Ochre-hued, orange-glinting rocks clutch the precipices of the mountains just outside of Colorado Springs; hoodoos rise and fall like the totems of long-forgotten Indian tribes; canyons slash through the sun-baked earth. This is the backdrop for what's often considered to be the first ever resort town in the Rocky Mountains of The Centennial State. Wild and wondrous and encapsulating all the imagery of the Wild West, it's hardly a surprise that hikers and outdoorsy types still flock here to hit the trails of hulking Cheyenne Mountain, clamber up the soaring Pike, and wonder at the otherworldly geology of the so-called Garden of the Gods. However, there's more than just rambling on offer here. Colorado Springs tour guides can also enthrall with abandoned ghost towns left over from the Gold Rush days of the 1800s, and there are whole museums dedicated to that very American art of the Rodeo. There are also boutique shops aplenty in manicured Manitou Springs and health resorts with golf courses and spas on site – you know, for after the hiking!