Are the people in Utah friendly? (rated, dog park, places)

[Cabezablanca]

As a Utah native who has lived in the state and who now lives outside it but returns regularly and who has traveled all over the US, I can only share my experience and observations. Utah people in general will certainly tend to be among the most correct and non-confrontational of people. But "friendly" in an open, warm, chatty way with strangers. Not so much. There are places that are friendlier if those are the criteria. People in Utah will certainly not be unfriendly or hostile, and they will tend to be polite. But my experience is that many people will just be aloof. They will deal with you when needed, but it seems like they sometimes just don't know what to do with you. In SLC, this is less evident; it's more common in small-town and rural Utah. Whenever I return to Utah, I notice this. Of course, there is a whole range of behaviors everywhere you go, but generally speaking, the above is my experience.

[forsheamountain]

It would only make sense to figure massacres into the friendliness equation. If I'm not mistaken, Utah's last massacre was in 1945. The 1945 massacre was perpetrated by a New Yorker, which would subtract points from the unfriendly column.

[slcmomof5]

Utahns are friendly in a different way. Its not the place you can just chat somebody up. If you needed directions or help with something you would definitely find someone. People here have a strong network of family, friends and church friends and don't typically feel the need to get to know others. However there are a lot of groups on meetup that I've heard are great. Just know if you try to start a conversation with someone you may just get awkward glares. I grew up here and always surprised how friendly (chatty) people are outside of this state.

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by slcmomof5

Utahns are friendly in a different way. Its not the place you can just chat somebody up. If you needed directions or help with something you would definitely find someone. People here have a strong network of family, friends and church friends and don't typically feel the need to get to know others. However there are a lot of groups on meetup that I've heard are great. Just know if you try to start a conversation with someone you may just get awkward glares. I grew up here and always surprised how friendly (chatty) people are outside of this state.

You know, it's funny, but I frequently just strike up a conversation with people I'm standing in line with at the grocery store, a sporting event, at a dog park, etc. I can't recall ever once having been met with an "awkward glare." At the very minimum, people will respond with a friendly sentence or two. More often, though, the conversation tends to go on for a few minutes. I don't even have a clue as to what this "awkward glare" even is. Actually, today when I was in the waiting room at the vet with our cat, a lady sitting next to me started the conversation. We talked about our pets until it was her turn to be seen by the vet. I must either frequently entirely different places or run into entirely different people than the rest of you folks do.