Thanksgiving Point453

Thanksgiving Point is home to the Thanksgiving Point Gardens, the Children's Discovery Garden, Farm Country, the Museum of Ancient Life, the Emporium, and restaurants. All venues are family-oriented, encouraging togetherness, exploration, and discovery.

Thanksgiving Point Gardens' 15 themed gardens, stately lawns, and waterfalls cover about 55 acres. Annual passes for the gardens are available, or folks can just pay a daily rate; see the website for pricing. The gardens are open during the spring and summer, Mon-Sat 10am-6pm.

At the Children's Discovery Garden, young explorers learn about Utah's natural environment as they investigate the Bear Cave, Mineral Mound, and Eco Pond. Kids also love the hedgerow mazes, the watery Noah's Ark, and the whimsical Bug Stage. The Children's Discovery Garden has a separate admission price from the rest of the Thanksgiving Point Gardens; see the website for details.

The Museum of Ancient Life takes visitors back to a time when dinosaurs ruled the Earth. The museum offers a variety of skeletal displays and hands-on exhibits to encourage people to explore, investigate, and get their hands dirty while learning about animals from the past. The museum also features a Mammoth Screen-3D Theater.

Space junkies should be sure to reserve a mission at iWorlds Space Simulations, where they can go on simulated space missions around the galaxy. Families with kids ages eight and up can choose a one- or two-hour mission, or check out the venue's summer camps. Date nights, birthday parties, school field trips, and group missions can also be arranged.

Farm Country (located past the gardens and behind the Museum of Ancient Life) is a great place to get a close-up look at a variety of farm animals, including large Belgium work horses, cows, goats, sheep, ducks, emus, chickens, hatching eggs, and more. It is a real working farm, and opportunities to pet, feed, and even ride some of the animals are available.

The Village consists of the distinctive water towers, the Emporium, the Deli, the Soda Fountain, and the Harvest Restaurant. The Emporium is a collection of quaint little shops that are fun to browse through around the holidays, or any time of the year.

The Show Barn is a home for theater and concert entertainment. With a large stage and room for up to 1,000 guests, this facility allows for activities such as holiday parties, dinner theatre, private functions, catered parties, and concerts year-round. The Box Office hours are Mon-Sat 10am-6pm.

Electric Park is a versatile and spacious park which can host corporate retreats, county fairs, carnivals, fairs, and family reunions throughout the year. There are 20 acres of gated open space in Electric Park and the Pavilion can seat approximately 800 people.

The Harvest Restaurant is open Monday through Saturday 11am-3pm for lunch and 5pm-9pm for dinner, with extended hours during the Christmas season. A special brunch is offered around Mothers Day and Easter. Call 801.768.4990 for reservations.

Birthday Parties may be held at several of the venues within Thanksgiving Point. For further information, or to reserve a date, call 801.768.4953 or 801.768.7430.

Youth classes are offered at the various venues in Thanksgiving Point year round. Topics vary from dinosaurs, to gardening, to farming, and even cooking. Check the website for details.

Memberships are available to individual venues on the Thanksgiving Point property, or a special membership, the Property Membership, can be purchased allowing admission to all of the venues.

If you don't want a membership, but you'd like to visit all of the venues, consider purchasing the Discovery Passport allowing a single admission to the museum, the theater, the gardens, and the farm. Check the website for pricing.

The Utah County Farmers Market is held at Thanksgiving Point each fall. It is Utah County's only Friday evening farmers market, and features dozens of vendors and growers displaying and selling their products. Live entertainment too. Check the website for the featured produce each week. The market is held on Fridays from 3pm to 8pm, early August through early October.

Check the Thanksgiving Point website for scheduled events.