Fun Things to Do in Utah in the Summer
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Summer in Utah is a wonderful place to be! It offers so many amazing activities to do and destinations to visit. If you want some fun things to do in Utah in the Summer, you have come to the right place. I will share them all with you!
Whether you are a Utah native, just moved here, or are planning a summer vacation to this beautiful state, I have you covered. This list will give you fun activities and ideas for the whole family to keep you busy all summer long!
Join me in enjoying the amazing things to see and explore here in the incredible state of Utah. Utah has some of the most breathtaking scenery available. If you are from another place, welcome! I know you will find some wonderful things to do. We have a local hashtag here that we use #utahrocks. I love the double meaning of it- Utah is full of rocks, and also it really rocks!
Fun Things to Do in the Summer in Utah:
Utah offers so many amazing outdoor adventures: mountain biking, golf courses, some of the most popular hikes in the world, horseback riding, rock climbing, river rafting, mountain peaks, beautiful scenery, red rock formations, amazing national parks, hot springs, ski resorts, boating, scenic drives, live music, dinosaur bones, annual festivals, rodeos, historical monuments, and zip lines. It truly is a spectacular place to live and to visit! And a Summer in Utah is not to be missed.
Utah Summer Festivals
One thing I love about Utah in the summer is all of the fun festivals that are going on. It is a tradition that each city holds their own city festival full of fun festivities. There are races, carnivals, concerts, parades, fireworks, outdoor markets, rodeos, and more. There seems to be something fun going on each weekend. We love going to the different festivals near us each summer.
- Strawberry Days in Pleasant Grove
- Steel Days in American Fork
- Freedom Festival in Provo
- Art City Days in Springville
- Brigham City Peach Days
- Days of ’47 in Salt Lake
And many more! Each of these has their own traditions and celebrations. Most of them have a carnival, a parade, fireworks, a rodeo, and other awesome events! They are tons of fun and a great tradition if you live here in Utah.
Fun Things to Do in Salt Lake City, Utah:
There are so many awesome things to see and visit in the Salt Lake Valley.
Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square: Start your summer in Utah by coming to hear me sing in the Tabernacle! The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square is a world famous choir and is an iconic thing to come see and hear while in Salt Lake. We are there singing every Thursday evening and Sunday morning. It’s free and everyone is always welcome. We usually sing in the Conference Center during the Summer because it is much bigger and can fit the summer crowds, but be sure to also visit the historic Tabernacle and Temple Square. It’s an incredible building!
LDS Church History Museum: This is just across the street from the Tabernacle and is a fascinating building with artifacts and art from the history of the LDS church. Free entrance.
Hogle Zoo: We have a great zoo in Salt Lake! The kids and adults always have a fun time visiting here.
Tracy Aviary: This aviary is an awesome place to visit in the Summer. My kids and I always enjoy it.
Antelope Island State Park: Spot Bison and see the Great Salt Lake up close!
The Great Salt Lake: the Bonneville Salt flats are amazing to see! They make for some epic photos, too.
This is the Place Heritage Park: This is a fun park with a historic setting that highlights the Utah pioneers and how they lived. This is fun for the whole family and has activities for young kids too, including train rides, horse rides, panning for gold, a delicious ice cream store, and more!
Natural History Museum of Utah: This is an awesome museum that includes dinosaurs, native plant life, rotating history displays and more! It is just behind the University of Utah
Red Butte Garden is an amazing botanical garden on the University of Utah campus. There are often outdoor concerts here, too.
Visit the Farmer’s Market in Pioneer Park June through October.
Utah Museum of Fine Arts– definitely worth a visit if you are an art fan!
Leonardo Museum is a fun interactive science museum. There are hands on activities for kids as well as exhibits for adults.
Pioneer Day in Utah is a fun celebration. This is on the 24th of July. Catch the Days of ’47 Parade in Salt Lake City. This celebrates the day the Mormon pioneers settled in Utah in 1847.
Sporting Events: Utah has the Utah Jazz basketball team, the Real Salt Lake soccer team, and the Salt Lake Bees baseball team.
Attend the Utah Symphony: they are wonderful! They perform concerts at the historic Abravanel Hall.
Family History Library: this is an amazing place to learn about your heritage and ancestors!
Clark Planetarium: This is a fun stop for kids. You can watch movies, see the stars, and visit interactive exhibits. They also have laser shows in the evenings set to thematic of popular bands.
Discovery Children’s Museum is a wonderful place to visit if you have young children. We spent lots of time here when my kids were little. It is an interactive city to play in as well as other awesome things to play and explore!
The Capitol Building is a gorgeous building to visit! If you have time to take a peek inside, it is worth it!
Hiking; There are endless hikes available in Utah. IN Salt Lake area there are multiple canyons to explore including Big Cottonwood Canyon, Little Cottonwood Canyon, Parley’s Canyon, Millcreek Canyon, etc.
Greater Salt Lake Area:
Bear Lake is a favorite vacation spot for so many. Drive a few hours north of Salt Lake to get here. There are cabins and water sports, and beautiful scenery. It’s a great spot to visit!
Vernal Dinosaur National Monument- Drive East of Salt Lake to find this place. Here you will find the Dinosaur National Monument. It is on the border of Utah and Colorado and has a world-famous dinosaur quarry with thousands of fossils!
Lagoon– this is an amusement park north of Salt Lake that has some great roller coasters and other rides. It’s a great park for the whole family!
Hill Aerospace Museum– this is a free museum in Ogden full of historical airplanes. It’s really impressive!
Fun Things to Do in Park City:
Park city has great shopping, hiking, mountain biking, golfing, restaurants, and more! Following are a few experiences to check out if you are visiting Park City.
Hike through the beautiful aspen groves.
Visit the Olympic Park venues from the 2002 Winter Olympics
Ride the Mountain Coaster and the Alpine Slides
Visit Sundance Mountain Resort- they have restaurants, hikes, some wonderful outdoor summer shows and concerts
Experience the zip line and ropes courses.
Take a scenic gondola ride.
Fun Things to Do in the Utah Valley Area
Northern Utah doesn’t have the amazing red rocks like southern Utah does, but there are still some awesome things to do and beautiful things to see.
Hike to the Y on the mountain near Brigham Young University. This is a fun, but somewhat steep hike to do!
Bridal Veil Falls– this is up Provo Canyon along the Provo river and is a beautiful place to visit and hike.
Raft down the Provo River- you can rent tubes, or bring your own. This is a fun experience to do!
Brigham Young University– catch some sporting events, the free art museum, theater music & more!
The Monte L. Bean Animal Museum in Provo is on the BYU Campus. It is a cool place to take kids! It is free and so interesting.
Timpanogos Caves National Park– a MUST see in American Fork Canyon, This is a short hike through caves full of stalactites & stalagmites. Reserve tickets well in advance!
American Fork Canyon offers many hikes plus the Tibble Fork reservoir is an awesome place to visit for paddle boarding or kayaking.
Take a scenic drive through the aspen groves up American Fork Canyon. But there are many other things to see up the canyon as well! We love visiting Tibble Fork Reservoir, hiking, and exploring all over!
Boating on Utah Lake or in some of the other reservoirs around the state including Strawberry, & Deer Creek.
Splash Summit Water Park is a great place to take the kids on an extra hot day.
Thanksgiving Point is an awesome spot for the whole family! There is a children’s museum, a dinosaur museum, a butterfly emporium, a vast garden to explore, shops, restaurants, and more! It’s a really neat place.
The Diamond Fork Hot Springs are a fun spot to visit down in the Spanish Fork area. They have natural hot springs and waterfalls.
Payson Lakes is a beautiful camping, fishing and canoeing spot!
Climb to the top of Mount Timpanogos. This is a beautiful mountain peak right in my back yard! It’s an all day hike, but sure an amazing one.
4th of July in Utah County– Each year at BYU they hold the Stadium of Fire. It is in the football stadium and always has a famous musician to perform. There are fireworks, a concert, other performances, comedians, jets fly over, it is an extraordinary event!! If you aren’t able to get tickets, you can get a great show sitting outside to watch! Provo also hosts a Grand Parade, Ballon Festival, Colonial Fest, races, and more.
Things to Do in Southern Utah in the Summer
Southern Utah is an incredible place to visit. In fact, it should not be missed. This is where you will find most of our amazing National Parks! Most people come to the state to see this part of it.
Bryce Canyon National Park
Arches National Park in Moab
Zion National Park
Capitol Reef National Park
Canyonlands National Park
There is so much to see in each of these spots, Each of these parks offer unique amazing hikes, and world-famous views you will not want to miss.
This year we rafted down the Colorado River in Moab (where Arches National Park is located) and it was an amazing experience. We booked a three day rafting/camping trip and did it with a big group of friends. We had a blast! White water river rafting has been on my bucket list for a long time.
Shakespeare Festival- an annual festival in Southern Utah with professional shows Ron multiple stages.
Tuacahn Theater- This amazing outdoor amphitheater is in the heart of the red rocks of southern Utah near Zions. It has amazing professional shows to experience!
See also my Utah Field Trips and Destinations post. Also, check out my post on Homeschooling In Utah ~ Everything You Need to Know!
