Memorable Things To Do In Park City Utah

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The Beginners Guide To Sundance

Jill Adler Leave a comment

My parents called tonight. They’re coming to Sundance. I choked a bit. I’ve lived in Park City since 1990 and this is a first. “Are you sure?” I queried. “Sundance is a zoo. There’s no parking, all of the restaurants are booked, it’s even more expensive around here than normal, the tickets are probably sold out….” Was there a Beginners Guide To Sundance out there anywhere?

“Your father and I want to see snow and Europe’s too far,” said Mom. “Plus, I’ve always wanted to stay at the St. Regis.” My folks are in their 80s. Back in the day, our vacations revolved around skiing but they retired the sticks decades ago. Still, you can’t help but miss the mountains in winter when you’ve spent almost your whole life playing in them.

I considered this new information. Parents who don’t ski but love film, snow and mountains. Sundance might just be the perfect vacation. When they’ve visited Park City in the past they’ve been bored. This is a town for adventure junkies. Once you’ve done the outlet mall, gotten a massage and fed on the “fine dining” there’s not much else for retired skiers around here.

I started my research. It’s one thing to have a media pass to Sundance for 20 years but clearly another to join as a general attendee. How then do I advise my parents, your average tourists, to make the most out of their time at Sundance? Looks like I was going to have to devise my own Beginners Guide To Sundance.

The Beginners Guide To Sundance Starts With Lodging

You won’t have a place to stay if you don’t have a place to stay. In other words, book your lodging early and don’t be picky. Everything in Park City is overpriced and still gets gobbled up the closer you get to those last ten days in January. My parents aren’t into crashing in a 3 bedroom place with four other people so they got a room at the St Regis with timeshare points that could have bought them a month in Hawaii. You can get a place in Salt Lake City for much less but the highway commute in January can be a nightmare if it dumps. It would suck to be stuck in a whiteout on I-80 while your movie played. BTW, the benefit of having a condo over a hotel room is the ability to cook. You can save a fortune on not dining out.

The Beginners Guide To Sundance Transpo: Call Uber

Photo by Michael R. Perry

No, Mom, you do not need a car. Split a cab, call Uber, book a shuttle. You DO NOT want a rental car in Park City during Sundance. The City shuts down Main Street to traffic, there’s zero parking available unless you want to pay $50 for lots that are normally free, and the congestion is ridiculous.

I hitched a ride from Park Avenue to the top of Main (two miles tops) last year and it took over an hour. The brightside was I got to spend that time chatting with a fascinating, charmingly abrasive, post production supervisor from New York who worked on several of my favorite films.

Park City brings in extra buses to handle the transportation. The free system runs like clockwork and rivals any you would find in a large metropolis. They run late into the night so you don’t need to worry about being stranded and the cast of characters on those buses- from local ski bums to Netflix execs- are priceless.

The Beginners Guide To Sundance Ticketing

Get a Sundance Ticket package if you can afford one. My parents will see as many movies as they can but if you don’t plan ahead individual tickets (which go on sale Jan. 17 for non-locals) sell out fast and you wind up standing in a cold waitlist line hoping someone doesn’t show.

There is a new ewaitlist system that eliminates standing in line TWICE to MAYBE get in but you’ll still have to be at the theater at least 30 minutes prior to showtime. You’ll also need to be somewhere with a strong signal. The waitlist opens one hour prior to the screening and if you get a number higher than 50 your chances of actually getting in are slim to none. You can often buy tickets off scalpers standing in front of the theater. Patrons wind up with extra tickets because friends or clients couldn’t make it in time or they decided to go to a party instead. I’ve gotten many a free ticket this way.

The Festival packages are pricey for non locals ($650) but in addition to 10 tickets ($250 value), they include Festival credentials for two peeps.

You can only plant your butt in a dark theater for so long. The pass gets you into the rocking ASCAP music café, the Cinema Café, the Filmmakers Lodge, and several other “credential-only” venues that host VIP events like cocktail receptions and filmmaker panel discussions. You also get a ticket to the opening night party but it’s not a bonus if you dislike blaring dance music and drunk 20-somethings.

The Cast of Sing Street by Bart Ryker

The Beginners Guide To Sundance Dining

“We want to go to the restaurants and experience the scene,” my Mom added. So does everyone else, Mom. If you get to Park City without reservations you will be ordering Domino’s and Davanza’s. Start booking the minute you know you’re coming. Three nights in town equals three reservations.

Private parties book out most of the restaurants. Still, the best spots to celeb spot if you can get in are the Riverhorse Café, Chimayo, Zoom, Yuki Yama and Prime Steakhouse. I recommended St Regis’ J & G Grill to my folks for the first Saturday night of the Fest to avoid the mayhem of Main. You can also eat someplace off Main that doesn’t take reservations – like Sammy’s Bistro, El Chubasco, The Blind Dog and our newest yummy Ganesh Indian Restaurant. If you just want something to eat and you want out of town anyway, locals head to Kimball Junction where you have a ton of options from Five Guys to Ghidotti’s.

That’s it for this first leg of our journey. Stay tuned for my Mom’s next phone call!

Alta’s Opening Day Delivers. The Ski Season is On!

Jill Adler Leave a comment

Photo by Marc Guido, Firsttracks Online

Good things come to those who wait is the phrase that comes to mind. The powder slashes and frenzied smiles on skiers’ faces today echoed that belief. While other resorts in Utah eeked out a bunny run or two for opening day this past week, Alta held off as usual until they could promise an Opening Day like any other ski day (in Little Cottonwood, of course).

The crowd and anticipation grew. It was the kind of brutally cold morning where your smartphone craps out instantly but your hands are too cold to point and shoot anyway. It was also the kind of cold where standing around is greeted by whines and expletives. But not this morning. Alta passholders mingled with day ticketers (who would soon get their money’s worth) as the civilized line grew.

Why Wait?

Alta waited until now for opening day to make sure you weren’t just going to arrive for a few lightening laps and leave. When you buy a day ticket here you actually have a real ski day. Alta’s tickets are $88, by the way, and will climb to $96 by Christmas.

Collins, Wildcat and Sugarloaf are running but Alta itself is basically four chairs- Collins, Wildcat, Sugarloaf and Supreme. You can ski the entire 2200 acres of mountain off those. Plus, when Alta decides to open Collins and Wildcat, you’re not restricted to a couple of greens and easy blue groomed runs. No, you have the entire unrestricted frontside to play including Ballroom.

Photo courtesy Marc Guido, Firsttracks Online

Where They Went On Opening Day

People ripped under the liftline, hiked Gunsite, skied trees. There was enough base to keep you floating and away from dangerous stumps and rocks. I’m usually wary about offpiste terrain this early in the season but no one moaned about core shots. Nearly four feet of fresh white stuff fell over the week turning what looked like a dismal November into one filled with promise. There are snow flurries expected Monday and Tuesday and our next big storm is forecast for next Friday.

The backside is still officially closed but if you make it up this weekend you just might be one of the first to track it out.

Say “Hello!” to winter. ” J

Hilton Salt Lake City Showcases Tech Travel

Jill Adler Leave a comment

I raced up to the Executive Floor. This was my first time inside the Hilton Salt Lake City Center despite it having staked a spot downtown since 1997. The business travelers’ hotel promoting advanced tech travel was like nothing I had expected.

I’ve been inside our other downtown hotels and it’s always the usual. Big lobby, big rooms, ballrooms for conferences, a pool and gym somewhere, and one or two restaurants. I’ve attended the Build Your Own Blog Conference at the Little America, the bi-annual meetings and breakfasts at the Marriott and Hotel Monaco for the Outdoor Retailers Show and even romanced the night away at both the historic Peery and Grand America hotels. But the Hilton Center is its own convention center that you’ll never notice.

What’s New At The Hilton Salt Lake City Center

The 18-story complex on the corner of 300 South and West Temple, mere steps from Temple Square, the Salt Palace Convention Center and the sparkling City Creek Shopping Center, recently underwent a multi-million dollar renovation with little fanfare- at least it wasn’t picked up on my radar. About the only thing I knew the Hilton for was the elegant Spencer’s Steakhouse.

The relaxingly upscale, 479 modern guest rooms and 20 suites are also pet and child friendly (kids up to 18 stay free; pets are $25/nt up to $50 max). There’s 24,000 sq. ft. of flexible meeting space, including a 52-seat tiered seminar theater and a 5,000 sq. ft. pre-function foyer space; business center, outdoor and indoor decks everywhere, state-of-the-art fitness equipment, a sizeable indoor heated pool, Spencer’s and a Starbuck’s. Oh, did I forget to mention all of the happy employees who have been there for decades?

Hilton actually has a Sugar Artist:

All of this might still have gone unnoticed had I not been invited to attend a Tech Travel bloggers luncheon. I have the Consumer Technology Association, Techlicious and Traveling Mom to thank for sponsoring this grand introduction- in more ways than one (er, won?). The lunch was their opportunity to showcase a little culinary art, hotel architecture and tech trends for the holiday season.

At the end of the lunch there was a raffle. Don’t laugh. I joked with the ladies at my table that “If they don’t call my name, it must not be in the bowl!” Just then, the General Manager of the Hilton announced my name! I had won the grand prize of a night’s stay in the Conrad Suite, $150 to the new Eccles Theatre, $100 to City Creek, passes for ice skating at the Gallivan Center and a gift basket of delectable local snacks and treats. The Hotel also gifted everyone there with a Spencer’s and Starbuck’s giftcard. I felt like I had just been called down on the Price is Right.

Hilton Salt Lake City Center Isn’t Just For Business and Tech Travel

The new renovations brought all sorts of connectedness to business travelers from plugs in the lobby furniture and high-speed wifi to keyless entry check-in where you use your smartphone as the key to your room. But here’s the deal. No, really, the DEAL. Business peeps travel during the week. You want a deal at an executive hotel like this? Stay on the weekends. You’ll find rates as low as $75/nt and all sorts of family packages. With winter (hopefully) coming, you might be looking for a place to stay on your next Utah ski trip. Even if you can’t afford the Conrad Suite, don’t overlook the Hilton Salt Lake City Center.

BTW, I was NOT paid to write this post! 🙂

Travel/Outdoors

Powder Mountain: Largest Ski Resort in the Country

Jill Adler Leave a comment

Powder Mountain Resort is just a few weeks away from leapfrogging over Park City to become the largest ski resort in the country. When two new SkyTrac lifts, “Village Lift” and “Mary’s Lift,” turn this December, the sleepy area in Ogden, Utah, will have 8464 total skiable acres including their epic side country terrain.

Of course, with all that mountain you need a village to support the “Largest Ski Resort”. The area’s owners, aka Summit, have plans for a new town in the saddle that intersects the top of three bowls at 8600 feet. Already, there are 6 miles of new roads that will lead to a version of the Swiss town of Wengen where visitors are surrounded by surreal mountain, meadow and Great Salt Lake views.

It’ll be like a Spiritual Alpine Disneyland with a main street of pop-up stores, micro-apartments, farm-to-table restaurants, yoga boot-camps, public art, media labs and educational outlets offering training in everything from transcendental meditation, software development and athletic performance. The environment will embody Summit’s vision of staving off overcrowding and over development while creating a hub for millennial entrepreneurship where ideas spark “positive global change”.

Largest Ski Resort With Small Numbers

As part of the mission of freedom, the owners swear they’ll cap lift ticket sales. This allows for the lowest skier density of any major resort in North America. In other words, you’ll have one skier per acre rather than the average 15-20 skiers/acre. “We strive to maintain the uncrowded, wide open, adventurous experience Pow Mow is known for,” said Mark Schroetel, General Manager of Powder Mountain Resort. “By…capping ticket sales at 2,000 per day and establishing a limit of 1,000 adult season pass holders annually, we aim to keep our skier density of 1 acre per skier.”

Powder Mountain’s New Lift Locations

The new lifts in Lefty’s Canyon and Mary’s Bowl will access terrain previously accessible only by all-day guided cat skiing adventures. The resort has always been a funky place with little grooming; a throwback to the days when skiing and skiers were rugged and real. There is now efficient grooming for novices and intermediates in strategic spots but it’s still a place wild with powder stashes and side country adventure. The Lightning Ridge, Rain Tree and the newly added Lefty’s snow cats will still escort you to out of bounds style action and you can even opt for a full day snowcat expedition to Davenport, an area known for steep canyon descents and deep, untracked powder.

Powder Season Passholders Get Copper Mountain Privileges

Colorado’s Copper Mountain Resort and Powder Mountain have partnered for 2016/17 to give season passholders three free days at each area.

Copper Mountain offers 2,490 acres of terrain and averages 304 inches of snowfall during the winter season, and is also known for their award-winning terrain parks while Powder is at 8,464 total skiable acres.

“We are thrilled to welcome Powder Mountain to the Copper Season Pass,” said Jesse True, Senior Vice President at Copper Mountain Resort.

Put Powder on your 2017 Do-To List!

A Wandering: Beachwood Canyon’s Secret Stairs

Jill Adler Leave a comment

Just because we are in one of the most populated cities in the country I wasn’t going to stop hunting for adventure and exercise. The gist of Los Angeles is that you spend more time in your car than out of it so your views are often limited to metallic rear ends, movie billboards and palm trees. Yelp to the rescue. Turns out there’s an urban adventure that lies just beneath the Hollywood sign.

Hiking to the Sign itself should be on every Cali visitor’s To Do list but that’s not what I’m talking about. We parked the car across from the Beachwood Market in the Hollywood Hills. It was 92 degrees and my already overtired 9 year old was whining that she’d rather get a slushy than walk. My sister was her backer. I pressed on. I have three days left here, dammit, and we’re doing The Secret Stairs. All over the city are these steep staircases of 100-plus steps. In fact there are some 450 staircases scattered throughout Los Angeles.

Back in the early 1920s, before everyone had wheels, the “Hollywoodland” people would move between their homes and the city via these challenging stone staircases. The real estate boom at the time centered around the burgeoning movie business. Movie stars, industry folks and investors were relocating to the Golden State to “make it”. Developers Tracy Shoults and S.H. Woodruff saw an opportunity to create a new neighborhood for celebrities and upper middle class to hide away in a secluded canyon. They carved out winding roads, built retaining walls and planted a 45-foot high sign complete with 4,000 light bulbs to advertise it – Hollywoodland. At night, people from miles away would see it flash “Holly,” then “Wood,” then “Land” and then the entire word, “Hollywoodland.” The sign fell into disrepair by the Great Depression and it wasn’t until the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce restored the sign, minus the last four letters, in 1949 that it became somewhat of a monument and replaced and repaired over the years.

Actors, writers and musicians like Madonna, Charlie Chaplin, Humphrey Bogart, Heath Ledger, Busby Berkeley, Kevin Bacon, Anna Kendrick, Keeanu Reeves, Peter Tork and Jack Black all lived among the staircases of Hollywoodland at one time or another. Musician Moby has a three-acre estate at the top of Belden Avenue overlooking Lake Hollywood.

Most of the existing LA staircases like the one in the Pacific Palisades have become outdoor gyms where hoards of yoga-panted pretty people line up to stretch and do vertical laps for their quad workout. These particular steps in Beachwood Canyon, however, are extra special; for one, they’re quiet; for another, they are a hike through Hollywood history.

The stairs are unmarked and if you’re not looking for them you won’t find them. Some brilliant “explorer” decided to link them (and publish the trek) on a connect-the-dots sort of walk that creates a marvelously cool 2-mile loop of uphills, downhills, bends and steep climbs.

These enchanting granite and wrought iron staircases weave in and out of winding narrow roads that carry you among the whimsical homes and fortresses of the original Hollywood elite and provide inspiring views of Griffith Park Observatory, the Hollywood Sign and all of the LA basin depending on the street. I’m not going to give you a detailed map of these stairs. You can download it here. That’s what we used.

Instead, I will tell you about our walk which ended with Sage telling me it was one of the most fun hikes she’s ever done. We came armed with a small water bottle, Camelbak backpack, my PDF map, a camera and the dog, and off we went. We looked like the tourist cliché. Sage groaned at the site of the first stairs. I didn’t pull punches. I told her we had about five more similar shots to tackle before we got back to the car; over 800 steps. She wasn’t happy with me. Tough.

The heat and the effort were enough to make any couchsurfer whine but after the first flight and the banter we shared about the historic architecture, the houses we loved and those we didn’t; the trek became like a game. You had to keep your eyes peeled as you didn’t know what you might see next; Buddhist statues, precarious hillside homes on stilts, yucca trees and Prince Valiant murals.

The stairs have somewhat fallen into disrepair despite being designated a historic landmark so be careful if you hike them. They are still solid but eroded and cracking in spots and often covered in pine needles and dead leaves that might make the careless falter. When you pop onto the narrow, curvy roads also be wary of cars. You would hate to have your pooch run down in such an enchanted locale.

There are warning/no trespassing signs planted in front of the majority of homes but the few folks we encountered were nothing like their literal watchdogs. They were warm and friendly; interested to hear where we were from and what brought us on this makeshift hike.

The map eventually spit us back at my car. In less than two hours we passed away the hot afternoon as if going on a scavenger hunt. Auntie Julie, Sage and I had so much fun they nearly forgot they were forced to exercise. My plan worked!

P.S. If you aren’t up for a workout take a drive but I will call you a pansy if I hear about it.

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