I fully admit to being biased because I live here, but I believe Salt Lake City, Utah is one of America’s best cities because of how many free activities and events there are.

Last weekend, we took the day to do local things in our own city and it was very eye-opening. Even Nate, who was born and raised in Utah, had never been to some of the places we went.

How often do you get to act like a tourist in a place you already know?

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Pro Tip: Street parking is free in SLC on Saturday’s!

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Next time you find yourself in Salt Lake City, Utah for a long layover or a stop on a road trip, make sure you visit these 6 places! They each take about 30 minutes or less if you are tight on time, but you won’t regret it!

#1 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Conference Center

We started with the Conference Center because we parked right next to it, and because it probably took the most time. If you haven’t heard of it, let me explain why it is famous.

Twice a year, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints holds a two-day conference that is broadcast worldwide. This building is where they hold it.

In addition, their world famous choir, The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square (formerly The Mormon Tabernacle Choir) performs here throughout the year.

As soon as you walk into the building, there is a host ready to give you a tour. I love that it can stay private because we learned so much more about the history of the church, the building, as well as certain art pieces. They have many original art paintings and sculptures for display as part of the tour!

One of the coolest parts of the tour though was going outside on the roof of the Conference Center. The view of Temple Square is unbelievable!

#2 Temple Square – Assembly Hall

Temple Square is world-renowned for housing the most well-known temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – Salt Lake Temple. Since only members of the church with a valid temple recommend can enter the temple, they have several other buildings around it for visitors to see. Currently, they are doing renovations on the Salt Lake Temple so the layout is a bit different from normal, but you can still take tours of the other historical buildings.

The first building is the Assembly Hall. It was built in 1875 as a place for people to worship together. Now, it is used for lectures and recitals. In fact, you can come on a Friday or Saturday night to hear a free show from musical artists.

It is open everyday from 9am – 9pm.

#3 Temple Square – The Tabernacle

This Tabernacle was the first Conference Center since 1867. In fact, it actually looks like a mini version of the Conference Center. It was designed specifically so that anyone sitting in the audience could see and hear the speaker clearly, hence its dome shape.

Probably due to its great acoustics, the Tabernacle Choir likes to practice here. As an added bonus, they allow their Thursday practices to be open to the public. Anybody who wants to can sit down and enjoy hearing the majestic choir for free from 7:30pm – 9:30pm.

I have to say, it was really cool to sit down on the wooden pews and imagine what it sound like with a full choir singing. Although, Parker was loud enough for everyone.

There are normally two Visitor Centers on Temple Square too, but it has changed due to the renovations. If you go and see missionaries walking around (typically young people with black name tags) you can ask them to give you a personal tour.

#4 The Beehive House

This structure was originally home to Brigham Young, the second prophet and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He and his family lived here while he was also governor of the Utah Territory and led the colonization of Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, California, and parts of Mexico. Needless to say, Brigham was a crucial part of the town and church.

It’s called the Beehive House because of the community and hard work that the members of the church had in organizing Salt Lake City. And if you didn’t know, Utah’s nickname is The Beehive State.

The guided tour through his old house lasts around 30 minutes depending on who joins your tour and how fast your guide goes. In it, you will see clothes worn by Brigham, the exact rooms he and his family slept in and entertained in, and how the house was used after Brigham’s passing.

One of the stories I liked the most was about how his religious predecessor, President John Taylor, sat in one of the rooms and had a vision about what happens to your body and spirit after death.

The Beehive House is open Monday through Saturday, 10am – 6pm.​

#5 Joseph Smith Memorial Building

This building is probably my favorite out of the bunch we saw. First of all, the decor is gorgeous. The marble columns and extravagant chandelier in the lobby always make me feel under-dressed.

I also love the history behind the building (I know, each place I’ve mentioned has history, but this one is different!) Constructed in 1911, it began as the Hotel Utah, the classiest hotel on the west of the Mississippi. It was so classy that celebrities like Elvis Presley, Bing Crosby, and multiple US presidents including the Kennedy’s stayed here.

When the hotel closed, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints bought it and changed it to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, named after the first prophet in the latter-days.

If you take this tour, you will learn many stories from the hotel days to now. Back when it was a hotel, part of the top floor was an apartment where the prophets of the church lived. To filter out the legitimate guests, they had to tell the security guard the code word “Cumorah” in order to enter. Isn’t that so cool?

Tours for the Joseph Smith Memorial Building are open Monday through Saturday, 10am – 8pm.

#6 The Garden Restaurant

If you come to Salt Lake for anything, you have to eat at The Garden! We stopped by for lunch during our day of tourism and it made our whole experience that much better.

The Garden Restaurant serves delicious food with an upscale, casual style. In other words, you can wear jeans like us or business attire and still fit in.

However, people don’t just come to The Garden for the food. They come for the view! Due to its location on the tenth floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, its wall of windows gives every guest the best view of Salt Lake City.

It is open Monday through Thursday from 11am – 9pm and Friday to Saturday from 11am – 9:30pm.

Hopefully you found this list helpful with planning your next pit stop in Salt Lake City, Utah! Everything I mentioned is very family-friendly and easily accessible with strollers, except The Beehive House. That has a lot of old stairs to climb, but they are happy to watch your stroller for you.

Have you been to Salt Lake City? What did you do here?

 

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