Art Cartopia Museum

Yesterday's final walking stop was the highlight of the day and beyond. Hosting the 2nd largest art car/parade in the country, people come from all over to participate, or like us, stop through to take a look.

Walking in, we were immediately greeted and then given a full tour of the entire space - Paul was so cool and passionate about the space and the cars in it, we were immediately taken in. Makes sense, as he originally got involved so that he could drive the Jimi Hendrix car in the parade. Just outstanding.

As for the cars themselves, they were such intricate pieces in their own right: discarded cigarette butts, CDs, scrap metal, jewels, watches, doorknobs, you name it, it was probably on one of them. Several actually shoot flames in the parade.

Last but not least, Paul was an incredible docent - his passion for sharing the spectacularly weird cars with us was infectious, and we were swept along into the incredibly creative and astounding story that is Art Cartopia. 🤩

We stumbled upon this gem today! Amazing find! Rad Raven gave us a personal tour and showed us how to create this artwork! My artist-loving daughter and car-loving man were in heaven! Thanks, everyone, and we will hopefully be back thru here one day! Free admission, but donations are graciously accepted. Good deals at the gift shop too!! You won't regret the stop!

Such a cool place! And love the people that work there. They take time to educate you on their fun cars and where they came from. Worth the trip for sure. I'm so glad we stopped as we drove by and wondered what this place was.

Very friendly lady gave us a tour of the museum, and told us about all the cars, events, and artists. It was a nice stop during our stay in Trinidad. So much detail and work into all the art cars, and some with some very clever themes! They let us take pictures and they also have a little gift shop if you want to get a souvenir.

We took our 1 1/2 yr old son and it was amazing!! Our son LOVED it. The woman who gave us the tour was so incredibly lovely. She knows everything about these art cars. They each have an incredible back story and the craftsmanship that was put into them is the best thing I have ever seen. I would 100% recommend stopping by here and seeing the cars and hearing the stories in person.

We found this place while traveling into Colorado Springs. I’m so glad we did. It is an awesome museum to visit and the employees give you a guided tour and fun facts about all the Awesome cars there! a must see if you are In the area!

Easily one of the quirkiest places to visit. It's free. There's great stories behind all of these over-the-top creations. Well worth a stop.

Definitely worth a stop! We spotted the place as we sped past on southbound I25. On our trip north we thought we'd take a look after eating a very late lunch in Trinidad. However, according to the Google listing, we only had 10 minutes before closing. As we looked at the outside displays, one of the staff came outside to invite us in. "That would be too linear," was his response when we said that they were listed as closing in 10 minutes. That response captured the content of the museum as well, plus exemplified how friendly he and the other staff were. No two art cars are alike and there are great stories of the how and who of making them. Don't get me started on the punny names...just visit. And it is free, but certainly worth a donation.

I have so many photos, but I don't want to ruin your visit. We had a blast here, learned a whole bunch and the greeters are very knowledgeable. Upon happenstance we found this little spot, MMJ store on the same street, so we had to go in after seeing it before we left the town. Go there, you won't regret it. Thank you from San Antonio!

This is always worth the visit. The staff are kind and knowledgeable. There is a lot to see and there seems to always be something new. If nothing else you notice something that you hadn't noticed before.

Trinidad, Colorado —-

I spotted a bit of “quirky” while traveling along US Route 160. I went to investigate and discovered it was the “Art CARtopia Museum”.

Dozens of “Art-Cars” gave me more smiles than I could have imagined. “Rodney” who built the “Eye” car, gave me a one-on-one tour of the indoor works-of-art.

The dragon from Burning Man, the VW bug of cigarette butts, the CARti-Gras car, and a dozen more and their histories await patiently the next ART-Car Parade.

A “Run-A-Way Bill” Favorite discovery gave me “more smiles than I came in with”.

“Run-A-Way Bill” was here!

02. 03.21

So, I wasn't super psyched about this place cause I'm not much of a "car person." But, that's because I was ignoring the whole ART part in the *name* of the ART Cartopia Museum.

The very helpful staff member explained to us how the cars came together AND turned on some of the lit cars so we could see their lighting effects.

We ended up spending probably 40 minutes here- and would have stayed longer if they weren't closing for the day. There are so many intricate details in the different art cars. The artistry is stunning and impressive.

If you like art, go.
If you like cars, go.
If you like repurposed materials, go.
If you like kitch, go.
If you like... ya know what?! JUST GO!

Everyone should stop by at least once. I've been multiple times and learned more every time.. I'd love to have my own art car one day

What a crazy collection of automobile art, and it is art. Linda was the best she provided me with a personal tour and told about each piece and the artist who did the work. You shouldn't miss this it is well worth the time.

If you interested in all things automotive or odd, this place is for you. It caught my eye passing through on the highway and I just had to stop. Very unique art complete with stories on the artists vision for each piece. Check it out for sure!

Free admission. Donations accepted. The cars are pretty ool. They walk you around them all and tell you the story behind each one and how it was created. Worth the stop if your in the area

Always so much fun! We stop and visit every time we are in Trinidad. The volunteers are very knowledgeable and have a passion for Art Cars.

Awesome place to see some cool art and learn some history about the car art! It was free but donations are welcome! Highly recommend stopping!!

Very unique set of vehicles from cars to a Firebreathing Dragon! Great place to stop in and have a look. One of a kind.

Cool place. Cars are cool to look at would like to see the parade sometime. Lady giving tour was very nice and informative. Cars definitely took some time to build. Free to get in.....make sure ya make a donation. Come on more than a dollar please its free to get in......they have a small gallery where they display local art too. Have fun.