Things to do in Rock Springs
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Rock Springs
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best months: warm days, dry desert roads, active Gorge water and few crowds, to early October.
Peak events, swimming and boating, with heat, afternoon wind and thunderstorms, so start desert days at dawn.
Cold, dark and very windy winter with I-80 closure risk, free empty museums and the cheapest hotel rates.
Worst window: late March to April mud and wind season, with the least reliable dirt roads and few events.
What's on
- International Day Usually the second Saturday of July
Free full day of food, music and dance from 56 nationalities in Bunning Park.
- Wyoming's Big Show Usually late July to early August
The Sweetwater County Fair at the Events Complex, with midway, concerts and livestock in one gate ticket.
- Flaming Gorge Days June
Green River festival with parade and music, the river town weekend of the summer.
- Red Desert Roundup Rodeo late July
Rodeo at the Sweetwater Events Complex in fair week season.
- River Festival August
Green River festival centred on Expedition Island, with races and food on the river.
- Main Street Market Thursdays July to September, 4pm to 7pm
Weekly evening market on South Main Street with local produce, food and craft vendors, free to enter.
Best things to do in Rock Springs
Rock Springs Historical Museum
The 1894 sandstone City Hall explains the whole town, from coal mining and 56 nationalities to the old jail cells.
Natural History Museum - Western Wyoming Community College
Five life size Wyoming dinosaurs in a working college, free to see and ideal for families on a long I-80 drive.
White Mountain Petroglyphs
Hundreds of ancient figures on a 300 foot sandstone cliff, reached by a desert dirt road and a short uphill walk.
Community Fine Arts Center
A free gallery of American and regional art attached to the library, two blocks from the Historical Museum.
Broadway Theater
A restored 1948 theatre in the historic district hosting live music, comedy and community shows for a local crowd.
Bunning Park
The leafy downtown park for picnics, concerts and holiday lights, anchoring a walk of the historic district.
Sweetwater Events Complex
The year round fairgrounds whose Big Show county fair in late July is the biggest week in Rock Springs.
Rock Springs Wild Horse Holding Facility
A BLM overlook open around the clock where you can watch gathered wild horses at close range for free.
Where to stay in Rock Springs
Elk Street and Dewar Drive corridor
practical first base, late arrivals
Most hotels, fuel and supermarkets cluster here, safe and well lit and five minutes by car from town.
Downtown Rock Springs
character and walking to sights
On foot to the museum, theatre and Broadway burgers, with simpler independent motels that vary in quality.
White Mountain and north side
quiet mornings and desert exits
Near the golf course and Eve's, and fastest out to the horses, petroglyphs and dunes.
Green River
river town alternative base
Smaller and prettier, on the river and closer to Wilkins Peak, Expedition Island and the west Gorge.
Think twice about
- Cheapest extended stay motels on Elk Street and near the rail yards
Worst cleanliness and noise reviews in town, with car park loitering late at night. Stay at a named, strongly reviewed property instead.
Best restaurants in Rock Springs
Eve's
The best dinner in town, seasonal American cooking at the golf course, plus a beloved Sunday brunch.
Coyote Creek Steakhouse & Saloon
The town steakhouse for ribeyes, prime rib and crab cakes in a saloon styled dining room.
Bonsai
Sushi and Chinese plates at the sushi bar, the top rated restaurant in Rock Springs for good reason.
Sapporo Japanese Steak House
Hibachi tables where the cooking is the show, the most entertaining group dinner in town.
Santa Fe Southwest Grill
Fish tacos, Navajo tacos and big margaritas in the most reviewed Mexican room in town.
Fiesta Guadalajara
A family run Mexican room praised for authentic, consistent cooking and unhurried service.
Chill Grill
A classic diner for burgers and patty melts at cheap prices, fed and back on the road in 40 minutes.
Broadway Burger Station
A 1950s diner on Broadway for the King burger, an elk burger and a butterscotch shake before a show.
Outdoor things to do in Rock Springs
Flaming Gorge Tour
A guided full day loop of the Flaming Gorge byway, or the same 160 mile scenic drive done on your own.
Flaming Gorge Reservoir
A deep red rock reservoir famous for trophy lake trout, kokanee and pontoon days from its Wyoming marinas.
Killpecker Sand Dunes
A vast active dune field for sandboarding, hiking and OHV play, reached by a long off grid dirt road.
Boars Tusk
A 400 foot volcanic plug rising alone from the Red Desert floor, circled by a rough scenic dirt drive.
Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Tour
A 24 mile gravel loop over White Mountain for dawn and dusk sightings of wild horse bands and pronghorn.
Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge
A green river corridor of birds and big trout, fished from the bank or by guided drift boat in season.
White Mountain Golf Course
A welcoming public 27 holes in high desert country, best played early before the afternoon wind builds.
Wilkins Peak
Purpose built desert singletrack above Green River, rated by locals as the best mountain biking in Wyoming.
Best hotels in Rock Springs
Best Western Outlaw Inn
The town flagship hotel with an indoor pool and atrium, the most full service stay in Rock Springs.
Homewood Suites by Hilton Rock Springs
The highest rated stay in town, all suites with kitchens that suit multi night desert and fishing bases.
Hampton Inn Rock Springs
The reliable mid range default with breakfast included and consistently strong cleanliness scores.
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Rock Springs Green River
A modern mid range suite option on the hotel corridor, a close alternative to the Hampton on price.
My Place Hotel-Rock Springs, WY
A modern budget extended stay where every room has a kitchen, ideal for a self catering desert base.
Cody Motel
A small downtown motel praised for cleanliness and an owner who walks guests to inspect their room.
Rock Springs / Green River KOA Journey
The practical in town RV and camping base for a one night I-80 stop or a Flaming Gorge trip.
Is Rock Springs expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $70 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $140 a person |
| Splurge | $260 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Broadway Theater: a few days ahead
- Sweetwater Events Complex: a few days ahead
- Flaming Gorge Tour: a few days ahead
- Flaming Gorge Reservoir: weeks ahead
- Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge: weeks ahead
- White Mountain Golf Course: a few days ahead
- Eve's: a few days ahead
- Coyote Creek Steakhouse & Saloon: a few days ahead
- Book hotels early for Big Show week, rodeo and International Day, and in energy project season.
- Reserve Eve's, the Flaming Gorge Bus Tour, guided fishing and summer weekend boat rentals ahead.
Is Rock Springs safe?
- No area has severe street homelessness here, but downtown is very quiet and thinly lit after 9pm.
- Main risks are environmental: wind, winter closures, desert heat, soft sand and no cell signal.
- Emergency number is 911 and the hospital is Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County.
Rock Springs travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Spending the whole night on the I-80 chain strip and concluding Rock Springs has nothing.
- Attempting the dunes or Boars Tusk in a low two wheel drive rental on a wet day.
- Visiting the petroglyphs at midday in summer when harsh light flattens the carvings.
Getting around Rock Springs: public transport and more
- You need a car for everything beyond a one hour downtown walk.
- Fuel up in town, keep the tank above half on desert days and download offline maps before dirt roads.
- Check Wyoming 511 before any winter I-80 leg, as this windy stretch closes for blizzards.
Who Rock Springs suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Rock Springs your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App Store