Parc City; wintersport questions by 4 dutch guys (Salt Lake City, Sandy: appointed, rentals)

[Burton_Rob]

Hello forum,

We would like to ask you a few wintersport facts, which we couldn't find on other websites.

We are a party of 4 guys (snowboarders) who wants to go snowboarding in march 2010.
We have some questions;
- is the snowconditions 'OK' in march?
- is the - by bus orso- a long way to travel to Salt lake city?
- anyone who can give us more (snowboard) information, many thanks in advanced.

Kind Regards,
Rob (who's looking forward to board in Utah!)

[easternerDC]

March is one of the BEST times for skiing in UT. In my opinion, that is when some of the best snow conditions are here.

Are your plans flexible? Or do you really want to ski in the Park City resorts only? It is not a terribly long drive to Park City from downtown Salt Lake City. Are you going to be renting a car? Or do you plan on only using the bus system?

There is a pretty reliable bus system to get from SLC area hotels to the resorts in Little Conttonwood and Big Cottonwood Canyons for skiing at Solitude, Brighton, Alta or Snowbird?

Have you thought about Solitude, Brighton or Snowbird? All three offer outstanding terrain - but in and out of bounds. Snowbird is probably the most advanced terrain, and not so much geared towards beginners. Solitude is one of my favorite places.

[altajoe]

Yes, March is perfect.

Just remember that Snowboards are not permitted at ALTA or at Deer Valley.

So, you basically have 2 choices. Pick a hotel in downtown Salt Lake City that is close to the bus or rent a car.

Personally, I'd rent a condo in Sandy and a car and each day go to a different area:

Solitude and Brighton in the Big Cottonwood Canyon / Snowbird in Little Cottonwood Canyon / Park City and The Canyons would all be a 20- 45 minute drive. Depending on the length of your stay, I'd also seriously consider driving an hour north and skiing Powder Mountain / Snowbasin.

So, that's 7 areas all within an hours drive.

[altajoe]

Also, you might want to post the same question in the Salt Lake City sub-forum. You might get a few more responses there.

[alexei27]

I strongly second checking out Snowbasin and Powder Mountain as well. Its an hour north (maybe a little more)...but if you can go on a weekday you won't regret it!

[skibarbie]

Historically, March is the snowiest month. That said, we will now get no snow this March.
I agree that renting a car/suv would be in the best interest of your snosport goals.
The one great thing about staying up in PC is that if you all are planning on any restaurant/bar going, you can more than likely walk back to your condo or hop the free bus-don't want any DUI type things going on that will make your trip not so fun. I don't think that getting home in SLC is quite so easy-or cheap.
Check out Canyon Sports here in the valley for discount lift tickets for almost all Utah resorts.
Jans in Park City sold discount tickets for The Canyons and Snowbasin last season..

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by altajoe

Yes, March is perfect.

Just remember that Snowboards are not permitted at ALTA or at Deer Valley.

Just curious, altajoe... Do you just ski at Alta or do you work there?

[lolagranola]

Historically, March is the snowiest month. That said, we will now get no snow this March.

LoL!

[altajoe]

Originally Posted by Katzpur

Just curious, altajoe... Do you just ski at Alta or do you work there?

Just ski there, although their recent "upgrading" has me less that thrilled, so I find myself at Snowbasin and Powder Mountain more and more.

[Mtn. States Resident]

Originally Posted by Burton_Rob

Hello forum,

We would like to ask you a few wintersport facts, which we couldn't find on other websites.

We are a party of 4 guys (snowboarders) who wants to go snowboarding in march 2010.
We have some questions;
- is the snowconditions 'OK' in march?
- is the - by bus orso- a long way to travel to Salt lake city?
- anyone who can give us more (snowboard) information, many thanks in advanced.

Kind Regards,
Rob (who's looking forward to board in Utah!)

Hey Rob,

Loved you identifying yourself as "4 dutch guys." Given that info, along with your request to know more about snosports in March, I immediately thought of the Utah Olympics. I had the pleasure of meeting about "4 dutch guys - maybe 6, and (I can't remember) how many females who represented Holland in the Oval Skating Events. I have great pics as those I met were very friendly, willing to pose for someone in UT and did their best to win.

Fortunately, these disappointed Olympians had a great sense of humor and ejoyed people, as they didn't get too discouraged at their time at the event. They didn't qualify for further rounds.

So I hope you and your friends will bring the same great personalities and love of fun.

I think you've been given some excellent recommendations from earlier posts. I would strongly encourage you, if possible, to either stay closer to skiing (lots of different types of accomodations, doesn't have to be a hotel in downtown SLC). If $ is a concern, you may do better staying more in the Sandy area and either linking with public transporation via the Sandy routes, or if possible, rent your own SUV.

Since the Olympics, more hotels, B and B's and other rentals are available in the Park City/Heber area.

I wish you a wonderful time when you visit. You may consider a brief site seeing trip of the different Olympic venues, among other things, if you want something else to do. However, while most are close in Park City and downtown SLC, others are about an hour away. Still, if you want a change, it's something people sometimes forget UT has hosted and built

In honor of the fun athletes I met at the Olympics Skating Oval,
HAVE A FUN [/color]AND SAFE TIME!

Mtn. States RESIDENT (MSR)