Discover the Best of Salt Lake City

If you’re thinking about taking a trip soon, don’t forget to add Salt Lake City to your upcoming travel list. As the capital of Utah, Salt Lake City offers an array of activities and attractions for all types of travelers.

From outdoor enthusiasts looking to explore the majestic Wasatch Mountains to history buffs curious about the role this area played during the gold rush era to foodies interested in trying popular regional dishes (including cheesy funeral potatoes and lightly fried Utah scones—yum!), there’s something for everyone in this vibrant mountain city.

Now with direct flights from Honolulu to Salt Lake City courtesy of Hawaiian Airlines, it’s easier than ever to visit Salt Lake City. (As a bonus, travelers can fly with HawaiianMiles^® earned through everyday purchases on their Hawaiian Airlines^® Bank of Hawaii World Elite Mastercard^® or the Bankoh Hawaiian Airlines^® Visa^® Debit Card.)

Here’s a quick guide to some of the best that Utah’s capital has to offer:

Cultural attractions

Located in the heart of downtown Salt Lake City, Temple Square is a 35-acre site that serves as the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and home to more than a dozen sites of Mormon heritage. This includes the striking Salt Lake Temple, which took 40 years to construct in the late 1800s, and the internationally renowned Tabernacle Choir, a 360-member chorus that has performed for the likes of presidents and kings for more than 100 years.

At the corner of Temple Square, pop into the regal Beehive House, the former residence of Mormon leader Brigham Young and, today, a historic house museum that depicts what life was like in 19th century Utah.

Salt Lake City is also home to the Utah State Capitol, a monumental structure that rivals the U.S. Capitol building in elegance and stateliness. Inside, explore the rotunda below the capitol’s copper dome lined with marble Ionic columns that weigh 25,000 pounds each. Outside, the building’s 40-acre estate contains memorials honoring the 388 Utah natives who died in the Vietnam War as well as the 500-strong Mormon Battalion who served in the 1846 Mexican conflict.

Art lovers have no shortage of museums and galleries to explore, from the Natural History Museum of Utah—with more than 1.5 million gemstones, dinosaur bones, works of indigenous art, and beyond—to the Utah Museum of Fine Arts located on the campus of the University of Utah, which boasts more than 20,000 permanent works and rotating exhibitions by artists from throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Pacific.

The Utah Museum of Contemporary Art is the state’s only museum devoted to showcasing contemporary works by artists, many of them local; while The Leonardo presents digital art and experiential exhibitions that demonstrate how art, technology, science, and creativity connect.

Outdoor adventures

No trip to Salt Lake City is complete without visiting the lake for which it was named: Utah’s Great Salt Lake, the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere that has become popular for camping, boating, and swimming. (Because the Great Salt Lake is several times saltier than the ocean, the water here is extra buoyant, and swimmers can easily float on its surface!)

Some of the best views of the lake can be found in Antelope Island State Park, home to a variety of wildlife including roaming bison, pronghorn antelope, mule deer, bobcats, coyotes, and millions of migratory waterfowl and shorebirds that take refuge in the surrounding wetlands. This dark sky park is perfect for stargazing at night, cycling atop rolling paved roads during the day, or going for a swim in the lake.

Landlubbers who prefer to stay on shore have no shortage of hikes to enjoy, from the easy Ensign Peak Hike, with lookout points and plaques commemorating the arrival of the area’s first settlers, to the sprawling, 13.5-mile Bonneville Shoreline Trail that’s ideal for biking, bird watching, and nature study.

For more exploration, head west from Salt Lake City to the Bonneville Salt Flats, 300,000-acres of desert covered in a flat and blindingly white salt crust that looks more like the surface of some alien planet than the middle of Utah.

From November to May, enjoy unparalleled skiing and snowboarding in Salt Lake City at any number of the 11 ski resorts along the Wasatch Mountains, such as Brighton Ski Resort at the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon and Woodward Park City, Utah’s first action sports center complete with snowboard halfpipes and snow tubing.

Family-friendly activities

There’s plenty in Salt Lake City to enjoy for the whole family, especially those with young children. At Utah’s Hogle Zoo, get up close with exotic and endangered animals, including white rhinos, Western lowland gorillas, Baringo giraffes, and playful red pandas.

Meet new feathered friends at Tracy Aviary, the largest and oldest free-standing aviary in the country, home to more than 300 different birds from around the world, such as white pelicans, black vultures, owls, flamingos, kingfishers, and more.

Loveland Living Planet Aquarium allows guests to gently pet stingrays and feed Gentoo penguins by hand. Here, you can see sharks through an intimate viewing tunnel and learn about Komodo dragons, electric eels, and sea turtles.

For more interactive fun, head to Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum, which offers learning through play with hands-on exhibitions. Their “I Dig Dinos” allows kids to become paleontologists and identify actual fossils uncovered in a mini dig pit, while “Water Play” teaches kids about the properties of water through ramps, wheels, tipping buckets, and a water vortex.

There are plenty of thrills at Lagoon Amusement Park, with 50 roller coaster and waterpark rides, live performances that include music and magic, and a pioneer village to transport visitors 100 years back in time to life in the Old West.

Nightlife and entertainment

There’s still plenty to do after the sun sets in Salt Lake City, with a medley of live music and theater venues, nightclubs, and bars to explore every night of the week.

Main Street’s Eccles Theatre is a great place to start. This roughly 2,500-seat performance hall features colorful balustrades and intricate chandeliers that are nearly as remarkable as the world-class performances and touring events that fill the stage nightly. Around the corner, the Capitol Theatre has been entertaining audiences since it began as a vaudeville stage in 1913. Today, the Capitol is home to the prestigious Ballet West and the Utah Opera.

After the show, grab a bite or cocktails at swanky hotspots including Copper Common, Felt Bar + Eatery, Scion Cider, and Whiskey Street. For live music and dancing, nightclubs, such as SKY SLC, the Metro Music Hall, Club Karamba, and Switch SLC offer options late into the evening.

Other travel tips

What you’ll need to pack for a trip to Salt Lake City depends on when you’re planning on visiting. Unlike Hawaii’s relatively warm climate year-round, Salt Lake City’s weather varies from winters that can reach 0 degrees Fahrenheit to summer temperatures of 100 degrees or more. If you’re hoping for a getaway from May to September, pack plenty of airy clothing, shorts, and sunscreen. If you’re planning on hitting the slopes from November to April, be sure to pack jackets, thick socks, and plenty of cold weather gear.

Ready to start your Salt Lake City adventure? There’s no need to wait! Your everyday purchases can help you earn HawaiianMiles^® faster, making that dream trip a reality even sooner! With the Hawaiian Airlines^® Bank of Hawaii World Elite Mastercard^® or the Bankoh Hawaiian Airlines^® Visa^® Debit Card, every purchase earns you HawaiianMiles—which never expire.

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