Pioneer Park

I love the farmer's market at Pioneer Park! They have the best Gluten Free bread kiosk, and the art is amazing! The view of the city from the park is nice too

Very disappointing experience at this park. During the farmers market, my son’s friend found a used needle, and the situation was poorly managed by park staff. On top of that, there are many homeless individuals openly using drugs in the area. Unfortunately, it does not feel safe or appropriate for children.

No restrooms. Booo...I did notice a cookout etc...afte some research I was informed that on the weekends many of SLC citizens are giving away food and clothes at this pioneer park to the homeless. Where these people urinate and #2 is still a real problem.

I did not feel safe here as a 6', 200 lb. man...Thought the other posts were exaggerating but if anything, they are being generous. I could have lived with the drug deal going on in front of me for the sake of having a nearby place to run my dogs while visiting beautiful SLC but the beer cans and garbage (including human food sprayed all over the ground inside the dog park) was the last straw...My plan now is to drive the dogs to one of the many beautiful and safe other dog parks downtown

This was such a special place. This was the finish line for my 196th marathon! It was a public holiday so as I finished the marathon, I ran with the parade into the finish line. Everybody was so friendly and nice. It was that amazing, amazing place!

Went in for the Saturday Farmer's Market. It is a beautiful park and a great place to walk anytime. There's plenty of trees for dappled shade every few steps. All in all, a good place to walk

It’s alright you can tell the state is really trying to clean up the streets and make people feel safe but still gives off a very sketchy vibe if you visit later in the day

We love bringing the kids to this farmers market. It's a fun place to walk around and shop. I can't speak to the park itself as we only come for farmers market.

Not from here and was going to take my daughter to the park. Yikes! Stay far away... it's saturated with homeless people everywhere. Not safe or clean.

This is the perfect place to go for hot girl walks downtown. Lots of space and shade for picnics as well.

Can't speak for this park apart from the one Saturday I happened across the market. I was impressed with the variety of vendors and nice atmosphere. Even enjoyed a freshly made limeade in the sun :)

Man, this park has really been on a roller coaster ride in the last decade. On the one hand, it did get that facelift a while back that helped spruce it up. They host the farmers market here. Then, there used to be a big ol' concert series here that saw some amazing acts come in for free, then for a modest fee. But then there was also the homelessness problem. And now with the new resource centers being spread out more, the park may not be such a gathering place for some of the more challenging issues, but it does continue to have a lot of problems. Speaking of gathering places, do you remember Occupy Wall Street? The Utah version took place here with people camping out. It was hard to say who was here because of a moral stand and who just didn't have a place to stay, but politics aside, it was not the finest moment for our dear park. I guess I'm still a big fan and have a soft place for it in my heart. The farmers market is one of my favorite things ever. The businesses that border the park (looking at you Caputo's, Ladybird, Aquarius, Bruges) are all some of my faves. So even though they're not the park, they're part of the experience. What's the future of this roller coaster ride? I dunno. The relocation of services away from Rio Grande will surely help. It won't solve things, but it will help. For now, I'd say it's a good daytime park, a great market park, and a nice patch of green to have in the city.

Great place to get some exercise, or take your dog. Be aware that homeless people may start to collect there in the late afternoon, so not always family friendly.

I use to hear stories about this park and not good ones either. However, I am becoming more fond of this park because so many events take place here. From the Farmers' Market to the Twilight Concert Series, this place is in a convenient location and is a good place to hold these events. So, the sketchy stories I have heard seems to be a thing of the past. It's becoming more lively and I don't have reservations about spending time here. Anyways, there are a lot of trees and plenty of empty, flat space. Although I find it a pretty plain park, it's nice to have amongst the skyscrapers. Recommendation(s): I usually come down here from The Gateway after grabbing a little snack from Ekamai or Bruges to the north of the park.

The best thing at this location is the Farmer's Market every Saturday in the summer. This is when it is safest and most fun. Other than that, it can be a pretty dodgey location. It is not the cleanest park nor the safest. There are a large group of people who live in the park.

Meh... not the best. It's a bit unsafe here to be honest if you're alone at night, or maybe even during the day if you're if you're not in an area that's very visible to others. I would never go here alone. However, when there have been larger events here, the safety is ramped up and it's a better atmosphere. The Farmers Market is good too. There are a lot of homeless who live here, sadly, and also drug addicts using.

The company group and I were walking home from dinner and looking for a place to perhaps walk a track, we saw the park but quickly made way to a different direction as we noticed the many groups of congregating folks. We weren't sure if it was homeless, drugs or just hipsters down to hang out, but in any case, we weren't looking for trouble and didn't want to be seen as easy marks so we continued on our way. What we did see were manicured lawns, a nice playground and a vast area to relax in.

I would say the best part about Pioneer Park is the farmers market in the Summer. If you haven't been, you must check it out. It is apparently one of the top five in the nation and that is not hard to believe given all the vendors. I usually always drop at least $40 if I stroll by on a Saturday morning. Aside from events, there is plenty of parking around the Park as well. Unfortunately, the park does attract quite a few homeless people since it is pretty close to the shelter. For the most part, they won't bother you but there are definitely those looking to get their next drug fix.

I remember when I was a kid, Pioneer Park had the reputation as the scary park. As in, "We'll go to a park kids, but not THAT park." Yeah, it's a totally different park these days. Now I associate Pioneer Park with cool events because I only seem to come here when something rad is going on. I'm a big fan of the Twilight Concert Series in particular. And the Farmers Market can be fun. All in all, it's a great sized park located near some pretty cool places downtown.

Boy, did I ever pick a strange day to go to Pioneer Park to walk my dog for the first time. To tell you the truth, I had schooled myself quite a bit on SLC before I moved here from India three-weeks ago. I had heard about the drugs, I had heard about the "homeless problem" - I'm no stranger to seeing poverty (India, South Central Los Angeles) - but I did not expect to see ONE THOUSAND of them. Yes, I said 1,000!! Evidently today was the day (I do NOT know how often this is done) that the local Rescue Mission was out in force to give away free cell-phones, free clothing (piled-up in a giant mosh-pit of human and cotton chaos!) and free Subway sandwiches! I saw that there was fencing surrounding what looks like circus big-top area with trapeze swings and towers and wires. Obviously someone is setting up equipment for a circus of some sort. But the real circus was in the south-west corner of the park!! The Mission had seen to it that there were lots of chairs and tables set up, but many people seemed to just take their sandwich and sit on the grass. The park actually looks nice, grass, paths and playground equipment for the kids... but unless you and your kids are members of the "great unwashed" community also....I wouldn't bring kids to Pioneer Park. I probably would have given it a third star, because it really COULD be a nice park!! But just before I left...I saw a homeless guy. Taking a leak. Nothing shocking about that. But he was peeing ON the outside wall of a plastic portable outhouse!! Dude!! I didn't know what to say so I just walked on by!

We have a meeting at the nearby Sheraton and decided to walk around town (note that not much is open on a Sunday). So, after a gelato run, we decided to check out Pioneer Park. We were a block out and saw that someone was laying on the grassy ground about every 20 ft from one another. We decided that's good enough view of the park. So, no, not good for your morning jog.

Pioneer Park is a great park to visit....during the summer on Saturdays when the Farmers Market is taking place. If you attempt to stop by another time, from my personal experience, I would caution you to watch the ground for sharp objects and keep your child from playing with used condoms. Besides that, it's mostly a beautiful park.

Visited area April 2018 and the park looks nice with a nice play area for kids but I would not bring my family to this park as it was inundated with homeless people sleeping everywhere. They were smoking and talking inappropriately while hanging out at the play ground area. I have been to other city parks and no issues with homeless people needing to sleep in the park, but when talking with lewd language, smoking and doing illegal drugs, not a fan of having to expose my children to this.

This park is HUGE! They have a farmers market here every Saturday from 9-2pm// it gets packed yet there is still so much of the park left over. They have craft and artisan vendors and then food and produce and they have one of the biggest selections I have seen from any farmers market I've been to before, which says something because I've been to A LOT! Dogs are welcome.... W O O F ! Plenty to do in the area-- the gateway is walking distance and then this park is right downtown so regardless you are close to so many amazing things. I haven't been to all of the parks in salt lake area yet so I can't speak on behalf of all of them, but I do enjoy this one very much.

This is a great "neighbor hood park near the convention center. I was here for a brief walk during a convention. It is a pretty basic park although it was fairly clean with a nice fenced area for walking dogs. They also had a nice portable stage setup for concerts I would imagine. A nice change of place kinda place...Hey I rhymed!

Well, that was a surprise to say the least. Don't get me wrong , a $5 ticket for a live Diplo concert was not a bad idea by any means , but this park is sketchy to say the least and I was raised in South LA. Young and old homeless , non stop " hey man..," gets a bit bothersome after about 7 times. And yes, I did give some coins to these people. In a place called Zion, this park could use some up keep and people could use some rehab. The downtown is very clean, but the more I visit the more the substance in the book becomes the truth. The pollutiin in SLC is life threatening , Google winter inversion. And while the city council wants DTSLC pretty as a new penny, the fact is people are not all alike and others outside the box should feel welcome. I'll be back for business, but if the smog gets worse I'll pass. Concert was fun , I finally saw many people outside the SLC box present and they were colorful fun.

Historic Pioneer Park is a nice enough park located in downtown Salt Lake City. With trees, grass, a small dog park, and restrooms the park offers a green and open space for locals to enjoy. During the late summer and fall months it is home to the Downtown Farmer's Market on Saturdays. The market is great with lots of local produce, flowers, breads, arts and crafts, and much more. Unfortunately Pioneer Park doesn't have much for the kids since it is lacking a playground, there is a also not a lake, so no fishes or ducks. But regardless of its shortcomings Pioneer Park is nice and has a lot to offer.

In terms of the park itself, it's more of a 2-3 stars, but because of all of the events that go on here, and how much the reputation of the park has turned around, I can't help but bump up the rating a bit. Between the Downtown Farmers Market, the Pioneer Park Picture Shows, the Twilight Concert Series, and so many other events that go on throughout here during the year, this really is the place to be. Salt Lake has done a great job with turning this park into a weekend destination spot. It's a wonderful place to take a date, friends, and food enthusiasts during the summertime. During other times of the year, all of the events kind of die down, mainly because it's a flat park and there isn't anything that distinguishes it too much from other parks (i.e., there aren't any ponds, fountains, hills, creeks, ducks, running trails, etc). But definitely if you're in the area during the summer, this place is not to be missed.

Pioneer Park is close to the main attractions in downtown Salt Lake and it could be a really really nice park. Beautifully maintained and it is supposed to be great for jogging and walking a dog....Unfortunately there are so many homeless people hanging around and sleeping so I felt uncomfortable jogging by myself in an early morning.

I love it for events like the farmer's market, the twilight concert series, and other things that go on. It scares the crap out of me any other time, with all the sketchy peeps chillin' there. but it's a nice park. pretty big too.

From a tourist perspective, just keep walking. There is too much sketchiness to feel comfortable in this area. There are much better alternatives if you are interested in exploring what SLC has to offer.

Dirty. Trash everywhere. Vagrants harassing you for money. People sleeping in middle of the sidewalk and chastising you for walking near them. Tried using the dog park but several people set up camp in the entry area and refused to let us in. Others were fist fighting near the bathrooms. Never have I seen such a sorry excuse for a public park.

Attended one Twilight Concert Series gig here (Explosions In The Sky/No Age in 2011) and found the volunteers to be very pleasant, the mayor to be extremely douchy, and the concert-goers to be really obnoxious, perhaps the latter because it is free and A LOT of people go with no intentions of listening to the artists or possessing a single iota of concert etiquette. Free water from coolers is a superb idea, and the lax entrance (I expected a search) was really nice as well. Overall it is a great idea, but honestly, it could be improved if they charged a nominal fee for entrance to keep out the more moronic randies from ruining every show. I would go again if it was worth the drive up, but I will stay very close to the barrier so that I do not have to deal with the people, which is really sad considering that many shows actually contain fellow concert-goers that enhance the experience instead of diminishing it greatly. You've been warned. - E

This place is the best spot to score crack in SLC! You can do drugs with your friends and pee anywhere you want. Lots of cops around watching and encouraging your bad behavior, but they won't bother you!! Bring beer and sleeping bag to pass out with friends!

Pretty, well maintained park but I did not want to stay long. I wanted to bring my dogs to the dog park on a Thursday afternoon after a long drive in from Boise.There were no other dogs in the off leash area but plenty of bums around to heckle them.

Basic park. Cool to go for Saturday farmers market and Music in the Park. Near homeless shelter so large transient population very noticeable.

Pioneer Park is a horrible Park to walk around. Too many homeless people. They approaching tourists and talking trash. They are homeless and they are disrespectful. I'm here on a vacation for a week. I thought California is bad enough, but Pioneer Park is the worst! I hope they will clean up the homeless in this park to make the park clean and safe the kids and tourists to walk around to enjoy the park!

Not sure quite what to do with this park, other than avoid it. Parking is always a pain and I'm not in need of being a participant in any shady drug deals nor am I in need of being shaken down for whatever loose money I may have on my person (I can go to pretty much any freeway off-ramp in the city if I'm ever in need there). The grounds here have really amazing potential and I like how hard the people are trying to bring some positivity to it, but frankly, it seems so much like they're standing there poking fingers into the holes in the dike, while behind someone keeps shooting at it with a Vulcan cannon. As long as this place and the attendant places around it that trigger much of the bad parts of this park continue to occupy the same space, this problem will persist, but in my view, it has gotten and continues to get steadily worse.

At first glance, it's a very lush, well taken care of park, with lots of folks sun bathing. Closer look shows that the folks sun bathing, are actually homeless people. I'm guessing this is THE spot for the homeless, probably because it is a nice park. I don't have a problem with the people, in fact they haven't "bothered" me once for money, they just go about their business and do their thing. I never felt "threatened" by them, even walked my little girl around in the stroller, so I guess that speaks volumes on them. Not saying I would jaunt around this place in the dead of night, but during the day, it's not too bad.

Holly Crap, where are all these people on bikes going. 10 at time, blocking traffic. Bikes, bikes and more bikes. When did Salt Lake go bike crazy? Jesus, they're all headed over to Pioneer park. WTF is a bike valet. Well it looks like a big party of some sort. Well, at least they ran off most the bums.

Small, clean , and with plenty of trees for shade. We decided to take a road trip nap break here. There were some families... But there were also some vagrants huddled together. Someone walked past asking for change and the nearest shelter, while another passerby look like a hipster. So yay for diversity.

Interesting idea but not a very nice area. There are lots of places that need parks and the area could use one but it being where it is and where other places are makes this place a common sore spot.

It truly disappoints me to have to give Pioneer Park a rating of 2 stars. It is a beautiful park, in a very nice location, and has wonderful potential. However, like several other places in the downtown area of Salt Lake City, it has fallen victim to the homeless population. I would only recommend bringing family and children to this park in the peak hours of daylight. Any other time, unless your family or children are in need of some drugs or watching homeless people fight or pee on things, there really is no other reason to be there. So, I guess the two stars that I give it are for the amazing way that they transformed a park in a matter of hours for the concert series. And for the concert series itself. So, until things improve in the future, which hopefully they will, I have to give just two stars.

STAY AWAY. This place is horrifying. I drove by and saw what looked like a beautiful, active park with a nice playground, so parked a block away and walked to the park with my 3 year old daughter. We walked into the park past a couple homeless people sleeping and headed toward the playground. I quickly realized that all the people who I had thought were out and about enjoying the park were homeless, drunk, selling drugs or generally up to no good - EVERYONE in the park, about 30 or so people! I picked up my daughter and hurriedly rushed away before shouting started and two police cars drove directly into the park. It was an awful, unexpected experience after the pleasant people and clean city that we had experienced all weekend. I would never have yelped a park before, but I sure will in the future, especially before going with my daughter.

I was in the park over the course of three days. The first night, my friends and I were stopped by five homeless people and saw some of them sitting in circles. The next day, as I was walking through the park around noon, I saw a few people playing basketball. As I got closer, one of the people took a fallen down sign and began beating the other guy. The cops came and settled it, but I would not recommend walking through that park.