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Please let the record reflect that I have been to Park City before—twice. But for whatever reason, I had never skied the behemoth that is its namesake ski resort. When a group of seven friends decided to take an early February ski trip, I made the executive decision to saddle up and ski the 7,300 skiable acres that makeup North America’s second largest ski resort.
The Mountain: Park City attracts thousands of visitors every year because there is truly something for everyone. After the expansion with Canyon’s Village in 2014, the resort became the country’s largest, and second in North America with a whopping 43 lifts and 341 runs. Since my group has a diverse range of abilities Park City was a perfect choice because we were able to ride almost every lift together, take whatever run we liked best down, and then do it all over again.
Several weeks before arriving in Park City all skiers in the group purchased a three-day Epic Pass which made the daily cost around $100. You can always buy a three-day pass directly from the window, but you’ll pay significantly more for the same thing. The full Epic Pass provides unlimited days at Park City, but if you have an Epic Local pass you’ll need to make sure that you are not planning to ski over holidays or other blackout dates.
Choosing a season pass can be tricky: let us help.
I was given plenty of suggestions as to where to ski, eat, and avoid crowds, and I’m so grateful, and I’m passing my wisdom to you. As we quickly learned, when you ski in Park City, it’s important to have a plan, or you’ll spend a good deal of time traversing back and forth to get to different lifts.
There are two distinct sides to the resort. You can ski from one to the other, ride the gondola, traverse across, or take a shuttle. We did none of the above and stuck to one side a day, as we would have done if we were skiing in two different resorts.
Our first day started on the Park City side, where we headed up the Crescent Express, took a warmup run down to the Silverlod Express, stopped by Lamont Joseph White’s on-mountain art exhibit, and spent the majority of the morning around the Summit House.
Further Reading: These Gondolas Are Transforming into Art Galleries
Later on, as the group settled into our ski legs, we trekked up and over to the Bonanza Express where we had our first (and thankfully only) lost member of the group incident (don’t worry, we found him). We finished the day lapping McConkey’s Bowl, which offered steep bumps for the more advanced skiers and scenic and cruisy groomers for the lesser. We all enjoyed skiing through the trees on Powder Monkey and reconvened at the base of the lift to do it over again.
On day two, we flipped to the other side for our Canyons experience. We had a friend drop us off at the 7/11 right by the base of the Cabriolet, a lift that takes skiers from one parking lot to the base area (this is a little hack to avoid parking lot funnels). There are also bathrooms outside the loading area—always a perk!
Admittedly, we should have either gotten an earlier or later start on the bright bluebird Sunday as we waited about 45 minutes to get out of the base area. There are only two main lifts to bring skiers up the mountain, and lines do form. Nevertheless, we again had a plan, courtesy of our waiter from the previous night’s dinner at Dos Olas (more on this later).
We took the Orange Bubble Express and then began our journey skier’s left toward the Dreamcatcher, Dreamscape, and DayBreak areas. This is a solid area with smaller crowds, and it offers the variety of trails we were seeking. This is not the zone to hit on a work break or if you have somewhere to be because it takes about four or five lifts to get there, but for us, it was perfect.
The lifts in this area are incontestably slower, another reason crowds stay away. The runs are not super steep, but there are a lot of cut-ins to ski in the trees, which is always a win for me. The unanimous favorite in the area was Upper Crowning Glory, and we finished the day by seeing a female moose grazing at trees below us on the Over And Out lift, which for a group of New Yorkers, was the highlight of the trip.
(Above) Map illustrating our route from Canyon’s Village toward the Cloud Nine lodge and the nearby runs where we spent the majority of our second day.
On our final day skiing in Park City, we felt we knew our way around. Since we had an evening flight, we decided to keep ourselves positioned where we could easily get back to the parking lot for a quick escape, and the 42-minute drive back to the Salt Lake City airport. We went back to McConkey’s Bowl. Since the resort had been covered overnight by about eight inches of the legendary Utah snow, many of the bumps we had skied two days prior had transformed, giving us a totally different experience.
The Town: Part of the reason for choosing Park City as the group ski trip location was because it offers many activities both on and off the mountain. Two members of my group didn’t ski and still enjoyed all of the splendor of a ski trip. Park City’s main drag, aka Main Street, is lined with shops, restaurants, a theatre, and a museum. Exploring the town is a day by itself. In addition, there’s also the Olympic Museum, and on any given day, visitors can watch Olympic hopefuls training at the facilities. It’s also less than an hour’s drive to Salt Lake City, so there is no shortage of things to do.
We did rent a car (a sleek-looking minivan, might I add) because it made the most sense for our group of seven. There are many different free public bus lines across Park City, so if we weren’t driving, we always had a reliable ride, even with gear.
Getting There: Most ski resorts require either a flight to a small airport or a long drive. Park City is an exception. We flew from New York City on a very early 6:30 a.m. flight and arrived in Salt Lake around 9:30 a.m. While we chose not to ski the day we arrived in favor of acclimating and doing a grocery run, we easily could have. This flight path is famous for having skiers on the lifts by noon.
Where To Stay: We rented an AirBnB to accommodate the group’s needs (and we also love to cook). Park City is a big resort town, so there were plenty of options that fit our budget of $450 total per person for four nights, and we even had a small hot tub. We weren’t staying slopeside or walking distance to town but we were about a five-minute walk to the bus stop, or a seven-minute drive to town, and about the same to either resort.
If a hotel is more your speed, Pendry Park City is a ski-in/ski-out resort at the base of The Canyons. The Pendry offers a mix of rooms and suites, so if you are traveling with a group, you won’t feel squished. The Pendry has all of the proper ski resort amenities like gear lockers, rental shops on premises, and plenty of cozy spaces to curl up with a book by a fireplace, but perhaps the biggest perk of all is the rooftop pool and hot tub—the only of its kind in Park City.
Where To Eat:
Hands down, my favorite place to eat in Park City is the Australian-inspired Five5eeds. Here, you can enjoy açaí bowls, shakshouka, and some pretty memorable pancakes for breakfast or lunch. They also offer to orders to-go, and don’t forget to grab a latte, their matcha is—my all-time favorite.
For dinner, check out Dos Olas right outside the Pendry Hotel. Chips and guac are my favorite things to eat after skiing, and you will get your fill here. Dos Olas also makes great tacos, and they have three tortilla options so it’s very friendly to dietary restrictions and allergies. Save room for the signature arroz con leche for dessert.
Where To Après: The ski town vibe in Park City gives way to an après scene that makes strangers feel like friends. If you’re from out of town, keep in mind some of the state’s rules surrounding alcohol may differ from what you’re used to like beer on tap must be 5% ABV or lower (no IPAs) and restaurants are only allowed to serve alcohol with food.
For a classic beer or hot toddy, stop by the Red Tail Grill at the base of Canyons Village. You can’t beat the location or the french fries.
In the heart of town is the famed No Name Saloon, “the bar that made Park City famous.” If you’re looking for a fun place to grab a drink that’s part dive bar, part saloon, and part western hideaway, then this is the place. The No Name does tend to garner a crowd on weekends, so prepare to stand in line outside or hit it later in the evening.
Looking for more first times? Read: Jackson Hole
Sidequests: If you’re in town for more than a weekend, then the obvious answer is more skiing. Deer Valley is also located in Park City, which makes it easily accessible for a day or two of skiing (and you can take the free town buses to the base). Whether or not you ski Deer Valley, the resort is well worth a quest for a famous hot chocolate or chocolate chip cookie.
One of the many advantages of skiing in Utah is the proximity of world-class resorts, so if you can, I urge you to add on a visit to a second ski area. If you have a car, your options are practically endless. Snowbasin is an hour and ten minutes drive, and Powder Mountain is an hour and a half drive. Alta, Snowbird, Brighton, and Solitude are all a little less than an hour’s drive.
If you’re into terrain parks, you can spend some time at Woodward, a small resort dedicated just to shredding parks. Of course, the Olympic Museum is always a great and educational place, especially considering Salt Lake’s likely position to host the 2034 Winter Games.
Anything I’d Do Differently: Aside from avoiding lift lines at the base of Canyons, I have no regrets. I encourage you to have a plan for tackling the resort and a few dinner reservations if you are visiting over a weekend or holiday, especially with a larger group.
Worth a Return Visit?: 100 percent yes! Park City truly has something for everyone, it was the perfect group trip location.
