Garden City UT // Bear Lake Travel Guide

This post is part of a long term ambassador program with Hotels 4 Teams, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Last Thursday night Derek and I were discussing what we wanted to do for the weekend, and I casually brought up going to Bear Lake. Neither one of us had ever been, and everyone in Utah loves it so much, I figured it was worth a fun day trip. We ultimately decided not to go, and decided to go for Jay's birthday in a couple weeks, but then we woke up Friday morning, threw all caution to the wind, and decided to go right then and there, once I'd finished up my work for the day.

Most people we know go to Bear Lake for a week at a time, but even if you only have a day or two to get away, I still think it was totally worth it. Bonus points, our entire day at Bear Lake cost us less than $100 for a family of four, so it totally does not need to be a money pit.

Where to Eat in Bear Lake:

Drive-in burger stands are all the rage in Bear Lake. There are several of them, all within a few blocks of each other, and each one claims to be owner of "The Best Raspberry Shake in Town!" The popular ones that we heard of before our trip were Quick-n-tasty, Le Beau's, and Hometown Drive In. When we pulled into town, all of the lines for those places were out the door, and then we saw Jack's Place. There wasn't a line, so we headed in, and despite mediocre reviews online, we had an awesome experience... Even though some lady totally photo-bombed our only family picture for the day.

We ordered some chicken nuggets for the kids, burgers for Derek and I, and then we all shared a raspberry shake for lunch. Our entire meal was $39 when all was said and done, which was definitely the more expensive part of our trip, but I kept telling myself that it was a tourist town, and that's probably what it would have been no matter where we went. 

The Best Beach in Bear Lake

My idea of a good beach is one that I don't have to pay for in order to get in, and one that doesn't take five hours to find a parking spot. After we ate lunch we headed to Garden City Park, where there is a boardwalk that you can walk down to get to the beach. Parking is free here, and I thought for sure on a Friday at 12pm in July, that it would be impossible to find a parking spot, but there were surprisingly a ton still open, and even when we left a few hours later, the parking lot was not completely full. 

One word of caution though, the beach part is sandy where everyone sits, but it's a little rocky and a lot of muddy down by the water. Once you get in the water it's great, but my kids feet definitely got stuck in the mud a couple of times. 

We played in the water for an hour or so, Em in her floaty, and Jay with his puddle jumper, and then we spent the last little bit just playing in the sand. They did have a little shack on the beach too where you could rent paddle boards and Kayaks, and I totally think we're going to do that the next time we go! 

Things to do in Bear Lake

If your family loves biking, you'll definitely need to head over to the bike barn where you and your family can all rent and pedal a bike together for the afternoon. They have bikes that fit 4-5 people comfortably, plus you can have 1-2 small children up in the basket! Rentals are $26/hr, and well worth it for a chance to bike the trails and get a scenic view of the lake!

photo source here

If you're into theater and entertainment, you should definitely head over to Pickelville Playhouse. They don't recommend their shows to persons under 5, mainly because young children can be fidgety and distracting in a theater setting, so we didn't take our kids on this trip, but I would love to take Jay back for his birthday to see Tarzan, or maybe a date night with Derek to see Juanito Bandito. Tickets start at $16 per child, and $21 per adult. 

Where to Stay in Bear Lake

A lot of people who come to Bear Lake have cabins that have been in their families for generations. If you're not lucky enough to have been born into a Bear Lake family, or are visiting for a sporting event, or any other reason, you can head over to Hotels4Teams website, where they can give you many options as far as accommodations are concerned. There aren't a ton of options on the lake itself, but if you're visiting the nearby Cache County for a basketball game at the university, you could easily stay the night in Logan and then make a day trip out to the lake. It's totally worth the experience if you're going to be in Northern Utah anyways.