Homestead Crater Mineral Dome — Attraction in Midway

I am not someone who leaves poor reviews online in order to hurt any feelings, or to feel better about myself. I am leaving this review simply because I believe it is my civic duty to warn potential swimmers how utterly awful this place is. What was once surely a beautiful diamond in the rough of northern Utah, is now a moldy, drippy, icky tourist trap covered overhead with a cheap blue tarp and teaming with disappointed families. My friend and I paid for the snorkeling option upon arrival (you need to call ahead for reservations--questionable, as the spring was completely packed when we arrived for our allotted time slot). We figured snorkeling in an underground crater would be more worth the trip than the 13+ dollars charged simply to swim--but, alas. The unsanitzed and cloudy snorkeling gear we received could do little to better our experience as we, upon arriving at the side of the crater, were accosted by a mildly creepy and downright rude--deckhand? Lifeguard? No idea--and handed two damp, eerily darkened life jackets right as we were about to jump into the tiny pool. We stared at the man as he pushed the life jackets at us and repeatedly said, "No free diving. Life jackets for everyone." Yes, I did ask him if this meant we were not allowed to fully submerge our bodies in the NATURAL HOT SPRINGS THAT IS ADVERTISED AS BEING A NATIONALLY RENOWNED SWIMMING LOCATION and yes, he did laugh at me, and yes, he rolled his eyes, and yes, he told us if we didn't float with life jackets we could not get into the springs. So we did. We bobbed up and down like corks in the water, unable to snorkel or to swim, staring at each other amidst the din of screaming children for what could not have been forty minutes. So, there you have it. If you'd like to spend nearly twenty dollars to float belly-up in a tiny warm spring (no, you are NOT allowed to touch the walls): this is the...

The pool itself is cool by its nature and feel, but definitely not something to travel hours to go experience, as was the case for us unfortunately. It definitely does sound cool when you read about it and see pictures of it, and thats what got us to go. What you in fact get is paying an arm and a leg to make reservations that only give the illusion your family will have the place to yourself, and are instead jammed into a cramped, dingy, wet corridor with 10 other strangers and made to put on gross-feeling life jackets worn by who knows who before you, so you can float around in warm bath water for a while with a scuba diving/water rescue class taking up half the pool. One would think they would schedule a certain time for that, but no, and i worry our 5 year old was partially traumatized because we had to explain, no the guy isnt Really drowning, just pretending. You contemplate all this while looking up to the sky that is covered by a sad blue tarp, and how this place must make a killing.Then when times up, you have to go back through the dingy hallway to figure out how to get out of your sopping wet swimsuits with no room to change, and walk back out to your car or the hotel. This is in january, mind you. My poor wife wound up just going barefoot to the car to save herself the trouble in a wet swimsuit, as i mentioned we have a child with us, and theres nowhere to sit and change since youre competing with strangers for changing space. 2 stars instead of 1 just because like i said, a pool in a crater is cool in principle but...

I came here on a Groupon for the experience of swimming in this unique location. I was able to call ahead for the same day. I knew beforehand that in addition to the Groupon I would be charged tax, which was less than $2. I knew beforehand that provided life jackets were required given the water depth of 65 feet. I anticipated it would be more of a soak/float than a "swim." The water temp was 91F that day. Even with the provided, well-used snorkel gear, visibility is only about 25 feet due to the natural minerals in the groundwater and lack of lighting since it is inside a "crater." I think I picked a good day that didn't feel crowded. I was also the last time slot for the day before closing to public swim, which made for a nice peopleless photo. There was a scuba class that showed as everyone was informed our time was up. I only had to wait a few minutes for one of six changing booths. The attendant was an older man who was nice enough and answered my inquisitive questions. The Groupon stated 40 minute swim, but we were allowed just under 60 minutes, probably because it was the end of the day and not overcrowded. Afterward I went to the top of the dome opening to peek down inside the grate (new?) and got a nice vista of the...