Things to Do in Salt Lake City in October

Many area farmers markets continue through October selling pumpkins, apples, and cider—among other crafts and foods. The Downtown Farmers Market in Pioneer Park is open on Tuesdays through September and Saturdays into October, and its Arts & Craft Market has a different kind of local produce: artisan jewelry, ceramics, and metal and glass work. Before you go, be sure to check local listings for hours of operation and last-minute cancelations in the event of inclement weather.

Oktoberfest at Snowbird starts in mid-August in 2019 and takes place every weekend until late October. This annual series of events features music, dancing, traditional German cuisine, and a beer garden all at the Snowbird Resort. Here, you can enjoy a bratwurst and sauerkraut, apple strudel, and other German treats, and kids young and old can have fun with face painting, a caricature artist, inflatable rides, yo-yo demonstrations, clowns, music, and balloons.

The State Room is one of SLC's favorite small music venues, bringing together local and international talent for a reasonable price all year long. In 2019, the October schedule features such acts as Sinkane, Bleached, Ruston Kelly, Mike Doughty, Carbon Leaf, John McLaughlin, Black Pumas, Hiss Gold Messenger, Ronnie Baker Brooks, and Mason Jennings. You can check the full schedule for October's performances on the venue's website to see if your favorite is performing this year.

The Depot is another popular live music venue that's in the historic Union Pacific building at The Gateway. However, the Depot typically hosts more well-known artists than The State Room. In October of 2019, The Depot will host 9 shows, so you can catch one no matter when you visit this month. Check the schedule for your choices when you're in town; acts for 2019 include The Waterboys, Cold War Kids, Sabrina Claudio, Scotty Sire, Stiff Little Fingers, Sleater-Kinney, Gwar, Alejandro Aranda, and Jon Pardi.

Each year, The Professional Theatre at Utah University produces a series of Tony Award-winning theater in Cedar City for the annual Utah Shakespeare Festival with performances taking place from June 27 through October 12, 2019. This year, "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," "Hamlet," "Every Brilliant Thing," and "The Price" will all have performances in October, but "Macbeth," "The Book of Will," and "The Greenshow" will all wrap production in September. For a complete schedule of performances and to purchase tickets for a show, visit the official website for the Utah Shakespeare Festival before you plan your trip.

From Saturday, October 12 to Sunday, October 20, 2019, you have five chances to catch the Utah Opera's performance of Verdi's "La Traviata.". If you're an opera-lover, it might be worth planning your trip to Salt Lake City around these dates just to catch this bucket-list item. Starring Anya Matanovič and Rafael Moras, the performance will be sung in Italian with English supertitles. Kids five and older are welcome to the show, but no babies in arms will be admitted to the performances. 

In October of 2019, you will have two chances to catch a performance of the famous Utah Symphony at their home venue, Abravanel Hall at the Salt Lake County Center for the Arts. On October 26 and 27, you can catch this symphony's performance (7:30 p.m.) of Rachmaninoff's "Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini." They will also be performing with the Utah Opera in "La Traviata."

If you're a college football fan and love Pacific-12 action, the University of Utah Utes football team will be playing two home games in Salt Lake City this October. On Saturday, October 19, the Utes will take on the Arizona State Sun Devils and on Saturday, October 26 will face the California Golden Bears. The Utes play at the Rice-Eccles Stadium on the University of Utah campus in Salt Lake City.