Please help:Road trip. I need to know the top 5 places to visit in UT. (Salt Lake City: how much, theatre)

[Kaligirl]

ROAD TRIP...Please Help: I need to know your Top 5 (or so) fun places to visit your great state. We will be traveling by car and have three kids, ages 11, 8, and 6. Might be bringing the dog too.

Any good ideas of the "must sees". We love all types of things indoor and outdoor, nature, adventure, etc..... Plan to travel, end of July - beginning of August. We are starting from southern CA and trying to see parts of NV, UT, ID, MT and Northern CA.

And yes, I know it's crazy! hee hee
Thank you!

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by Kaligirl

ROAD TRIP...Please Help: I need to know your Top 5 (or so) fun places to visit your great state. We will be traveling by car and have three kids, ages 11, 8, and 6. Might be bringing the dog too.

Any good ideas of the "must sees". We love all types of things indoor and outdoor, nature, adventure, etc..... Plan to travel, end of July - beginning of August. We are starting from southern CA and trying to see parts of NV, UT, ID, MT and Northern CA.

And yes, I know it's crazy! hee hee
Thank you!

Bryce Canyon, Zion National Park, Arches. (Now I'm trying to eliminate from the rest of my lengthy list to come up with the last two.) By the way, Bryce and Zion are close to each other. Arches is on the other side of the state -- not exactly a convenient triangle, but all three are well worth the visit. Note: If you decide to visit any or all of these three places, be sure to tell us so that we can recommend some more specific attractions in each place.

[Clark Fork Fantast]

Kaligirl,
I just posted a reply to you over in the Idaho forum, and I saw that you're looking for good Utah places, too. If you're going to Bryce and Zion, you may want to stay overnight in Kanab--a great little town with a lot of Western flavor, and Western movie history. They even have a Western film festival, usually at the end of August. The same thing goes for the town of Moab, close to Arches. If you stay in Moab, you can see both Arches and Canyonlands, they are very close.

[lilnickles85]

I second Moab- I just got back from there a couple of weeks ago and it was amazing. The KOA there was great- Pancake breakfasts and ice cream socials. Arches was lovely and canyonlands was great. (Just be careful when you choose any trails to hike. We took a loop trail in the "island in the sky" portion of canyonlands and were unaware that it was an extreme hike- the map was poorly drawn.) If you are going to national parks, definitely stop at the first visitor center you can and get the kids National Park Passports. They will have fun getting them stamped at all the different parts.

Also, you have to hit Yellowstone- the kids will like all the buffalo roaming around. We stayed at the West Yellowstone KOA, which has an indoor pool and hot tub- which is good for the variable weather in Yellowstone. While you drive through Idaho, if you are near Rigby (north of Idaho Falls), go to Stockman's for a nice meal- its right off Highway 15 I believe. Also, Idaho Falls has a nice movie theatre and there are go karts right next door- but they are only open fri-sun.

Have a great trip!

[motormaker]

I'd like to toss Lake Powell into the mix.

[stycotl]

how much time are you planning on spending in utah? are you planning on sticking to i-15, or are you ok turning off on to hwy 24 and hwy 12?

if you have only one day, on the drive through, i'd prefer to just choose one location and spend a day there, but i can understand if you are trying to fit as many places in as you can.

if you are planning on straying from i-15, definitely consider traveling up hwy 12, onto hwy 24, and then onto i-70. this will take you through a lot of utah's most spectacular attractions.

basic idea
start in st george; head up to springdale and zion national park on hwy 9; then go back to i-15 and into cedar city; from there, swing east on hwy 14, passing cedar breaks; then continue on to hwy 89, and up to hwy 12 (just past hillsdale); on hwy 12 (considered by many to be utah's msot scenic hwy, though i am partial to hwy 24), you will access bryce canyon, kodachrome state park, and the grand staircase-escalante area; follow hwy 12 up through boulder, and into the dixie national forest; then turn east onto hwy 24 and tour capitol reef; continue east on 24 to hanksville; at hanksville, you can continue north on 24, or you can head south to lake powell on hwy 95 (if you have the time, lake powell is fantastic); once you are heading north on 24 again, you pass goblin valley and canyonlands national park; follow 24 north until i-70; head east on i-70; turn south on hwy 191 toward moab, arches national park, and different access points to canyonlands national park; from there, if you have the time, continue down 191 to monument valley (another famous area of utah, but very much out of the way); eventually head back up to i-70, and then turn north onto the hwy 6/hwy 191 route (toward price and spanish fork canyon; this section of i-70 and hwy 6/191 gives you access to the san rafael swell); follow hwy 6/191 up to where 6 splits away from 191 (if you have time, head east on 191 to dinosaur national monument and flaming gorge); follow hwy 6 into utah county if you are in a hurry to get back to i-15 (otherwise, continue on to park city, by way of 191, duchesne, and hwy 40; and if you have even more time, head north on hwy 150 to mirror lake); head into the salt lake valley, accessing antelope island from i-80 or hwy 127; then drive up i-15 to brigham city; turn off onto hwy 89, and visit logan and bear lake.

that is utah in a nutshell. there are a lot of attractions that are still missing; i have spent many years working in the utah tourism industry, and i still have many places that i have yet to see.

i am sure that some variation of the above scheme applies, even if not in its entirety. even with kids, there are generally enough stops that you don't have to keep them in the car for too long–assuming that you have a few days to spend on the journey.

anyway, good luck. aaron out.

[carlymac]

I like Snowbird tram/ hike in Little Cottonwood Canyon, Temple Square, Bryce Canyon, Arches and Zion's National Park.

Others: American West Festival in Wellsville, Logan Canyon, Bear Lake (get a raspberry shake in Garden City), Dinosaur Natl monument if you're into that kind of thing (or the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point or the Natural History Museum at the U of U), Timpanogos Cave, and the Shakespear Festival in Cedar City is awesome!

[sgorty]

I think most people have hit the highlites of Utah but let's throw in a couple more. Park City is known for its winter events but in the summer there's stuff to do. For your age group the Alpine Slide at Park City Mountain would be great. From there you can visit where the Olympics were held. The Ice Oval in Salt Lake City is kind of interesting to see. Typical tourist trap activities but in the mountains.
If you're in Idaho you just as well go to Wyoming and visit Grand Teton National Park, do a Snake River raft trip (your age group is fine, this is way fun) and while you're in Jackson Hole you have to visit the Bar J Wranglers. Great food & entertainment for the whole family. Plenty of hiking, canoeing etc in Grand Teton Park, and not as crowded as Yellowstone. We love it there and have skipped Yellowstone in the past.
If you have not seen Yellowstone go and see the lower loop. Look at a map and you'll figure it out for yourself. Most of the cool geysers, hot springs, Old Faithful, Yellowstone Falls, buffalo, etc can be visited in a long day.

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by sgorty

I think most people have hit the highlites of Utah but let's throw in a couple more. Park City is known for its winter events but in the summer there's stuff to do. For your age group the Alpine Slide at Park City Mountain would be great.

What a marvelous suggestion! Kids and adults both love the Alpine Slide!

[cinnabon]

Originally Posted by Kaligirl

ROAD TRIP...Please Help: I need to know your Top 5 (or so) fun places to visit your great state. We will be traveling by car and have three kids, ages 11, 8, and 6. Might be bringing the dog too.

Any good ideas of the "must sees". We love all types of things indoor and outdoor, nature, adventure, etc..... Plan to travel, end of July - beginning of August. We are starting from southern CA and trying to see parts of NV, UT, ID, MT and Northern CA.

And yes, I know it's crazy! hee hee
Thank you!

I agree with all the suggestions, but I want to add another. You itinerary sounds pretty ambitious. Not sure exactly how long you are planning to spend out here, but I would recommend narrowing it down to fewer places and fewer miles to drive, and really get to see the areas you visit. Especially with the kids, you probably don't want to spend endless hours in the car, and have only half a day to see each destination. And keep in mind you will not be able to bring the dog into a lot of National Parks and other places, and if you bring him with you you will wind up kenneling him at a lot of places.