Carousel of Happiness

What a unique place to find happiness and joy! All the amazing hand sculptured animals! A unique place worth of visit by adults and children. Rebecca the Carousel attendant told all the interesting facts and story of how this place came about.

Beautiful work of art, each piece. The history of this place is a great story too.

Warning to those that get car sick easily: reading the historical plaques with the reflection of the spinning carousel, and then watching the carousel 😳 may cause nausea. 🙋🏻‍♀🤦🏻‍♀

The creativity in carving the rides is incredible. It's worth seeing even if you don't ride. Have some fun and hop on!

We had a wonderful time here a few weeks ago. We went when they opened on a Thursday. Our toddler enjoyed it. It wasn't too loud for her. We had to find a bench seat to sit with her as she didn't want to sit on a moving animal just yet. Many seating options and music was fun.

I have visited 3 time, last time we rode the carousel. It put smiles on all our adult faces. What an amazing story behind all the hand carved animals and people.

You’ve got to go! Adorable, and a great value this beautiful quirky Carousel is as unique as Ned. We loved it. Note an extra cool feature is a viewing gallery from above with a fun puppet theater area

Magical carousel for children and adults alike with a compelling origin story and a mission to bring joy to this world. Easy drive from Boulder. Makes a perfect half day adventure with children. Bring a lunch and have a picnic at the nearby Chipeta park to complete the adventure

A favorite stop whenever we are in the mountains! They have the cutest gift shop and everyone who works here is so nice. They are happy to explain everything!

Take time to walk through the line and read the history of the carousel.

Be sure to keep an eye out for the fairies!

Above the cash register is a cute puppet theater for the kids to play in and a great view of the carousel from the top!

This place is a historical landmark and a beautiful reminder of the love and effort that go into making a work of art like this truly marvelous carousel. I visit the Carousel of Happiness every time we're in town, and it's one of my favorite spots to bring people who are visiting Colorado from out-of-town.

Worth a visit, this is such a novel and whimsical experience. My family has always loved carousels and this is an old, storied one that topped our list. The staff were so knowledgeable and friendly. Cost $3/person and the ride wasn't too short, and the music was so loud and classic that I felt transported to a carnival. We drove out to Nederland just to visit this place and it didn't disappoint.

This is the best carousel I have ever seen. The animals were hand carved by a Vietnam War veteran. It is an amazing old school drive mechanism.
It has an amazing old school music player that uses paper recordings.
This is my daughter's favorite carousel.

We took our kids here and it was a cute little carousel. But the best part is what it represents. They have a motto “Don’t delay joy” that seems to represent what the carousel stands for. You can Google for its story, but if you’re in Nederland, it’s a place worth supporting.

Went on a weekend and a weekday - beautiful place & history. Absolutely recommend.

What a magical and truly happy place. History, artistry, craftsmanship and whimsy. Loved it and hope to return.
Kind staff, clean bathrooms, reasonable prices.
No complaints at all.

What a wonderful spot of joy! This is a whimsical carousel with a great backstory - don't miss the talk ahead of the ride or they'll tell you at the visitor's center too. One man's passion and skill! $3 per ride, per person. There's also a cute little "puppet show" area upstairs with a lookout onto the carousel.

Wonderful fun experience. A hidden treasure for a delightful road trip exploring towns. We found this gem of a place. This place is a non profit. Our family rode this 2 times. So many cool things to look at that seem to be new each time you look around. Did you find the fairies? The fox? The egg? The coolest thing was the music and seeing the gears move. We loved this place! Perfect for a day trip!

This place is full of magic and joy! We didn't get to ride because they were changing a gear. But, they still let us in, told us all about the history, and turned the music on. It was AMAZING!

This has been one of my kids favorite places, especially because we got to go during Covid. This is a special place. So glad the upstairs has been reopened, and my kids want to play with the puppet show always. Such a great story, we love everything about the carousel of happiness.

One of the most special places around Boulder. The history of the carousel and the meaning behind it, along with the hand carved animals makes this one of my favorite places to take out of town guests. It can’t help but put a smile on your face.

Unfortunately we were there on one of their maintenance days (Tues and Wed during the winter). But they let us look it over and takeall the pictures we wanted. You just don't find that hospitality in big towns.