The Natural History Museum of Utah, located in Salt Lake City, is one of the top natural history museums in the country. The museum’s focus is the state’s unique geology and the humans and animals that have occupied it. Nestled in the foothills of the University of Utah campus, the architecture of the building itself reflects its surroundings. There are over 1.5 million objects in its collection, which includes extensive dinosaur and native peoples exhibits.
Photo: Stuart Ruckman
Visit
The museum is open every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas, from 10 am to 5 pm. If you are trying to avoid school groups, we recommend visiting on a weekday after 1:30 pm. Plan to spend at least two hours exploring the multiple floors of exhibits. There is also an outdoor terrace that has a fantastic view of the surrounding city and mountains.
Tours
Hour-long Highlights tours are offered Friday -Sunday for $2 per person. The tour guides tell entertaining stories that detail the museum’s permanent exhibits and artifacts. There are also occasional nature walks and Scientist Spotlight talks that you can find on the museum’s Events Calendar.
Store & Café
The Museum Store is open during regular museum hours and is a shopping destination in the area for unique gifts that celebrate Utah. You can find everything from handmade jewelry to dinosaur toys.
The Museum Café is open to museum visitors as well as the general public. Enjoy a delicious lunch made with local produce and bread and pastries from local bakeries while enjoying the views from the museum.
Range Creek Canyon
If you want to explore an actual prehistoric site, a season pass or guided tour of nearby Range Creek Canyon may interest you. Range Creek is a protected national treasure because of the high density of virtually undisturbed prehistoric sites that have been found. Nearly four hundred sites have been identified and recorded, including granaries, rock art panels, ruins and artifact scatters. Until recently, Range Creek was private property. The state of Utah purchased the area and access to the Range Creek Field Station is administered by the Natural History Museum of Utah and limited to pedestrian and horse traffic. To protect the canyon, a maximum of 28 public visitors are permitted per day. Guided tours are available through Canyonlands Field Institute, Carbon County Outdoor Recreation, and Tavaputs Guest Ranch.
Bonus: If natural history museums and dinosaurs are of interest to you, we encourage you to research the “Bone Wars”. The main characters are Edward Cope and O.C. Marsh, both fossil hunters of the late 19th century. As you continue to check-off natural history museums across the USA, you will see their names again and again.
The Natural History Museum of Utah
301 Wakara Way
Salt Lake City, UT 84108
