Free Summer Activities in Utah

Amidst all of the craziness, work, schedules, sports, lessons, etc. take time to do some fun family bonding. We have put together an extensive list of free summer activities in Utah. Many of these can probably be applied to any location. It just takes a little searching to see what is available in your area. Free summer activities save my family a lot of money and my kids have (almost) as much fun as they would with a big fancy vacation.

This summer I have made a deal with my kids that we would have as much fun as possible and try to spend as little as possible. We are all for fun vacations (like we went to Florida, Arizona, Arches, Yellowstone, Zion, and California just to name a few over the last few years).

That is why I wanted to make this summer about enjoying each other and spending quality time together in our local areas and exploring where we live. If you know of something that isn’t listed, please let me know in the comments and I will get it added! Please share this list of Free summer activities in Utah with your friends and family so they can take advantage of the fun too!

List of free summer activities in Utah:

• Splash Pads

• Parks/Playgrounds

• Weber County RAMP Free Days

• This is the Place free day

• Utah Museum of Natural History free days

• Red Butte Gardens free day

• Wheeler Historic Farm

• International Peace Gardens

• Gilgal Sculpture Garden

• Lakes (fishing, playing on the beach/shore, paddle boarding, rafting, etc)

  • Starvation Reservoir

  • Fish Lake

  • The Great Salt Lake

  • Utah Lake

  • Lake Powell

  • Flaming Gorge Reservoir

  • Strawberry Reservoir

  • Jordanelle Reservoir

  • Mirror Lake

  • Scofield Reservoir

• Library Events

• Summer Reading Program

• Hiking

• Trails & Walkways

  • Provo River Walkway

  • Jordan River Parkway

  • Denver and Rio Grande Western Rail Trail

  • Legacy Parkway Trail

  • Moab Canyon Pathway

  • Murdock Canal Trail

  • Odgen River Parkway

  • Porter Rockwell Trail

  • Virgin River Trail

• Bonneville Salt Flats

• Temple Square

• Ensign Peak

• Great Salt Lake Nature Center at Farmington Bay (closed until late summer 2018)

• Central Utah Gardens

• Museums (many are free or have free days)

  • BYU Museum of Paleontology

  • BYU Museum of Art

  • BYU Botany Pond and Grounds

  • BYU Royden G. Derrick Planetarium

  • Fort Douglas Military Museum

  • LDS Church History Museum

  • Daughters of Utah Pioneer Museum

  • Clark Planetarium

  • Hill Aerospace Museum

• Utah State Capitol

• Memory Grove Park

• Conservation Garden Park

• Movies in the Park

• Concerts in the Park

• Parades

• City Days Celebrations

• Balloon Festivals

  • Bluff International (January 12-14, 2018)

  • Kanab (February 15,16, and 17, 2019)

  • Springville (June 8-9, 2018)

  • Salina (June 15-17, 2018)

  • Panguitch (June 21-24, 2018)

  • Provo (July 2-4, 2018)

  • Sandy (August 11, 2018)

  • Ogden Valley (August 17-19, 2018)

  • Park City (September 15-16, 2018)

• Star Gazing (view free events with the SLAS)

• Digging for Geodes in Dugway

• GeoCaching

• Nature Scavenger Hunt

• Farmers Markets

While you here be sure to check out the FREE & Discounted Admission Days in UTAH for Hogle Zoo, Loveland Living Planet Aquarium, Red Butte Gardens and more!

Here some inexpensive things you can enjoy as well, in addition to the free summer activities listed above:

Family Night at the Salt Lake Bees game (cheap tickets, great seats, and a free hot dog!) You can get these tickets at Smith’s locations.

Family Nights as places like swimming pools, movie theaters, etc for a discounted admission (Cinemark and Megaplex offer $5 movies on Tuesdays)

$2 Tuesday Admission to Thanksgiving Point every Tuesday in August

These free summer activities are just what we have found so far! If you know of any free or cheap activities, please leave a comment and I will add them. I will keep this updated as we find more.