Best time to travel in Salt Lake City?
→ The detailed month-by-month page, with 2015-2024 averages
Best time: May to June and September to October
Best avoided if possible: December to March (less pleasant weather or big crowds).
Temperatures and rainfall: 1991-2020 normals from the Salt Lake City Airport station, NOAA data (public domain).
Semi-arid mountain climate at 1,288 m: hot, dry summers around 34°C, and cold winters with snow in the city and inversion episodes when smoggy haze lingers in the valley; in the nearby canyons, more than 12 metres of powder snow fall every winter. The best time to visit Salt Lake City is May, June, September and October, with temperatures reaching 33-35°C (July). By contrast, January, February, March, April, July, August, November and December are generally less favourable (less pleasant weather or big crowds, depending on the destination), though a trip is still possible with a bit of planning. In high season, book early: prices and visitor numbers climb fast.
Go against the flow. To avoid the crowds without sacrificing too much on the weather, aim for April and November: the crowds thin out, prices drop too, and the climate stays pleasant.
Do these months appeal to you? See what's best elsewhere too: where to go in May · where to go in June · where to go in September · where to go in October.
At a glance
Why go to Salt Lake City?
Salt Lake City was born on 24 July 1847, when Brigham Young and the first Mormon pioneers emerged from the mountains after a 2,000 km trek from Illinois. They laid out a ruler-straight city of huge blocks, with streets wide enough for a team of oxen to turn around, centred on the temple. The city remains the world headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but today it has a very mixed population, a major university and a restaurant and bar scene that surprises those who imagine it to be austere.
What strikes you is how close the great outdoors are. The Wasatch Front rises to the east at over 3,000 metres, and its canyons lead in 30 to 45 minutes to several ski resorts that boast of having the best snow in the world, dry and light. To the west stretches the Great Salt Lake, the largest salt lake in the western hemisphere, with its bison islands and millions of migrating birds, followed by the Bonneville salt desert all the way to Nevada.
Finally, Salt Lake City is a handy gateway to the West: its airport, one of Delta's major hubs, receives direct flights from Europe, and Utah's five national parks, Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Bryce and Zion, as well as Yellowstone and Grand Teton to the north, are four to five hours' drive away. Many travellers start or end a road trip here, after two or three days between the city and the mountains.
Tourist map of Salt Lake City: what's where?
The map below pinpoints the 6 places covered in this guide: a handy way to picture the distances between each stop and plan your route in Salt Lake City.
- Temple Square
- Utah State Capitol
- Natural History Museum of Utah
- Antelope Island
- Snowbird
- Park City
How much does a trip to Salt Lake City cost in 2026? Budget calculator
Estimate your budget for Salt Lake City based on your travel style: accommodation, meals, activities and local transport included (flights excluded). Adjust the length and the number of travellers, and the totals update.
Totals for all travellers over the chosen length; the daily amount is per person. Flights extra, indicative amounts to adjust depending on the season.
Cards are accepted everywhere, contactless included, even on the light rail. Prices are shown before tax, and taxes are higher on hotel rooms and hire cars than on purchases. A tip of 18 to 22% is expected in restaurants, and $1-2 per drink at the bar.
Safety in Salt Lake City: should you be worried?
Salt Lake City is a safe city for visitors. Homelessness is visible in some streets to the west and south of downtown, around the station and Rio Grande Street, where it is best not to linger alone at night. Thefts from cars happen at trailheads: leave nothing on view. In summer, the heat often exceeds 35°C in the city and on the salt flats, so drink plenty and protect yourself from the sun, which reflects off the salt. In winter, temperature inversions can seriously degrade air quality in the valley, and the canyons sometimes close because of avalanche risk; for hiking or off-piste skiing, check with the Utah Avalanche Center. The altitude of the resorts, above 2,500 metres, is tiring for the first few days. Medical care is excellent but very expensive, so health insurance covering the United States is essential.
Things to see and do in Salt Lake City
Our first-hand favourites, and the great classics:
- Temple Square
- Capitol Hill and Ensign Peak
- Natural History Museum of Utah
- Antelope Island
- Little Cottonwood Canyon
- Big Cottonwood Canyon
- Park City
- Bonneville Salt Flats
What to book before you go to Salt Lake City →
🧭 Discover the Salt Lake City itinerary, day by dayMap, timings, budget and where to stay: free to access, to fit your dates. Create my tailor-made itinerary →Downtown and Temple Square
The grid starts from Temple Square, home to the temple, the Tabernacle, the Conference Center and the Family History Library. Just to the south, City Creek Center, an open-air shopping centre with a stream running through it, and Main Street lead to the business district and the theatres. The free fare zone covers downtown, where the TRAX light rail runs without a ticket. The Gateway, to the west, brings together restaurants, cinemas and the old Union Pacific station, converted into a hotel.
Capitol Hill and the Avenues
North of downtown, Capitol Hill holds the city's oldest houses, adobe pioneer cottages and Victorian mansions. The Avenues district, to the east, lines up sloping tree-lined streets and a few bed and breakfasts in historic houses. The Ensign Peak trail, above, offers the view Brigham Young had of the valley in 1847. Memory Grove, a wooded park in a small ravine, links the Capitol to downtown on foot.
The university and the foothills
To the east, at the foot of the mountains, the University of Utah campus is home to the Natural History Museum of Utah, Red Butte Garden, a botanical garden of desert and mountain plants, and This Is The Place Heritage Park, a reconstructed pioneer village at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. The Bonneville Shoreline Trail follows the old shore of the prehistoric lake along the hillside, with views over the whole valley. The neighbouring districts of 9th and 9th and Sugar House are packed with cafés and independent shops.
The Wasatch canyons
To the south-east, two parallel canyons lead to the four nearest resorts. Little Cottonwood Canyon, carved in granite, leads to Snowbird and Alta, Big Cottonwood Canyon to Solitude and Brighton. In summer, they are terrain for hiking, climbing and mountain biking, with cirque lakes and flowering meadows; in winter, the road can close for a few hours for avalanche control. Millcreek Canyon, further north, is the canyon for family walks and dogs.
The Great Salt Lake
To the north-west, the lake, whose level varies greatly from year to year, can be seen from Antelope Island, its bison island, or from Great Salt Lake State Park, near the Saltair pavilion. The Bear River bird refuge, to the north, attracts hundreds of thousands of migrating birds in spring and autumn. The smell of brine and the swarms of brine flies in summer are part of the experience. Further on, about 2 hours 30 by road, the Spiral Jetty, a land art work from 1970, juts out into the pink water of the north shore.
Park City and the eastern mountains
40 minutes away on the I-80, Park City combines a silver rush Main Street, two large ski areas, Park City Mountain and Deer Valley, and the 2002 Olympic Games facilities at Utah Olympic Park. In summer, the town lives on hiking, mountain biking and open-air concerts. Beyond, the Mirror Lake Highway climbs into the Uintas to over 3,200 metres, between lakes and forests, a road open only in summer.
How many days, and which itinerary in Salt Lake City?
Two days are enough for Temple Square, the Capitol, the natural history museum and one canyon. Four days add Antelope Island, Park City and the other canyon. One more day allows for the round trip to the Bonneville Salt Flats, or the departure for the national parks to the south.
🗺️ Day-by-day Salt Lake City itinerary · 📓 Printable Salt Lake City travel guide (PDF) · 🌍 Discover all of the American West
The long weekend (3 days)
Day 1: Temple Square in the morning, lunch at City Creek Center, the Capitol in the afternoon and sunset from Ensign Peak. Day 2: Natural History Museum of Utah and Red Butte Garden in the morning, then Little Cottonwood Canyon and the Snowbird tram up to Hidden Peak. Day 3: Antelope Island for the bison and a swim in the salt lake, back via downtown for the choir rehearsal if it is a Thursday.
City and mountains (5 days)
The three days of the weekend, then a day in Park City, Main Street, Utah Olympic Park and a hike or a mountain bike descent from the chairlifts in summer, and a day in Big Cottonwood Canyon, Donut Falls in the morning and the loop around Silver Lake, with dinner in the Sugar House district. In winter, replace the hikes with two days of skiing at Alta, Snowbird, Brighton or Park City.
Gateway to the Great West (12 days)
Two nights in Salt Lake City, then the road south: Arches and Canyonlands from Moab, Capitol Reef via Route 24, Scenic Byway 12 to Bryce Canyon and Zion, and back via the I-15. Or head north to Grand Teton and Yellowstone through Idaho, five hours' drive away. Allow 1,500 to 2,000 km, and book nights near the parks early in summer.
How to get to Salt Lake City and get around?
Delta, for which Salt Lake City is a major hub, flies non-stop from Paris-Charles de Gaulle to the city in 10 to 11 hours. Otherwise, expect a connection in the United States or in Europe. The airport, entirely rebuilt and reopened in 2020, is 6 km (4 miles) west of downtown.
The TRAX Green Line links the airport to downtown in about twenty minutes for $2.50, about €2.15. With a FAREPAY card, fares are capped at $5, about €4.30, per day. Downtown, the free fare zone lets you ride TRAX and buses without a ticket.
A car becomes useful as soon as you leave the city: for Antelope Island, Park City, the canyons and Bonneville. Cars can be hired at the airport, for around €40-70 a day. Parking downtown is easy and cheaper than in most large American cities.
In winter, regular buses run up to the Little and Big Cottonwood Canyon resorts from the valley, and Park City is served from downtown. The Little Cottonwood Canyon road requires suitable tyres in snowy periods and can close in the morning for avalanche control.
Where to stay in Salt Lake City?
Downtown, around Temple Square, City Creek and the Gateway, has most of the hotels, from €120 to €220 a night, within walking distance of the sights and in the free transport zone. Prices climb during major conventions and the ski season.
The chain hotels near the airport and along the I-15 cost €90-130 a night with free parking, a practical option the night before setting off on a road trip.
In the canyons, the lodges at Snowbird and Alta let you sleep at the foot of the slopes, from €250 to €600 a night in winter, often half-board at Alta. In summer, prices there drop sharply.
Park City has the region's luxury and boutique hotels, from €200 in summer to over €800 a night at the height of the ski season, from the historic guesthouse on Main Street to the grand hotels of Deer Valley.
Our picks stop by stop, in three price ranges →
What to eat in Salt Lake City?
Downtown and the 9th and 9th, Sugar House and Central Ninth districts have the best restaurants, with a strong Mexican, Peruvian and Vietnamese presence and kitchens that work with Utah produce, lamb, trout and cheeses. Allow $15-25, about €13-22, for a simple meal.
Fry sauce, a mix of ketchup and mayonnaise served with chips, and funeral potatoes, a cheesy potato bake from church suppers, are the local curiosities. Shops selling flavoured sodas, served in giant cups with syrup and cream, are an institution.
The alcohol rules, long strict, have been relaxed, but beer sold in supermarkets is still limited in strength, and spirits and wine are bought in state liquor stores. Bars and restaurants serve as normal, and the city has plenty of craft breweries.
In Park City, High West Distillery, set in a former livery stable on Main Street, produces rye whiskey, and the resort restaurants serve hearty mountain food. Tap water is drinkable everywhere.
Which kind of traveller is it for?
Salt Lake City lends itself to a nature-focused, cultural and active trip. Whether you travel with family, as a couple or even solo, everyone finds their own pace. For accommodation, you will mostly find classic hotels, lodges and resorts.
Entry requirements & practical info
UK, Australian and most EU passports need an ESTA, applied for online before departure, for stays of up to 90 days; a few EU countries sit outside the Visa Waiver Program and need a full visa. Canadians need neither, only a passport. Anyone who has been to Cuba since January 2021 cannot use an ESTA and must apply for a visa.
Rules change: before you leave, check your country's official travel advice.
Once there, to stay online without paying roaming charges, an Salt Lake City eSIM activates in a few minutes and works as soon as you land (plans from €3.99). Remember suitable travel insurance too.
Frequently asked questions about Salt Lake City
Are there direct flights from Europe to Salt Lake City?
Yes, Delta flies non-stop from Paris-Charles de Gaulle to Salt Lake City in 10 to 11 hours. The airport is linked to downtown by the TRAX light rail in about twenty minutes for $2.50, about €2.15.
When is the best time to visit Salt Lake City?
May-June and September-October for the city and hiking, with 20 to 28°C and the mountains accessible. July and August are hot in the city, around 34°C, but pleasant at altitude. From December to March, the city becomes a ski base, with four resorts 40 minutes from downtown and Park City 45 minutes away.
Can you go inside the Salt Lake Temple?
No, under normal circumstances the dedicated temple is open only to Church members who are authorised to enter. The Temple Square gardens, the Tabernacle, the Conference Center and the Family History Library, on the other hand, are open to everyone and free.
Can you swim in the Great Salt Lake?
Yes, at Bridger Bay Beach on Antelope Island or at Great Salt Lake State Park. You float effortlessly in water several times saltier than the sea. Avoid putting your head under, as the salt stings the eyes, and plan to rinse off in fresh water. The brine flies are harmless, but the biting gnats of late May and June are less so.
Do you need a car in Salt Lake City?
Not for downtown, Temple Square and the Capitol, served by the light rail and often for free. It becomes essential for Antelope Island, the canyons in summer, Park City and the Bonneville Salt Flats, and for any departure towards the national parks.
Can you visit the Bonneville Salt Flats as a day trip from Salt Lake City?
Yes, they are about two hours' drive west on the I-80, so a full day with the return. The flats can be visited for free. In spring, when the salt is wet or under water, driving on the crust is prohibited, and in summer speed trials restrict access to certain areas for a few days.
How many days do you need in Salt Lake City?
Two days for the city and one canyon, four to add Antelope Island, Park City and the other canyon. The city combines easily with a road trip to the national parks of southern Utah or to Yellowstone in the north.
Similar destinations
Countries🇦🇷 Argentina
Countries🇨🇱 Chile
City🇺🇸 Tucson
Countries🇯🇴 Jordan
Countries🇨🇳 China
Countries🇵🇪 Peru
City🇨🇦 Vancouver
City🇺🇸 Asheville and the Blue Ridge
City🇺🇸 Santa Fe
City