Straight from SLC airport to ...

O

ondeadlin

New member
Fellas, my daughter and I will be arriving in SLC on Jan. 3, around 10 a.m., and want to make the most of our first day. She's 5 and, in our recent trip to Breck, handled easy blues very well, so we'd be looking for the area that is:

A) Closest to the airport
B) Heaviest on greens and blue blues.

Thoughts?

Thanks!
 
I recommend Solitude. Get your lift tickets at Canyon Sports or other ski shops that sell discounted tickets on your way.
 
Actually, Alta, Brighton or Solitude would all be good bets. And all sell vouchers at the shops at a discount. Canyon Sports mentioned by Sharon is adjacent to the entrance to BCC.
 
Thanks, Marc!

First trip to Utah. Really looking forward to it, although it's a father-daughter thing ,not a hardcore powder run. I'll let you guys know how it turns out
 
Admin":342wujbq said:
Actually, Alta, Brighton or Solitude would all be good bets. And all sell vouchers at the shops at a discount. Canyon Sports mentioned by Sharon is adjacent to the entrance to BCC.
Click to expand...
The Lift House ski shop is more or less adjacent to the mouth of BCC. Canyon Sports on Ft. Union Blvd (7000 South) is around 1900 East - a couple of miles to the west. REI at 3300 South 3300 East is another source for discount lift tix.
 
My bad yet again - Marc_C is right, I was thinking of the Lift House. Same voucher price at all shops, though.
 
I have picked up discount lift tickets while waiting for baggage at the SLC airport. Not always as good as the local shop deals by a few dollars -- but why get cheap -- gives you something to do besides waiting for skis.

The Breckenridge Peak 9 blues are really easy. Almost green.

I would go to the following:

The best. Alta. The Ablion Basin sector is really nice, easy-going and alpine-feeling. The main groomers off of Sugarloaf too. Highly recommended.

Brighton. Very-easy skiing place. Lots of obvious low intermediate cruising.

All the Park City resorts can give you what you want.

Canyons is very nice. (But you have to negotiate a parking lot gondola and then a second gondola to get to really nice terrain).

I would avoid Snowbird. And to a lesser extent, Solitude too. The Solitude HS Quad runs are too blue steep. And it's beginner complex can feel small (especially when Alta can feel so exspansive).
 
I would lean to Park City. Lots of easy blues that Adam handled comfortably at age 4. And doesn't PC give you a free lift ticket when you show a flight boarding pass from the same day?

I agree with Chris that Snowbird, Solitude blues are on the steep side, also many of Deer Valley's. Snowbasin and the Canyons have a lot of both easy and steeper blues, so that would be a good test to see what she can handle.

Alta and Brighton have some nice easy blues (and almost certainly the best snow), just not as many as Snowbasin or the Park City group.
 
Tony Crocker":2gfax5n4 said:
Alta and Brighton have some nice easy blues (and almost certainly the best snow), just not as many as Snowbasin or the Park City group.
Click to expand...

I don't know that I agree with this. I've always raved about the Sunnyside and Cecret chairs' learning terrain, broad and expansive greens that allow the beginner to share the high alpine experience. Consider as well that Vail Ridge offers some blue and black diversity to Sunnyside, too. Add in the cruisers off Sugarloaf and Supreme, and you have a ton of blue-square cruising at Alta...and that's just half the resort, not even taking into account the blues on Collins. That said, the blues on Sugarloaf and the lower part of Collins can get a bit busy for me to feel comfortable with a 5 year-old in tow.

But that still leaves Sunnyside, Cecret and Supreme. Blue squares like Big Dipper off Supreme are my low-intermediate wife's favorites. And Sunnyside is free for anyone from 3pm to 4:30 pm every day.
 
Thanks for outstanding feedback everyone. Really great.

I'd forgotten about the free first day lift deal at Park City, and since we're staying there, we'll probably hit either the Canyons or Park City Resort on the first day (got a boarder with us, so DV is out), and then perhaps try out some of your other suggestions on later days.

It's a bit of a sampling trip in anticipation of a week-plus in the future.
 
I would recommend brighton or alta on the salt lake side, brighton would probably have more of the blue groomers you're looking for. The Park City Area resorts, ..which, despite being on the other side of the range, are not much farther, (10-15min more?), and are also good. Snowbird has no easy terrain. Solitudes beginner/intermediate terrain is somewhat limited. Their blue groomers are surprisingly steep, and could be black at other mtns, in my opinion.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top