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**United States Mint – Denver, CO**
The United States Mint in Denver is a fascinating and fun stop for families visiting the Mile High City! This is where real coins are made—millions of them every day! Kids love seeing the giant machines in action, stamping out coins at lightning speed, and learning how money is created right before their eyes.
The Mint offers free, guided tours that are perfect for children ages 7 and up. During the tour, families can peek at rare historical artifacts, walk past real gold vaults (yes, there’s real gold inside!), and hear exciting stories about America’s money, including tales of daring robberies and secret treasures. The friendly guides share interesting facts and answer questions, making the experience both educational and entertaining.
Security is tight, so bags aren’t allowed, but the Mint is safe and welcoming for families. There’s also a gift shop where kids can pick out special souvenirs to remember their visit.
Whether your child is curious about history, loves shiny coins, or just wants to see something unique, the Denver Mint is a memorable adventure that’s both fun and full of surprises!
https://visitdenver.com/things-to-do/family-friendly/kid-friendly-denver/,https://coloradoparent.com/the-denver-mint/,https://travelsbetween.com/crazy-fun-denver-with-kids/,https://www.colorado.com/denver/denver-mint,https://denvermomcollective.com/guide-to-visiting-the-denver-mint/,https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g33388-d128654-Reviews-United_States_Mint_At_Denver-Denver_Colorado.html,https://www.deliciousdenverfoodtours.com/blogs/things-to-do-in-denver-with-kids/,https://kids.usmint.gov/about-the-mint/locations,https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionsNear-g33388-d128654-United_States_Mint_At_Denver-Denver_Colorado.html,https://www.visitacity.com/en/denver/attractions/united-states-mint,https://www.lonelyplanet.com/usa/rocky-mountains/denver/attractions/united-states-mint/a/poi-sig/1129271/362114,https://visitdenver.com/listing/u-s-mint/4435/,https://www.dollar.com/us/en/blog/family-fun/denver-travel-guide-family-vacation
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37 Reviews on “United States Mint”
An interesting place to take the kids. My 6 yr old really enjoyed it…although of course his favorite part was getting the latest quarter in the state quarter collection.
There’s a very specific list of do’s and don’ts as far as what you can bring in…so make sure you know it BEFORE you get there, because there is nowhere to stash your belts, cell phones, anything bigger than a wallet, etc, etc. Also tours book up several weeks (months?) in advance in the summer. You can get same day tickets if you show up first thing in the morning…but not necessarily at a time that will suit your schedule.
So, you should go at least once. If you didn’t grow up here, thereby never going to the Mint on a field trip, you can spare an hour at the Mint. Took my crew, the high point for them was def the free shiny quarter. At one point the five year old whispers to me “when do we get to the ride?”. I’m not sure how she got this impression but she seemed to think there was a tiny amusement park tucked away inside this place. Anywho, she was disappointed, but only for a minute.
Def make your reservation online as it would suck to get there and find that there are no tours available!
as a side note, it wasn’t uber kid friendly, I guess because mine were the only ones in the group and we kept getting shushed which I can only tolerate so much of. The peeps here take themselves very very seriously. So like I said, go once. That is all.
Loved the tour. The person with whom we dealt in the gift shop was quite rude, however. She was the only rude person we encountered in a week of hotels, sightseeing, etc., in the Denver area.
You need reservations to take a tour. Why? I am not sure, but I thought I could breeze into town and just line up. No dice. Luckily, there was a last-minute cancellation and I was able to get in by looking on their website the day before the visit. When I checked, they were booked solid for the next 6-8 weeks, which is as far out as their reservation system allowed you to make a reservation.
The security they put you through may be necessary but is a pain, just like the airport; all have to remove their shoes. I even had to remove my glasses. No photography was allowed, which is not very fun. And there are no storage lockers for your things, which makes purchasing at the end of the tour difficult.
The tours are very rushed and you don’t get time to just look around. The sights you get to see are very limited. The tour is not very kid friendly and strollers are a big no-no. I had also hoped to get a newly minted coin, but received nothing. You had to buy minted coins in the gift shop and only from a vending machine which accepted cash only.
Also, be prepared to have your tour canceled for security reasons. The tour before mine was canceled and the people turned away because the staff were moving gold bars/boullion. The cancellation was not made known until the tour group showed up at the facility. The mint worked some of the displaced people into the next tour but I am not sure all people were accommodated.
Be prepared also to stand outside for a period prior to being admitted. Parking is tight with absolutely no parking on the mint’s block. There is a parking garage kitty-corner at the “justice complex”. It filled very quickly and was about $6-8 for the parking.
The tour is interesting because it is unique, but it wasn’t particularly “fun” and only modestly informative [again, probably due to security reasons].
Tour was great!!! Took my 5 yr old daughter and 7 yr old son. Tour guide was fantastic. We had 6 kids total on tour and the guide paid a lot of attention to them. He was funny and told stories and really entertained them before the tour while we were waiting and during the tour. I would definitely recommend this for anyone with or without children. We also went to Federal Reserve building and got a bag of shredded money for free which my kids thought was awesome. All security and gift shop people were friendly as well. Not sure what other people that had bad experiences are talking about. I read all these reviews before we went and was unsure what we were going to get. I guess if you have well behaved children and follow all rules, it will be good.
I feel bad about this. BUT I’M DOING IT!! I just hope that someone says “why is there a two star review??!” and reads this so they aren’t sad and disappointed on their vacation like I was.
First I’ll say – I went to the US Mint when I was little and I remember loving it – I’m sure I would have given it at least four stars… HAD WE GOT IN.
A couple months before our trip to Denver, our friend was nice enough to get us reservations (complete with a confirmation email and confirmation number with the correct dates in it – we checked this multiple times before and multiple times while sitting in front of the Mint). Our reservations were for Friday. Wellllll the Mint decided not to be open on Fridays anymore AFTER our reservations were made. No big deal, they called or emailed us to let us know that this changed happened and to set up a new time for us to come tour right?? I mean why wouldn’t they? Who knows. They didn’t.
We had planned our whole day around going to the US Mint that day. We bused it down there. Ate breakfast near by and headed over to make sure we were early only to be informed by a tiny sign saying they were not open that day. Only to go to their webpage and find out this wasn’t an emergency and the Mint KNEW they would not be open that day – they just didn’t feel like contacting anyone to tell them about it. We saw some others come by with the same confusion that we had and knew that the Mint had screwed them too.
We tried to call to reschedule, but we couldn’t even get a hold of a real person even during their hours that they were open.
I’m sorry for the 2 stars, but we had a 1 star experience with the US Mint. I really wish we could have gone. Such a huge let down.
HEY KID, YOU WANT TO GO SEE HOW MONEY IS MADE?!? AND NOT JUST BORING PAPER MONEY, BUT COINS!! THE THINGS YOUR THROW IN THE FOUNTAIN AND THAT JINGLE IN YOUR POCKET!!! THIS IS GOING TO BE AWESOME!!!
Well, be prepared for the biggest disappointment since finding out Ellen was gay…..
Had to make a reservation about 2 months in advance. Not a huge deal, but a little surprised by the demand. They tell you to arrive 30 mins ahead of your tour time, you go through some lame TSA style security, then you sit in some waiting area with slightly boring exhibits. The tour is fairly short and fairly boring. The operations all take place on the floor below, and you are very disconnected from all the ‘action’. The coin making process is distant and you can’t see a damn thing. There are a few interesting tidbits you hear, but overall its boring. They mention that they have a bunch of gold bars hidden in some vault there, but they won’t tell you where and they def won’t let you see it. Oh, and if you are thinking that this would be fun for kids, think again. Its boring for adults and has to be really bad for little people (I’m talking about children, not midgets you weirdo!).
I guess I should have known better. This is run by the Federal Government, pretty sure these guys could make a Vegas strip club boring.
Here’s what the website DOESN’T tell you. If you don’t bring a print-out of that E:mail you got months ago – you’re not going to get to go on the tour. I was infuriated.
We drove for hours, planned the whole day around the visit. Kindergarten curriculum has many lessons about money for math and I thought getting to see where they made money would be fun. Nope, instead it turned into a lesson in the callous, inefficiency of government.
I even tried to call the US Mint Denver Public Affairs office to suggest they add a paragraph on the website about ‘Visiting the Denver Mint” but leave it to the US Mint Denver location to have a public affairs office where not one person picks up the phone. (Cause you just know it had to be that way!)
Fellow yelpers – SKIP this stop during your time in Denver. It’s just not worth it and there are too many other fun things to do!
We were about to cancel our reservation because I have two young children and many Yelp reviews describe the tour as dry and boring, but we decided to go and we’re glad we did.
First, book the tour the *minute* it becomes available online and keep in mind Denver is on Mountain time. Second, read about their security process and bring your confirmation email (it’s fine if it’s on your smartphone). There are plenty of parking lots nearby to leave your purses and strollers in the car. If you take public transportation and have a large bag, you’re SOL.
Both the tour guide and his assistant were very friendly and his assistant went up to young kids and asked them to lift heavy bags of pennies to engage their interest.
If you think manufacturing American currency is boring, then skip it. The tour guide won’t juggle machetes, but will discuss the history of the mint and past and modern techniques of production, and will answer questions.
As a bonus, there’s a display of historical guns used to protect the mint.
My boyfriend and I were going to be in Denver for one day in July and we wanted to see the Mint. I did my research and learned that the Mint started taking reservations 90 days in advance, but I did not realize that it is imperative to book your tickets exactly 90 days in advance, as soon as the clock strikes midnight on that 90th day out. I think I remembered to book tickets about 87 days out, and only one ticket was available, for the 8:00 AM tour. We snagged that ticket, and I was lucky enough to procure a second ticket the day before our visit (I must have checked every day for openings). I later learned that they do not offer standby tickets if there are no-shows, so book your ticket as early as possible!
When you book your ticket, the Mint sends an email with detailed instructions that that indicate when and where you need to be, and what you can and cannot bring with you – take their instructions very literally, and DO NOT FORGET YOUR RESERVATION NUMBER!!! We followed the instructions and had no problems. The security staff was extremely thorough, but they could not have been nicer – they should run civility seminars for the TSA (I’m not kidding).
We arrived around 7:30 AM (as instructed), spent some time looking at the exhibits in the waiting area, and the tour started at exactly 8:00 AM. The tour lasted about 45 minutes, and the guide was very informative and approachable. One of the security guards who followed us on the tour also pointed out some neat stuff. We got to see a lot of the machinery in action and we saw some gold bars worth several million dollars. I really liked seeing how coins are made. And seeing the giant tubs of coins caused me to have flashbacks of Scrooge McDuck swimming in coins from “DuckTales” (woo woo).
Overall, we learned a lot and we did not regret waking up early to tour the Mint. My only gripe is that I wish the ticketing process was a bit easier – perhaps they should offer more tours to meet the demand.
Relatively interesting after having a few beers with lunch. Free and the tour guide was great with kids. Our family had a good time. Get there 30 min before the scheduled start time.
The tour itself was pretty cool, and I found the overhead view of the factory through the windows to be more than adequate. I mean, some of the reviewers apparently expected some sort of floor-level walkaround tour, which would obviously not be feasible at a facility of this nature–especially with the obnoxious number of unruly children on the tour.
I enjoyed the static displays and learned a few interesting things, including the fact that the U.S. Mint manufactured coins for foreign countries for a number of years. Seeing three gold bars worth $1.5M was pretty cool, too. Even cooler than that was the insane thickness of the reinforced concrete walls and solid brass doors.
So why the three stars? They gave freshly pressed pennies to the kids, and refused to give any to me even after I asked. WTF, man? I understand doing this with families, but as the only single young adult on the tour, they could have spared an extra penny–especially given that, growing up abroad, I didn’t get to experience this tour as a kid. Yes, I’m pretty butthurt about this and it ruined the whole experience for me. (See? I can be childish, too. I should get a penny!)
If you’re annoyed by kids in great numbers, you may want to skip this tour. The whole thing is designed for children, and if you’re one of the few poor bastards who, like me, is doing this thing as an adult, you may feel left out and discriminated against. (I WANT MY DAMN PENNY!)
The mint police was pretty cool about allowing people to come in with their belongings. Pretty much everybody had a smartphone, and they were fine with it as long as they were turned off. Jewelry and a bunch of other personal effects were also allowed.
I. Want. My. Penny.
I always knew that a penny with the letter “D” under the date came from the Denver Mint. Now I know why you don’t see that letter anymore.
The Denver Mint is the only mint that makes our pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters. The San Francisco and Philadelphia mints make other coins. To begin this tour you will have to undergo a security regime similar to airport security. This mint can make up to 40,000,000 coins a day, and loses money making pennies and nickels but earns a profit on dimes and quarters. A penny costs 2 and a half cents to make while a nickel costs 9 cents but dimes and quarters cost a fraction of their value.
The odd part of this tour is when you are told about Orville Harrington, the only person, an employee, who stole from this Mint. He walked out over time with 56 gold bars before his crime was discovered. I bet they weren’t so proud of him at the time they caught him.
Nice educational tour of the US Mint in Denver is offered for FREE. Not sure how this place only has 3 1/2 stars. How can you complain about free? Simple: by not reading and following rules. We followed the rules and had a seamless and enjoyable experience.
Upon making a reservation (up to 30 days in advance) on their online system, the rules are clearly listed in the email confirmation. Certain items are prohibited inside like purses and bags (for good reason, as this is a government building where they produce money). No lockers, so leave your items behind. Arrive early and line up outside before the tour starts. Bring your confirmation email with you. It was a bonus that we got sample pennies and bookmark the day we toured, but that may or may not be the case on every visit.
Tour takes about 45 minutes, which is a reasonable length. The staff enlightened us about the history of the mint and gave fun tidbits of information. Did you know that they only produce coins (no bills) at the Denver mint? We saw tons of coins being produced on our Tuesday afternoon visit.
Check for openings in the online reservation system on a daily basis. We made our reservations about a week in advance when two spots randomly opened up. Great way to spend some time in downtown Denver!
We have tried for years and failed to get reservations so we LOVE the new system. You have to show up at 6:30 am near the gift shop and they start handing out tickets at 7am. You can get up to 5 tickets. Free. Then you come back 30 minutes before your scheduled tour time.
You get to walk around and see the history of money, the mint and look through the glass as coins are made. They give you a souvenir fresh stamped penny and a blank. The tour took about 35-40 minutes. Most of the time is spent looking at the items in a glass case and reading the placards.
Why only 3 stars? You could not hear our tour guide. He was young, very soft spoken and had zero personality. Very quiet and monotone. Really a good tour guide, an animated story teller could make this 5 stars. The guide definitely needs a microphone and needs to be excited about the history and stories about the mint. The tour is free so maybe you get what you pay for but I would have been happy to pay $5 per ticket for a better guide.
We came home and looked up a documentary online with the kiddos that made it more interesting and hopefully memorable.
If you have a free day with nothing else to do in Denver and someone in your group does not mind waiting in line at 6:30am then it is worth a stop. Hopefully when you visit they will have hired a new tour guide or at least walk in expecting to be your own guide.
Drove an hour to come on a tour with my friends children and there was a sheet of paper on the window stating there were no tours today. Met others that wasted a drive up as well who were unaware of the cloaure. Gift shop personnel didnt even know why it was closed. Wasted 12 dollars to park for nothing! You should really put that up on your website if you’re going to be closed. Very disappointed. I will not be returning.
My husband and I showed up at 6:50 am to reserve an entry to this place, however given that it’s summer there was already many people in line. We were turned away as the museum had already reached their maximum reservations. We showed up the next day at 5:00am to make sure we had a spot reserved for the day. There was already 3 people in line by the time we arrived. The wait was completely worth it, as you get a free penny and a blank penny as a souvenir, you see coins being made, and the tour guide is very informative. Only thing I wish we could have stayed longer to read all the placards for every machinery/historical item. Lastly, make sure to check the website for personal items are allowed inside as you have to go through a thorough screening prior to going in the museum.
My boyfriend used to work at the Federal Reserve Bank and is fascinated by places like the Mint. We also both enjoy factory tours. When we decided to go to Denver we knew this was something we wanted to incorporate into our vacation planning. Apparently getting tickets to this is quite difficult. It requires you to get up early in the morning and go wait in line on the street outside the Mint. It seems you need to be there at least an hour before they start handing out tickets, so maybe bring a book. On the day we went half the line did not get tickets. Its unlikely you will get into the first opening, there are various time slots throughout the day, so plan a place for breakfast and something to do while you wait. It’s free and educational so worth the effort if this interests you. You can’t bring bags, or take pictures inside (although some people were doing it anyway). The person who handed out the tickets also stated that young children would not be allowed, but they also managed to get inside somehow. There is a bathroom and water fountain inside.
I really appreciate that you get a blank penny souvenir to take home. Someone in our group went through the whole line and waiting process just to come back and get another blank penny, its 1 per person. There’s lots of interesting stuff to read on the bottom floor. There are also some videos to watch. This is a guided tour, so you can ask questions as needed. The building itself is quite cool. I loved learning why they continue to make pennies even though they hold little value. I also had no idea that we used to make money for other countries. Lots of interesting stories and a good way to spend some time out of the heat. You may want to tie this tour into one with the Federal Reserve Money Museum which is located within walking distance.
I think this is great place to go if you want to learn how money is made. Tours are a little short but good for families that have kiddos.
I don’t have anything to say about getting tickets, as my friend took care of that. But the tour itself is a bit of a letdown. The tour is mostly what you would find in a museum, so you could be anywhere in the United States for that matter, but since it is at the mint, you are under guard and you have to move at the pace of the tour guide and the guards since you move as a group, which doesn’t give you much time to soak in all the exhibits. Of course, there are windows overlooking the actual coin production, but it is hard to really grasp what is going on there, and you just don’t have any time to do it either. Of all the things to do in Denver, this isn’t one that you will look back on and say that you are glad you did it. There are much better uses of your time. I think kids will have a good time though.
We got in line at 6:00 am to get tickets and were 8th in line. We had quite a line behind us by the time they started handing out tickets, so I’m glad we didn’t get there much later. The tour was great, our tour guide was very knowledgeable and talked loudly enough for us to hear. Our kids are ages 7, 9, and 10, and there was so much for them to look at that they found the tour interesting as well. We are so glad that we visited the Mint!
Such a unique and fun experience – a must-check out! While tours are complimentary, you do need to have someone in your party arrive early in the morning to line up and get tickets and parking in this area is a big challenging. The tours are guided by folks that are enthusiastic and knowledgeable and you get the opportunity to see coins being actively produced, learn some stories, and they do a good job getting folks interested in coin-collecting. A great gift shop and love the free souvenir offered to each person on the tour – a penny before it’s pressed and after).
It was really nice to hear the history and see some things but what you can see is very limited or is a picture of it. Unfortunately you don’t really get to see much of the minting process but our tour guide was great and very knowledgeable. Would I go again, maybe not but I’m sure glad I went in the first place. Plus it’s free so even more reason to always go and learn about things.
Wasn’t sure this was going to entertain my teens but they were glad we visited. They liked the story of how some gold was smuggled out and watching the coin making process. I enjoyed the history. Short enough so the kids didn’t get bored. As others have stated, try to get their early to get tickets.
They make money here. Just coins. They have a little store where you can buy cool collectible coins, if you like that sort of thing. You probably do. Otherwise you probably wouldn’t be looking to go to the mint. They got T-shirts, hats and a bunch of touristy souvenirs. The reason I give only three stars is I drove all the way there twice and still haven’t gotten into the Mint. They have several tours all day but the tickets go fast as fudge. Both times I went they were out of tickets. You can’t buy them ahead of time or on line. You have to go to their window at the Mint. So you never know if they’ll have tickets when you get there. I think that is stupid as fudge-footballs. Why can’t they give them out on line? At least a portion of them. People from far away are gonna get fudged if they come all this way having seeing the Mint as one of their main goals. Call you Senators and Representatives. Call the president. Citizens deserve tickets. This can’t stand!
First things first, you need to get here at 7:00 a.m. to reserve a ticket because it’s first come, first serve and then they’ll give you a time slot. The maximum number of tickets you can get per person is 5 tickets.
The tour itself is very informative. It lasts about 45 minutes and the tour guides give you a lot of info and answer any questions you might have. Don’t bring a purse with you because you can’t have them inside.
We visited on a Friday and arrived at 6:00a. There was a fairly long line ahead of us, but we still got to pick of any time slot except 11:00a (it was already full). We chose 9:30a. You must have one person present for every 5 tickets you need. No kids under 7 years old are allowed.
The tour itself did a good job of talking about the Mint’s history, but to learn what each machine did, we had to ask a tour guide. Bottom line: everyone definitely enjoyed the tour and were glad they did it.
We had 7 family members get in line at 5:30am on a Monday and they were 4th in line. One person in line can get three tickets. They got to pick what tour time they wanted. We arrived at 8:15 and there was only the last tour time for the day left. So arrive early. We have a 6 year old that had to be 7 that day cause 7 is the youngest that can go on the tour. The tour was good. I found it more interesting that I thought I would. This mint does mostly pennies no dollar bills.
On vacation with the kids and stopped by the mint to see it in action. The tour was informational and the family was impressed with our guide and loved being able to get a first hand glimpse of money making in action!
So I read all the reviews and arrived at 6:30am. I was completely alone! So I think the lines are an issue in the summer. On 12/10 with 40 degree temps, there is no reason to arrive before 7:30am. Don’t be like me, don’t freeze!
Anyways, I was first in line and recieved a ticket for the 8am tour. Per the ticket, I arrived 30 mins early to the gate. After a quick security check, I was inside the mint! I was welcomed with a penny and a blank as a gift.
The tour starts off with a small museum. Then you are taken to the plant! You get to see how coins are made. After you learn more about the building and see a few gold blocks. When the tour ends, you are released to the streets. You can turn back on your phone and walk to the gift shop.
The mint is beautiful! Tickets are free, there is no reason not to visit this place.
I’m a history dork so this place was up my alley. Great to learn about America’s currency, past and present.
They have weird hours and tour times. Sometimes not open if they are in certain production modes. Must have your tix, need to come early and get tix if you want to get on a daily tour.
Tour was very informative and great flow. Certainly a great experience for someone like me or even a fun family event.
Super fun place to look at all the coins being produced It’s a history lesson and a field trip all together. If you’re interested in the Denver area you must come here it’s super fun
A fun tour – particularly for children. Strict security rules, you can’t bring bags or purses. The tour shows some interesting artifacts and the guide shares many interesting and random facts. The ticket distribution is in person only for same day tours. The tours are free.
Great to join the group in line. You will need to get a ticket that day for a spot to tour. When we visit Denver US Mint, it was fall and low season. We were lucky to get two ticket for the available spot. We need to line up 30 minutes before due to security checks.
The mint tour start at second floor. This mint did a lot coin making. They not just make the coin for US, there are international countries requesting making the coin here too. The tour last 1.5 hours. You can see a lot of historical coin press machines. You also see a story how the employee on the ass stole the mint without notice for a long time. Very interesting story.
The final tour takes you out to the street through the decorative hallway with their machine gun defense. Unfortunately the tour doesn’t allow you to take pictures.
They do public tours most days. It’s a nice tour. They say the tours last 1 hour and 15 minutes; mine was closer to 1:05. They gave me a free penny souvenir: one regular penny that was minted not too long ago, and one blank.
The tickets are free but somewhat difficult to obtain. You can’t reserve ahead of time and you can’t do anything remotely. You have to show up in person in the morning of the same day. Even then there may be none left.
There’s a security check point, similar to airport security. You can’t bring food or water. You can have an empty bottle with you. There’s a water fountain inside.
Decent tour. It’s free. In the world season, you can get tickets pretty much right before the tour. When it’s busy though I hear you have to get them perhaps even the day before. There’s five or six tours a day. The tour last about an hour. There’s airport style security scan with the US mint police. No weapons, not even a small pocket knife, no food or drink, you have to turn your cell phone off, no photos or videos are allowed inside on the tour. You’re not allowed to take your cell phone out at all. You’re in an elevated position and can see the mint at work. There is a gift shop as well near the ticket office. They sell mostly unlimited coins and other souvenirs. There are stairs involved with the tour.
This was an interesting and historic tour. Tour guides were enthusiastic. Gift shop has an interesting choice of coins, however the employee at the gift shop has the personality of a fence post. Actually that might be insulting to a fence post.