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25 January, 2024

Client’s headed to the states? Here’s the top pics for Utah in 2024!

A summer vista looking south across the Silver Lake Flat Reservoir in American Fork Canyon, Utah with Mount Timpanogos, and the Wasatch mountain range providing a backdrop.

If you’re planning a trip through central U.S.A. in 2024 you’re in luck, because we’ve got the scoop on what’s new and what’s hot in the state known as America’s film set!

The home of U.S film

Utah the film state. (Supplied)

This year will mark 100 years since the first movies filmed in Utah were premiered as well as the 50th anniversary of the Utah Film Commission and if you’re a film buff, there are plenty of activities for you. Utah invites you to celebrate all the people, locations and productions that have helped the state shine in the film industry through a range of exhibits, events and film screenings.

Robert Redford may be widely known for developing Utah’s Sundance Mountain Resort and Sundance Film Festival, held annually in January in Park City, but it was Utah’s Parry Brothers who shot the first film in Cedar City, UT in 1924. Utah will mark the anniversary with a year-long exhibition at the State Capitol in Salt Lake City, and monthly special events ranging from the annual Thelma & Louise Marathon in Moab, UT to Governor Cox inviting Kevin Bacon back to Utah County for the 40th anniversary of Footloose and the introduction of a film trail with inaugural historical markers placed across the state for visitors to follow.

Goulding’s Lodge celebrates 100 years in Monument Valley

100 years of Goulding’s Lodge. (Supplied)

Few travellers to Utah’s Monument Valley visit the area without taking a tour or staying overnight with Goulding’s Lodge – celebrating its 100th year in 2024.

In the early 1920s, Harry Goulding and his wife, Leone (nicknamed “Mike”), set up a trading post in Monument Valley, conducting business with the local Navajo people.

When the Great Depression hit, the Gouldings are credited with attracting Hollywood to film in the region, bringing much-needed revenue. Their legacy lives on at Goulding’s Lodge, as the property continues to host film crews and visitors from all over the world who, to this day, come to experience the power of the landscape and history through Navajo-led tours of Monument Valley.

Explore Utah’s Indigenous culture through food

Black Sheep Café. (Supplied)

Located in historic downtown Provo, 45 minutes south of Salt Lake City, the family-owned and operated Black Sheep Café serves contemporary Southwestern Native American cuisine.

Founded by sisters, Bleu Adams and Jovanna Mason, with their brother Chef Mark Mason, Black Sheep Café blends modern technique with traditional Navajo, Pueblo and Hopi influences.

The siblings grew up on a Navajo reservation, where they learned about cooking as young children. They use local ingredients like Utah honey and traditionally grown and prepared blue cornmeal and flour, to make their award-winning dishes from scratch.

From Navajo Tacos and Green Chile Stew, to Cactus Pear Lemonade and Orange-Habanero Crème Brûlée, Black Sheep Café is an important leader in Utah’s dining scene, sharing their Indigenous culture through food.

Stargazing under Utah’s winter skies

Starry night setting in Utah. (Supplied)

Not only is Utah home to more internationally accredited dark sky parks and places than anywhere else on the planet, that number just happens to be 24 as of 2024.

Utah also boasts the first dark sky park in the world, Natural Bridges National Monument, and the first dark sky accredited resort in the world, Under Canvas Lake Powell-Grand Staircase.

Utah’s dark skies are situated in both Northern and Southern Utah, and crisp, clear winter evenings are perfect for stargazing.

To assist astro-tourists, Compass Rose Lodge located near Ogden, UT – home to three of Utah’s 15 ski resorts: Snowbasin, Powder Mountain and Nordic Valley – has its own on-site observatory, and the Adventure Company in Kanab, UT offers a year-round Campfire S’mores and Stargazing Tour to a private canyon and old movie fort where over 35 productions have been filmed, including Westworld.

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