Old Town Fort Collins is the lively historic downtown of Fort Collins, a walkable grid of Victorian brick buildings, flower-lined sidewalks and patios wrapped around the pedestrian Old Town Square. It is one of the most charming main streets in Colorado, and it even helped inspire Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland.

Long before Old Town Square became the heart of downtown, the site was the 100 block of Linden Street. Platted in the mid-1880s, Linden Street, Pine Street and Lincoln Avenue were laid out to angle toward the Cache la Poudre River, creating the diagonal streets and flatiron-style buildings of the Old Town Triangle. In 1981 downtown property owners voted to create the Downtown Development Authority, and in 1985 the city, developer Gene Mitchell and the DDA turned the old block of Linden Street into the pedestrian plaza you see today. The Fort Collins History Connection confirms a favorite local legend: Disney art director Harper Goff grew up in Fort Collins and returned in the 1950s to photograph the buildings of his youth as models for Main Street, U.S.A.

Today Old Town packs more than 160 restaurants and retailers into a few easy blocks around College Avenue, Mountain Avenue and Linden Street. Look up at landmarks like the Northern Hotel, the Kissock Block and the restored buildings of the Linden Street corner, then grab a seat by the fountain in Old Town Square. Craft beer lovers can walk or bike to New Belgium Brewing and Odell Brewing Company, and the water and trails of Horsetooth Reservoir are a short drive west.

Downtown Fort Collins hosts the First Friday Art Walk each month, plus seasonal favorites such as the Foodie Walk and the Old Town Spree shopping promotion. As the holidays approach, Old Town Square becomes a festive gathering spot, and a Downtown Fort Collins gift card is accepted at more than 160 local businesses. See downtownfortcollins.com for the current calendar.