Laramie Wyoming Tourism

Laramie, the “Gem City of the Plains” is home to the University of Wyoming and the Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site, a western heritage park built around the refurbished 1890s Territorial Prison.

The Territorial Prison was once home to famed criminal Butch Cassidy during his incarceration there for horse stealing. He was pardoned by Wyoming’s governor only after promising “to never steal another horse or cow, or rob another bank in Wyoming.” Butch never broke his promise, but unfortunately that promise didn’t include anything about robbing stagecoaches and trains. The rest is history and you can re-live it at the Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site.

The State Historic Site features the Horse Barn Dinner Theatre and Exhibit Hall, as well as a Ranchland Exhibit that pays tribute to the lifestyles of the state’s early pioneers. The Territorial Prison was used as a federal penal facility from 1872 to 1903. Some of the West’s most notorious outlaws spent part of their lives in the place that was “dedicated to evil-doers of all classes and kinds.” Today the prison brings some of those famous outlaw legends to life through state-of-the-art displays and interactive exhibits on frontier law and justice.

Wyoming is home to some of the most extensive fossil beds in the world and UW’s Geology Museum is home to a large display of dinosaur skeletons from around the world and from Wyoming’s famous Como Bluff area, which is located 30 miles west of Laramie.

The Laramie Plains Museum is located at the corner of 7th and Ivinson Streets and features artifacts from Laramie and Albany County’s past. Set in a restored Victorian Historic House. Laramie’s Historic Downtown District is almost totally restored and features many boutiques, restaurants, pubs, galleries and stores.

As you travel east on I-80 from Laramie to Cheyenne, you will notice strange, towering rock formations, known as the Rocks of Vedauwoo (Vee-da-voo). Just a few miles west of Vedauwoo is the Happy Jack Visitor Center. A large, 42 foot bust of Abraham Lincoln stands here. The museum is located in the Center and features local attractions.

Take a trip along the Snowy Range National Forest Scenic Byway (WY 130), which was the second in the nation to be designated a national forest scenic byway. More challenges await when you venture outdoors and try your hand at the many recreational activities available year-round.

There are few better places for snowmobiling than the Snowy Range and its miles and miles of groomed trails and pristine powder. Laramie offers outstanding shopping, dining and accommodations, mountain lodges and bed and breakfast inns.