How to Spend a Weekend in Butte, Montana.

The majority of people outside of the US have never heard of Butte, and within the US it has a pretty poor reputation. Whenever I told Americans I was going to Butte they would literally say “Oh, I’m so sorry…” However, I’d been wanting to visit for the past decade due to my family connections to this tiny town, and while I was nervous to visit after all of those comments, I have to say, it was actually my favourite place on my epic Seattle/SLC/Butte/Bozeman/Boise trip back in September!

Butte is a ridiculously special place, and I’ve been SO excited to tell you all about it and why you all need to go as well!

It has a feel and a vibe I’ve never experienced anywhere else in the US, and as soon as I arrived I felt as though I’d gone back in time to a different era. The town itself is just beautiful, especially the main uptown area, with the original buildings from the early 1900s still standing. The people there are also ridiculously friendly, and at no point did I ever feel unsafe as a woman travelling in Butte alone.

Travelling into Butte

I flew into Butte from Salt Lake City. I found flights direct to Butte super tricky, and couldn’t fly direct from Seattle, so had to stop over in SLC. I decided to stay overnight to actually see Salt Lake City itself, which ended up being a great decision.

The airline that flies into Butte is Delta, and main airports that fly direct to Butte are Salt Lake City and Denver, so take that into consideration when organizing your flights. I used my Virgin Atlantic airmiles to book my flight from Salt Lake to Butte, and I think it only cost me around 7,000 airmiles which was great!

For a solid weekend in Butte, I’d fly in on a Friday evening and then head out Sunday afternoon/evening. It’s a great town but you really don’t need a huge amount of time there.

Arriving at Bert Mooney Airport

I loved flying into Bert Mooney airport. It’s a beautiful brand new airport, and honestly walking in to all natural wood everywhere and country music blaring from the speakers made me so happy haha.

My absolute top tip when travelling into Butte is to hire a car directly from the airport when you arrive. Ubers are few and far between in Butte as there are only a handful of drivers, and there may either be none at all (meaning you have no way of getting to your destination), or you have to wait 10+ minutes. The drivers are all amazing though!! I had Anna and Tanya a couple of times and both ladies were super friendly and kind.

Car Hire vs Ubers in Butte

Not only can it be tricky getting an Uber from the airport, but getting around Butte can also be tricky. My first morning in Butte I was going to get an Uber over to the Museum of Mining from my hotel, but there were literally none available, so I ended up walking the 40-minute journey instead.

I think you just need to decide how often you’ll need a car. Butte is very hilly and is also quite a high altitude (5,538 ft/1,688 m above sea level), so for me I really struggled with my asthma with walking everywhere, which I wasn’t expecting.

When I return to Butte I’m definitely going to hire a car as soon as I land in Butte! I hired one on my last day so I could drive over to Anaconda and then on to Bozeman, because car hire was so expensive so this just reduced the cost to do it that way.

Where to Stay: The Finlen Hotel

I knew I wanted to stay in the Finlen Hotel ever since I first discovered my family connection to Butte. If you’re a long-time reader here, you may remember how over a decade ago my grandma found a copper letter in my late grandfather’s drawer – like, it was literally an entire sheet of copper that my great-grandad’s brother had written on.

On the letter was an embossed message that said, ‘From the Richest Hill in Earth’. It was also wrapped in headed letter paper from the Finlen Hotel in Butte, as it turned out my great uncle actually stayed at the hotel when he visited Butte in the 1930s. Obviously the first thing I did was see if the hotel was still standing, and not only was it still standing, but it was still operating as the Finlen Hotel!

I’m not going to lie, it’s not the most luxurious hotel in the world, but it’s perfect for a short stay and is super charming. The location is incredible as it’s right in the heart of uptown and super easy to walk most places. I would definitely recommend staying in the historic rooms though and I’m really glad I specifically chose a historic room, because if you don’t specifically book a historic room, you’ll be put in the Motel6 that’s attached to the hotel.

I’ll do a full hotel review of the hotel soon, but I actually had a little happy cry when I arrived at the hotel. As well as my great-grandad’s brother staying at the hotel in the 1930s, their sister also had her wedding breakfast at the hotel. As I entered the hotel lobby, a wedding reception was happening, and I just thought it was the most perfect welcome ever. Also, the bathrooms have the original terrazzo floors and green tiled showers and I was in love!!

Things to Do & Where to Eat in Butte

The moment I really fell in love with Butte was when I walked out of the hotel and over to Pekin Noodle Parlor, the oldest restaurant in Butte, and the oldest continuously operating Chinese restaurant in the United States! Walking down the quiet streets as the sun was setting was so beautiful, the colours and glow from the setting sun on the buildings with the mountains behind in the distance was just absolutely breathtaking. For the first time, I finally understood why my great-grandfather’s siblings never returned home to London after they moved there.

Dinner at Pekin Noodle Parlor

The Pekin Noodle Parlor is a Chinese-American landmark that’s been open since 1916! I thought it was crazy that my family potentially ate at the same restaurant I was eating at. The building is actually a former brothel and opium den, and legend has it there are multiple-levels under the building that operated as casinos and opium rooms, with tunnels leading directly from the parlor to the old red light district.

I entered and walked up the steep staircase to the second floor where the restaurant is located. The door opens into a small hallway with salmon-orange coloured partitions separating 17 eating rooms and booths on either side with privacy curtains for each room. My jaw dropped when I saw them – I’ve never seen anything like it before, and I found out that the dining tables and chairs in each room date back to 1916!!

I moved out of the way as a server pushed a metal cart carrying food on it between the booths, and past the booths was a more traditional dining space with tables and chairs. It was packed with people! As I was by myself I didn’t want to be in a private room, so I sat up at the bar.

The staff were super friendly, and I got chatting to the people sitting next to me who were Butte locals. They were fascinated about why I was in Butte – apparently they don’t get a lot of British people in town haha.

I ordered the sweet and sour chicken, and honestly? It was incredible. 100% as good, if not better, than the sweet and sour chicken I’ve had at the Chinese restaurants in London’s Chinatown and at my fave, Gold Mine in Queensway. It was also ridiculously cheap, so after spending a couple of hours there chatting away to the locals, eating great food, and drinking one too many glasses of rum and coke, I left a hefty tip and headed back to the Finlen for an early night.

Day 1 in Butte

Breakfast at I Don’t Know Cafe

The next morning I headed to I Don’t Know Cafe for an early breakfast. It’s a cute little local cafe with a great menu and great food! I really recommend it. You just order up at the counter then find a table with your number and they’ll bring your food when it’s ready. It’s cheap and cheerful and you can’t really go wrong.

World Museum of Mining

The World Museum of Mining was one of my favourite things in Butte! I literally had the best time! It’s just such an incredible place and really fascinating. The Museum is a 40-minute walk/10-minute drive from uptown (and you pass through Montana Tech and walk past the Orediggers pitch on the way), and exists to preserve the legacy and mining history of Butte.

The World Museum of Mining is one of the few museums in the world located on an actual mine yard, the Orphan Girl Mine. With 50 exhibit buildings, countless artifacts, and 66 primary exhibits in the mine yard, walking the streets of the exhibit really does feel as though you’re stepping back to the Wild West era as it’s set-up as the town would have originally looked like.

I also chose to do the Underground Mine Tour, where you get to go 100ft down into the old Orphan Girl Mine. It’s an hour and a half tour and it’s super interesting! The tour only operates at certain times of the year and on certain days, so try and organize your trip for when it’s running.

We were all given miners’ hard hats and cap lamps, and had a short talk from our guide, Rick, before we went down into the mine itself. The cap lamps were the only lights underground, so it was kinda eerie and spooky, but super cool. Rick actually used to be a miner, so he had a crazy amount of experience and stories to share.

The museum is 100% worth the money, and you really can’t go to Butte without visiting the World Museum of Mining!

Lunch at M&M Cafe

After your tour you’re gonna be huuuungry! Head to M&M Cafe for some food. It’s a Butte classic, and although the original building sadly burned down a few years ago, they’ve since reopened in a different space. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the M&M first opened in 1890, operating 24-7 for well over a hundred years.

Copper King Mansion

After lunch stop by the Copper King Mansion. This is the old home of William Andrews Clark. Clark was an entrepreneur and later a United States senator, and made millions through various businesses. He was known as one of three “Copper Kings” of Butte, Montana, along with Marcus Daly and F. Augustus Heinze, and at one point he had an income that was recorded at about $17 million a month.

When he decided to build his Butte home, the cost of the Copper King Mansion at the time was estimated at about a half-million dollars, but represented just a half-day’s income for him. By 1900, Clark had amassed a personal fortune estimated at $50,000,000 and was considered one of the wealthiest men in the world. He was also the founder of Las Vegas, and Clark County is named after him!

You can tour the home at certain times of day, and the tour takes around an hour. The majority of the home is its original condition from 1888, so you’ll see frescoed ceilings, stained glass windows, hand combed plaster walls, and gas & electric chandeliers.

Butte Archives

I loved the Butte Archives, but it’s probably because I found loads of records of my family members in there. It was fascinating though trawling through all the old newspapers and seeing what sort of stories made the headlines back then, and it’s worth stopping by for half an hour or so just to have a look and see what you can find!

Dinner at Sparkys Garage

I really loved Sparkys Garage, the ribs were incredible and the interiors are SO cool! It feels very American and I had the best time there. The cocktails are also great.

Drinks at Maloney’s Bar

Moloney’s Bar is the Irish bar in Butte, and is a great place for an after-dinner drink. There are some proper characters in there, friendly staff, and cheap drinks. Sports is shown on the TVs and there’s a pool table as well.

Day 2 in Butte

Breakfast at Hummingbird Cafe

I had the most delicious breakfast at Hummingbird Cafe, and wished I was staying in Butte longer so I could go there again. It’s a really cute little cafe a short walk from the main uptown area of Butte, the staff were ridiculously nice (like everyone in Butte, really), and their french toast was to-die-for.

1923 TV Show Location Self-Guided Tour

Butte is probably most famous in recent times for being the filming location of the hit Paramount+ TV show, 1923. A lot of the fake fronts on the buildings are still in-place as they’re about to start filming Season 2, and it’s well worth doing a self-guided tour of the 1923 TV show locations! In the show the location is ‘Bozeman’, but they used Butte for filming because in the town literally feels as though you’ve stepped back to the 1920s.

Visit Evel Knievel’s Grave

Famous stunt performer Evel Knievel was born in Butte, Montana, and is buried there too. You can visit his and his son Robbie’s graves and pay your respects to them, at Mountain View Cemetery in Butte.

Lunch at Pork Chop John’s

You simply cannot visit Butte without grabbing lunch at Pork Chop John’s. It’s a Butte institution and their Pork Chop sandwich is legendary in Montana. I won’t lie, it doesn’t look particularly appetizing, but my goodness does it taste good!! I went to the original uptown location which is just a takeaway hole-in-the-wall, but there’s a proper dine-in restaurant on Harrison Ave in downtown Butte.

Visiting Anaconda from Butte

I really wanted to visit Anaconda while I was in Butte, as my great aunt used to live there. You can easily do it in a day trip or half day trip from Butte, as it’s only a 30-minute drive away. However, I decided to stay overnight there to make the most of it.

I stayed at the Forge Hotel, which is a brand new Best Western, and I didn’t actually realise it was a Best Western until I arrived. it has a huge car park, and a swimming pool and clean, modern rooms.

But the main reason I stayed there? The location! It’s right opposite the old Anaconda Smelter, and my room literally had a view of the smelter. It was magical waking up to the sunrise rising over the mountains and smelter.

I arrived last in the afternoon and headed into town to check-out Anaconda. It is the cutest town ever! I went to the Smelter City Brewing for a drink (highly recommend going there by the way), and then I wandered up to the Washoe Movie Theater to see Gran Turismo for just $5. The theater, built in 1931, is an Art Deco movie theater that’s in the National Register of Historic Places, and is absolutely stunning!! I got my $5 ticket and my buttered popcorn, and was blown away by the interiors.

All of the interiors were done by Hollywood theater designer Nat Smythe. The exterior doors are etched glass, and the use of copper is especially prevalent as Anaconda was a company town for the Anaconda Copper Mining Company. Every flat surface, including the domed ceiling, is a painted mural done by Colville Smythe, and the theater was also designed to have near perfect acoustics. And the best thing? There was an intermission! I was also super suprised to find so many original features, including parts of the toilets and the entrance area.

I came out of the cinema later that evening and as I was walking back to my car I passed a baby deer just sitting on the grass. I almost cried with joy, it was such a lovely moment.

The next morning I headed back to Butte, and then onto Livingston to visit my cousin, before arriving in Bozeman ahead of my flight to Boise in Idaho.

There isn’t a huge amount in Anaconda, but it’s worth seeing and I’m glad I went. You could definitely just do a day trip from Butte though.

Read more: Sapphire Motel, Bozeman

Butte is Real America

For me, Butte was Real America. I’ve now been to eighteen states in the US and many, many towns and cities, and while all of them have been special in their own way (and my favourite city is still New Orleans), Butte was something else.

Weirdly, it reminded me of my Dad’s home town of Wrexham in North Wales. Both are cities that thrived on their mining – they were working class towns with normal people, and when the mines closed it forced locals to move away in search of new prospects, and the new people arriving into town dwindled as opportunities were lost. But just like Wrexham, it’s on the verge of having a moment as people rediscover the beauty of the area it sits in. Montana is ridiculously popular these days, but Butte is still often avoided by travellers so the area still struggles with jobs and opportunities for those born and raised here.

Please visit Butte, it deserves visitors.