I'd like to start making plans for a ski trip this winter. I've heard the skiing in Utah is some of the best. Can someone help me out with places that offer beginner through advanced skiers? Is there another state that offers better skiing? Last year we went to Jackson, WY and the slopes were too advanced for a beginner I thought. Great place though!
Thanks for your help.
Lynn

If you stay in the Park City area, you will have easy access to Park City Mountain Resort, Deer Valley and The Canyons. You will be able to find skiing at all levels.

Colorado has lots of wonderful ski areas as well: In Summitt County, Breackenridge, Keystone, Copper Mountain and Arapahoe Basin are close to easch other and also offer a variety of hills. Just a little farther from Denver down I70 are Vail and Beaver Creek. In the Aspen area, you can ski at Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands, buttremilk and Snowmass.

If you could provide a little more information, I think you would get more detailed responses. How large is the group going? What are the age ranges? How important are off-slope activities? Are you looking for cheap, medium or expensive? What time period are you looking at going?

In very general terms, Snowbird is a great resort, but not for beginners. Alta, a personal favorite of mine, has very good beginner areas and a good ski school, but there is nothing else to do there but ski (which is fine if that's what you want). Alta and Snowbird are connected so if some of your party is really craving steeps, they can ski over there from Alta or take a quick shuttle bus from Alta.

Park City/Canyons are nice, but crowds can be an issue depending on the time of year. Solitude is also quite nice and should be considered. Deer Valley is quite nice as well, but you'll pay through the nose for it. Also, if you're a mobile group, you can stay centrally in Salt Lake or Sandy and take the buses to different resorts. If there's a big storm, however, you may get closed out of certain resorts for a day or two.

Hello Bruce and Lynn,

Yes, more details. I've been skiing in Utah for 30 years and live in Park City. If I can help with details, write back. A good site to check out for starters is www.parkcityinfo.com.

Utah does get more snow than CO in a normal year. Sorry, couldn't resist.

Thank you for your replies. I guess I was a bit too vague with details, so here is a bit more info.

We are two couples in our 40's. I have skiied in the past but was never good and it has been over 10 yrs. I want a true "bunny" slope but the others would want slopes with some challenge without killing themselves. We'd prefer "quaint" over pricey as for location. In JH we had a cabin that was clean, a bit rustic, with a fireplace in a small motel. I don't like crowds; prefer good family restaurants over fine dining; cozy bars instead of crowded/noisey ones; and plenty of snow in January. We'll also want to snowmobile one or two days; and ski one or two days.

Please offer lots of advice!
Thanks again,
Lynn

Hey Lynn. Here are some thoughts. Personally, I just don't think Snowbird is great for beginners. Instead, I would focus on Alta, Deer Valley, Park City, Solitude and the Canyons. Dependiong on when you go in January, Park City and Deer Valley could be crowded because of the Sundance Film Festival. The festival usually occurs around the last week of January. While the slopes may not be packed during these times, the restuarants/bars, etc. will be.

Alta is a must for all skiers at some time. It is a classic ski resort from the past. The lifts are a little slow and there's absolutely no glitz. It's all about people who love to ski. Not a lot of great restaurants here, so you would have to travel to find really good, cozy eats. The terrain here would be perfect as there are great beginners areas and plenty to keep the more experts happy. Also, the resort connects with Snowbird if your better skiers want to ski over there.

I haven't skied Solitude, but it has been given great reviews by friends who have.

Finally, here's an out of the way resort that may be interesting. If you don;t mind a little more hassle to get there, Brians Head resort could be fun. Again, I haven't skied there, but friends who did said they have a great time. It's great for beginers and intermediates, but it lacks (compared to the other resorts) strtong expert terrain. It's supposed to be phenominal views.

Crowds will probably be smallest at Brians Head. Alta during the week should be fine but could get crowded on the weekend. Solitude should not be crowded that time of year. Assuming you're not going when teh film festival occurs, crowds shouldn;'t be a problem at Park City or Deer Valley at that time of the year.

Basically, you'll love where ever you go in Utah. I don;t think there's a bad mountain in the state. So, I wouldn't stress out too much about finding the perfect resort. You can also find some good reviews on resorts over at www.epicski.com. Just go to the resorts section and do a search using "Utah" and "beginners" or something to that effect.

I don't know that there are places better, just different--it all depends on what you're looking for, how physically fit you are, is nightlife important, etc. In my late twenties, I learned to ski at Alta and loved the challenge (we rented a chalet with friends and had a blast). There are seasons we head to Colorado where, at least where I ski, the drop offs are not as dramatic as the ones I've seen in Utah. Some resorts do not allow snow boarders which is an issue for some skiers. Transfer time to / from the airport is another consideration--it's far less time consuming to get to the slopes in Utah--in Colorado, it can take well over 2 hours to get to Breckendridge from the Denver airport depending on road conditions. Hope this flurry of info is helpful. Have fun planning your trip!

Uh, make that "Brian Head" in my post above. Not "Brians Head." (Duh)

Hmmm. I still think Park City/Deer Valley/Canyons would meet your criteria. There is skiing for all levels there. In fact, it was our favorite place to go with a group (pre-kids) because between Park City and Deer Valley there are lots of greens and groomed blues.

Deer Valley is more upscale than Park City, but has the benefit of no snowboarders which is nice for beginning skiiers, I think. Park City has a cute little town with both trendy-type restaurants and more casual eats. There are some shops, galleries, etc that will keep you occupied when you are not on the mountain.

The housing varies widely from houses to condos to hotels. One of the big benefits to me of Park City is the ease of transportation. It is less than an hour from the Salt Lake airport and so you are almost never snowed in, like in CO. Also, there is easy transportation around Park City and to the mountain at Deer Valley via a free city bus. You will need a car to get to the Canyons, which my group found to be more challenging skiing than PC or DV.

HTH!

Thank you all for your great advice. I also posted about skiing in Vermont and everyone said "no way" to stick with Utah so I'm thoroughly convinced now.
I'll do some research on your suggestions then I'll be asking about places to stay!
Thanks again ~
Lynn

Definitely think that Park City would be great for you. I've been skied there for 13 years and never got sick of it. There are definitely better mountains in the area (Alta, Snowbird), but for an all round convenient ski vacation, Park City is great. Wonderful restaurants, terrain for everyone, and free convenient transportation around the city. I know at some point I should go ski Colorado, but I've never been able to pass up Utah to get there!

Crazymina (and others) -- can you recommend a place to stay (in Park City) that is nice but not too expensive. I'd really like a fireplace in my room, otherwise, just clean and conveniently located.
Thanks,
Lynn

Alas, I don't really have any great suggestions for you. I always stay at the Park Regency or Park Plaza. These are timeshares that I rent out when they have availability, and I was always so pleased at how cheap they were compared to everything else in town. They also had their own shuttle service which was awesome (and they ran tailored to their guests needs at night...it was almost like a free taxi!). The rooms have fireplaces and both have an indoor pool and jacuzzi.

However, these properties are both in prospector square. Now, personally I like it there. It's convenient, there's a good liquor store near the properties (because keep in mind in Utah you can't get liquor at the grocery stores) and it's near the Albertson's market as well. As someone who has been there for a few years, I just like to settle in and do my own thing. But Prospector Square is not the prettiest part of Park City. Even though PC is not huge, you may want to be where the "action" is.

I would recommend something either at the base of the PC resort (where all the free shuttles swing by, and it's a hub) or Main Street. Main Street has the town lift which will take you straight up the mountain. Also, many of PC's good restaurants are in that area.

Years ago I stayed at Shadow Ridge at the base of the PC resort and liked it...but that had to be over a decade ago. Hopefully Dayle or the others will have some good advice.

Crazymina, Thanks again for your help. It is so difficult to plan a vacation someplace you've never been. I did find a layout of the town (Park City) which helped to see where the different slopes are, etc. I checked on some rates for lodging and some were incredible high -- $700 a night!
Is there much snowmobiling in Park City because we wanted to spend a day doing that as well?
Anyone else have lodging suggestions? I'll also need ski lessons and rentals if someone has suggestions.
Thanks,
Lynn

When in winter are you going? Prices skyrocket during the holiday season, and again during the Sundance film festival which happens in January. But 700 a night seems a bit high (unless it's a Deer Valley property!) I usually paid $150 or so a night for a 1 bedroom condo...keeping in mind the last time I went was two seasons ago.

Check out http://www.intervalworld.com/iw/cs?a=1502&areaCode=550

The two properties I listed are there. You can call and see if they rent out to non-owners. Park Plaza is nicer than Park Regency...and also a tad more expensive. Both have numbers listed on the interval site, and both are more than adequate.

Yes, there is snowmobiling, unless they have changed the laws in the last couple of years. There is one in Deer Valley I have used twice. You can pick up brochures all over town.

I've been searching diligently for a place to stay that is affordable and also near the slopes. I have found some condos in Deer Valley that sound good and I think I'd rather stay there than Park City. I really need a beginner mountain as I was scared off of skiing by trying to learn in Europe. I felt like I was skiing off a cliff! I want to learn on a bump.
Thanks for your help ~
Lynn