Touching down at Laramie Regional Airport in Laramie makes it easy to explore, with granite outcrops, alpine lakes, and wide-open high plains all close enough for simple day trips. Laramie is a college town at 7,200 feet, home to the University of Wyoming, with a historic downtown of brick storefronts, saloons, and railroad history. It is friendly, a little windswept, and surrounded by some of the best outdoor country in the state.

Standout experiences around Laramie: - Scramble and climb the granite domes at Vedauwoo, 20 minutes east - Drive the Snowy Range Scenic Byway past Medicine Bow Peak and Lake Marie, about an hour west - Tour the Wyoming Territorial Prison, where Butch Cassidy once served time - See the dinosaur skeletons at the UW Geological Museum - Hike or mountain bike the trails at Curt Gowdy State Park - Catch a Cowboys football game at War Memorial Stadium, the highest in major college football - Walk the historic downtown and stop in at a Western bar or the Laramie Plains Museum - Join Laramie Jubilee Days in July for rodeo and street dances

Laramie sits on a high plain ringed by mountains, so the drives are scenic in every direction. Cheyenne and the state capitol are about 50 minutes east on I-80, and Fort Collins, Colorado, is a little over an hour south. The tiny town of Centennial marks the gateway to the Snowy Range, and Saratoga, with its free public hot springs, is about 90 minutes west. Order a bison burger or a chicken-fried steak, and plan on a sky full of stars. Laramie makes a great base for a Wyoming weekend.