Red Butte Garden Small Loop

A day spent roaming Red Butte Garden in Salt Lake City is a day well spent. The Small Loop Trail is a lovely tour around the perimeter of the garden with lots of stops to rest and enjoy your surroundings. Please be aware that this hike is in the Red Butte Garden State Arboretum and there is an admission fee. If you are a University of Utah student, however, admission is free. The Small Loop around the garden is an easy path with gentle inclines—it is not wheel-chair accessible but the paths around the amphitheater and the visitors center are. More info about accessibility can be obtained by contacting the visitors center prior to your visit.

The Red Butte Garden Small Loop is an excellent hike for families with kids of all ages. There is so much to see and so much to learn about along this gorgeous path; we recommend bringing lunch and making a full day out of it. If you want to engage with the garden community, the Red Butte Garden hosts classes, workshops and exhibits year-round and the Garden Amphitheater is a beautiful spot to catch a concert or a show.

To hike the Small Loop around Red Butte Garden, start at the Garden Visitors Center at 300 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City. Once you’re through the Visitors Center, take the trail on your right to hike the loop counterclockwise. Follow the path up the gentle incline heading northeast to the Canyon Overlooks before heading back down towards Red Butte Creek. Follow the creek back towards the display gardens and make your way through the “World of Ornamental Grasses” and along the “Floral Walk” back to the Visitors Center.

If the Small Loop around the garden has you inspired, there is so much more to see in Red Butte Garden. Check out the wonderful display gardens or register for a class before heading back home.

Trail Highlights

Red Butte Garden

Located on the University of Utah Campus, Red Butte Garden is a wonderful collection of botanical gardens interwoven with well maintained hiking and walking trails. Many of the plants in this garden were originally owned and cultivated by Dr. Walter P. Cottam, co-founder of the Nature Conservancy and chairman of the University of Utah Botany Department in the early to mid 1900s. The Utah state legislature granted the University a plot of land to display and nurture Cottam’s Collection and make a space for the public to visit and learn about plant life. After years of hard work by former director Richard Hildreth and Ezekiel R. Dumke Jr. the Red Butte Garden opened to the public in 1985. The Garden currently has 21 acres of botanical displays and hosts over 200,000 visitors annually.

Red Butte Garden has an excellent public outreach program with workshops, classes, events, concerts, and art exhibits happening all throughout the year. This little garden has blossomed into a vibrant community center that strives towards the goal of education and conservation of the trees and plants of Utah.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to visit Red Butte Garden?

Red Butte Garden does charge admission. As of 2022, a day pass is $14 for adults, $12 for seniors/military/U of U faculty, $7 for children, and free for U of U students. Red Butte Garden does offer free admission days and special discount days throughout the year as well as half-priced admission all through December, January, and February.

Who owns Red Butte Garden?

Red Butte Garden is owned and operated by the University of Utah.