My wife and I are looking at Utah for a 4 day Ski trip. This will be our second trip out west, last year my rents took us to Telluride which was amazing. But this year we are doing it with all our own money so we need to be on the cheap. My wife skis and I board, we usually stick to Greens and Blues but sometimes do a Black or two. We are from Ohio and only get out a couple times a year on some crappy hills in southern michigan.
After a ton of research here is what I've come up with. Any recommendations would be helpful.
Flying into SLC and getting to a lot of mountains is nice that is why we picked Utah.
First stop - Feb 1st Wed and Feb 2nd Thurs
Park City Mountain Resort - Looks like a good mix of what we are looking at. Also looked at the canyons but doesnt sound like the best place for boarders, a lot of flats? Also we thought it wouldnt be as crowded on a Wed and Thurs
Staying at Holiday Inn Express about 6 miles away. Any other suggestions?
Second Stop - Feb 3rd and Feb 4th
Powder Mountain - Not very many lifts but again the mountain really looks like we will have fun.
Staying at Holiday Inn in Ogden. About 13 miles away. Again any other suggestion on the cheap?
It is a bit of a drive between the two resorts but after a lot of searching I think I picked two great places for a short trip. Also since we will be driving alot, how are the roads out there if it really starts to dump? If you would recommened something different please let me know.
Personally, not a big fan of PCMR, don't know why. Just has a really fake vibe for me. Canyons, on the hand, I love. This will be my 4th season with a pass there. It has a few flats, but the resort is so massive, you only really hit them on your way to the better runs. Personally, I'd suggest going there one time during your two day Park City stay.
Also, Snowbird and Brighton are a lot of fun as well, those two + Canyons are my three favorite resorts in Utah. Sadly, I haven't had the chance to ride Powder Mountain yet.
No matter what, your going to have a blast out here!
Well being from Ohio, I think the resorts you picked might be best.
It doesn't seem like you are going after epic terrain and loads of snow.
Park City Mountain Resort is a real beginners/tourist/park rat mountain. It's target customers seem to be the weekend warrior/people who ski-snowboard a few times a year and just a place to get away from it all, shop/dine/walk around town kind of place.
Powder Mountain is a real local mom and pop type resort. Great on powder days, great terrain. "Backcountry" type feel to it.
The Canyons can be incredible. I definitely prefer it to PCMR. BUT, you definitely need to know where to go. If it's your first time I'd avoid it, unless you have a local guide. It is so massive you can end up getting stuck on the same couple of lifts because of the flats. It can be hard to transfer to lift to lift if you don't know you're way around. Beautiful resort, high class place similar to Park City. Again, very touristy.
But being from the mid-west/east coast. I believe you will have the most enjoyable time in Park City.
If you were a hardcore snowboarder, looking for Utah's famous epic powder/terrain/cliffs. I would recommend the following resorts in order of best to least best (there are no bad resorts out here )
1) Brighton (local snowboarders mtn./tons of snow)
2) Snowbird (Lots of snow/Very steep/rocky/can be crowded on weekends)
3) Powder Mountain
4) Solitude (Great terrain/no crowds)
5) Snowbasin
6) Canyons
7) PCMR
Snowbird is probably too much for people who stick to greens & blues although there is a decent variety of terrain but the novices that I've taken out there were kind of overwhelmed by it.
Brighton is a good pick. Good vibe, good for boarders, no flats, everything goes down & funnels to basically the same base area so you can take different routes and not get separated from your partner/group. good for all skill levels.
PCMR is enjoyable but definitely not my favorite place in UT. I will echo the "fake" vibe there but it is kind of neat being right in the city like it is, and it's a big enough resort that you would certainly have a good time there.
Love Park City but not to ride to many park rats, tourists and rich folk, to avoid the weekend crowds and find fresh tracks head to Big Cottonwood to ride Solitude\Brighton and Ogden to Powder Mountain and SnowBasin.
Brighton and Solitude right now have by far the most snow and open terrain but hopefully by the time you get here things will shape up, good storm coming in for Thur\Friday should help out considerably.
Me and my girlfriend just moved here last week(but visited 3 winters in a row), if you decide to ride Brighton let me know would be happy to show you around the best we can.
WasatchMan
Thanks for the picture. It is crazy how many good mountains are that close to SLC.
The reason I wanted to do PCMR or The Canyons was because they offer the same day free lift pass if you show your boarding pass.
Any concerns on driving if it dumps alot of snow? Instead of renting a car how are shuttles out there? Would a shuttle take me from Park City Holiday Inn to the PCMR or The Canyons?
Am I the only one here that goes to PC for the Cobra dogs? What is everyone's deal hard to beat a fun day in the park then grab a cobra dog.
Seriously though. OP do you or the wifey ride park at all? PC has an incredible park there. PC is a much more alive town at night time as compared to SLC. There are more bars and people tend to have more fun. I think it is because most people that live there aren't born and raised Utahn.
You should be able to take the bus around PC, but you might run into problems when you are heading up to Ogden. I would rent a car just so you can do what you want when you want and not have to rely standing in the cold waiting on the bus. They will restrict certain canyons if it snows a lot but they generally open it up fairly quickly. You can also do the scumbag method of hitchhiking. It is my personal favorite.
canyons blows away PCMR. but everything else in utah blows away everything in Park City. but for you're skill and experience level, PC might be your best option. go to the canyons. you'll love it. never had any problems with flats there myself.
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