“It’s tiiiiiiiiiiimmmmeeee!”
Did you read that in Mariah Carey’s high-pitched singing voice like I did? If not, maybe you should hear it and then come back. I’ll wait.
Or, you can just keep reading to learn what my favorite local adventures of 2023 include!
It’s that time of year when I recap my adventures of the year, both local and abroad, including the culinary adventures that I want to remember.
This year I decided to add an article about my favorite local adventures of 2023.
In case you’re new here, I started writing year-end round-up posts a few years back. It’s a fun way for me to summarize my year, share things that might not have ended up on this site, and create another record for myself. If this is the only article you’ve ever read on this site, I urge you to check out my previous round-up posts to give you a feel for what I’m like:
2018 was my first year, with visiting my friend Nikki in Romania being the crowning jewel.
2019 was the year I road tripped with a dog to Canada. Oh, and with my friend Ashley. It was her dog.
2020 was a year that I was determined not to lose and surprised myself.
2021 was when I got my travel mojo back, island-hopped, and saw the heavens open.
2022 was the year that I realized my potential and knocked some pretty epic adventures off of my impossible list.
Not going to lie – picking top faves this year was a little challenging. I had made a new year resolution to go on at least one local adventure a month and do something completely new. From Disney on Ice to hikes to waterfalls to trying new restaurants, it was tough to nail down the ones that are on this list.
Here are my favorite LOCAL adventures of 2023!
SWIMMING IN THE HOMESTEAD CRATER
Don’t you just love it when you see something cool on social media, decide you want to go experience it for yourself, and it actually lives up to the hype? That’s what my experience was with swimming in the Homestead Crater in Midway, Utah.
The Homestead Crater is a geothermic spring that happens to be enclosed in a uniquely domed crater, allowing visitors to tour around, do part of their scuba certification, or swim simply float around the warm water.
On a cold, snowy February evening, my 3 friends and I donned our bathing suits (under our snow clothes), packed a towel and change of clothes, and headed out to the crater. After getting a brief introduction and donning our life jackets, we hopped into the steam-filled crater spring. It was a surreal experience and something that didn’t translate well through my GoPro. Mist will do that to you.
But floating around with my girls, giggling, splashing, and taking silly pictures before freezing as we got out into the snowy night again will remain one of my top favorite local adventures of 2023.
GETTING THE STRANGEST FOOT TREATMENT AT FISH KISS SPA
When my oldest niece became a teenager, I started taking her on local adventures with me. Although I try to pick adventures that would appeal to a young teenager, they’re ultimately things that I want to do…and just happen to bring her along. One such adventure with auntie included booking an appointment at the Fish Kiss Spa in Provo, Utah.
Have you ever seen those travel videos on YouTube where the camera pans to a glass tank full of little fishies, with people sticking their feet in them? Well…
That’s what we did! We booked a spa “experience” where we soaked our feet in tanks full of Garra Rufa fish. The fish use their little mouths to vibrate dead skin off of your feet. It doesn’t hurt, but if you’re ticklish like I am, it’s definitely a shock and can take some time getting used to.
If you want a good laugh, here’s the live reaction of that first moment I plunged my feet into the water!
HIKING TO THE DRAPER SUSPENSION BRIDGE
For years I’d heard about the hike to a suspension bridge in Draper, also known as the Bear Canyon Suspension Bridge Hike. It’s one of those things that I’ve heard about for years, low-key wanted to do it, but not enough to actually make a plan to do so. I’m not a huge hiker, so it was easy for me to always find a good excuse to not go.
But then I had a free afternoon on the horizon and decided to call up a friend who’s always down for an adventure. She’d done the hike before and was eager to do it again.
I got my day bag ready and made sure my drone was charged.
The hike was pretty easy, even though we took the long way to the bridge. We were racing against the sunset, but thankfully the trail faces dead west, so we had as much of the sun as we possibly could.
Being able to knock this hike off of my local bucket list and get some sick drone shots was the push I needed to include this on my list of my favorite local adventures of 2023.
ATTENDING MULTIPLE CULTURAL FESTIVALS
I didn’t know how to break this one apart, so I’ve clumped them all together. One of the joys of travel is experiencing new cultures, including food, religion, music and traditions. One of the benefits of living in Salt Lake City is the wide range of people that call this place home.
Although I managed to travel to a heap of new places this year, there were tons of local cultural festivals that I attended in Salt Lake City that made my list of my favorite local adventures of 2023:
Oktoberfest
Topping the list is probably the festival I’ve attended the most since moving to Salt Lake City. I’ve been attending Oktoberfest for years and loved it every time. This year was extra special as I attended it with a friend that was my former German teacher. Nothing like eating a German sausage while watching a beer stein-holding competition in the mountains.
Living Traditions
The Living Traditions Festival is a venue where artisans display their talent via food, crafts, film, music, dance, and other means. The artisans represent different cultures and nationalities, sharing their offerings and exposing people to new perspectives, ways of life, and tastes, which is my favorite. This year, Shelby and I wandered around, eating our way around the world while watching a beautiful Haka presented by a New Zealand association.
Holi
This was my 2nd year experiencing Holi Festival of Colors at the Sri Sri Radha Krishna Temple in Spanish Fork, just south of Salt Lake City. In India, Holi represents the arrival of spring and the passing of winter. It is often celebrated by the throwing of colorful chalk to celebrate, making it a fun, light-hearted introduction to another culture. This year I took my roommate and we had a blast!
Christkindlmarkt
Rounding out this list of my favorite local adventures of 2023 is my recent visit to the local Christkindlmarkt, or German Christmas Market. After visiting 11 markets in Germany in 2022, and a quick visit to one in Romania a few weeks ago, many people asked me if the Salt Lake City Christkindlmarkt was even worth it. To be honest, even I was wondering that. I’d been to the Christmas market numerous times, but had nothing to compare it to. I enjoyed going, but did that mean it was authentic?
After having been to a dozen Christmas markets in Europe, I can honestly say that the Salt Lake City Christkindlmarkt is definitely worth it and felt just like the ones in Germany. So much so, that the traffic getting to the market this year was absolutely horrendous. But, after getting a parking spot, I managed to make it to the market stalls, fly my drone a bit, and just vibe with the place. It instantly took me back to Munich!
What a year it’s been! Do you have any questions or thoughts about why these adventures made the list of favorite local adventures of 2023?
Sharing is caring! Please show some love by sharing on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram! Thank you!
