Tips & Advice

The Skiing:

 Click to view an area map of all Utah's ski resorts

• Park City, Deer Valley and The Canyons are all right next to each other along the same ridge – you could throw a snowball between them. That is 8,600 acres of ski terrain and, if they were interlinked, would make this the largest ski area in North America. However as the domestic market only stays for a few days at a time, the resorts do not want to interlink and maintain very unique experiences at each. They can all be accessed by the free local shuttle from most accommodation options in the resorts - it's a 15 minute drive from Deer Valley to Park City.

• The terrain here is very similar to Vail in that there's loads of great groomed runs, fantastic glade skiing and bowl skiing that is easily accessible for an upper intermediate skier.  Park City Resort also has the #1 Terrain Park in North America.

• The resorts of the Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons (Snowbird, Alta, Solitude) are only a 45 minute drive or shuttle away (2 miles as the crow flies) and receive over 500" a year of the 'Greatest Snow on Earth'. These resorts are completely different to those of the Park City Valley - more rugged, bigger mountains with more challenging skiing. On a snowfall day you can often find that Snowbird/Alta have 1ft more snow than Park City - with this in mind having a 4x4 so that you can chase the powder is a great investment.

Busy Periods:

• Like most resorts the slopes get busier at the weekends and on holidays such as New Year and President’s Week (generally 14th to 21st February). The key to avoiding the crowds is to get to the resort early - I know that sounds simple, but as breakfast is such a big deal in the US many skiers won’t start skiing until 10am. With jet-lag waking you up at 6am, it is actually quite easy to get going early. And if you can lunch early or late you can ski while everyone else is in the restaurants. Its worth bearing in mind that some resorts will 'sell out' as they will only take 60% of their skier capacity simply to preserve their customers' experience.

Weather:

• This area can get cold, although not as cold as Colorado or Alberta. Really cold days of -20°C tend to be on clear bluebird days so the great visibility really takes the edge off it! When it is stormy there's always shelter to be found and, as the runs are protected by trees, skiing while it is snowing Utah's light dry powder is a wonderful experience!

Families:

• Bear in mind that Park City itself is as large as Breckenridge so you could decide to just ski the one mountain - Park City Resort. There are a huge array of condos and town homes scattered along the valley at the base of Deer Valley, The Canyons and in the town of Park City. However these are not large units and many are unique, so the way to find the best option for your group is to base it on bedding requirements, required location, level of luxury and most importantly budget - we can then make suggestions for specific properties from there. The optimum place to stay is within walking distance of Main Street (and the town lift up to the resort base). However, condos in this location tend to be £200 pp + more than others over a 10 night stay.

Eating and Drinking:

• It is a common myth that Utah is a 'Dry State'…well maybe back in the 1930’s!  Park City even has its own Wasatch Brewery which is a great hang out, as well as loads of other bars and restaurants around town, oh, and the cheapest Liquor Store I have ever been to!

• There are a couple of eccentricities to know about - in a bar you need to become a member - all you have to do is give your address and a $3 pp cover charge and you are a member for life (this doesn't apply to restaurants), and you're not allowed to 'double fist' ie. you can’t have a beer and a glass of wine at the same time, though you are allowed a beer and a shot!

• Park City has a huge selection of restaurants, from relaxed wild west bars to fine dining restaurants. All are family friendly. You do need to remember that, as with most resorts during weekends and holidays, you need to make reservations early. The concierge at the hotel can do this for you or there will be a book of menus in your condo or hotel room for most of the main restaurants around the resorts - local calls are normally free.

• If you're keeping to a budget or are too tired to eat out, most of the restaurants deliver and there are loads of cheap take-aways. Remember as well that Americans eat early (mainly between 6pm and 8pm) and food will stop being served from 9pm to 10pm.

Aprés Ski:  

• The key to the night life in Park City is finding out where the 'Locals Night' in the various bars is - on week nights this is where everyone goes, so if you are not there the town will feel dead whilst these bars will be rocking. Here is a rough guide, but ask a local before you go out:

• Monday: JP Mulligans 50¢ Beer Night

• Tuesday: O’Shuck’s $3 Skooners

• Wednesday: Cisero’s $2.50 well drinks

• Thursday: Live Music at The Spur or The Sidecar

• Friday: $1 well drinks at The Starbar or music at The Spur, The Sidecar, Ciseros, Celsius or Harry O’s

• Saturday: Live Music and/or DJ’s at Harry O’s, The Spur, The Sidecar, Ciseros and Celsius 

• Most US resorts are relatively tame compared to Europe with Whistler, Vail and Aspen really being the only places that come close. Saying that, at the weekend Park City and The Canyons often have live bands and drink promotions at the base of the lifts.  Deer Valley is more sophisticated - a really nice place to have a beer, cocktail or brandy hot chocolate (recently discovered!) is in one of the exclusive bars in The Stein Erickson Lodge or Golden Hirshner.

Getting there:

• As Salt Lake City is a major US airport there are a lot of airline and routing choices which generally means cheaper airfares than many other destinations. It will always be a one stop flight, but do not let that put you off! The transfer to resort from Salt Lake City is only 45 minutes so the total travel time is very similar to Whistler or Breckenridge on a direct flight, and in many ways the shorter transfer makes it more comfortable.

Where to stay:   

• The main attraction to this area is the ability to ski more than one resort. As ski-in ski-out accommodation is much more expensive, why pay this supplement if you are only ski-in ski-out on a few days of your stay? The better value hotels, such as The Peaks, The Yarrow and the Park Avenue condos have a superb shuttle service close by, alternatively what you save on accommodation, use to hire a car and give yourself even more flexibility.