My wife and I decided to spend an anniversary evening down in the Colorado Springs, Colorado area. Though we only live about 40 miles away and have been to Colorado Springs many times, we had never been to Seven Falls. I decided to get us reservations at the Restaurant 1858 at the base of the falls and we could then walk up the stairs alongside the falls.

The food at Restaurant 1858 was a bit pricey and we were a tad underwhelmed, but we enjoyed our dinner nonetheless. I climbed the stairs to the top in nice clothes while many other visitors were dressed in hiking garb. No problem for me, of course, surmounting the 300 steps dressed for success.

The Seven Falls are the property of the Broadmoor which owns quite a lot of Colorado Springs tourist properties including the Pikes Peak Cog Railway. The charge $18 per adult just to see the falls and to go to the restaurant. The Broadmoor’s power in Colorado Springs is controversial but it doesn’t appear to have any desire to relinquish control of the Seven Falls or the Cog Railway.

After enjoying dinner and the falls we drove to Manitou Springs and our hotel: The Cliff House. The Cliff House is a historic hotel in the historic town of Manitou Springs.

The Cliff House dates back to the late 1800s and has rooms dedicated to many of its past famous guests: Buffalo Bill, Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Edison, and more. We initially had reserved a Junior Suite for the night but received a free upgrade to a King Deluxe room. I made a room tour video as well (there was a wedding at the hotel and I think they upgraded us to be away from the noise at the other end of the hotel as a courtesy).

The following morning we had some time to walk around the small town of Manitou Springs and had a quick breakfast at a coffee shop. It’s a nice little town although it does get very crowded in the summer tourist season.

Overall we had a very good anniversary evening and enjoyed our time at the hotel.