117 rooms; full-service bar and restaurant; Wyndham Rewards eligible.
July: $200-300/night
September: $140-220/night
Marriott Colorado Springs (Marriott Bonvoy, near downtown):
Standard full-service Marriott; convention-adjacent location.
July: $160-260/night
September: $110-170/night
Bonvoy free night certificate (50k cap): covers September well at 18,000-28,000 points.
Hilton Garden Inn Colorado Springs Airport (Hilton Honors):
July: $120-180/night
September: $85-130/night
Hilton free night cert: covers September at 15,000-22,000 points.
Hampton Inn Colorado Springs Central (Hilton Honors, centrally located):
July: $110-165/night
September: $80-120/night
Hilton free night cert: covers September easily. Best pure value for budget-conscious families.
The September savings summary across properties:
Broadmoor: save $120-250/night → 3-night stay saves $360-750
Cheyenne Mountain Resort: save $60-130/night → 3-night stay saves $180-390
Hampton Inn: save $30-45/night → 3-night stay saves $90-135
Garden of the Gods: What Free Actually Gets You
Garden of the Gods is a 1,367-acre National Natural Landmark managed by the City of Colorado Springs. Admission: free. Parking: free. Visitor center: free. It has been free since Winfield Scott Stratton donated the land to Colorado Springs in 1909 on the specific condition that it remain "forever free to the public."
What you get: approximately 300 acres of accessible red sandstone formations, some rising 300+ feet from the high desert floor, with the Pikes Peak massif directly behind them. The most famous formations — Balanced Rock, the Three Graces, the Kissing Camels — are accessible within a 20-minute walk from the main visitor center parking area. The Perkins Central Garden Trail (1.5 miles, flat, paved) covers the primary formation cluster and works for families with strollers and non-hikers.
The photography timing: sunrise from the East Garden area, looking west toward the Central Garden formations with Pikes Peak behind them, is one of the most reliably spectacular landscape photographs available in the western United States. The red rock catches the warm early light while the mountain stays blue in shadow. Arrive 20 minutes before sunrise, park in the Gateway Road lot, and walk 5 minutes. In September, sunrise is around 6:40 AM. This is free and requires zero planning beyond getting there early enough.
Rock climbing is permitted with a permit ($5-15/day). The Central Garden formations are a legitimate destination for technical climbing — several routes up the Kissing Camels and Three Graces rate 5.8-5.11 and have been climbed since the 1940s. Guided climbing tours are available from multiple Colorado Springs outfitters ($75-120/person for a half-day intro course).
Pikes Peak: The Math on Driving vs Cog Railway
Two ways to the summit:
Pikes Peak Highway (self-drive):
Entry fee: $20/adult, $10/child under 15; family pass $50 (up to 4 people)
Drive: 38 miles round trip; fully paved; average time to summit 60-90 minutes
Summit: visitor center, cafe (famous for summit donuts — high-altitude baked goods are genuinely different at 14,000 feet), observation decks
Altitude consideration: 14,115 feet is above the threshold where altitude sickness begins for unacclimatized visitors (headache, nausea, dizziness). If you or your family arrive from sea level, consider spending one night at Colorado Springs elevation (6,035 feet) before attempting the summit. Most symptoms improve within 30-60 minutes of descending.
September conditions: typically clear, cooler (30-50°F at summit), less crowded than July. Road occasionally closes mid-September for early snowfall — check CDOT 511 same morning before going.
Pikes Peak Cog Railway (Manitou Springs):
Fares: approximately $41-50/adult, $30-38/child; round trip, 3.5 hours total
Advantages: no driving on the narrow summit road; no car sickness; more scenic narrated journey; accessible for people who don't want to drive altitude switchbacks
Disadvantages: significantly more expensive for families; rigid schedule; you don't control timing at the summit
For a family of four: Drive = $50 family pass; Cog Railway = $140-152. The drive wins on cost; the railway wins on comfort and experience for those who want it.
The honest summit expectation: the summit visitor center is worth 30-45 minutes. The views are genuinely spectacular on clear days — you can see Denver, the Palmer Lake Divide, and on exceptional days, Pikes Peak casts a visible shadow on the plains that extends 100 miles east. The famous donuts exist and are worth eating. Don't spend more than an hour at the summit unless you're acclimating or doing serious photography. The mountain is the experience; the summit is the punctuation.
The US Air Force Academy: Free, Remarkable, and Almost Nobody Visits
The United States Air Force Academy campus north of Colorado Springs is open to visitors (with ID check at the gate; non-US citizens need to check current visitor policy). The Cadet Chapel is one of the most architecturally significant buildings in 20th-century American religious architecture — 17 spires of aluminum and stained glass completed in 1963; designed by Walter Netsch of SOM Architecture; still in active use. Free to enter during regular hours. The campus grounds and Cadet Area are visually striking; the Chapel alone justifies a 45-minute stop on the way into or out of Colorado Springs from Denver. Almost no general tourists visit; the Chapel regularly ranks among the top 20 most architecturally significant buildings in the US in professional surveys and is almost invisible to leisure travelers.
Colorado Springs vs Rocky Mountain National Park: How to Combine Them
For visitors willing to combine destinations, Colorado Springs and Rocky Mountain National Park make a strong multi-stop Colorado itinerary: 2-3 nights in Colorado Springs (Pikes Peak, Garden of the Gods, The Broadmoor or Marriott), then drive 2.5 hours north via I-25 to Estes Park and RMNP for 2-3 nights. The two areas cover complementary terrain — Colorado Springs offers high desert / red rock / accessible 14er, RMNP offers alpine tundra / elk herds / Trail Ridge Road. Our complete guide to Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park hotels in September covers the northern portion of this itinerary including the Trail Ridge Road drive and lodging at every budget level. For the broader western national monument comparison — how Garden of the Gods stacks up as a free attraction against Zion and how to think about lodging near park-adjacent destinations — our breakdown of Zion National Park hotel costs in peak vs fall covers the Utah equivalent. And for the Southwest US destination planning framework — when The Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce, and Colorado Springs make more sense than a beach or city trip — our honest first-visit guide to the Grand Canyon South Rim for families establishes the national monument trip context in which Colorado Springs fits naturally.
To check current availability and rates at The Broadmoor for September and October, book directly through The Broadmoor's website — they don't participate in third-party booking platforms (no Expedia, Hotels.com, or Booking.com inventory), and AMEX Platinum Fine Hotels & Resorts reservations for The Broadmoor are made through the AMEX FHR booking service directly. September and October Broadmoor availability opens about 6 months out and books faster than most travelers expect for a resort of this type. A Colorado Springs hiking and trail guide is worth having if you plan to go beyond the main visitor areas — the Barr Trail up Pikes Peak (the non-driving alternative), the Palmer Trail through Red Rock Canyon Open Space adjacent to Garden of the Gods, and the Cheyenne Canyon system all require more planning than the drive-to-everything tourist experience, and a current guidebook covers the trail conditions, starting points, and difficulty levels that app-based navigation doesn't always capture well at elevation. And for the Pikes Peak drive specifically, a Diamox or altitude supplement — consult your doctor before taking prescription Diamox, but over-the-counter altitude supplements containing ginkgo biloba are commonly used for Pikes Peak day trips — is worth considering if any member of your party has had altitude sickness previously or is coming directly from sea level for a summit drive on the first day of the trip.