Salt Lake City Bus Tour: 2.5-Hour Route with Expert Guide

The Tabernacle organ recital at 10 AM is only on this tour.

A fully guided 2.5-hour bus tour of Salt Lake City's most iconic landmarks—Temple Square, the Utah State Capitol, the Cathedral of the Madeleine, and historic pioneer monuments—led by a local expert who gets off the coach at every stop. The 10 AM departure includes entry to hear the world-famous Tabernacle organ recital, a unique experience unavailable on other times. The tour covers a carefully designed 20-mile route through downtown, historic neighborhoods, and viewpoints overlooking the Wasatch Mountains and Salt Lake Valley.

Step-by-step itinerary

Salt Lake City guided sightseeing tour

• Admire Salt Lake Temple exterior
• Explore Temple Square grounds
• Hear Tabernacle organ recital
• Visit Salt Lake Tabernacle interior
• Tour Utah State Capitol building
• See LDS Conference Center features
• View Mormon Battalion Monument
• Admire City and County Building
• Marvel at Cathedral of the Madeleine
• Visit This is the Place Heritage Park
• Experience Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
• See City Creek Center
• View Utah Governor's Mansion
• View Salt Lake City Public Library
• View Beehive House
• View Council Hall
• Gaze at Olympic Cauldron
• See Delta Center arena
• Admire Joseph Smith Memorial Building
• Take in the Gateway district
• See Family History Library
• Glance at Fort Douglas parade grounds
• Admire Abravanel Hall exterior
• View Church Office Building
• Glance at McCune Mansion
• See Rice-Eccles Stadium
• Admire Kingsbury Hall
• Take in Washington Square park
• Experience Temple Square landmarks
• See Assembly Hall
• Pass beneath Eagle Gate
• See Brigham Young Monument and Meridian Marker
• View Salt Lake Masonic Temple
• See Deuel Pioneer Log Home
• Visit Trolley Square district

The Experience

You board a comfortable air-conditioned coach with panoramic windows and spend the next 2.5 hours moving through Salt Lake City's most significant sites. Your guide—a local storyteller with deep knowledge of the city's history—steps off with you at each stop instead of narrating from the driver's seat. This means you get real context standing in front of the Salt Lake Temple (the granite masterpiece that took 40 years to complete, with six spires rising 210 feet), Temple Square's 10 beautifully landscaped acres, and the Utah State Capitol perched on Capitol Hill with commanding views of the valley and Wasatch Mountains.

The 10 AM departure is the one that includes the Tabernacle organ recital—a performance in the historic 1867 building with its 11,000-pipe organ and legendary acoustics where a pin drop carries 170 feet across the hall. You'll also see the Cathedral of the Madeleine (the Gothic Revival masterpiece completed in 1909 with 220-foot spires), the City and County Building (the 1894 Romanesque Revival landmark with its 256-foot clock tower), and the exact spot where Brigham Young declared "This is the right place" in 1847 after the pioneers' 1,300-mile journey from Illinois. The route passes the LDS Conference Center (the world's largest religious auditorium, seating 21,000), the Mormon Battalion Monument, historic Victorian mansions, and viewpoints over the Great Salt Lake. Other departures follow the same 20-mile route but without the organ recital.

The company has run this tour for over 45 years and is family-owned by Utah locals. Children from age 2 are welcome; infants sit on an adult's lap. Service animals are allowed. If you use a folding wheelchair or walker, email the operator at least 24 hours before to confirm they can accommodate it. The tour is suitable for all fitness levels—you're on the coach most of the time, stepping off briefly at each landmark.

What’s included

• Fully guided 2.5-hour bus tour with an expert local guide who accompanies you at every stop.
• comfortable air-conditioned coach with panoramic windows.
• entry to Temple Square and the Tabernacle organ recital (10 AM departure only).
• 20-mile route covering downtown, historic neighborhoods, and viewpoints of the Salt Lake Valley and Wasatch Mountains.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPets welcomePublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by City Sights, Inc.

Is this one for you?The English-speaking guide steps off the coach at every stop, so you get real context standing in front of each landmark rather than listening from your seat—this works best if you want to understand the stories behind Salt Lake City's most iconic sites rather than just see them pass by. If you're visiting for the first time or have a free afternoon, the 10 AM departure is the only one that includes the Tabernacle organ recital, making it worth choosing if that experience appeals to you.

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Top questions

What is the Salt Lake Temple and why does it matter to the city?

The Salt Lake Temple is the most photographed symbol of Salt Lake City—a granite masterpiece with six soaring spires (the tallest reaching 210 feet) that took pioneer craftsmen 40 years to complete by hand-cutting every stone from nearby mountains. Completed in 1893, it stands at the center of Temple Square and represents the architectural and spiritual heart of the city's founding. While the interior is reserved for Church members, your guide shares stories about its construction, symbolic architecture, and the 130+ years it has defined Salt Lake City's skyline.

Is there a time slot where I can hear the Tabernacle organ?

Yes—the 10 AM departure is the only one that includes entry to the Tabernacle organ recital. The historic 1867 building houses one of the largest pipe organs in the world with over 11,000 pipes, and its perfect acoustics (designed so a pin drop carries 170 feet) make the performance unforgettable. Other departure times follow the same 20-mile route but do not include the recital.

What does the tour include—do I pay extra for entry to the sites?

The tour price includes the fully guided 2.5-hour bus experience and the guide stepping off with you at every stop. Entry to Temple Square and the Tabernacle organ recital (on the 10 AM tour) are included; most other sites are viewed from outside or from the coach. Your guide provides the context and stories at each landmark.

How long is the route and what neighborhoods does it cover?

The tour covers a carefully designed 20-mile route through downtown Salt Lake City, historic neighborhoods with Victorian mansions, Capitol Hill, and viewpoints overlooking the Salt Lake Valley and Wasatch Mountains. The entire experience takes 2.5 hours from start to finish, with stops at Temple Square, the Utah State Capitol, the Cathedral of the Madeleine, the City and County Building, and the historic site where pioneers first viewed the valley in 1847.

Can I bring children or a service animal on this tour?

Children from age 2 are welcome; infants sit on an adult's lap. Service animals are allowed. If you use a folding wheelchair or walker, email the operator at least 24 hours before the tour to confirm they can accommodate it.

Why is this tour different from others in Salt Lake City?

This company has run the same tour for over 45 years and is family-owned by Utah locals, so the guides are expert storytellers with deep knowledge of the city. The defining difference is that your guide steps off the coach at every stop instead of narrating from the driver's seat—you get real context standing in front of the landmarks. The 10 AM departure also includes the Tabernacle organ recital, which is unique to that time slot.