Free & Cheap Things to Do in St. George

Parks & Nature

A free city park built into the dramatic red sandstone cliffs above St. George, anchored by the iconic Dixie Rock — a massive white sandstone dome with 360-degree views of the city, canyon country, and distant mountains. Short hiking trails through the park explore small slot canyons, natural arches, lava tubes, and a preserved pioneer cabin.

Address: 375 E Red Hills Pkwy, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: The 15-minute hike to the top of Dixie Rock is easy and the views are exceptional at sunrise and sunset. The park is open daily 6am–10pm. Wear sturdy shoes — the sandstone terrain is uneven. The St. George Narrows slot canyon within the park is a hidden gem most visitors miss.

Parks & Nature

Utah's premier water-efficient demonstration garden, tucked against the red sandstone hills on the edge of downtown St. George. Five acres showcase over 5,000 drought-tolerant native plants, a replica slot canyon, an acrylic panel display of native endangered fish, and a set of authentic dinosaur tracks embedded in the rock. Completely free, beautifully maintained, and open every day.

Address: 375 E Red Hills Pkwy, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Open daily 6am–10pm year-round. The slot canyon replica and dinosaur track panels are the highlights — easy to miss, so follow the signs. Best visited in morning light when the red hills glow behind the garden. Free parking on site.

Parks & Nature

A jaw-dropping state park of layered red and white Navajo sandstone cliffs, ancient lava flows, sand dunes, and slot canyons — all within 10 minutes of downtown St. George. Snow Canyon consistently rivals the scenery of nearby national parks at a fraction of the cost, with 38 miles of trails ranging from easy nature walks to technical climbs.

Address: 1002 Snow Canyon Dr, Ivins, UT 84738

Tip: The Johnson Canyon trail and Hidden Pinyon Trail are the best easy hikes. Arrive early — the park is extremely popular and the entrance road can queue on weekends. Walking or cycling in is just $3. The campground ($40–$45/night) offers unbeatable stargazing. A Utah State Parks annual pass pays for itself in two visits.

History & Culture

Free guided tours of the 1872 Greek Revival adobe-and-pine home where Brigham Young — second prophet of the LDS Church and first governor of the Utah Territory — spent winters from 1870 to 1877 to escape Salt Lake City's cold. The home and adjacent office have been restored to their 1870s appearance, with period furnishings, personal artifacts, and a story-rich docent tour.

Address: 67 W 200 N, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Open daily 9am–5pm (until 7pm spring, until 8pm summer). Free guided tours run ~30 minutes by LDS missionary docents. No reservation needed. Free street parking. Combine with the St. George Tabernacle three blocks south for a strong free LDS pioneer-history afternoon.

History & Culture

A spectacular 1876 sandstone-and-timber tabernacle in downtown St. George — built by LDS pioneers under Brigham Young's direction over thirteen years, with a 140-foot spire that still anchors the city skyline. The 1,200-seat interior features hand-grained pine beams, an original pipe organ, and brass-rail box pews. Recently restored 2024. Free guided tours daily by missionary docents.

Address: 18 S Main St, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Winter hours (Oct-Mar) Mon-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 1pm-5pm; summer hours (Apr-Sept) Mon-Sat 9am-7pm, Sun 1pm-7pm. Free 30-minute guided tours leave on demand. Free downtown parking. The original 1876 pipe organ still plays — ask the docents for a quick demo.

History & Culture

A 1862 two-story sandstone-and-timber pioneer home in Santa Clara (five miles northwest of St. George) preserving the family residence of Jacob Hamblin — LDS "Apostle to the Lamanites," peace negotiator with the Paiute, Hopi, and Navajo nations, and one of southern Utah's most influential frontier figures. Free guided tours through period-furnished rooms by missionary docents.

Address: 3325 Hamblin Dr, Santa Clara, UT 84765

Tip: Open daily 10am–5pm winter (Oct-Apr), 10am–7pm summer (Apr-Oct). Free guided tours run ~30 minutes. No reservation needed. Free parking. About 10 minutes drive from downtown St. George. Combine with the Brigham Young Winter Home and St. George Tabernacle for a complete free LDS pioneer-history loop.

History & Culture

The free public visitors' center on the grounds of the 1877 St. George Utah Temple (the oldest still-operating LDS temple in the world). Exhibits cover Utah pioneer settlement, temple purposes, and family-history resources, with a centerpiece replica of Bertel Thorvaldsen's Christus statue. The temple grounds — beautifully landscaped — are open to walk year-round.

Address: 250 E 400 S, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Open daily 10am–9pm. Free guided tours available in multiple languages by missionary docents. The white-sandstone temple itself reopened to LDS members in late 2024 after a multi-year renovation, but the grounds and visitors' center are accessible to everyone. Free parking on site.

History & Culture

An on-site museum built directly over 200-million-year-old early-Jurassic dinosaur trackways discovered during construction of a Johnson Farm housing development in 2000. Elevated boardwalks let visitors walk directly above hundreds of three-toed theropod footprints, the world's first-discovered dinosaur swim tracks, tail-drag marks in ancient lake sediment, and articulated fossil fish — all preserved in place where they were laid down.

Address: 2180 E Riverside Dr, St. George, UT 84790

Tip: Open 7 days a week, 10am–5pm year-round. Free on-site parking. Allow 60–90 minutes. The dinosaur-swim tracks are the world's first known evidence of swimming dinosaurs — the docent talk on these is the highlight. Outside the boardwalk room, hands-on kid stations let you cast fossils to take home.

Family Fun

Fifteen hands-on, role-play exhibit spaces fill the historic Dixie Academy building beside Town Square — a nonprofit museum built around imaginative play for the under-12 crowd, and one of the cheapest indoor kid hours in southern Utah on a 110-degree afternoon.

Address: 86 S Main St, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Adults must accompany kids (and vice versa — solo adults need ID and an escort). Roof renovation on the historic building runs through summer 2026; the museum stays fully open behind the construction fencing. Town Square's splash pad and carousel are steps away.

Family Fun

Southern Utah's first fully inclusive playground is a free dinosaur wonderland inside Tonaquint Park — an 'erupting' volcano splash pad, wheelchair-accessible play structures on soft surfacing, a climbing wall, and a quarter-scale train looping 2,700 feet of track for a dollar a ride.

Address: 1851 S Dixie Dr, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Open daily 9am–10pm; the train keeps shorter daytime hours and skips Sundays. Summer mornings and evenings beat the midday heat — the volcano splash pad helps in between. Shaded pavilions make it an easy picnic-lunch stop.

Arts & Culture

The city's free art museum collects and exhibits art of Utah and the West — rotating shows bring in serious names (recent exhibits paired with Modern West Fine Art featured Ed Mell, Kevin Red Star, and Shonto Begay) a block from the downtown historic district.

Address: 47 E 200 N, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Open Tuesday–Saturday from 10am, with Friday hours stretching to 8pm; closed Sunday–Monday. Tours are available on request, and exhibit-opening receptions are free and open to all — check the events page. Pair with the pioneer sites a few blocks east.

Arts & Culture

Utah Tech University's free art museum in the Eccles Fine Arts Center rotates about six exhibits a year, from traditional Western landscape to contemporary work, drawn partly from a significant permanent collection. Every Presidents' Day weekend it hosts the Sears Invitational — roughly 150 artists and 200 paintings.

Address: 155 S University Ave, St. George, UT 84770

Tip: Open weekdays 9am–5pm; closed weekends. February's Invitational Art Show is the marquee event and free to browse. Campus visitor parking is easiest near the Fine Arts Center — and the St. George Museum of Art makes a natural same-day pairing.