The perfect day in Boise, hour by hour

Some days in Boise don't need much planning, you just need to know where to start. This is the version we'd hand a friend visiting for the first time, or use ourselves on a Saturday with nowhere else to be.

How to spend the perfect day in Boise, from morning to night

Morning: coffee and the Greenbelt

Push & Pour

Start at Push & Pour for coffee to go. From there, walk it off on the Boise River Greenbelt. The path runs right through the heart of the city, so you can go as far or as short as the morning allows before doubling back.

Late morning: Freak Alley and breakfast at Loving Lefse

Freak Alley Gallery

Once you're back downtown, swing through Freak Alley Gallery, the outdoor mural alley that changes often enough to be worth a second look even if you've been before.

Loving Lefse

From there, head to Loving Lefse for breakfast. It's a Norwegian-inspired spot downtown, and the lefse alone is worth building the morning around.

Afternoon: Idaho Botanical Garden

Idaho Botanical Garden

Give yourself a couple of hours at the Idaho Botanical Garden. It's an easy, unhurried way to spend the middle of the day, and the grounds change enough with the seasons that it never feels like the same visit twice.

Evening: dinner at Percy

Percy

Book dinner at Percy. It's the kind of place that makes the whole day feel like it built toward something, polished but not fussy, and a good excuse to actually sit down after a day of moving around the city.

Night: dessert at Reed's Dairy

Reed's Dairy

Close it out with a scoop from Reed's Dairy. It's a bit of a drive out to Lake Hazel, but small-batch ice cream at 16% butterfat is a fitting way to end the day, and there's something nice about ending a Boise day exactly the way you'd end a summer night as a kid.