Spend a peaceful holiday in a western Kansas city. Explore historic sites and cultural treasures and relax in picturesque parks.
Enjoy a few leisurely days with a trip to Colby. The small Kansas city is an agricultural community nicknamed the “Oasis on the Plains.” Seek out historic attractions, stretch your legs in the countryside and relax on the landscaped grounds of its parks.
A good place to start your holiday is in one of Colby’s most popular attractions, the Prairie Museum of Art and History. It covers 24 acres (10 hectares) and occupies the site of a 1930s farm. Here you can tour a period home and a one-room school house and view the work of local artists. Investigate the large collection of porcelain dolls, musical instruments, coins and toys. See antique agricultural tools in the museum’s Cooper Barn it is believed to be the largest barn in Kansas.
If the old farm implements have given you a taste for history, visit Thomas County Courthouse, built in 1906. Photograph its five-story clock tower. Nearby, go to Colby City Hall, an art deco building from the 1920s.
Enjoy water-based fun with your children at Colby Aquatic Park with its lazy river, pools and slides. Note that the park is open from the end of May until the middle of August.
Take the time to explore Colby’s green spaces. Stroll through the 80 acres (32 hectares) of landscaped grounds at Colby Community College. Unwind in the city’s eight parks. Many have children’s playgrounds including Villa High Park, which also has a fishing lake. Golfers can practice their strokes at the Colby Country Club.
If you are visiting toward the end of November or in December, take the family to Santa City in Fike Park. Here you’ll see Christmas decorations, scenes with animated woodland characters and, at special times, Santa Claus.
Arrive in Colby through Colby Municipal Airport or McCook Ben Nelson Regional Airport. The city is less than 4 hours away from Denver by car and within easy reach of the Rocky Mountains.
