Sarah Cutler, UtahBusiness.com

Looking for a new way to experience Salt Lake? Take a ride on Big Bus Utah, an open-air tour bus with the option to "hop-on" and "hop-off" at each tour stop. The bus visits 19 destinations in Salt Lake, providing a convenient way to tour the city. Visit Salt Lake launched the inaugural tour of Big Bus Utah on Friday.

During the ribbon cutting ceremony Ryan Evans, vice president of business and community relations for the Salt Lake Chamber, said, "I'd just like to say, on behalf of the Salt Lake Chamber, the Downtown Alliance and the business community of Utah, we congratulate you on this opening and we appreciate and thank you for bringing a great new way for tourists to Utah to see our capitol city."

The tour is 90 minutes long with 19 stops and a witty commentary that provides detailed descriptions of the sights and humorous information about Salt Lake City. After notifying passengers that Capitol Theatre opened in 1913 the recorded commentator jokes that "the original code of the theatre was to provide tasteful entertainment that would not upset anyone, but that soon buckled to popular demand and now the theatre has been titillating and offending Salt Lake citizens for nearly a century."

Pass options include the Hop On Pass that offers a one or two day pass, a family pass, and student and senior discounts, and the Big Bus + Connect Pass Combos, which offer up to three days and access to 13 of Salt Lake's attractions and a free meal at the Lion House Pantry and Restaurant.

"We heartily welcome Big Bus Utah as one of our hottest new tourism offerings," said Scott Beck, president and CEO of Visit Salt Lake. "It offers great savings and is a perfect companion to the Connect Pass. You can purchase tickets for both at our very own Visitor Information Center."

Tour Stops:

  1. Big Bus Utah Welcome Center - 90 S. West Temple
  2. *Lion House
  3. West Temple Square
  4. Council Hall
  5. North Capitol Hill
  6. East Temple Square
  7. The Cathedral of The Madeleine
  8. Governor's Mansion
  9. Rice-Eccles Stadium
  10. *Utah Museum of Fine Arts
  11. Fort Douglas Military Museum
  12. *Natural History Museum of Utah/ *Red Butte Garden
  13. *"This Is The Place" Heritage Park
  14. *Utah Hogle Zoo
  15. *Tracy Aviary
  16. Trolley Square
  17. *The Leonardo/Library Square
  18. City Creek Center
  19. *Gateway Center/*Clark Planetarium

*Denotes Visit Salt Lake Connect Pass attractions