Just 10 days after ground was broken for one Idaho temple, the open-house phase has begun for another.
The Montpelier Idaho Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is opening to the public from Thursday, Sept. 10, through Saturday, Sept. 26, excluding Sundays.
Preceding the public tours, a media day is being held Tuesday, Sept. 8, and invited guests will tour the sacred edifice Wednesday, Sept. 9.
Two General Authority Seventies are guiding news representatives on the media-day tour: Elder Karl D. Hirst, a member of the United States Central Area presidency, and Elder Mark D. Eddy, assistant executive director of the Temple Department.
Interior and exterior photos of the temple were released Sept. 8 on ChurchofJesusChrist.org as the media day began.
Next month, the Montpelier temple will be dedicated Sunday, Oct. 18. A presiding authority has not yet been announced. The 10 a.m. ceremony will be broadcast to all units in the temple district and rebroadcast at 2 p.m.
That same day, Oct. 18, the Managua Nicaragua Temple will be dedicated. These temples are scheduled to become the Church’s 225th and 226th temples.
Once dedicated, the Montpelier temple will be both the easternmost and southernmost temple in the state. Idaho’s eighth in operation, it will serve more than 15,500 Latter-day Saints across six stakes.
Design and features
Standing on a 2.6-acre site, the Montpelier temple is a two-story structure of 34,370 square feet. Inspired by landscapes of southeastern Idaho, motifs throughout the temple include the design of the chicory flower in various stages of bloom. Hues of gold, blues, greens, coral and yellows give a nod to local wildflowers and the turquoise waters of Bear Lake, about 15 miles south.
Art-glass windows show patterns of simple linework borders, a bud detail, mountains and a lake. Crystal chandeliers hang in the bride’s room, celestial room and sealing rooms, while polished brass fixtures with hanging crystals illuminate other areas.
Doors use makore wood and decorative hardware, and the millwork is made of sapele solid wood with quarter-cut makore veneer.
The building’s flooring uses breccia aurora light stone, with a border of giallo reale, giallo provenza light, rojo alicante and amazonite. Gold-and-blue carpets are also prevalent, with wall-to-wall rugs in some areas.
About the Montpelier temple
President Russell M. Nelson announced a house of the Lord for Montpelier, Idaho, on April 3, 2022, during the April 2022 general conference. It was one of 17 temple locations identified at the conference, including one for Idaho’s neighboring state of Montana.
The next year, ground was broken for the Montpelier temple on June 17, 2023. Elder Ryan K. Olsen, a General Authority Seventy, presided over the ceremony.
“At the end of the day, it really draws back to our individual relationship with the Savior, Jesus Christ,” said Elder Olsen at the groundbreaking. “As much as this is a community event, and the neighbors will drive by and see this beautiful edifice, at the end of the day when individuals are able to go in, it’s all about their personal relationship with [Heavenly Father and His Son].”
The Church in Idaho
Idaho is home to 11 temples in various stages of operation, construction and planning.
Seven of those temples are operating: Idaho Falls (dedicated in 1945), Boise (1984), Rexburg (2008), Twin Falls (2008), Meridian (2017), Pocatello (2021) and Burley (January 2026).
Now with the Montpelier temple’s construction finished, two Idaho temples are currently in their construction phase — the Teton River Idaho Temple, to be Rexburg’s second, since June 2024; and the Coeur d’Alene Idaho Temple, since August 2026, just 10 days ago.
One final temple is in planning stages in the state: the Caldwell Idaho Temple, announced April 2025.
In 1855, early pioneers of the Church first settled in Idaho at Fort Lemhi, then part of the Oregon Territory. Fourteen years later, the Bear Lake Stake — Idaho’s first — was organized in 1869.
Church presidents Harold B. Lee, Ezra Taft Benson and Howard W. Hunter were born in Idaho. Current Church President Dallin H. Oaks also lived in Twin Falls, Idaho, for about five years as a child, and earlier this year he dedicated the Burley temple.
Today, nearly 483,000 Latter-day Saints meet in more than 1,300 wards and branches in Idaho.
Montpelier Idaho Temple
Address: 534 Washington Street, Montpelier, Idaho 83254
Announced: April 3, 2022, by President Russell M. Nelson
Groundbreaking: June 17, 2023, presided over by Elder Ryan K. Olsen, a General Authority Seventy
Public open house: Sept. 10-26, 2026, excluding Sundays
To be dedicated: Oct. 18, 2026
Property size: 2.6 acres
Building size: 34,370 square feet
Building height: 151 feet, 7 inches (including the spire)
