Downtown vs. RiNo for finding parking on a Saturday night, and the gap surprised me
So my buddy and I hit the bars on Saturday, and I had this theory that RiNo would be a total mess for parking. We started downtown near Larimer and it took 25 minutes of circling, plus $18 at a garage, to finally land a spot. Then we drove over toward RiNo and found free street parking on Blake in under 5 minutes. The big thing was that RiNo has way more side streets where people just don't think to look. Downtown is all one-ways and meters, so you end up going in circles. It was only around 10pm, but still, I expected the opposite. Next time we're just skipping downtown and starting in RiNo, maybe grab a drink there first. Has anyone else noticed the RiNo parking situation is way better than people say?
What time did you actually get to RiNo though? You said 10pm but if you started downtown at 9ish and spent 25 minutes circling plus walking to the bars, the timeline matters. RiNo clears out earlier than downtown on some Saturdays depending on what's happening at the Mission Ballroom or whatever show is going on. Did you check if there was an event that night pulling people away from the neighborhood? Also curious if you'd feel the same on a First Friday or a night with a big Rockies game. The side street thing makes sense but I'd want to see it hold up on a busier weekend before making it the plan.