Family Skiing at Park City, Utah

The area had just received a LOT of snow and the skiing was very good--especially for April. The weather was mild. The people were warm. The lift lines short or nonexistent; although, we're told they can be long. This is a popular area with 100 runs, 6 bowls and a 3100 foot vertical drop.

Quick Tips:

The vacation department at Southwest Airlines told me that they were going to offer this great family package again for the 2000-2001 ski season. Check it out on their website: swavacations.com. If you have to fly to get to a ski area, Southwest seems to have the best deals for families. See my entry on The Biggest Ski Bargain Ever on this website. You can get to Park City from Salt Lake City in about 30 minutes and then, from Park City you can get to Deer Valley and The Canyons in 10 or 15 minutes. You're also close to Alta, Snowbird, Solitude and Brighton. The Park City area seems to attract nice, friendly people. There is nothing pretentious about it. The Deer Valley ski area was a little better groomed; but, not as down-home feeling.

Best Way To Get Around:

The Park City area has good, free public transportation that can get you almost anywhere you'd want to go; but, we had such a good deal from Southwest Airlines on the rental car that we got one and used it. Many people use the shuttles and buses, however. They run very frequently and are nice and new. Of course, if you want to spend more on lodging you can stay right at the base of the main lift area and never even need the shuttles. I saw a lot of people walking to their condos and hotels that were very close the lifts.

We chose this hotel because it was one of the properties from which to choose with the Southwest Airlines Kids Fly, Ski and Stay Free promotion. We would usually pick a condo but this hotel had an indoor/outdoor pool with a swim in/swim out channel that we knew would appeal to our kids. The price quoted above is only based on what their web site shows to be the average room price for the same week that we stayed this April. Our total package cost for four round trip flights, six nights lodging, five days of lift tickets and a rental car was only $1500, so I really don't think I can say that our room here cost $100/night.

It is definitely more cramped staying in a hotel room than a condo; but, sometimes you just can't find a condo offering an indoor pool in the vacation package offered by your preferred airline. I am glad we stayed here because of the pool and because we spent absolutely no time in our room. The hotel is nice and has all the amenities one could want--restaurant, room service, whirlpool spa, sauna, exercise room, store, shuttle to and from airport, and most importantly for our active kids--a really nice, heated, indoor/outdoor pool area.

Every night we would get take out food from a local eatery and bring it to a poolside table so that our kids could enjoy the pool while we had an inexpensive meal in a glassed in poolside area. Now that I think about it, this really was an inexpensive vacation because,except for the on-slope meals, we didn't exactly 'eat out.' This hotel has condo-like units with kitchens but our package called for the small, courtyard view room. Really, I would stay there again if I could get that great package deal again.

We get very hungry when we're skiing and don't want to wait long to eat. No problem at these locations. Also, eating on the slopes keeps you on the slopes as long as possible. These places are nice, cozy, have sufficient variety and, of course, good scenery. The Snow Hut is at the base of the Motherlode Life. Summit Smoke House and Grill is at the top of the mountain with a forever view and higher prices, too. The Mid Mountain Lodge is near the base of the Pioneer lift.

The future home of 2002 Winter Olympics Games, this down-home resort is in the process of getting a little bit glitzy. It has great terrain; friendly skiers; uncrowded runs; and short liftlines. We were there just after a big, late spring snow. Their brochures that talk about Utah Powder are correct...but, luck of weather comes into play. By the end of our time there they were getting pretty hard packed. The Wasatch Mountains around the area are pretty but not as eye-popping as the Canadian Rockies or Telluride.

We met a Mormon grandfather and his visiting grandson. The grandson and our son were the same age (8) and became ski buddies. They went to ski school the first day; but, after that did their skiing with my husband. His grandfather brought him to our hotel with its great indoor/outdoor heated pool so he had company apres ski as well. On our last day the grandparents offered to let both our kids spend the day at their beautiful house. This place feels safe and friendly for families. Even the teenagers were nice and encouraged the younger skiers.

You drop your kids off in the morning with their ski equipment and they are immediately engaged in fun indoor activities--like any good preschool. Then, mid-morning, they are taken out individually or in groups of two (depending on the number of kids there) for lessons. The instructors are warm, encouraging, funny, and patient. The preschool teacher will tell this instructor things about the kid, like, 'she just got finished saying she was not going to put her skis on because she's feeling scared' or 'it would not be a good idea to take Tommy and Mikey out together today, you should separate them' or 'let Michelle be one of the last ones to go because she wants to wait and see how the other kids like it.' The instruction is totally individualized. My daughter received private lessons because there were only three kids in the school that day. They have a magic carpet surface lift and she did very well. She was riding the big lifts and skiing with the grown-up folks after two days in the school. The lunch was typical kid fare--spaghetti, hot dogs, fruit, etc.

When the kids weren't having outdoor ski instruction they were having fun playing with each other or doing preschool-appropriate activities. I know so much about how their days went because I hung around a lot the first day. I felt very confident in the level of safety and security after what I saw. If your kid loses a glove or hat they have a huge lost and found she can borrow from.

It was two weeks before spring break and we wanted to take the kids skiing before it got too late. I started looking at the internet and found a Southwest Airlines Promotion for people wanting to take kids skiiing. For every adult that flew and stayed and skiied, one kid got to fly, stay and ski free. For my husband and I and our two kids the TOTAL cost for four roundtrip airfares from Austin, Texas to Salt Lake City, four five day interchangeable lift tickets, six nights at the Raddison and a nice rental car the cost was $1500. Southwest says they are going to do this promotion again this year; but, it isn't up on their web site yet. They offer a lot of lodging choices in their package.