Everything You Need to Know About Visiting Downtown Boise

Anna Gorin / Getty Images

Key Info

Official Website

Details

Shopping, Sightseeing, Neighborhood/Area Type
2 hours to Half Day Time to Spend

4.2

Overall

Scorecard

Value

5.0
Food Scene

4.0
Atmosphere

4.0

Read about how we rank Things to Do.

Downtown Boise – or Boise's central business district – sits north of the Boise River and welcomes visitors with its local restaurants, shops and attractions. Here you'll find the Idaho State Capitol Building and the nearby Zoo Boise and Albertsons Stadium, home to the Boise State Broncos football team. Two markets operate from the spring to the fall and winter, and a collection of popular events, such as Restaurant Week, fill downtown Boise's calendar.

Recent visitors highly recommend spending time in downtown Boise, also suggesting that travelers check out the district's ever-changing lineup of events on downtownboise.org to take advantage of the vibrant activities. Others highlight the high-caliber dining establishments and nightlife venues.

This vibrant downtown is the place to dine, shop and just meander around, and visitors should build some time in to do just that during a trip to Boise. The hours of operation for the various restaurants, shops and attractions vary, as do their price points. For more information, visit downtown Boise's website.

Hotels Nearby

Thing to Do
Hotel

Hampton Inn & Suites Boise-Downtown ...

0.1 Miles Away
3.0-star Hotel Class

Inn at 500 Capitol ...

0.1 Miles Away
3.5-star Hotel Class

Residence Inn by Marriott Boise Downtown City Center ...

0.1 Miles Away
3.0-star Hotel Class

See all hotels in Boise »

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#2 Kathryn Albertson Park The 41-acre Kathryn Albertson Park is filled with broad footpaths and peppered with gazebos, which are ideal for the main attraction here: wildlife watching. Along with various waterfowl, herons and ... Read more » Courtesy Boise Convention & Visitors Bureau

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#4 Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial Occupying less than an acre of space, the Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial is a park "inspired by Anne Frank's faith in humanity," according to the City of ... Read more » Courtesy Wassmuth Center for Human Rights

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#6 Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area Less than a 20-mile drive north of downtown Boise, the Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area attracts visitors to its ski and snowboard slopes in the winter and its hiking trails ... Read more » Steve Bly / Getty Images

#7 Old Idaho Penitentiary The Old Idaho Penitentiary started receiving criminals to its cell blocks, solitary confinement and even gallows back in 1872 – and closed in 1973, after a prison riot. Over the 101-year ... Read more » Terryfic3D / Getty Images

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