There’s nothing quite like Old Town Park City anywhere in Utah.  In fact, it’s pretty unique regardless of where you look.  Aspen may come close in some aspects, Breck has some similar spots, but the geograhpically small area that is Old Town Park City tucked in between two mountains is magical.

If you’ve not stayed in old town for a ski holiday you should put it on your list of to-do’s. Waking from a home to Main Street for an elegant or home style dinner, perhaps a ski-in-ski out location, seeing the town lift rise above the back deck of your accomodations….it’s really pretty cool.

Aside from those benefits, I really like the slow pace that is tangible around Old Town.  Along with this is the friendly nature of those that live there year round and the many visitors that come to ski.

Utah Vacation Homes recently added Empire #3 to it’s collection of vacation homes in the Old Town area.  It has 3 bedrooms and 3 baths, a private hot-tub (a must for post ski and pre-dinner relaxing) and is an easy walk to Park City Mountain Resort and all of their amenities.

Perhaps I’m wrong about Old Town, but its charm and allure has cast a spell on me.  Am I the only one?

Bear Hollow is a very nice little community located half way between Kimball Junction and The Canyons Resort in Park City, Utah.  I’ve blogged about Bear Hollow in the past and specifically about the variuos condos, townhomes and homes that Utah Vacation Homes has to offer.

This past month we added yet another home to the mix - Bear Hollow #11.  This home with 4 bedroom, 3.5 baths sleeps 12 making it a great ski vacation home for multiple families, couples or families with children.  The privacy of staying in your own home this close to shopping, dining, skiing and other activities is hard to beat.

I used to live just down the street from Bear Hollow so I know just how nice the location is.

There is a trail that you can walk or possibly cross country ski on which passes through Bear Hollow and ends at Kimball Junction in one direction and passes by The Canyons and in towards Park City in the other direction.  Late night strolls in the summer or winter will make you feel like you’re far away from the busy life. After all, isn’t that what a vacation should do?

Here are a couple of images of the property.  To see the rest, check out the Bear Hollow #11 page.

Utah Vacation Homes has been adding some simply amazing properties lately and this most recent one is a stand out.  Slopes and Shores #2 is truly an unique townhome located in between Deer Valley’s Jordanelle Gondola and the Jordanelle Reservoir.

This 4 bedroom 3.5 bath townhome sleeps 10 and is one of those places you can “escape” to and enjoy a vacation with family and friends. But you’re still within close proximity of the town of Park City just a few minutes away.

After a day of skiing, wouldn’t it be nice to come home to this:

Check out the rest of the images of Slopes and Shores #2 on the Jordanelle along with the property details.

There’s nothing quite like Old Town Park City in all of Utah.  The feel, the old miner homes, the shops and the adjacent mountains on either side make for unbeatable surroundings.

One of the lesser known historical features about the layout of what is old town and now present day Deer Valley Drive is that this road was once the “Red Light District”.  Only a couple of remaining miner’s cabins and relicts exist today but despite this a number of properties on lower Deer Valley Drive near the round-about have the look and feel of a modern day “old town” property.

Utah Vacation Homes recently added one such property to its rental pool - Aspen Grove #2 (pictured above).  Just steps from Main Street and the Town Lift, and a very short bus ride to the base of Deer Valley this 2 bedroom 2 bath condo is a real treat.

It was recently renovated and is in top condition.  If you’re headed to Park City this winter and would like the best of both worlds, Aspen Grove #2 is a premier location.

FYI - It’s also a great spot for anyone attending the Sundance Film Festival in January.

The Canyons Resort in Park City is the largest single ski resort (measured by lift accessed acres) in Utah. If you’re planning on visiting this resort you should plan two days in order to ski most of it.

Be sure to get a trail map and pay close attention to my tips below as The Canyons is likely one of the most unique set ups for a resort that you’ll find.

But enjoy the challenge of skiing this mountain as the unique layout provides a wide variety of slopes and vistas to take in.

1. On a busy day when the gondola line can get unruly, skip it and ride the two person Golden Eagle chair. It’s slow and you’ll feel like you’re in the 1970’s but you’ll also get first tracks when others are still in line
2. Don’t miss Aplande off of Condor, especially if they have groomed it. This LONG fall line run is hard to beat
3. If you like trees, the Mystic Pines on the Peak 5 lift are, well, Mystical.  Hard to beat on a powder day.
4. If it’s a big snow year and you catch The Canyons on a powder day, keep to the low lands and spin laps on Golden Eagle.  Be sure to ski Lookout Ridge to Badlands!
5. Want long groomers with no crowds?  Find Upper Crowning Glory at the top of Peak 5 and follow it past Middle and Lower Crowing Glories to the bottom of Tombstone for a real leg burner.

Check out the trail map for The Canyons Resort.

Is the biggest always the best?  Well, that’s hard to say and harder to argue but one things for sure - The Canyons Resort in Park City, Utah has enough terrain to last for days.  The fact that I’ve probably skied at The Canyons well over 500 days (I worked there for 8 years) and still find stashes of powder and unique vistas is evidence.

The Canyons holds 3700 acres of lift serviced skiing terrain.  It’s somewhat split by the southern end and the northern end with the Gondola and the Saddleback lift as the middle ground.  For a new comer skiing The Canyons can be a bit confusing given its shear size.  It’s one of those resorts where a few minutes familiarizing yourself with the trail map is worthwhile.

But don’t fret, if you happen to take an unintended turn chances are you’ll find a new adventure on a trail that meanders through aspens, pines or even a glade or three. Variety is the menu at The Canyons.

Kendall Card on Murdock Peak at The Canyons - photo by Erik Seo

Take for example this image above, taken on Murdock Peak by my friend and photographer Erik Seo.  Everything you see in the background is part of The Canyons, waiting to be explored.

So bring a sense of adventure and at least a couple of days to explore and you’ll likely find things I still haven’t managed to sniff out.

Lodging Options Near The Canyons Resort

Utah Vacation Homes has a number of properties in Park City and more specifically near The Canyons. Here are a few:

Vintage on the Strand
Do you like Ski In Ski Out? Vintage on the Strand is a new luxury town home slopeside at The Canyons. It doesn’t get any closer than this. Why go to the day lodge for lunch when you can ski back to the town home and cook up something nice, slip off the boots, enjoy some couch time before heading back out on the slopes? 4 bedrooms and 4.5 baths will sleep up to 12 with a pile of amenities to make your stay heavenly.

Hidden Creek #1
When Ski In Ski Out isn’t in the budget, perhaps right at the base of the mountain is. Hidden Creek #1 is literally 50 yards (110 steps in ski boots) from the base of The Canyons cabriolet. No need to rent a car as you can walk to skiing or take the free town shuttle to ski Deer Valley or Park City. 4 bedrooms and 3 baths sleep up to 11 people. Soaking in the private hot tub while other skiers are waiting in traffic to get back to their hotel will remind you how very worth it Hidden Creek is.

Penthouse at Bear Hollow
There are a number of homes, town homes and condos that Utah Vacation Homes offers in the Bear Hollow Village but the Penthouse at Bear Hollow is a great option for a familyski vacation to Park City. 3 bedrooms and 2 baths sleep up to 7 within 1330 square feet. If you’re planning on skiing the Salt Lake Resorts but want to stay in Park City, this is a great location. It’s less than 2 miles from The Canyons

When you think of a ski vacation to Deer Valley what comes to mind?

The perfectly groomed slopes?  Blue skies and powder?  Deer Valley’s famous turkey chili?

When I think about the perfect ski vacation to Deer Valley I think about all of the above as part of the perfect day, with my day ending at an exquisite condo or townhome next to the slope…in a place like Little Belle #2.  Although not ski-in/ski-out, Little Belle is as close as you can get - within a peaceful 100 yard walk.

Utah Vacation Homes recently added Little Belle #2 in the Silver Lake area of Deer Valley.  Silver Lake, the mid mountain village of Deer Valley, is a hard to beat location that truly makes you feel a world apart and this property that was remodeled in 2007 will make you feel right at home.

Aside from 3 bedrooms and 4.5 baths that easily accommodate 10 guests, this townhouse includes these ammenities:

Living Room at Little Belle

Master Bedroom of Little Belle #2

 –Check out Little Belle #2 and start to envision your next Deer Valley ski vacation.

Sarah Tuff Dunn in writing for ForbesTraveler.com described her first visit to Park City, Utah, by saying:

“I was struck by just how blue the sky was, and how dry the air, during a ski trip one March. I was used to soggy or icy conditions back East.

After I skied seemingly bottomless powder at nearby Deer Valley, the whole town of Park City (which looked like a candy village, thanks to all the different colors of the Victorian buildings) seemed like it was on some crazy high from the sun, the snow and the altitude.”

Check out the entire article on ForbesTraveler.com

Winter has made yet another foray into the mountains of Utah with a very strong wintry storm that passed through this past weekend.  Snow fell and accumulated in Park City and flurries of snow were seen in Salt Lake.  Ski season will be here sooner than later and deals on lodging properties are already showing up.

The sun is once again out today but it’s cold, very cold out there. Although some of this snow may melt, the added moisture to the mountains will help when additional snows come as they won’t be absorbed into the ground as quickly.

The forecast is calling for it to warm up a bit this week but autumn is definately here and winter is knocking at the door.

The Canyons Resort, which is near a number of our Utah Vacation Homes Park City based properties, posted a couple of shots showing the recent snow, including this one of their upper peak - 9990 where the snow was nearly 10″ deep.

First photo credit - The Canyons

Second photo credit - The Canyons/Summer Harbertson

Unlike most towns, aside from Main Street and lower Park Avenue, old town Park City is void of sidewalks.

Built in a canyon with the majority of Old Town spread up the mountain side to the west that is the flank of Park City Mountain Resort, the challenge is how to get from cross street to cross street to make your way to and from Main Street where all the action is.

The answer is a number of stairs that leave Main Street or Park Avenue and climb the mountainside, stopping off at each cross street.  Each stairway has it’s own character, some being covered by trees, others adjacent to homes and other buildings.

Often times vacationers don’t know that these stairs exist and become frustrated with driving the few blocks to main street from properties like Upper Norfolk or perhaps Top of Main.

So when you come to Park City this winter or perhaps next summer, be sure to walk to main street and check out a few of the stairs that give a unique experience of seeing Park City.