A holiday Monday is the one day a year family home evening can be a whole day. School's out, work's out, and the Monday evening the Church keeps clear for families has the whole morning attached. This page plans those days: six trips from Utah Valley, each with Monday hours we checked on October 19, 2026, an estimated drive time, and a home evening lesson the place itself provides.
In 2027 the Monday holidays are Martin Luther King Jr. Day (January 18), Presidents' Day (February 15), Memorial Day (May 31) and Labor Day (September 6). Drive times are estimates from the OSRM routing service with no traffic, from central Provo unless noted. Holiday traffic will be worse.
For general day trips that aren't built around a Monday or a lesson, our day trips from Provo guide covers the range out to three hours.
How to hold home evening on the road
The pieces don't change. The Church's General Handbook lists gospel study, service, music, a family council and recreation as things home evening may include, and calls it "flexible according to members' circumstances." On a day trip:
- The opening song and prayer happen in the driveway.
- The lesson happens on the drive out, when everyone is fresh and buckled in. Read the place's story aloud.
- The activity is the destination.
- The closing prayer and treat happen on the way home, or at the kitchen table if it's late.
Trip 1: Salt Lake City's history block
Drive: about 54 minutes from Provo, 38 from Lehi. Best on: any holiday Monday.
What's open on Monday: Google's October 2026 listings showed the Church History Museum, 75 N. West Temple St., open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; the FamilySearch center at 35 N. West Temple St. 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Temple Square 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The 2027 factor: Visit Utah lists the Salt Lake Temple open house from April 5 to October 1, 2027, with reservations that opened September 1, 2026 and tickets released in batches. Memorial Day and Labor Day fall inside that window. If your family wants the open house on a holiday Monday, check the reservation calendar early. Our Salt Lake Temple open house guide tracks it, and the Temple Square visitors' center guide covers the new center.
The lesson: Family history. Spend the morning at the museum, then an hour at the FamilySearch center finding one ancestor, and tell that person's story on the drive home.
The logistics: Our Salt Lake City day trip guide has parking and FrontRunner options.
Trip 2: This Is the Place Heritage Park
Drive: about 62 minutes from Provo, 45 from Lehi. Best on: Memorial Day or Labor Day, for weather.
What's open on Monday: Google listed the park at 2601 Sunnyside Ave. S. in Salt Lake City open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
What's there: The park's website describes more than 450 acres of historic buildings, costumed interpreters and interactive exhibits, around the This Is The Place Monument, dedicated in 1947 to honor the peoples and cultures of Utah's founding. Check its hours and admission page; we couldn't confirm prices.
The lesson: Pioneer arrival. Read a pioneer journal entry about reaching the valley on the drive up, then walk the village. Pair it with Trip 1 only if your children are old enough for a long day.
Trip 3: Camp Floyd State Park, Fairfield
Drive: about 48 minutes from Provo, 31 from Lehi and 17 from Eagle Mountain. Best on: Presidents' Day, for the theme.
What's open on Monday: Utah State Parks lists the park open Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. It includes the Camp Floyd State Park Museum, about the Army's 1858 post and the site's history; the Stagecoach Inn; and the cemetery. The park's page links its current day-pass fee rather than printing it.
The lesson: Government, conflict and trust. Utah State Parks says the Army built the post in 1858 "to suppress a supposed Mormon rebellion," stayed about three years and left when it was recalled for the Civil War, and that the Pony Express was among the groups that met at Camp Floyd and Fairfield. That's a good Presidents' Day conversation for older children about rumors, fear and what happened next.
Add-on: The ghost towns of the Tintic mining district are farther southwest; our Eureka and Tintic guide covers them.
Trip 4: Heber, ending on the Monday Night Train
Drive: about 39 minutes from Provo, 34 from Orem. Best on: Martin Luther King Jr. Day or any Monday in the long-light months.
What runs on Monday: The Heber Valley Railroad's Monday Night Train leaves Heber City at 7 p.m. and returns at 8:30, a 90-minute ride along Deer Creek Reservoir with sing-alongs and an Old West gunfight show before boarding. Its booking page listed a family pass at $72 for up to six riders age 2 and older, $20 general admission and free rides for toddlers 1 and under, and showed themed Monday trains on Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents' Day in its 2026 season. In October, the railroad's Halloween Express also runs Monday evenings.
The day before the train: Our Heber Valley and Midway guide covers the rest of the valley. The Church's temple list shows the Heber Valley Utah Temple under construction.
The lesson: Taught on the train itself. The Monday Night Train is, in practice, a family home evening someone else runs; your part is the closing prayer on the drive home down Provo Canyon.
More in our Heber Valley Railroad guide.
Trip 5: Sanpete County's two temples
Drive: about 92 minutes from Provo to the Ephraim temple and 100 to Manti; from Payson, 76 and 84. Best on: Memorial Day or Labor Day.
What's there: The Church's temple list shows the Ephraim Utah Temple operating, with a dedication date of October 11, 2026, and the Manti Utah Temple operating, dedicated May 21, 1888. Google lists the Ephraim temple at 200 N. 400 E. in Ephraim and the Manti temple at 200 East 510 North in Manti. Manti's building was listed closed on Mondays; as in Utah Valley, the grounds are what you're visiting, and Visit Utah says all are welcome on temple grounds.
The lesson: Then and now. One temple was dedicated 138 years before the other. Ask the children what they'd build that would last that long.
Add-on: Our Sanpete festival circuit explains what's on in the county by season. Closer to home, our temple grounds FHE guide covers Utah Valley's six.
Trip 6: Fillmore and Cove Fort
Drive: about 1 hour 46 minutes from Provo to Fillmore, and 2 hours 17 minutes to Cove Fort; from Payson, 89 and 121 minutes. Best on: Memorial Day, with the long daylight. It's the longest trip here, so start early.
What's open on Monday:
- Territorial Statehouse State Park, Fillmore. Open Monday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., per Utah State Parks. Utah's oldest existing government building, intended as the territorial capitol; only the south wing was finished, and the Territorial Legislature held its only full session there in December 1855. The grounds include three restored pioneer cabins, an 1867 stone schoolhouse and a rose garden.
- Historic Cove Fort. A Church historic site halfway between Beaver and Fillmore, open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday noon to 6 p.m., per the Church's site page. Tours tell the story of the families who lived there and their efforts to serve travelers.
The lesson: Hospitality to strangers. Cove Fort existed to shelter people passing through. On the drive home, each person names one stranger they could help this month.
Trips that depend on the season
The Alpine Loop and Cascade Springs. A summer and fall holiday-Monday drive; the loop is a seasonal road. See our Alpine Loop guide and Cascade Springs guide.
The Nebo Loop. A summer drive out of Payson, with Grotto Falls along the way. Our Nebo Loop guide explains why there's no fixed opening date.
Before you go
Check the hours that morning. Holiday Mondays are exactly when places change their hours, and the state parks list their holiday closures as Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day, not the Monday holidays. Every hour on this page was checked October 19, 2026.
Watch Utah Valley's own temple closures if you planned a stop on the way. The Provo City Center Temple building is closed May 31 to July 5, 2027, per its Church page, which covers Memorial Day.
Pack the treat. On a long drive home, a treat bought before you leave is the one that gets eaten during the closing song. Our FHE treats guide has Monday hours for the shops near home.
Related Guides
- Family Home Evening in Utah Valley: 52 Ideas for the Year
- Best Day Trips from Provo
- FHE With Teenagers
- Family History Centers in Utah Valley
- The Monday Problem: What Is Open on FHE Night
Frequently Asked Questions
What Monday holidays are good for a family home evening day trip in 2027?
Is the Church History Museum open on Mondays?
Is Camp Floyd State Park open on Monday?
What is the Heber Valley Railroad's Monday Night Train?
Is Cove Fort open on Mondays?
When is the Salt Lake Temple open house?
Is the new Ephraim temple open?
How do you hold family home evening on a road trip?
Sources
The facts in this guide were checked against these sources. Hours, fees and rules change, so confirm anything time-sensitive with the source before you go. How we make Provo.com.
- 2027 Salt Lake Temple Open House, Visit Utah. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Camp Floyd State Park, Utah State Parks. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Mormon Heritage, Visit Utah. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Territorial Statehouse State Park, Utah State Parks. Checked October 19, 2026.
- General Handbook 2.2.4: Home Evening and Other Activities, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Checked October 19, 2026.
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Temple List, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Cove Fort historic site, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Provo City Center Temple (temple details and closures), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Checked October 19, 2026.
- This Is The Place Heritage Park home page, This Is The Place Heritage Park. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Monday Night Train, Heber Valley Railroad. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Heber Valley Railroad home page, Heber Valley Railroad. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Google Places listings (hours, addresses), checked Oct 19, 2026, Google. Checked October 19, 2026.
- OSRM routing service (drive-time estimates), Project OSRM. Checked October 19, 2026.
