Park City, UT | Ski Trip Travel Guide
My comprehensive guide to taking a family ski trip to Park City, UT
I’ve been skiing in Park City, Utah every winter (give or take) for over 20 years.
My parents established this treasured tradition when I was younger, and now I’m watching my kids learn to love skiing and fall in love with Park City as well.
In this guide, I’ve compiled everything we do on these trips.
Why Utah?
I’ve skied in over 10 states and Utah remains my favorite.
Here are my top reasons:
The ski resorts are SO close to the airport. You fly into the Salt Lake City airport, rent a car, and you’re at a resort in 30-ish minutes.
(Compare this to flying into Denver, and you’re looking at 2-5 hours of driving to resorts…with kids? No thanks!)
It’s a lower altitude than other ski destinations. This means a much lower chance of altitude sickness and a few degrees warmer on temperature.
Utah has some of the best snow in the United States!
Where to ski?
There are 2 main ski resorts close to downtown Park City.
We like to be in close proximity to downtown Park City because it’s fun to eat and shop on charming Main Street.
The 2 main ski resorts are Deer Valley and Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR).
There used to be a third resort called The Canyons, however in 2014 Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) bought The Canyons, and they merged into one giant resort - PCMR.
Deer Valley is lovely, ritzy and known for its perfectly groomed trails.
If you like the finer things in life and a glass of champagne accompanied by live jazz at the end of your ski day, look into staying at Deer Valley.
However, we’ve always stayed at (what once was called The Canyons) The Canyons Village of PCMR.
There are two base villages at Park City Mountain Resort: The Park City Mountain Village and The Canyons Village.
These villages are far away from each other and you have to drive between them, so pick one to be your main base.
You are able to ski across the entire giant resort and go from one base to the other, but it’s complicated and time consuming.
You’ll buy lift tickets for just one resort, Park City Mountain Resort, and your tickets work at both bases.
Where we stay
We’ve stayed at 3 different hotels near the Canyons Village: Westgate Resort, Grand Summit, and Hyatt Centric Park City.
All 3 of these hotels are close to the Canyons Village base where you hop on Red Pine Gondola to start your ski day.
The Grand Summit is the closest to the gondola (like - just a few steps).
Hyatt Centric has a nice “ski-in, ski-out” option if you can ski blue runs.
Westgate has a lovely “skier services” perk which brings your skies to the gondola, and allows you to drop them off afterward as well.
Start by checking the hotel websites and see what’s available for your group. Also, there are plenty of amazing options in the area besides the 3 hotels I listed.
Check VRBO, Vacasa, and Park City Rental Properties for what’s available.
TIP: Book through one of the vacation home rental websites above, and get as close to the ski mountain as your budget allows.
Most of the units in the Canyons Village are are individually owned, so we’ve almost always booked through one of the vacation home rental websites listed above.
How we get around
We rent a minivan or SUV from the Salt Lake City airport.
This is necessary, so plan on it.
Ski rentals
Aloha Ski & Snowboard Rentals at the Canyons/Westgate location is by far the most convenient if you are staying in the Canyons Village area.
Our family of 5 saved $700 this season by renting though Utah Ski & Golf in downtown Park City with a promo code they had emailed out in the fall.
We had to drive into downtown Park City to get our gear, and lug it back in the car. Same for returning the equipment.
However, it was worth it to save $700.
I recommend getting on both company’s email lists now so that you see the big deals / coupon codes when they email them out!
We rent boots, skis/poles, and helmets. (Kids don’t need poles.)
(Some of us have helmets, and in that case we bring our own - see Gear Guide below.)
Lift tickets
You can buy lift tickets directly on the Park City Mountain Resort website.
OR - if you make your plans far enough in advance, check out Epic Pass options.
Epic Passes used to be reserved for people who skied A LOT, however there are multiple options now, even for shorter trips.
This is a good article on how Epic Passes work.
We definitely used ours for 20% off food and beverages on the mountain as well!
Lift tickets are expensive these days, and the only way to save is to purchase WELL in advance. Look at discounts on Epic Passes as early as the March before your next ski season.
Ski school
If you read one thing, read this:
Ski school is a MUST for kids (and beginner adults!).
It’s expensive, but it’s SO worth it. Plan on 1-2 days of ski school.
Yes - you might need to cancel 1-2 weeks of summer camps in order to pay for ski school, but just do it!
This gives your kids a base of confidence that will help them the rest of the week.
Ski school at PCMR goes from 9AM - 3PM and includes lunch. There is also a half-day option for 3 & 4 year olds.
I’m just going to rip the bandaid off and tell you that one day of ski school without gear or lift ticket is $329. One day of ski school adding the gear and lift ticket is $397.
Note: The ski school price you see on the website INCLUDES gear rentals for the lesson and the lift ticket price. If you buy lift tickets somewhere else (i.e. an Epic Pass) and rent your own gear, you can “uncheck” Lift Ticket and Gear Rentals and your price is lower.
We always rent our own gear for the week so that our kids can ski with us after their lesson, or on days we didn’t book lessons, without having to go through the rental process multiple times.
Book well in advance on the Park City Mountain Resort website because ski school does sell out.
4th, 5th and 6th graders can ski free!
This is amazing.
Ski Utah has a program where 4th, 5th and 6th graders can ski FREE for 3 days (and get discounted lessons!).
The program has blackout dates on the week between Christmas - New Years, MKL weekend, and Presidents weekend, but other than that it works!
You have to apply in advance and follow the instructions HERE, but it’s a seriously awesome offer worth looking into.
Favorite family activities
There is SO much to do in Park City besides skiing.
We usually ski, take a day off, ski, take a day off. Here are our favorite things to do on off days:
Tubing: The best snow tubing hill is at Woodward. You can buy tickets ahead of time online and reserve your 2-hour tubing slot. Tickets do sell out!
Sledding: If the idea of paying $50-$70 to tube gives you the chills, consider simply sledding in the Canyons Village.
Most days kids can be found sledding on the hill next to The Pendry hotel (SUPER chic and fancy hotel in the Canyons Village - we don’t even let our kids walk-in the lobby, LOL) and Sunrise Lift.
We bought cheap sleds from a Fresh Market (formerly Albertson’s) grocery store and used them all week!
Dog Sledding: A dog sledding ride up and down the snowy hills of Utah is SUCH a thrill. We’ve used All Season Adventures and it was an amazing and memorable experience. Highly recommend! (Kids have to be over 3 years or older.)
Sleigh Ride: This was SUCH a magical experience. Snowed Inn Sleigh Co. picks you up in a horse drawn sleigh ride at the base of the Payday Lift in the Park City Mountain Village.
You take a horse-drawn sleigh ride up the mountain to the “Snowed Inn” cabin-like restaurant. Christmas lights are strung up on the ceiling and live music is playing. It truly feels like a “snowed in” Hallmark movie!
You get soup, salad, breadsticks, dinner choice (beef, chicken or fish) and dessert.
We all had the best time and give this experience a 10/10! We’ll definitely book this again!
Ice Skating: In the Park City Mountain Village there is an ice-skating rink with loads of those “plastic pusher helpers” for beginners! You can pre-purchase tickets online.
Downtown Park City: Shopping along downtown Main Street in Park City is a must! Lots of restaurants, shops, and art galleries. We always grab Park City shirts and sweatshirts on Main Street!
Where we eat
Grocery + Instacart: The day we arrive we buy our basics at Smith’s, Fresh Market (formerly Albertson’s) OR have them delivered by Instacart (SO easy!).
We buy all our breakfast items from the grocery (oatmeal, eggs, bacon, cereal & milk).
Cooking dinner 1-2 nights saves on cost. We like to cook spaghetti, pesto pasta or frozen pizza & salad.
Main Street Pizza & Noodle: This is a family dinner STAPLE! We’ve been going for years. It has huge tables for big groups, it’s loud (no one will hear your fussy kiddo), and tons of yummy pizza, pasta and salads. *They don’t take reservations so go EARLY (4:45/5pm).
Drafts Burger Bar: Delicious burgers located in the Canyons Village base area. Also - milkshakes as big as your head!
Yuki Yama Sushi: I wouldn’t bring my kids here, but if you can sneak away for an adults only night, this place was fabulous! Fresh sushi, interesting menu, and on Main Street in downtown Park City. Make a reservation in advance!
Low Spark Fondue: One night we had Low Spark Fondue cater IN a fondue dinner for our large group and it was SO fun! 3 courses: cheese fondue, beef tenderloin with shaved brussels sprouts, and chocolate fondue. It’s pricey, but it’s an amazing experience for a special occasion!
Lookout Cabin: Lookout Cabin is my FAVORITE place to eat on the mountain while skiing on the Canyons side of PCMR.
Most of the eating options on the mountain are similar (burgers, chili, etc.), but Lookout Cabin is a sit-down restaurant halfway up the Orange Bubble lift.
It has cocktails, nice wines, “alpine fondue” (I order this every time), venison shepherd’s pie, and more. I wouldn’t bring my kids here, but I ALWAYS hit it up while they are in ski school! *Reservations are recommended, but we often walk-in and get a table or sit at the bar.
Me loving life at Lookout Cabin with a crisp glass of Chardonnay!
Our actual must-have gear (we own all of this)
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KIDS
Favorite Snow Bibs
Goggles
Under helmet head warmer
Base layers
Kids ski socks
Hand warmers
Kids Snow Boots
Child Ski Harness (A must for a brand new 3-6 year old skier)
ADULTS (ALL Amazon!)
My white ski-bibs
My white ski jacket
My white helmet
Ski goggles
Head warmer under helmet (my FAV purchase this season, a must!)
Warmest ski gloves EVER
*These women’s ski gloves are FABULOUS. You’ll never need another pair. Wrist straps so you can take your gloves off on the lift and use your phone, and they hang from your wrist. Warm wool interior. Reinforced with a protective leather outer layer. They are expensive but you will NOT regret it. I love them!
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how do you recommend getting from one side of the park city mountain to the other? one side seems much more beginner friendly with plenty of greens and unfortunately we are closer to ski in/out on the other side.