What Makes the Highlands Special
The Highlands is Denver’s most vibrant and versatile neighborhood — a collection of distinct sub-neighborhoods including Lower Highlands (LoHi), West Highlands, Berkeley, and Sunnyside that together form one of the Mile High City’s most desirable and dynamic living environments. Stretching northwest of downtown along the Platte River valley, the Highlands blend Victorian-era architecture with contemporary development, indie restaurants with craft breweries, and urban energy with stunning mountain views that remind you why people move to Denver in the first place.
What makes the Highlands special is its refusal to be just one thing. This is a neighborhood where a James Beard-nominated restaurant sits next to a dive bar, where a $2.5 million Victorian renovation shares a block with a cozy bungalow, and where young professionals, families, and longtime residents all find their niche within the same few square miles. The result is an organic, evolving neighborhood that feels authentic rather than manufactured — Denver’s answer to Brooklyn or Portland’s Alberta District.
Housing and Real Estate
The Highlands’ housing market is one of Denver’s most active and diverse within a premium tier. The median home price sits around $849,000, reflecting the neighborhood’s desirability and the range of housing that commands premium prices — from renovated Victorian homes and Craftsman bungalows to modern townhomes and new-construction condominiums.
LoHi (Lower Highlands) is the highest-priced sub-neighborhood, where proximity to downtown, restaurant density, and mountain views from rooftop decks push prices for modern townhomes and condos from the mid-$500,000s to well over $1.5 million. Renovated Victorian homes in LoHi can exceed $2 million, particularly those with views of the downtown skyline.
West Highlands centers around Highlands Square at 32nd Avenue and Lowell Boulevard, offering a mix of charming older homes, updated bungalows, and new construction. Prices here typically range from $600,000 to $1.2 million, with the walkable commercial district adding significant lifestyle value.
Berkeley to the north offers slightly more accessible pricing, with bungalows and ranch homes from the mid-$500,000s and larger properties pushing toward $900,000. Tennyson Street’s restaurant and gallery corridor has transformed Berkeley into one of Denver’s most interesting sub-neighborhoods.
For renters, the Highlands offers apartments and townhomes ranging from approximately $1,100 for studios to $6,000+ for premium multi-bedroom units with downtown views and modern finishes.
The Restaurant and Bar Scene
The Highlands’ food and drink scene is arguably Denver’s best — a bold claim in a city that takes its dining seriously, but one that the concentration of acclaimed restaurants supports.
Root Down set the standard for the Highlands’ culinary ambitions when it opened in a converted 1950s gas station. The farm-to-table restaurant’s seasonal menu, craft cocktails, and stunning interior design made it a national destination and proved that Denver’s dining scene could compete with any city.
Linger — from the same team behind Root Down — occupies a converted mortuary overlooking downtown, with a rooftop patio that offers one of Denver’s most iconic dining views. The globally inspired menu and inventive cocktails make it a perennial favorite.
Highland Tavern provides neighborhood-pub warmth with elevated comfort food and an impressive craft beer selection. Wildflower brings seasonal, vegetable-forward cuisine to LoHi. Along Tennyson Street in Berkeley, Hops & Pie combines craft beer expertise with creative pizzas, while Berkeley Donuts draws morning crowds with artisan doughnuts.
The brewery scene is integral to Highlands life. Highland Tap & Burger, Ale House, and several craft breweries dot the neighborhood, contributing to a culture where a casual beer and a five-course tasting menu exist within blocks of each other.
Highlands Square on West 32nd Avenue concentrates restaurants, wine shops, bookstores, and cafes into a walkable district that functions as the West Highlands’ social center. Weekend mornings find the area buzzing with brunch crowds, farmers market shoppers, and dog walkers stopping for coffee.
Parks and Outdoor Life
Sloan’s Lake Park is the Highlands’ outdoor crown jewel — a 177-acre urban park surrounding Denver’s largest lake. The 2.6-mile loop trail encircling the lake offers walkers, runners, and cyclists a route with stunning Front Range mountain views that make it one of the most photographed paths in the city. Stand-up paddleboarding on the lake, playground time for kids, and picnic gatherings on the lawns make Sloan’s Lake the Highlands’ backyard.
Highland Park sits on a hill overlooking LoHi, providing green space and views used by the neighborhood for everything from weekend soccer to evening sunset watching. The park’s playground and open lawns serve the growing number of families living in the area.
The Platte River Trail runs along the neighborhood’s eastern edge, connecting to Cherry Creek Trail and the broader Denver trail network. This paved pathway provides a cycling and walking route to downtown, Confluence Park, and REI’s flagship store — all accessible without a car from LoHi.
The proximity to I-70 means the mountains are accessible from the Highlands in about an hour, and the neighborhood’s outdoor-oriented culture means residents regularly make that drive for skiing, hiking, and mountain biking throughout the year.
Shopping and Culture
Tennyson Street in Berkeley has evolved into one of Denver’s most interesting commercial corridors, with independent galleries, boutiques, vintage shops, and restaurants creating a walkable district with genuine artistic identity. Monthly art walks and gallery openings give the street a cultural energy that complements its commercial offerings.
Highlands Square provides the West Highlands’ daily-needs commercial center, with an emphasis on locally owned businesses that reflect the neighborhood’s values. LoHi has seen significant commercial development along 32nd Avenue and Platte Street, with new retail, restaurants, and creative office spaces adding to the neighborhood’s already rich amenity mix.
The Highlands Street Fair is one of Denver’s most popular annual events, closing streets for a day of live music, art, food vendors, and community celebration. The Highlands Farmer’s Market runs weekly during the growing season, bringing produce, artisan goods, and neighborhood socializing to a central location.
Getting Around
The Highlands’ location provides excellent transportation options. LoHi is genuinely walkable to downtown Denver — the Highland Bridge connects the neighborhood directly to the Platte River corridor and the Union Station transit hub, making car-free commuting practical for many residents.
RTD bus routes serve the neighborhood, and the proximity to Union Station puts the entire light rail and commuter rail network within reach. For drivers, I-25 and I-70 are easily accessible, though the neighborhood’s walkability and bikability mean many residents leave their cars parked for days at a time.
Who Lives Here
The Highlands attract Denver’s most eclectic residential mix. Young professionals drawn to LoHi’s restaurant scene and downtown proximity. Families attracted to the area’s top-rated schools and Sloan’s Lake. Creative professionals and artists who’ve been part of the neighborhood’s cultural fabric for decades. Empty nesters downsizing from suburban homes who want walkable urban living with mountain views.
The neighborhood’s diversity — economic, demographic, and cultural — is one of its greatest strengths, though rising prices have raised gentrification concerns that the community continues to navigate.
The Bottom Line
The Highlands is Denver at its best — a neighborhood where mountain views frame restaurant-lined streets, where Victorian charm meets contemporary creativity, and where the urban lifestyle is enhanced rather than compromised by proximity to nature. For buyers willing to invest in one of Colorado’s most dynamic neighborhoods, the Highlands offers a living experience that captures everything that makes Denver exceptional.