Utah 5 days Park City?
 

We are two senior Aussies who have travelled around the USA several times,but not to Park City. We have now booked a month next May, starting SF, leaving LA, with a hire car. We'd rather stay one place for several days, don't have to see everything, we are fit and well enough for reasonable walks, love cold weather scenery and snow (not much of it down under, so would like some on this holiday)
Coming from Reno, heading towards the southern national parks in Utah (Torrey), I thought maybe 5 days in Park City may be nice. Still some snow ? Seems not too far to visit Salt Lake City again, and hopefully good off season prices. So my questions are

1.Is it a good, OK, or terrible place to spend so long in May? Alternatives?
2. How do I look for great value accommodation? Anyone used Priceline/
Thanks in anticipation, Carrabella

We often call May the mud season. The probability of any snow on the ground would be very small but a quick snow storm is not out of the question. The ski areas will be closed by late March. I think 5 days in Park City would be fairly boring since the skiing is finish. However, you should be able to get very good rates.

Carrabella,

I live in Park City and some years May is gorgeous and warm enough for summer activities. Usually the golf courses will be open, at least the one in town and others at lower elevations around the area. At least it would be good road cycling weather.

Some years May will be cooler and we have a fair amount of rain/snow that melts fast. Usually, there will still be snow up high (which for us on the "Wasatch Back" is approx. 9,000 ft. or higher).

Actually, Snowbird ski resort in Little Cottonwood Canyon should still be open for skiing and there will definitely be lots of snow over there. The bases of the Big Cottonwood (Brighton & Solitude) and Little Cottonwood (Alta and Snowbird) ski resorts are all about 8,000 ft. and they go up to about 11,000 ft.

Snowbird's normal winter season closing date is the first weekend in May. They will always extend regular skiing operations as long as the snow allows. Then, they go to "summer skiing" with the lifts running weekends and starting at an early hour (7:30 a.m.).

Whether or not it's still ski season, you can ride the tram up to Hidden Peak and enjoy the warm sun and awesome, 360 degree views. Definitely worth the $ and the ride itself is pretty fun if you are not used to that type of thing!

5 days might be a bit much for May. It depends on what you want to do. Spas, art galleries, Heber Creeper Railroad (antique steam engine), hot air ballooning, golf, biking. Last, but NOT least is the Utah Olympic Park, which is an amazing facility and very interesting.

Lodging prices will be very, very good in May.

That said - May is one of the very best months to be in the southern Utah red rock country and those Natl Parks!

Hope this helps.

Oh, PS, it's a 25 minute drive from Park City to downtown SLC so a day trip down would be very easy.

Also, the Park City ski resorts, Deer Valley, Park City Mountain Resort, and Canyons (new name, new owners) are normally open until the first weekend in April. Sometimes that coincides with Easter weekend. They will also stay open longer if the snow allows. The last two years all 3 have stayed open a week or 2 weeks longer than normal due to great late snow.

Deer Valley is always first to close out of the 3.

Thank you both for the great information. Am sure this May will be one of the lovely ones, Dayle! DH's Mum always said "when Angels travel, the sun shines" and we've mostly enjoyed sunshiney travels! We've now decided to spend four nights in Salt Lake City, and see Park City and environs on a day trip from there. After that, we'll head for Yellowstone. Am now going to research Hidden Peak - sounds great! Look forward to seeing the Olympic Park too. Thanks again.

Glad to help. Hidden Peak is the top of Snowbird.

www.snowbird.com
www.parkcityinfo.com

Have fun!

I just wanted to mention that Park City has some fantastic restaurants. If they are open, there are great discounts that time of year for amazing culinary experiences. Pick up the Park City paper when you arrive and look for coupons; almost all the fine restaurants have 2 for 1 dining coupons available. Some of my personal favorite special experiences are Wahso, Riverhorse, and Chimayo. Wahso recreates Shanghai in the 1920s in an elegant posh refined setting, Riverhorse has a beautiful atrium room with live music on the weekends to accompany your meal, and Chimayo evokes upper crust old world Mexico. Have a great time!

There are so many phenomenal places in Utah to see, that I would absolutely not spend 4 days in SLC. I would really encourage you to read up on exactly what there is to do in SLC and environs, then read in your guidebook about all of the amazing national and state parks in Utah, and then decide if you really want to spend your time in SLC.

I had an impression she was going to do the southern Utah parks coming from Reno, christy. I just thought she thought it was worth 4-5 more days to check out slc and park city. SLC is okay as a home base to explore from, IMO. It's only 30 minutes to Park city.

Sorry,guys - have only just checked this. Yes, ncounty, this will be our fifth visit to Utah at least! We love it. This time, we'll be driving from SF to Redding and Medford (Lassen Volcanic Caves and Crater Lake) before Reno, Salt Lake City, Yellowstone and back down to Cedar City, Vegas and LA to come home. Have stayed in Salt Lake City twice before, and think it will be a good place after long drives - liked the shopping there too, as I remember. Wahso sounds great - especially as we were in Shanghai in July. Our budget doesn't run to expensive restaurants, so will check this one out if it's affordable for us. Thanks again.

The later in May, the better, Carrabella. I love end of May through june in the area. I think of the muddy season as late April. By late May, some blooming is generally underway. You might even catch the lilacs in Park City.

It is also a good time to try the restaurants as I mentioned because they are more affordable than during peak times such as ski season. Have a great time!

Oh,ncounty, I really hope to see lilacs now!! My parents used to have a tree when they lived in a cold part of NSW. It's pretty rare to see them in Australia. I remember being impressed by the tulips in SLCity, when we were there once.Thanks for the restaurant tips - will look out for the Park City paper.