• We are live at the Utah State Fair this morning kicking off Day One with all the details you need to know about the best places to spend time with your family this fall. What makes fall in Utah magical is the fall foliage against the backdrop of our majestic mountains. Our family loves to get up in the mountains as much as possible in the fall to enjoy the crisp, cool air and yellow aspen leaves. There are virtually limitless places in Utah to go on a scenic drive to see the fall foliage. Like hiking in the fall, you really can’t go wrong with picking one of the canyons and going for a drive. There are a few that are known to be really spectacular that are still on our fall bucket list, like Logan Canyon or Nebo Loop. Take one of these scenic drives and you’ll see why they’re two of our absolute favorite fall activities in Utah.
    • Drive Guardsman Pass
      Guardsman Pass is a road in Utah unlike any other. It’s the road that connects Big Cottonwood Canyon to Park City and takes you all the way up to almost 10,000 feet in elevation! It’s only open in the summer and fall and usually closes in early to mid-October depending on the snow. We like to start in Big Cottonwood (our kids always love pointing out the famous S-curve) and hiking around Silver Lake, which is a relatively flat and super easy trail for kids. Guardsman Pass Road is near the top of the canyon just below Brighton, so from there you wind your way up and over the mountains and down into Park City. You quite literally drive on roads that get skied on in the winter, which is pretty cool. From Guardsman Pass Overlook you can see the top of Jupiter Lift in Park City Mountain Resort then you drive through Deer Valley on your down into town.
    • Drive the Alpine Loop
      Driving the Alpine Loop is another one of our favorite fall traditions that tops our list of best fall activities in Utah because it’s such a spectacular place to see the fall foliage. We even dedicated an entire post to it! Make sure to check out our Alpine Loop Scenic Byway post for the 8 must-see stops along the way.
    • Park City Alpine Slide/ coaster / lift
      Head on over to Park City Mountain Resort for one of the best fall activities in Utah – riding the famous Alpine Slide and mountain roller coaster. I have fond memories of doing this as a kid and it remains one of my favorite things to do in the fall. You have to be at least 48 inches to drive the toboggan, but kids 35 inches and up and double up and ride with an adult. It costs $28 for adults and $17 for kids and is open Thursday-Sunday in the fall until October 2nd. The scenery is spectacular and you get to enjoy it while riding up a chairlift. About halfway up the mountain, you hop off the lift and grab your sled and head over to the track. From there, you descend down 3,000 feet on a cement luge-like track on your sled! Don’t worry, you can go as fast or as slow as you like. You can control your speed with a lever on the front of the sled. But if you don’t push that lever full throttle the entire time then I don’t know if we can be friends. It’s definitely a thrill you’ll want to add to your Utah Bucket List.
    • Utah State Fair
      The Utah State Fair is the longest-running annual event in the state and it takes place the second week of September every year, almost like the unofficial kickoff of the fall season. It’s located at the State Fairgrounds near downtown Salt Lake and features everything you’d expect from a state fair – barnyard animals, magicians, clowns, musical acts, funnel cakes, and rides. If you’re feeling festive, you won’t want to miss the state fair. We hope you tune in today for everything you will see this year at the Utah State Fair!