Vail, CO vs Park City, UT - skiers and non-skier and extracurricular activities
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Anonymous
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Hello
Planning a ski trip in January over MLK for 6 nights. Kids are (10yo), my wife is not a skier but will participate in just about any winter activity but skiing (snowmobiling, snow shoeing, cross-country, ice skating, etc). I currently have a reservation at the Marriott in Park City. No flights yet. I was cruising the internet today and found comparable lodging at Vail with air was about $1500 less than than the same for Park City. Is Park City worth it? Flights to Park City are also seem less convenient - there are a few non-stops but they leave here at 7am! and leave park City really early or late. I looked at 1 stop flights, the times are better but with the added 1-2hrs that takes away the convenience of Park City to the airport as our total trip for both would likely be about the same. If Vail I would probably rent a car and drive. Shares shuttle is about $315 vs rental of $500. Would my non skier be just as happy at Vail -- visiting a spa and shopping on days we ski? Is there lots of snowmobiling, snow shoeing, cross-country skiing and ice skating in Vail? Good eats in Vail for dinners? |
Anonymous
| Vail and Park City are completely different, both on and off the slopes. What other ski places do you like or dislike? |
Anonymous
What do you mean completely different? It's been 20 yrs since I have been skiing in CO or UT so I'm really not sure. I was looking for somewhere that a non skier would also enjoy. The response I often get is Park City, Breckenridge, Aspen or Vail. |
Anonymous
| Which Marriott in Park City? The Marriott on Sidewinder? That hotel suuuuuucks. I travel to PC for work a lot and end up there, but I'd stay pretty much anywhere else. Every room feels like it's a dungeon, totally not updated, though the lobby is nice. |
Anonymous
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18:25 here - if you're looking for a different hotel that usually has reasonable rates, check out the Newpark Resort. It's closer to the highway, but really new, great rooms, and the bus to the slopes goes right there. You can easily walk to a ton of shopping right around there, catch a bus around town, or easily Uber. The Marriott on Sidewinder isn't really a better location, it's closer to downtown but still not going to be comfortable to walk that distance for your mom so you'd end up grabbing the bus or an uber anyway.
Lots of hotels more awesome than the Newpark, but most are way more expensive. If the rates aren't crazy, Newpark has a 1 bedroom suite that is AWESOME with a full living room, kitchen, and individual hot tubs out on an outside balcony. |
Anonymous
| Would you be flying into Eagle County Airport or Denver and driving? If the latter, I'd go to PC just to avoid that drive. You didn't ask this, but you may also want to consider Steamboat if you can take advantage of the direct flights on Saturdays. Steamboat has a lot of activities for non-skiers and has snowshoeing trails on the mountain from what I remember so you can meet for lunch. I haven't been to Vail in 20 years so can't comment on that but I think the town of Steamboat is nicer than PC. It is a little more authentic and has more to do - including an amazing hot spring. But I prefer the skiing at Deer Valley so I'd go to (the town of) PC if it was up to me. Skiing without snowboarders is amazing. |
Anonymous
| There’s a ton to do in PC and a great free bus. Also nothing beats only driving half an hour after a day of flying. |
Anonymous
| You could save a lot by flying into Salt Lake City and renting a car. Park City is 45-60 minutes away. |
Anonymous
wait is there another alternative? can you even fly directly to park city? is that how the .1% live? |
Anonymous
I assume the OP means flying to SLC although odd that there aren’t convenient flights. I think PC and Vail are comparable for non skiers although agree that the Marriott is not great. One plus of PC is the Olympic sites, which can be fun. Vail is more compact, PC is pretty spread out and you’d want a car. Both have plenty of good restaurants. I’d probably pick Vail if it’s cheaper. There is a nonstop flight to Eagle from Dulles that’s worth looking into. |
Anonymous
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Park City is great but it really *should* be cheaper than Vail. If you are getting better rates into Vail, I cannot think of a reason to choose Park City. The above assumes flights into Eagle. |
Anonymous
| Vail will be crazy full that weekend with Denver area locals. Park City less so. That will make a big difference for the skiers. Advantage PC given MLK weekend timing. Otherwise I could go either way. |
Anonymous
| OP here. It is the Marriott Summit Watch on Main St. Looks pretty good. |
Anonymous
It was the mention of inconvenient flight times that made me assume OP was trying to get directly to Park City, not SLC! My brother lives in Salt Lake and I don't feel like there's an extreme lack of options or that the times are exceptionally inconvenient. It's a 4 hour flight--it's gonna take up a big chunk of the day no matter what. |
Anonymous
| Vail is significantly more expensive for lift tickets, etc. . |