10 Best Utah Winter Activities (Besides Skiing)

January 10, 2019 | Updated November 03, 2023

Utah’s skiing is the best in the world, in our very educated opinion, but Utah winters aren’t a one-trick pony. There’s snowboarding, too, which is just as good as skiing, but Utah ain’t no two-trick pony, neither. The pony that is winter in Utah has no fewer than a dozen tricks, because the same cold, dry air that makes the best snow on earth also creates the perfect conditions for all these other winter activities. So giddy up, get on your horse and pony up the (generally very modest) resources needed to do all of the below. Yippee-kay-yay, winter-lovers.

1. Bobsledding at Olympic Park | Park City

Bobsledding at Olympic Park

Utah.com conducted an extensive sociological study about bobsledding and discovered that everyone who watches it on TV during the Olympics immediately has these two thoughts simultaneously: “What an absurd, amazing sport,” and “Who, exactly, bobsleds? Like, how does one start bobsledding?” To which we say: “I know, right?!” and “You can bobsled. Yes, you." How? Just drive to Olympic Park in Park City.

Anyone at least 16 years old and 100 pounds (45 kilograms) with an extra $225 laying around can hurtle (carefully, carefully) down the same icy tube as the 2002 Olympians. Don’t worry, a pro will pilot you. But if your thighs happen to look like tree trunks and your schedule is clear for the next four years, who knows? This may be your big break.

Early November to mid-April (closed for Christmas and New Year's)
$225 per person
Reservations required

Or you can watch the experts for free during Olympic Park’s official bobsled and skeleton events.

2. Tubing

Tubing is for people who like the speedy rush of skiing but are more at peace with humankind’s inherent powerlessness to control their fate. Just hop on a giant rubber donut and see what physics has planned for you. There’s the free version, of course, at your local neighborhood grassy slope, or you can Park-Citify the whole experience and pay for one of these fancy lift-served tubing parks.

Woodward | Park City

Seven lanes that are lit. We mean it both ways.

Season: mid-November to April
Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Rates: $40-80, depending on date

Soldier Hollow | Midway

Slide 1,200 feet — on purpose!

Season: mid-December to late March, subject to weather
Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Rates: $25-40, depending on date

Wasatch Parc | Eden

Tube as the French do, with banked turns and existentialist conversation.

Season: late December 20 to early March, subject to weather
Hours: Mon-Sat, 11 a.m.–5 p.m. | Sun 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Rates: one ride $12 | two hours $30 | four hours $45
Reservations recommended

3. Hot Springs

Meadow Hot Springs

What exactly are you looking for in this paragraph? An explanation of why soaking in mineral hot springs in the winter is incredible? Can you hear how absurd that question is? Get serious, would ya?! What’s that? We need to relax? You’re probably right. Luckily we know where to go for that.

Crystal Hot Springs | Honeyville

Soaking pools and waterslides, open year round. Entry is $18 per person.

Mystic Hot Springs | Monroe

Eclectic spot with pools, bathtubs, camping and cabins. Kids (12 and under) $12.50; adults $25. Reservations are required.

Meadow Hot Springs | near Fillmore

Three pools just bubbling up in a cow pasture, about 10 minutes west of I-15. Donations are welcome.

Fifth Water Hot Springs | Spanish Fork Canyon

Hike a couple miles and combine hot spring water and Fifth Water Creek to taste. Free.

4. Sundance Film Festival

What’s more fun than seeing a bunch of Hollywood’s hottest hotties roaming the streets and independent theaters of Salt Lake City and Park City? Seeing them all taken down a peg as they suffer through the same cold, dry air as the rest of us. Hahaha, nice frostbitten fingers, Chiwetel Ejiofor! Nice rosy cheeks, Julia Roberts’ niece! (No, actually, she’d look adorable with rosy cheeks. And her name is Emma. And she’s a talented actor.) Get the drop on what’s new, what’s next, what’s innovative and what’s international in the cinematic universe at the Samuel L. Jackson of film festivals, i.e. the grandpa who’s managed to stay more hip than his progeny.

In person, mid-January; online, late January
In person, single tickets are $30; packages range from $250–4,000
Online, single tickets are $25; packages range from $225-350

5. Mesa Arch | Canyonlands National Park

Mesa Arch during winter

If you put all of Utah’s hikes on a graph, measuring difficulty on one axis and beauty on another, Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park would be pinned in the easy/magnificent corner. You’ll spend longer bundling the whole family up than actually hiking, and the payoff is way bigger than the investment.

Hike length: 0.6 miles round trip
Canyonlands National Park entrance fee: $30 per vehicle
Open 24 hours a day, year-round

6. Other Festivals

It’s our list, we’ll make it as vague and catchall as we want. Because all festivals, whether they’re about hot air balloons or teeny tiny little fishies, share the same communal sense of celebration … the same festivity, if you will. Here are five winter festivals in Utah where you can go and meet up with people who will understand you.

Bear Lake Monster Winterfest

A Polar plunge, the Cisco Disco (fishing contest for the biggest little Bonneville Cisco), indoor/outdoor expo. Held in late January. Donations suggested to benefit The Family Place.

Bryce Canyon Winter Festival

Ruby’s Inn hosts archery events, watercolor painting, ski clinics, kayaking and … just everything, mostly. Takes place in mid-February. Most activities are free.

Balloons & Tunes Roundup | Kanab

Everything is better in front of vermillion cliffs, and hot air balloons and live music were pretty cool to begin with. Held in mid-February. Free.

7. Ice Fishing

Most of the lakes and reservoirs in northern Utah freeze over by January and February, but the fish keep right on swimming. Bundle up, read the DWR reports, obey all fishing laws and use extreme caution as the ice conditions can change. Bear Lake, Echo and Rockport are usually good spots. Consider booking a guide if you’re a beginner.

8. Ice Castles | Midway

Ice Castles in Midway

Make your kids’ Disney-ish dreams come true at the amazing Midway Ice Castles. You and your family can explore every inch of these amazing human-made structures. Plus hot chocolate, because of course you need some.

Season: subject to weather
Hours: weekdays, open evenings; weekends and holidays, noon to evening
Tickets: adults, $18-23; children (4-11), $12-16

9. Horseback Riding | Bryce Canyon

In the olden days, people rode horses in winter because how else are you going to kidnap your bride from the nearest town and then get back to the homestead before the avalanche blocks the pass? It was haaaard work. These days, horseback riding in winter is a leisure activity. The horse whisperers at Ruby’s Inn will guide you through the canyon country of the Grand Staircase. Bundle up, pardner.

Kids must be at least 10 years old
Winter rides are by reservation only (48 hours in advance)
Closed Sunday

10. Misc. Family-Friendly Activities

Ice skating at the Gallivan Center

Sometimes you just gotta get out of the house, even if you don’t have the time or energy to plan anything yourself. Let your children entertain themselves at one of these kid-centric activities. Or just hand them a coat, push them out the back door and tell them to dig a snow cave. That works in a pinch.