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It is time to announce the winners of the Bear World giveaway. This was a fun one and we hope to offer it at the beginning of the season next year!
Remember that there are two winners to this giveaway!
Congratulations to winner #1 – Beth W.!!!
Congratulations to winner #2 – Bob S.!!!!
Watch for your emails on how to claim your tickets!
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We did a review of one of the most memorable quick vacations we have had as a family to Yellowstone Bear World. Well…. how would you like to experience it for FREE?!?!
You have the chance to win one of two Family Car Load passes which will allow up to 7 people in one car to enter the park and all of the regular ticket admission experiences for FREE!!
This is a $55 value! This is a quick giveaway and the tickets will need to be used in the 2010 season which ends on Oct. 17th. We will run this giveaway until September 29th and your tickets will be sent out ASAP to have three possible weekends to take advantage of the FREE tickets before the season is closed! Yellowstone Bear World is approximately 230 miles from downtown Salt Lake City, which is about 3.5 hours on the freeway. This could be a cool day trip (arriving late morning/early afternoon, staying for a couple of amazing hours – which you will experience it all and coming home), or overnight trip and getaway!
There are two winners to this giveaway and there are 6 possible ways of entering:
You can do 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 possible entries. You can do one or all of the above – just leave a separate comment for each! Maximize your entries by doing all 6!
A couple of additional points:
1. Leave a separate comment for each of the above things you do, each comment and activity you complete is an entry.
2. Be sure to leave your comments for entries here on this post to be counted as an entry.
This giveaway ends at 11:59 p.m. MST on Wednesday, September 29th! One winner will be randomly selected (via randomizer.org) and then contacted after that deadline. Make sure to check back though in case we can’t contact you!
We must say that every Utahan must go to Idaho….. that is at least Yellowstone Bear World as they are passing through Idaho to Yellowstone National Park!
We had a recent visit to Yellowstone Bear World and this has been a place that we have wanted to go for a very long time. We finally had the opportunity and can’t believe we didn’t go before now!
Cassie was most excited as bears are her favorite animal. Also, as Human Microphone sleeps with his “brown bear,” these creatures hold a special place in his heart too!
But it wasn’t just those two that were excited and it wasn’t just bears that we saw. It was an up close, personal and quick mini-Yellowstone- at least in terms of the animal sightings that we were all excited to experience!
Bear World is located between Rigby and Rexburg Idaho, near Idaho Falls, ID and on U.S. Highway 20 heading out to the West Yellowstone park entrance.
First, you will pay an entrance fee to just enter into the parking lot. Why? Well because your ticket costs gets you and your family into almost all of the sights and the sights begin as soon as you enter. We thought the cost was more than worth the experience. I guess growing up around Yellowstone and have been there dozens of times and really yet to see a bear officially makes it quite nice to finally say we saw a “Yellowstone” bear – the price was worth it!
Here are the prices to enter into Yellowstone Bear World:
Here’s what your fee covers:
You are guaranteed to see a bear, or two, or a dozen!
In fact, you will see animals up close and personal in their natural habitats just as if you were in Yellowstone. We have heard about Yellowstone Bear World for many years, but really had no idea that they had many animals there!
The wildlife that you will see are:
To see the wildlife, you will drive along a paved road and encounter each of the wildlife in their “areas” of the park. The first wildlife that we saw were the Mountain Goats. Shortly after, you will come up on the Rocky Mountain Elk.
The Elk viewing was a sweet surprise as Yellowstone Bear World is home to a couple of rare White Rocky Mountain Elk (1:6,000,000) and they were very beautiful creatures and so amazing to see!
We did see all of the animals above, which was very cool, but…….. after seeing the goats, elk, bison, deer…. you enter a gated area where you are strictly required to keep your car windows up and restrain your temptation of rolling them down to get a closer view/touch of those cute adorable fuzzy things. Why? Well, they are bears of course! Safety comes first.
The first part of the bear habitat is where you will find the Grizzly’s. There were three Grizzly’s living there when we went: a sister and brother (who is huge!) and the papa bear. They are in the grassy areas behind an electric fence, so they do not walk all over the roads like you hear bears are doing at Yellowstone Bear World.
See the single electric fence line - the protection - even though you are driving with windows up! This was Sister Bear.
The Brother Bear was swimming and Sister and Papa Bear were just hangin’ around.
Shortly after the Grizzly habitat, you enter the American Black Bears habitat. There are more than a dozen of these cute cuddly’s roaming the grounds. The will walk down the road, walk across the road, lay on the road, lay on your car if you secretly planted fresh meat, swim in the little pools, attempt to climb the trees, wrestle, run, play, roll, and scratch their heads and backs with the trees around them! Jungle Book was telling the truth when it comes to those “bear necessities.”
In fact, we caught one doing just that:
This bear has found a log to scratch that head itch!
And then, wouldn’t you know it….one of the curators told us that Baloo from The Jungle Book (the real deal) lives at Yellowstone Bear World and we got to see him!
They were all over the place roaming and doing what bears do. We had one that walked in front of us slowly, then walked to the side of our vehicle about 1 ft. away. We got several picks of him, but we liked this shot as he looked right at the camera!
And guess who it was…… Baloo! I (Cassie), just wanted to jump out and hug him!
They have an area of the drive where the bears that just left the baby pen (when they hit 2 years old) hang out that you will see on the drive. These small American Black Bears are behind a two line electric fence to protect them from being hit by cars while they learn the ropes. The older American Black Bears are the ones roaming the wild.
Also, keep your eyes peeled for the few resident Gray Wolves that live amongst the bears. They are right there next to you, but difficult to see as they hide in the tall grasses.
The drive is around 20-30 minutes and going at a speed of around 5 mph. It is a very thrilling ride even at that slow pace. You can go through this drive as many times as you want with your 1 day pass. We went 4 times!
You will need to make a reservation for either of the two, and they fill-up very quickly.
The Curator Tours are where you will be able to stand up in the back of a truck and feed the bears from the top of this truck! You are standing for the whole ride and they will stop so you can first feed the elk. Then you will see the Grizzly bears from up high (but not feed them) and then you can start feeding the American Black Bears from the truck. The price includes the ride, food to feed the bears, a picture of your family taken by them, and the narrated tour/ride by the Curator. We loved driving the drive, but wanted to experience a family bear feeding and thought it was more than worth the $25 cost for the whole family to experience the feeding of the big bears. They come right up to the truck and you toss the food down to them. The Curator will also teach you how to get them to wave at you with their big bear paws for some yummy bear treats. And don’t worry, you will not be tossing them raw meat, but dessert! Donuts and breads are a treat the bears love!
He is a picture from the top of the truck and looking down at the bears we are feeding.
And the additonal experience that you can pay for is the Baby Bear Feeding. Cassie had the opportunity to feed two baby bears. They were all American Black Bears. The feeding takes place in the baby bear pens that are visible near the petting zoo and food stands. You can watch the babies playing in their habitat and with each other. They were so adorable!
So for the feeding, they take groups of about 12 people into the baby bear pens areas. Then each person gets in line and they will get to feed an entire bottle to a baby bear (just a regular baby bottle) which is about a 30 second to 1 minute process. They rotate between six bears and about five bottles each. This means that the 12 people will get to feed around 2-3 bears. While you are feeding the babies their bottles, you will be able to pet them on the head. The whole experience is about 20 minutes.
” This was an AHAHAHmazing experience! It is quick, but quite memorable! They drink out of a regular baby bottle and each one had their own personality and feeding style. When I was petting them, I was very surprised to find out that their fur is not as soft as you would think (based on your many Teddy Bear encounters). Their fur was almost like dried stiff grass/hay. Not some much cuddly, but kinda prickly!” – Cassie
The $35 covers the cost of the feedings, a picture that their photographer takes and memories to last forever! If this is something you want to do, you will need to call ahead a day or two in advance as they fill-up quickly!
The petting zoo is a fun place for the kids to get out and roam and explore. They have many of the classic petting zoo animals: goats, hens, turkeys, pot belly pigs…. but they also had DEER. Something we haven’t seen at many petting zoos. They had both mommies and their babies when we went.
The amusement rides were definitely geared towards younger kids.
They had five total rides;
We did the rides last to end our Yellowstone Bear World adventure. The kids (and adults with around a 180-230 weight limit depending on the ride) can ride as many as they want, as many times as they want.
It was a fun way to end the day!
They do have an outdoor cafe and sno-cone stand to enjoy a treat or a snack. Here is a picture of the menu so you can budget accordingly!
We just ate at our campsite before coming and then brought a few snacks with us for a snack break when needed. We did get a sno-cone treat. We recommend coconut for small kids as it is white and does not stain (but leaves things very sticky). Unfortunately, our sno-cones were drenched in sooo much syrup, that neither Alex or Cassie enjoyed theirs and the kids only ate a small portion of theirs, probably for the same reason! It could have just been the person that made ours that day, but it was actually gross because of it. It would have been a perfect refreshing treat if it had 1/2 to 1/4 of the syrup. So we recommend giving the sno-cone maker directions on your sno-cone!
All-in-all, we highly recommend this pit-stop. It has ended up being one of the most fun and memorable experiences we have had has a family. We talk about it all of the time. Someone around here is always bringing it up! We look forward to our next trip to Yellowstone Bear World!
If you are looking for a few FREE things to do in Utah this weekend, well there is good news! On Saturday, September 25, it is both FREE Museum Day and FREE National Parks Day.
This is a great way to see some sites that you have not seen before or revisit some of your Utah favorites! Let us know which is your favorite and what you plan to see! It looks like the participating museums are found all across the state.
From this list, we like the Ogden Union Station Museums. The Railroad one specifically is very fun for our whole family, but they do have quite a nice car and gun museum. It is also a fun place to go as you get 3 museums in one!
Art Access Gallery - Salt Lake City Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery - Cedar City Chase Home Museum of Utah Folk Art - Salt Lake City Fort Douglas Museum - Fort Douglas Ogden Union Station Museums - Ogden Orem Heritage Museum at Scera Center - Orem Rock Cliff Nature Center - Kamas Springville Museum of Art - Springville St. George Art Museum - St. George Utah Museum of Natural History - Salt Lake CityYou will need to request your FREE tickets to one of the above museums by filling out the form on the Smithsonian website. You can request two for FREE. Many of the above attractions will let children 3,4,5, or even 6 under for free without a ticket all of the time.
Thanks Money Saving Mom
Here is the list of National Parks that you can visit on Saturday for FREE Public Lands Day:
Finally, don’t forget that Oktoberfest is still going on at Snowbird, UT! It is FREE to attend, just plan to spend money if you want to eat there, the food is good, but pricey!
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We heard about this event going on this weekend and this looks like an excellent opportunity to get some great deals for children’s clothing and items and maternity clothing at some great prices, all while helping out local and world charities as an added bonus!
Here are the details for this event:
WHAT: Children’s & Maternity Sale
WHEN: Friday September 17th 9a-8p & Saturday, September 18th 8a-2p
WHERE: Hilltop United Methodist Church 985 East 10600 South in Sandy
Come shop the best children’s sale in town Friday and Saturday, September 17th and 18th at Hilltop United Methodist Church! There’s a HUGE selection of gently used children’s things including high quality designer clothes, all hung up neatly and organized by size & gender. We have toys, books, and games for all age children as well as outdoor play equipment. And don’t forget the great deals on baby furniture and maternity wear. The Fall and Winter sale is sponsored by the United Methodist Women of Hilltop United Methodist Church and benefits many local and worldwide charities.
The sale is Friday, September 17th from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday, September 18th from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Come early for best selection. All clothing is marked down an additional 25% on Saturday. Due to the large crowds, please do not bring strollers into the building Friday before noon. Don’t miss the Fall and Winter Children’s & Maternity Sale at Hilltop United Methodist Church, 985 East 106th South in Sandy.
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You may have seen this advertised on billboards across the State, but this was something that really intrigued us! We love educational activities and experiences for our kids, in fact, for us too 
So this week is called Capitol Discovery Week and runs the 13th – 18th of September 2010 and is located at the Utah State Capitol. The hours of operations: September 13-18, 2010 Monday through Thursday 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (last orientation at 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. respectively) They can take 100 people through every half hour.
You will find rare artifacts display from our nation’s founding. You can also meet history face-to-face with Founding Fathers!
Here’s how the website describes this event going on all week:
A very exciting and very rare traveling exhibit will also be at the Capitol during these events in which original documents from our nation’s founding will be displayed. Originals and reproductions will depict critical events in our nation’s history. Also, meet history face to face as the Colonial Heritage Foundation and Founding Fathers will be there to interact with the crowd.
In addtion, there will be a concert on September 17 and 18 at 8:00 p.m. the Capitol Rotunda.
There will be the setting for a special musical celebration of our U.S. Constitution presented by the Constitution Day Committee of Utah, Roots of Freedom, and renowned composer Lex DeAzevedo conducting a combined local choir and orchestra. Commemorating the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787, this patriotic celebration will feature elected officials addressing the theme “Stand for Our Constitution – The Contract for Freedom.”
Finally, Capitol Discovery Day is Saturday the 18th of September where you will find many hands-on activities. This event runs from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in which the public can participate in fun and informative activities about our Utah Capitol.
Here are the details:
Capitol Discovery Day offers a variety of hands-on activities, tours, music and presentations to engage everyone in the family. Activities for families to learn about architectural crafts reflecting the skills used to build the Capitol nearly 90 years ago include:
-Dome Construction: Build small geodesic domes with toothpicks and gumdrops.
-Coloring Activity: Color copies of the murals with crayons
-Gold Leafing: Use 6×6 gold leafing squares and paint with wooden cutouts.
-Creating Mosaics: Glue paper squares on construction paper.
-Sculpting Symbols: Beehives, wyverns, eagles, acorn, sego lily
-Stencils: Use Capitol symbols to create wonderful stencils.
-Shake Table Demonstration: See how an earthquake shakes a building while it is protected with base isolators and without base isolators.
-Room Tours: Governor’s Ceremonial Office, State Receptions Room, House Chambers, Senate Chambers and Supreme Court
I-Spy Treasure Hunt: Look around the Capitol for amazing art, architecture and artifacts. Receive a small goody-bag of school supplies.
Capitol docents (volunteers) will be on hand to share the history, architecture, and art of one of the most important buildings in Utah. They teach how the recently completed restoration project stayed true to the vision of original architect, Richard Kletting.
This sound like loads of fun and very beneficial to anyone wanting to learn more or appreciate more about our history. The best part is that it is all FREE!
We might be there on Saturday to participate in the list of activities. Ms. Optimistic is totally into these things and her enthusiasm is very contagious to all of us so it should be quite a fun adventure for us. We hope you get to go.
Please visit the following websites for more information, in addition to registration (that is recommended) for special events going on this week.
One odd thing that we like to do as a family (we love to travel) is to visit the Capitol buildings in each Capital city in the nation. By far, the Utah State Capitol Building is one of the most beautiful ones we have explored. We love to go – best part is, this is a FREE “museum” tour no matter the state
We loved to explore all of the Capitol Building, but here were our favorites!
From Alex:
“I love walking into the empty House of Representative and Senate chambers. They are beautiful and by design seem to remind you of the importance of the matters that are decided there each year.”
The Girls Overlooking one of the Congress Floors
From Cassie:
“My favorite part of exploring the Capitol Building is seeing the courtrooms! They are unbelievable in splendor and stunning simple designs. Plus the awe of silence in a very elegant courtroom really gets you thinking.” (They did not allow pictures at the time, but the Chambers are really quite amazing – I guess you will have to see for yourself )
From the Girls:
“The little castles inside are so cool, it was fun to go in and out of the entrances and pretend to play castle.”
They really did think that the areas underneath the staircases were perfect for two pretty princesses. The rest of the areas in the building were so ginormous that they spotted this area nearly as soon as we entered. They danced and twirled under the arches as the grandeur and elegance really made them feel like they were in a castle within a castle! So adorable!
Even if you don’t make it to the Utah State Capitol Building during this event, there is still a lot of beautiful architecture, art and history worth going to see any time of the year! Don’t forget it is FREE and memorable (not counting your tax dollars)
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Did you know that Grandparent’s Day is coming up on the 12th of September? Well, Old Spaghetti Factory is having a celebration for the wonderful Grandparents – they get to eat for FREE starting the 12th through the 14th of September. Basically, there is one FREE grandparent entree with the purchase of another entree.
See the Old Spaghetti Factory site for the details.
This is exciting news as this has been our family’s favorite restaurant when we want to have a nice dinner out or celebrate something. We will ask the kids, “where to do you want to go tonight?” simultaneously the response will ring out: “The Spaghetti Factory!!” They probably would love to take their grandparents.
We will be doing a review of our most recent visit to the Old Spaghetti Factory very soon, including how we save. It is actually rare to find discounts and coupons for the Old Spaghetti Factory. But there is a little trick that we do to spread the pasta love and save some money. We will share this secret in our review post – so stay tuned……
In the meantime, it is time for a little story from Cassie – that is perfect for the upcoming Grandparents Day.
“The atmosphere of the Old Spaghetti Factory is wonderful! It is like you are eating in an historic antique store, especially the location at historic Trolley Square, but the newer buildings like in Taylorsville do a very good job of recreating that same atmosphere. But this is so appropriate for me as my grandparents owned some famous antique stores and their home looked very much like the inside of an Old Spaghetti Factory. Not only that, but they used to own and operate an antique shop inside Trolley Square near the Old Spaghetti Factory restaurant making me wonder if the restaurant’s decor came from my grandparents’ store! Eating at the Old Spaghetti Factory is filled with lots of emotions and joy for all, but especially the memories of antiques as both of my grandparents have passed away. Good times though and an awesome place to eat! I just get teary eyed thinking about this restaurant and Grandparents Day.”
So, celebrate this Grandparents Day with a rare discount to this popular restaurant! Find an Old Spaghetti Factory location near you!
The Utah State Fair beings today! We have gone as a family and has a date for just the two of us. It is always quite an experience to see, smell, hear, and taste what the Utah State Fair has to offer.
We love to go and see all of the exhibits and commercial vendors. It is fun to try new products, and get a few FREEBIES that they are offering. PLUS who can argue with yummy, greasy, unique fair food?!?! Plus they have livestock buildings that kids tend to love (and you will love the smell ), entertainment – both FREE and ones that you will need tickets to, the carnival rides, and more!
Alex and Cassie like to walk around the commercial buildings. All of the kids find the animals to be quite cool. They espeically loved the chickens/hens and rabbits as they could see them up close and at eye level. Both of these are FREE activities and gives you quite a fair experience! Of course we mean FREE by being no additional cost to your fair admission.
We have budgeted and planned to get some food. It is very pricey, but it is a once a year opportunity! Cassie’s favorite is the funnel cakes which are not super hearty, but they cost around $8 decorated with toppings. But oooooo so good! Alex loves the real dipped corn dogs that typically run around $5 each. The kids seem to love just the usual fair food – cotton candy which runs about $5 a bag.
Also, don’t forget about the famous deep fried guy that has offerings only available at the Utah State Fair. He has had deep fried Snickers, deep fried PB&J, deep fried twinkies, deep fried brownie cheesecakes…… and I guess this year it looks like deep fried chocolate covered bacon! Wowza, I already feel 10 pounds heavier and 10 years closer to a heart attack!
We have never participated in the actual carnival part of the fair as it hasn’t been worth the cost to us or horribly safe (heard too many traveling carnival accidents that will make one quite leery. We are sure it is perfectly safe, but it is also not the interesting to us as a family with young kids! Maybe one day, but we will enjoy the fact that they seem quite satisfied with the FREE stuff. The carnival rides are very pricey – buying a wristband is the best way to save and below lists some wristband discounts. The normal price is $21.00 or $25 and the carnival ticket booth.
When: Sept. 9th – 19th opening at 10 am everyday and runs late into the evening.
Where: The Utah State Fairpark is located just outside Downtown Salt Lake City at 155 North 1000 West SLC 84116. The main driving entrance to the Fairpark is located at 200 North 1000 West.
More Information: Utah State Fair Website
Prices: If purchased at the Utah State Fairpark gates (see discounts below!)
- Adult $9.00
- Senior (62 & over) $7.00
- Youth (6 – 12) $7.00
- Children (5 and under) FREE
- All-You-Can-Ride Day Carnival Wristband $25.00
- Season Admission Pass $40.00
- Parking Daily $6.00
HAVE FUN!
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This weekend, Sept. 9 – 12, you can head over to the Greek Festival in Salt Lake City.
Honestly, we have never been and would love to hear any experiences that any of you have had. It looks like a fun, festive, and yummy time!
When: Sept. 9 – 12, 2010. It starts at 5 pm tonight and then opens at 11 am the other days.
Where: Greek Orthodox Church at 279 South 300 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84101
More Information: Salt Lake Greek Festival Website
Prices: Admission is $3.00
UPDATE: You can print a coupon for FREE admission! YAY! Thanks One Cheap Chick
Please share your thoughts, comments and experiences for this event.
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Thank you all for entering the first two giveaways here on More Utah For Less and being some of the first to participate and be a part of this community!
We had a great turnout for the debut and had a lot of fun with these first two giveaways!
On with the announcement of the winners. We use a website called Randomizer.org to decide who the winner is!
For the Amazon gift card…..
Congratulations to Lona W. (lona728@)!!
And the 4 Circus ticket winner is……
Congratulations to Worthy L. (couponworthy@)
Thank you again and be on the lookout for a new giveaway to start very soon. Please continue to spread the word about our site!
We announced this back in July on our other site, but Utah is having their FREE Dave’s day tonight!
Here are the details:
Read up all readers with the name “Dave”……. Famous Dave’s Bar B Que announced their “Dave’s Day 2010” details. If your name is Dave (or versions of it!) then you can get a FREE meal up to $15 from participating Famous Dave’s restaurants across Utah. If your middle name is Dave, then you receive 1/2 off your meal up to $7.50.
No Famous Dave’s coupons needed, but you will need to bring in valid picture I.D. to prove it! You can see a list of the participating Famous Dave’s Utah locations. There is a Famous Dave’s in Layton, Midvale and Jordan Landing.
So all of you Dave’s enjoy your FREE meal out tonight!
Things To Do Utah – Labor Day Weekend 2010!
A Holiday Weekend is in our future here in Utah and along with it come lots of fun things to do! Help us with this list by adding anything that you know about in the comments section of this post. Let’s have a fun and frugal weekend in Utah!!
I addition to the picnics, BBQ’s, hikes, outdoor play - Here are some things we know about in each area.
Salt Lake City Area:
Red Butte Garden FREE Entry on Monday, Septmeber 6th from 9 am – 7:30 p.m.
This is the Place Heritage Park Children’s Day September 4th and 6th, 9 am – 5 pm. Two days filled with crafts and games for the kiddos. Regular admission fees apply, but you can find a $1.00 off coupon by snagging a brochure inside a hotel lobby or the Salt Lake City Visitor’s Bureau. The regular admission is $7 for kids and $9 for adults.
Tracy Aviary Vulture Awareness Day September 4th all day from 9 am – 5 pm. Special bird shows and bird encounters. Regular admission fees apply, but you can find a $1.00 off coupon by snagging a brochure inside a hotel lobby or the Salt Lake City Visitor’s Bureau. The regular admission is $3-$4 for kids and $5 for adults. See the Tracy Aviary site to also find out about getting a $1.00 discount per person if you have 10 or more in your party. You will need to reserve 24 hours in advance for the group discount!
Plus see our previous post regarding Utah Museum of Natural History FREE the first Monday of every month!
Park City Area:
Oktoberfest at Snowbird Resort. Open everyday until October 11 from noon – 6pm. Admission is FREE, but be prepared to spend a lot on food if you want to eat there. Or eat before or take food to avoid this expensive fee!
Midway Utah Swiss Days. September 3rd and 4th. FREE admission and a festival to enjoy Swiss inspired parades, entertainment, vendors and food. Plan to spend money on the food.
Layton Area:
Antelope Island Stampede Festival Friday, September 3rd through Sunday September 5th. The cost is $10 per carload, but once you are on the island the entertainment is FREE. You will need to pay for some activities and food. See all of the details on Antelope Island site.
Hill Aerospace Museum - FREE Admission all the time, so you could add it to your list this weekend! The hours are 9 am – 4:30 pm. In addition, there will be a Rocket & Space Presentation on September 3rd. NASA Space Ambassador Randy Bond will make a fun presentation on rockets and space technology geared primarily toward families and kids. It starts at 1 p.m. just outside the ACE Learning Center inside the Lindquist Stewart Gallery.
Ogden Area:
Labor Day Rendezvous September 3rd – 5th from 9am – 7pm and Monday September 6th from 9am – 3pm. This is located at Fort Buenaventura Park in Ogden. The Rendezvous hosts events such as a black powder shoot, candy cannon, storytellers, period demostrations, primitive games and a mountain man run. Admission is $2 per person or $10 for a family.
All Over The State:
Military free on Labor Day – there are 27 Museums in Utah that are FREE through September 6th for Military and their families. See our post on The Thrifty Couple for the details.
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The Classic Fun Center in Layton is a great place to go to beat the back-to-school blues. Well it looks like you can get $20 gift card for only $10 right now on the City Deals website. This is an incredible deal and only available until they last!
Just register or log-in to City Deals and then search for the Classic Fun Center and you should see the sale for 50% off the gift card!
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This week is Papa Murphy’s Customer Appreciation Week – August 30 – Sept. 1, 2010. What this means is cheap pizza with their in-store specials!!
Just head into your local participating locations and you can grab $3.99 Large Pepperoni Pizza. You can get up to 3 at this price.There is no Papa Murphy coupons needed.
Here are the participating locations that we are aware of, there may be more – let us know in the comments section if your location is participating:
UPDATE: We only saw this advertised for certain locations but we called a few across the state and they were all participating – so it looks like all Utah locations are participating. Call ahead to be sure!
Papa Murphy’s is one of our favorite pizza places.
Also, join the Papa Murphy’s eclub and you will receive a coupon for a FREE cookie dough on your birthday and other exclusive deals.
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Welcome! We are so glad you have landed here! Why?
Well, we want to tell you about the latest Utah happenings, our opinions on the things to do in Utah, the places to eat in Utah, the best spots to take your family from the FREE, cheap and discounted ways so that you can get the most out of Utah for the least price!
We will be also having numerous giveaways on a regular basis sponsored by Utah businesses to enjoy what Utah has to offer for FREE!
We love to play and eat and explore Utah and all that Utah has to offer. We want to take you along on the journey and hear what you have to say as well!
We want you to be a part of this site, share your opinions, your businesses, your websites, and more!
There are several ways to be a part of this site whether your are a reader, business or blogger – be a part of one or all of the ways:
This week is the debut of this site and so we want to spread the word and need your help. So……we are having an Amazon.com $20 gift card giveaway to celebrate the opening of this site and to spread the news!
Here’s how to enter:
Please note: there is also another giveaway for FREE circus tickets for your family! Do the following steps above and enter both giveaways!! YAY!
A couple of addition points:
1. Leave a separate comment for each of the above things you do, each comment and activity you complete is an entry.
2. Be sure to leave your comments for entries here on this post to be counted as an entry.
This giveaway ends at 11:59 p.m. MST on Monday, September 6th! One winner will be randomly selected and then contacted after that deadline. Make sure to check back though in case we can’t contact you!
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We are so excited about our first official giveaway for our new site.
The Circus is Coming To Town!
That’s right – The Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Circus is making it’s way to the great state of Utah. Produced by Feld Entertainment, Barnum’s FUNundrum! will be performing in Salt Lake City at the Energy Solutions Arena from September 22–26, 2010.
It is BIGGER and BETTER than before – this year’s Circus is called FUNundrum. It is the 200th anniversary of the show and they are having a ginormous celebration and show to celebrate. This is one of those Utah Events you don’t want to miss!
Isn’t this sooo exciting….. Will we be there?!?! Of course – our team would not miss it. We will tell you all about it after we see this year’s new show! This is a very exciting time in Utah for Kids of ALL ages. In fact, it was something we loved to do even before having kids – as a young married couple, we made our way there are couple of times without….. ssshhhh…..kids. That is how much fun it is! But when we had kids, we knew this was somewhere that we needed to take them. But now it is an event that goes down in history with our kids!
Create the memories for your family too as you attend and watch your kids eyes light up with wonderment and amazement to see such a spectacular arrangement of entertainment. Watch out, you might just be amazed too It certainly rises to the top of the “things to do in Utah” each September.
A couple of other fun things to do surrounding this event is:
For 140 Years, it’s one thing you can always count on…the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Circus Parade & Elephant Walk. Sometime during the night on September 21, a mile-long sixty one car train will arrive into the city, gleaming by the light of the moon. The pre-dawn silence will be broken by the chatter of 130 performers, speaking 15 different languages and the mystical sounds of 100,000 pounds of Asian elephants, Bengal & Siberian tigers, horses, ponies, llamas, Pygmy and Nubian goat, and a rare Watusi – all joining forces with human performers from the four corners of the world as they disembark in Salt Lake City. The elephants will raise their trunks and remember the town they’re in. Man and beast will work to get ready for that grandest of traditions, “The Great Circus Parade.”
Be sure to arrive early to take part in several exciting interactive elements before the show event starts! Opening 90 minutes before each performance, all ticket holders are invited to tour the Animal Open House to get up-close with our amazing animals. Then one hour before show time, families can step onto the arena floor to meet the performers, learn circus skills and see an amazing elephant that paints at the All Access Pre-Show. Both fun-filled activities are FREE with a purchased ticket!
Step right up and see the Flying Caceres attempt to complete the elusive quadruple somersault on the flying trapeze; a feat that hasn’t been mastered in over three decades. Watch the Puyang troupe from China dazzle with a stunning display of dexterity as they bounce, flip, and twirl to new heights on a two-tiered trampoline. Be amazed as you witness the impossible contortions of the body benders who fit three humans in a cube the size of a milk crate. Enjoy the wondrous ability of the Mighty Meetal, the strongest man in the world, as he lifts over 1,200 pounds. And savor the stupendous skills of the hand balancers featuring Duo Fusion, a married pair of performers with a twist; the wife does the heavy lifting.
Performance Schedule
Wednesday, September 22nd – 7:00 PM
Thursday, September 23rd – 7:00 PM
Friday, September 24th – 3:30 PM & 7:30 PM
Saturday, September 25th – 11:00 AM, 3:00 PM & 7:00 PM
Sunday, September 26th –1:30 PM & 5:30 PM
Tickets are priced at $11- $25, $38 (VIP), $57 (Front Row) and $82 (Circus Celebrity). Opening Night tickets are available for only $12 each (for online purchase only; not valid on VIP tickets or premium seating). Service charges and handling fees may apply. All seats are reserved. See more details on the show, visit Ringling.com.
All of the above is included with your ticket price, which is around the price of a movie ticket – but infinitely more memorable!
Ways To Save:
Giveaway:
You may also be able to win 4 tickets to the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus for the Salt Lake City, UT!
The tickets are valid for any show starting on Wed. Sept. 22 – Sunday, Sept. 26th. A wonderful More Utah For Less reader and family will be awarded 4 tickets to this event. The tickets can be for any perfomance here in Salt Lake City and the pre-shows.
There are 5 ways to enter this awesome and quick giveaway! Enter once, twice or all 5 ways to increase your chances of winning! Just be sure to leave a separate comment for each of the following things you do!
Also remember that tickets are available at Smith’s Tix. If you want to go and did not win.
This giveaway is open to anyone willing to come to Salt Lake City to attend the show – if you don’t live close, but know someone that does, send them our way to enter! The winner will be announced, as well as sent an email with instructions on how to claim the tickets for the show.
This giveaway ends at 11:59 p.m. MST on Sunday, September 5th! One winner will be randomly selected and then contacted after that deadline. Make sure to check back though in case we can’t contact you!
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Thanksgiving Point is an adventure waiting at every corner for every member of the family! They have attractions to please the minds of the kiddos and to tickle the senses of the adults!
Here’s what Thanksgiving Point offers:
Water Tower Plaza for the shopping and dining
Gardens where 55 acres encompasses the brilliant sight of 15 themed gardens
Farm Country where an interactive, hands on farming experience comes to life
Museum of Ancient Life which houses the world’s largest collection of mounted fossils
Golf home to the largest Utah golf course spanning over 200 acres surrounded by the beautiful mountains and elegant gardens
Movies home to the XanGo 3D Mammoth Screen and the Megaplex 8 theaters playing the first run films
Today’s review is just going to cover The Museum of Ancient Life. We will write up a review for the others at another time.
Summary of The Museum of Ancient Life:
This museum “claims” to be the World’s Largest Dinosaur Museum based on the fact that they have the world’s largest collection of mounted dinosaurs.
The first exhibit hall is how Paleontology works and peering windows into the live Palentology lab. This is a fun way to start off!
Human Microphone was "tuned" into the lab happenings
As you enter the regular exhibit halls, there is a “star room” which is quite cool and it literally feels like you are walking through space.
This was an awesome feature, but Human Microphone was scared to death of it (very understandable as the sense of reality is fuzzy for a 3-year old!). As such, the museum has provided an alternate way to enter the exhibit halls.
Then you visit the four different halls of the museum with hundreds of skeletons and dozens of exhibits.
The first hall shows many sea life skeletons and replicas.
Then you head into the most famous halls and bones of all – DINOSAURS.
You enter a large hall to house those large reptile skeletons.
There are a couple of these large halls to house the most famous of dinosaur bones.
It is AMAZING to see just how large some of these creatures were! Could you only imagine??
They even showed some without their skins…..
And what they may have looked like with their skins and animal instincts……
It is a kid-friendly museum in that they also have many “hands-on” exhibits and activities that children can take part in.
Our kids’ favorite exhibit is the erosion table!
A huge room houses a very large erosion table for kids of all ages to get “their hands wet and dirty” digging in the dirt with alittle river of water running through and plastic dinosaurs and trees roam (with the help of little hands). Plus it is a great place for mom or dad to sit and relax as the perimeter of the room is lined with benches. It may also be a great room to hang out in if you are a nursing mother with your other children as it was a comfortable locale to let the older kids play while the baby fed (I personally found this convenient as a nursing mother).
Younger kids can pile in on the inside where the ground is raised a couple of feet to help them reach inside better. The above picture shows the kids on the inside of the table where it is perfect height for Human Microphone. But the girls are a little tall for the inside. Neither area was appropriate for Baby J.
Here is Ms. Optimistic on the outside and you can see it is just perfect for a 6 year old.
It is quite a messy activity! Sand and water = a mess! But hey, it is fun Mom and Dad!
Wait…. do our eyes deceive us?!?! Is that Ms. Pessimistic with a HUGE smile on her face?!?! Well….. you know what that means……. she likes a lot! Of course she does, it involves making a mess They use to have aprons that they kids could wear, but they were not available on our most recent visit. Thankfully they do have sinks with soap and water right there in this room to clean up as best as possible.
There is a baby crawl and play area right next to the erosion tables. This seems to be perfect for crawling and young walking babies, but Baby J seemed just a bit too big for this area.
Another favorite kids’ hands on activity was an area at the top level of the main halls where kids could “build their own dinosaur,” participate in coloring activities, and play with a giant world map.
First, “build a dinosaur” is an activity that kids of all ages can participate in and be funny, creative and just super silly.
It was even an activity that Baby J can do – as she was too little for the erosion tables, she was happy to feel like she was finally included!
Second, in the same area there is a giant wall World Map that contains lights with a board and the kids’ level where they can push the button next to an image of a dinosaur and a spot on the giant map would light up for where that dinosaur was located.
As you can see from the scale of sizes – this map is huge!
Finally, the last halls take you through extinct sea life and skeletons – Cassie and Ms. Optimistic find this area most interesting! It starts with the skeleton of a giant sea tortoise and ends with a giant Megalodon shark! YIKES! But the kids, especially Human Microphone, thinks this is just as cool as mud.
They had a Great White Shark hanging on the ceiling to give you an idea of the massive size of the Megalodon. We didn’t end up getting a picture of the great white at the museum for the scale, but this illustration gives you a great idea of the awe of this animal!
Thanks Howstuffworks.com for the illustration
Now you can see why some little 3 year old boy was sure taken with this part of the museum!
In addition to all of the displays of dinosaur skeletons, another highlight is the dinosaur dig room at the very end. It is essentially a giant sand box where your kids can dig for bones by brushing the dirt away. Another huge main attraction for our kids.
Here’s What We Like About The Museum of Ancient Life:
Here’s what we don’t like about The Museum of Ancient Life:
In fact, we snapped a picture of the confiscated food/drink table on our way to the exhibits:
The sign states: “ANY food or drinks in the exhibit, you will be asked to leave.”
There was a mom that was in the erosion table room sitting next to me feeding her 1 year old a few pieces of Cheerios while her older son played in the tables. She was caught and they said – “You need to put that away now, give us the food or leave.” They are serious!
Ways To Save for the Museum of Ancient Life:
Overall, it is a fun, memorable and exciting activity. Your kids will reminisce about the amazing sites to behold! You may need to invest in that membership if they can’t stop talking about it!
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On Tuesday, August 17th there is FREE admission to the Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum at the Gateway in downtown Salt Lake City.
They will be open at 10 am and close and 6 pm.
Plus you will find a Discovery Museum coupon for buy one get one FREE admission for up to 4 persons that is good until 8/31/10.
Thanks One Cheap Chick
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If you had Lagoon Park on your list of fun things to do in Utah this year – then this is your week to enjoy the fun for less!
Starting August 15th and running until Friday, August 20 mention KUTV at the ticket window and you will receive buy one get one FREE tickets!
It is called “Viewer Appreciation Days” at Lagoon Park for KUTV watchers.
A Quick Mini Review
Due to perpetual pregnancies for the last few years – we have not been to Lagoon for a few years. We are due for another visit very soon. Standing in the heat, swollen feet and unable to ride hardly anything from being pregnant has not sounded like a lot of fun. But when you are not expecting- it is a fun summer attraction!
The Lagoon water park called Lagoon-A-Beach tops the chart in terms of fun for us at the Lagoon Park. However, it is very busy on the hot days in which you want to be there. The water rides are great – especially the ones where you are able to ride your inner-tube down. Our favorite – The Outrigger. SWEET! The Lazy River is an old-time favorite for a nice relaxing and lounging float on your tube around the river. As long as you can forget about the crowds of people! Plan to rent a tube for an additional $5.00 each. You will receive $2.00 back upon return of the inner-tube.
For the actual amusement park, there is a lot to do and ride in the park. They really have some stellar rides. The fun part is they release a new ride nearly every year.
Alex’s favorite ride
The Spider = “I have loved this ride ever since they added it a few years ago. You get the sensation of a roller coaster while freely spinning. This ride is definitely one of my favorites!”
Cassie’s favorite ride
The Jet Star 2 – “I know oldie but goodie. I love how fast it is and that it is not real high up. It is a quick thrill without the hype!”
Alex’s least favorite
The Bat – “I was so excited when we heard a suspension roller coaster was coming to town! However, what I didn’t know was the demographic they were going to target. What I mean is that the ride is great for kids, but if you’re an adult looking for a thrill ride you can pass on this one.”
Cassie’s least favorite
The Samurai – “It twists and turns in so many directions that I had no idea where I was at, which was a really uneasy feeling. I also hated the fact that I had to be so tightly strapped in with a ginormous shoulder bar that my head would head the sides back and forth and I could not control my head being thrashed from side to side. Instant terrible headache coming off of it! Rode it once a long time ago and it is NOT on my list of to do rides again.”
There are a few rides that do cost extra and above the normal gate ticket prices. Those are called the X-Venture zone. We have rode the Skycoaster and the Catapult. More to come on those later…..;)
Way To Save to get Lagoon Discount Tickets:
Have fun as you enjoy one of Utah’s most popular summer attractions!
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Have you heard of City Deals?
City Deals is a site where you are able to purchase discounted gift cards everyday at a 10% discount or a 10% bonus. Cassie and I have used them for years, even before we had kids. It is one of our secret Utah savings that we are now sharing with you. Although they offer deals nationwide, they are based in Utah. This is good news as this means that Utah has the most selection and the biggest discounts.
The reason why it is such a stellar savings secret is that most gift cards are like cash (and can be combined with other discounts in some cases) and City Deals will have these amazing sales on these gift cards to help your dollar go further.
Every once in a while – they offer some sales and clearances on the Citydeals website. While right now they are having an incredible clearance today until items are sold out – and they sell out fast!
Utah Sales: 169 businesses on clearance right now (the local area discount gift cards sell very fast!!). Here are a few that we loved.
Remember that these are gift cards- which essentially means you are getting a discount on cash. Stretch your gift card further by combing with store coupons and discounts too when you go to use your gift cards.
They are offering deals for some nationwide stores too:
PLUS – FREE Shipping on all orders!!
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