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Utah and Colorado Skiing

We hit Alta last year since the snow was non existent in Park City.....Wonderful place. So low key and great skiing. They have had some good snow so far this season. That place just gets hammered. Where do you stay?
 
Skied one day at Alta many years ago on a Deer Valley trip in near-whiteout conditions. I've never seen it snow that hard anywhere else. My favorite overall mountain in Utah is Park City. An underrated place we skied a day on that trip was Brighton. No crowds, and I liked the terrain.
 
Headed to deer valley in two weeks. So pumped. We have 4 day lift tickets so we have one day off to tour around park city. Recommendations on stuff to do in park city for a family of four, including an 8 and a 10 year old?

Also ski packing tips welcomed. I'm bringing out 2 pairs.

We did a snow mobile tour which was very neat. We did a tour of the 2002 Olympic site and that was pretty cool. This past year, our off day was a hike a few canyons over but there was no snow. Our kids were 11 and 7. You can kill half a day walking around PC and the shops etc. My kids dug just hitting the outdoor pool when it was snowing.
 
Headed to deer valley in two weeks. So pumped. We have 4 day lift tickets so we have one day off to tour around park city. Recommendations on stuff to do in park city for a family of four, including an 8 and a 10 year old?

You could do a tour of the distillery at High West and then have lunch. Great whiskey there. May not be an entertaining for the kids, but they have great food.

We're heading to Beaver Creek around Super Bowl weekend. Ready to get there!
 
CH, this trip is with a significant other so I am staying at the Alta Lodge. Very nice, slopeside, old lodge. When it's just me, I stay down in Salt Lake at a Motel 6! Brighton is also nice, but in that canyon I prefer Solitude.
 
Headed to deer valley in two weeks. So pumped. We have 4 day lift tickets so we have one day off to tour around park city. Recommendations on stuff to do in park city for a family of four, including an 8 and a 10 year old?

Also ski packing tips welcomed. I'm bringing out 2 pairs.

I'm out in Park City right now. Snow is ok, but could use some more.

As far as things for the day off, taking a walk down Main Street to just window shop is always good. Second the High West distillery recommendation, though may not be the best with kids.

I'm sure there is probably an outfit that does dog sled or sleigh rides. Also, the kids might like visiting the Utah Olympic Park, about 20 mins down the road, where they had ski jump, bobsled, luge, etc. during the 2002 Olympics. They have an Olympic Museum there which I believe is free, plus you can call ahead and see if any current Olympians are training which is cool to watch.
 
For those of you who can't make it to the Rockies this year - Snowshoe is having a "Rebooting Winter" sale, pricing looks pretty compelling. I'm sure they need to get heads in beds and boots in skis the rest of the season to make up for the horrible December.
 
SnowShoe is our trip this year. Going out west is so expensive for a family of 4....
 
SnowShoe is our trip this year. Going out west is so expensive for a family of 4....

It sure is. Snowshoe is a decent hill if the snow is good. Snowshoe tip if you don't already know it: There are some darn good runs over at the Silver Creek area if it is 100% open, and there are no lines over there. The accommodations are definitely second-rate, but also cheap. We're doing a long weekend at Snowshoe this year, and I'll probably ski Snowshoe on Friday and then (if the snow is good) stick to Silver Creek on the weekend when Snowshoe is super-crowded.
 
So this happened today. I have to fly out to Salt Lake on last minute notice for a business meeting on Friday morning. Naturally, I parlayed that into staying the weekend. I'm staying in downtown SLC. So depending on how long the meeting lasts, I plan to try and hit Alta on Friday afternoon (maybe) and all day Saturday (definitely). Anybody have any experience getting to and from SLC to Alta? I know there's a ski bus, but if I want to stay up at Alta and apres ski, how do I get back down to SLC?
 
Def a car...Esp if plane tickets paid for...
 
But if he wants to apres ski and not get a DUI what's the best way?
 
923, the UTA (Salt Lake's bus system) runs regularly between SLC and Alta.
 
but if I want to stay up at Alta and apres ski, how do I get back down to SLC?

If you have been drinking and are coming home at night, I would rather be on a shuttle to get back to town. The canyon road is well maintained but can get sketchy (or be closed) in a storm. Find out how late they can pick you up. Skiing will end by 4:30ish on a long day, so even with another 4 hours you are still ready to go back down by 8:30 or 9. Much past that, you might as well spend the night.

FWIW, I ski Alta every February with a group of friends. My favorite ski location but I can't recommend it as a great apres ski scene. There are no stand-alone night spots. Couple of the hotels have bars, and we always have a great time with our group, but it is up to you to make them fun with friends and pitchers of beer. Maybe Snowbird (a few minutes away) has some better options.

If you stay, I am a big fan of Gold Miner's Daughter. Rooms are nice enough, the breakfast are very good and the evening meals are genuinely excellent.

You might want to spend your Saturday night in SLC if you leave Sunday. Room will be cheaper and you will have more options for Saturday entertainment.
 
Thanks for the advice. I think my plan will be to take the bus up on Saturday am (stops right outside my hotel) and then arrange a shuttle or maybe Uber down after the lifts close. Anybody ever used Uber in SLC?
 
Thanks for the advice. I think my plan will be to take the bus up on Saturday am (stops right outside my hotel) and then arrange a shuttle or maybe Uber down after the lifts close. Anybody ever used Uber in SLC?

I would be a little worried that there wouldn't be any cars available up at Alta. Even in Park City there aren't a ton
 
If you have been drinking and are coming home at night, I would rather be on a shuttle to get back to town. The canyon road is well maintained but can get sketchy (or be closed) in a storm. Find out how late they can pick you up. Skiing will end by 4:30ish on a long day, so even with another 4 hours you are still ready to go back down by 8:30 or 9. Much past that, you might as well spend the night.

FWIW, I ski Alta every February with a group of friends. My favorite ski location but I can't recommend it as a great apres ski scene. There are no stand-alone night spots. Couple of the hotels have bars, and we always have a great time with our group, but it is up to you to make them fun with friends and pitchers of beer. Maybe Snowbird (a few minutes away) has some better options.

If you stay, I am a big fan of Gold Miner's Daughter. Rooms are nice enough, the breakfast are very good and the evening meals are genuinely excellent.

You might want to spend your Saturday night in SLC if you leave Sunday. Room will be cheaper and you will have more options for Saturday entertainment.

At least 12 years ago, the shuttles didn't run too late. We caught the last one back to SLC just as Smitty was scoring the game winning TD over the Rams on the 1st play in double OT.
 
At least 12 years ago, the shuttles didn't run too late. We caught the last one back to SLC just as Smitty was scoring the game winning TD over the Rams on the 1st play in double OT.

Good point - I arrange a private shuttle from Alta to the airport, usually for around a 9 pm departure from Alta on my way to the red eye from SLC airport. Don't know if that shuttle is willing to make other stops, or not.
 
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