Utah Ranked 25th For Fun Nationally, But Nearly Last For Nightlife

Apparently, Utah Is Only Half Fun.

Utah has a lot of things going for it. We have five national parks, spectacular mountains, world-class skiing, red-rock country, hiking, fishing, boating, mountain biking and enough outdoor recreation to keep a person occupied for several lifetimes.

And yet, according to a WalletHub study, Utah is only the 25th most fun state in America.

a yellow kayak on a lake

No. 25.

Right smack in the middle.

Apparently, we are neither particularly fun nor particularly un-fun. We are the beige minivan of recreational states.

Utah's Shortcoming Is Nightlife

The WalletHub study looks at two broad categories: Entertainment and Recreation, and Nightlife. Utah does reasonably well in the first category, ranking 20th nationally. But then things get interesting — or perhaps less interesting — when it comes to nightlife.

a group of people standing around in a room

Utah ranks 48th in the country for nightlife.

Only two states apparently have less fun after the sun goes down. (Connecticut and Delaware,what's going on with you guys?)

This shouldn't come as a complete surprise. Utah has long had a reputation for being a place where the evening entertainment options are somewhat limited. We have restaurants, theaters, concerts and other activities, but if your definition of a good time involves staying out until 2 a.m., Utah may not be your ideal destination.

a golf ball sitting on top of a green field

WalletHub's methodology also reveals some interesting shortcomings. Utah ranks 49th in golf courses and country clubs per capita and 46th in marinas per capita. Apparently, we're not doing particularly well at golf or hanging around boats, either.

But here's where I think WalletHub may have missed something.

Maybe Utah simply has a different definition of fun.

A river running through a narrow canyon filled with rocks

Try explaining to someone who has spent the day hiking Zion, mountain biking in the red rocks, fishing a high-elevation lake, skiing the Wasatch or watching the sun go down over southern Utah that Utah isn't fun.

They may look at you like you're crazy.

Then they may go home because they're tired.

And that's probably the difference.

man in black t-shirt climbing on gray rock

In some states, fun means nightlife, casinos, restaurants, amusement parks and finding out what time the last call is. In Utah, fun can mean getting up before sunrise, driving an hour down a dirt road and spending the day outside where there isn't a building, traffic light or cell tower in sight.

Read More: Utah Ranks 4th For Outdoor Fun

In other words, perhaps Utah isn't mediocre at fun. Perhaps we're just having the wrong kind of fun for WalletHub's spreadsheet.

No. 25 may not sound impressive.

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But if being mediocre at nightlife means going to bed early so you can get up and do something spectacular outside the next morning, I'm not sure Utah needs to apologize.