Ultimate Guide To A Dog Friendly Christmas Season In Salt Lake City

The Christmas season in and around Salt Lake City is magical and it can become even more special if you include your dog in the festivities. We’ve compiled a guide to dog friendly Christmas activities in and around Salt Lake City.

This list has a little something for everyone, like light displays and tree farms. But if you don’t have the most social dog, we’ve also included a local gift guide, because maybe your pooch doesn’t want to go help you get the tree but that doesn’t mean they won’t enjoy waking up to a gift under the tree on Christmas morning.

Before you head out on your holiday adventures with your dog, there are just a few things to keep in mind. First, there will be families and kids around so make sure to bring some treats to help keep your dog engaged with you. Next, always bring a 6 foot leash (pretty much everywhere requires dogs to be leashed) and poop bags, just in case you need them.

Now, let’s get into some of the best dog friendly holiday activities in Salt Lake and the surrounding areas. Make sure you tag us in your Holiday photos @dogfriendlyslc on Instagram.

Dog Friendly Holiday Light Displays In Utah

Before we begin, keep in mind that a walk or drive around your neighborhood when it gets dark may surprise you with great light displays put up by your community! Pro-tip, The Avenues and Harvard/Yale neighborhoods in Salt Lake have great light viewing most years.

The Gateway – Downtown Salt Lake City

Price: Free
Leash Required

The Gateway in Downtown Salt Lake City lights up a little before Thanksgiving every season and the lights stay on until December 31.

Take your dog on a stroll through the Winter Wonderland, complete with oversized woodland creatures, vibrant lights and plenty of Insta-worthy photo-ops.

Gallivan Center – Downtown Salt Lake City

Price: Free
Leash required

The Gallivan Center truly is the heart of Downtown Salt Lake City and their yearly Christmas light display doesn’t disappoint. The lighting ceremony is typically at the end of November, but the lights will remain on throughout the holiday season. If you’d like to attend the lighting ceremony, check their website for specific date information.

The Gallivan Center is home to an ice rink that kind of feels like Utah’s version of Central Park, while your dog can’t skate, you can watch and listen to holiday tunes while enjoying the lights. While you are downtown, you can check out some dog-friendly restaurant/bar patios. Find a list here.

Near Gallivan Center, you’ll also find Salt Lake’s dog friendly mall, City Creek Center. More on City Creek and other downtown SLC dog activities here.

Ogden City Christmas Village – Downtown Ogden

Price: Free
Leash required

The Christmas Village in Ogden is a great spot to explore some Christmas light displays with your dog. The lights are kicked off with a Holiday Electric parade (find the date here) and remain on throughout the holiday season. The lights turn on every night at 5:00 p.m..

Since the village is located in Downtown Ogden, there are lots of options for a bite to eat or some shopping while you and your dog are out and about.

Here is our complete list of dog friendly holiday light displays in and around Salt Lake City (including some in Ogden and Utah County).

Dog Friendly Christmas Tree Farms

Visiting a Christmas tree farm with your dog is a great way to include them in the holiday festivities. And there are a few great options near Salt Lake City if a farm is more your style over taking your dog out to BLM land and cutting your own (which you can totally do, more on that here.)

The Kinlands

11887 S 4000 W, Riverton, UT | Website

The Kinlands (formerly Peterson Family Farm) in Riverton is well known for their dog friendly country Christmas experience. Not only do they sell a variety of fresh cut Christmas trees, The Kinlands prides itself on providing a curated experience meant to connect visitors with the land and evoke feelings of harmony.

In addition to their wonderful seasonal experience, the farm also has variety of skilled classes should you choose to visit without your pup. While The Kinlands old world market is open year round, Christmas tree sales begin just before Thanksgiving (check the website for specific dates) and continue through the holiday season or while supplies last.

The farm is open Monday through Saturday from 9am to 7pm and Sundays from 11am to 7pm. Well behaved, leashed dogs are welcome on the farm.

Schmidt’s Farm & Greenhouse

9000 S 2200 W, West Jordan, UT | Website

Schmidt’s Farm & Greenhouse in West Jordan offers a holiday tree farm as part of their highly anticipated seasonal events. Finding the perfect tree isn’t an issue as Schmidt’s typically offers a large variety of trees including Noble firs, Douglas firs, Grand firs, Balsam firs, and Nordmann firs.

If sustainability is important to your family this holiday season, visit Schmidt’s to find a living tree that can be planted after Christmas. The farm also offers their Candy Cane Lane, Santa’s goats, and a variety of scenes for taking photos. Professional photographers are able to use this space too, for a small booking fee.

You can visit the tree farm seasonally from Monday to Friday, 2pm to 9pm, and Saturdays from 9am to 9pm. Well behaved, leashed dogs are welcome at Schmidt’s. Christmas trees typically become available right before Thanksgiving, but check the website for exact dates.

Green Ridge Christmas Trees

1370 U.S. 89, Kaysville, UT | Website

Green Ridge Christmas Tree Farm in Kaysville offers a variety of pre-cut and cut your own trees (availability varies year by year). With complimentary hot cocoa and candy canes at the farm, you’ll have no problem getting in the holiday spirit while shopping for a tree.

Trees available in past years have included Noble Firs, Nordmann Firs, Grand Firs, and Korean Firs but stock varies each year. Tree flocking is also available for those who’d like to add a special touch to their tree! Well behaved, leashed pups are welcome to visit this tree farm with their humans.

Looking to capture these magical memories among the trees? Work with a local pet photographer to secure one of Green Ridge’s seasonal photography licenses! Check the website for opening dates each season.

Find a complete list of dog friendly Christmas tree farms and more on cutting your own tree in Utah here.

Dog Santa Photos In Salt Lake and Surrounding Areas

Plan to make some memories this season by planning for your dog to get a holiday photo with Santa. With opportunities from Ogden to Provo, you shouldn’t have trouble finding an option in your backyard.

Cabela’s

Dog friendly Cabela’s welcomes pups to join their owners in a festive photo with Santa Claus. Each visit comes with a free 4×6 inch printed photo, with the option to purchase additional pictures. With Santa’s Wonderland opening in early November, you can beat the crowds by going now! Reservations can be made here. Santa will be sticking around until he has to work on December 24th.

While you’re at Cabela’s, you can get some shopping done for the outdoorsy folks in your life. Your dog is sure to love sniffing the taxidermy and seeing the fish before you take a peek at the pup section! There are currently two Cabela’s locations in northern Utah, one in Lehi and one in Farmington.

Wheeler Historic Farm

Dog friendly Wheeler Historic Farm will host Festive Fridays from Friday, November 24 through Friday, December 15. The event runs from 5-7pm.

Dogs are welcome at the event and can get their photo with Santa and take a wagon ride. The wagon ride costs $3.

Keep in mind that Wheeler Farm is a farm, so there are farm animals around.

Click here for a complete list of dog friendly Santa photos in and around Salt Lake City.

Locally Made Gifts For Dogs And Dog Lovers

You can’t skip your fur baby when it comes to Christmas and if you prefer to shop local, here are some great gifts for both the dogs and dog lovers in your life.

Flourish Pet Treats

If your dog has his own dedicated stocking (and we wouldn’t blame you tbh), he’d probably love nothing more than to see it filled with Flourish dog treats from Eagle Mountain. Flourish offers a snack for almost every palette with a variety of jerky, baked biscuits, and freeze-dried raw treats.

With many of their meats sustainably sourced from Utah farms you can feel great about not only what your pup is eating, but also about supporting the livelihood of multiple Utahns.

Dog Friendly SLC Sticker Pack

When shopping for local dog-inspired products, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention some of the awesome things you can get in the Dog Friendly SLC shop!

Our Dog Friendly SLC sticker pack features four water resistant stickers that would complement any water bottle or cooler nicely. Each design relates to a Utah dog pun and matches our apparel!

Shop Stickers

Desert Antler

Power chewers rejoice because it’s possible to source antler chews right here in Utah! Jordan Lammert of Desert Antler searches out elk and deer sheds with his two dogs, Bo and Arrow.

They offer a wide variety of lengths, and will even brand a split chew with your dog’s name if you want to take it to the next level. Check out their crazy competitive prices on their bundles!

Shop Antlers