I recently took a trip across the country by train!  The first stop along our cross-country train trip was Salt Lake City, Utah. Although we didn’t have much time I wanted to explore as much as possible!

Check out how we spent 24 hours in Salt Lake City!

via Young Living Lavender Farm

Where To Stay

Opting for the cheapest options whenever possible, my mom and I ended up in a quaint hostel about a mile from the city center. The Camelot Inn runs on a completely automated system. This boded well for us as we were arriving in the city around 3am. Sleeping on the train is not the most comfortable thing. But knowing you have to wake up at 3am to get off and walk a mile through an unknown city to your hostel is even worse. The way I look at it though it was all one big adventure.

Read More: What It’s Really Like To Stay in a Hostel 

What To Do

Our first day in Salt Lake consisted of being shown around by our “tour guide” (my uncle’s sister who lives in the area). Blair generously drove us all over the city and even an hour outside it to the Young Living Lavender Farm. It was nice knowing someone in the city who could show us the ropes of getting around. My favorite place we went that day was the Gilgal Sculpture Garden. It was tucked away in between some houses, seemingly a completely private area. We had the whole place to ourselves to explore the beautiful pieces.

I love books more than anything, so I can never resist stopping in the library in any city I visit. Salt Lake’s library was without a doubt the most beautiful library I have ever been in. They had an insane amount of books scattered throughout four giant floors. To top it off the roof held a huge area to explore, complete with a ramp leading all the way down to the ground behind the building?

Where To Eat

Another great stop we made was at Sage’s Cafe for a late lunch. The place was entirely vegan (Blair is a vegetarian). Despite my low expectations I enjoyed the dish I ordered quite a bit. I’m honestly not entirely sure what half of the items I got were, but I managed to eat the entire colorful pile.

Salt Lake City definitely exceeded my expectations. It has one of the cleanest downtowns I have ever seen in any city. I almost immediately felt at home there, and I for sure plan on going back someday.  I can’t wait to share the rest of my train travels!

Have you been to Salt Lake? Share some recommendations below!