The ins n' outs of Skiing Park City Mountain Resort

The ins n’ outs of Skiing Park City Mountain Resort

Picking a ski resort in Utah can be hard given all offer different experiences, skill levels, and snow conditions. Within minutes you could be up Little Cottonwood or in Park City hitting the slopes, but where to start?

Go Big or Go Home

If you are looking to go big, PCMR is the biggest ski resort in the USA with 43 lifts and over 330 trails. This ski resort offers terrain for every skill level, expert to beginner. With so much terrain, it will take you more than one day to explore this mountain.

Which Side of PCMR to explore & Where to Park

Just a few years back Park City Mountain Resort combined with their neighboring resort, Canyons, when Vail Corp. took over management. Thus, leading to more terrain in one pass.

There are two sides of the mountain where visitors can park, keep in mind when skiing you are not limited to one, there is a gondola that Skiers can ride which connects resorts.

Canyons Village

Parking/ Getting to the lifts

Canyons Village is the first parking lot you will see when coming from Parleys canyon. If you are arriving anywhere after 9 AM, park here. This side of the mountain has a lot more parking that is available throughout the day. If you’re lucky you might even get a front-row spot!

From the parking lot, you have to take 2 gondolas up the mountain to reach the lifts, if you are a more advanced skier, you could try taking the Orange Bubble to skip the line and potentially ski more (I would suggest this). The Orange Bubble is located on the right side of the main plaza, pass the gondola.

Mountain Skill Levels

Canyons Village is more for intermediate/ advanced skiers, with only a few (maybe 2) green runs which seem quite flat, more friendly to first-time skiers. If you are looking to push yourself there are also many mild blues. If you are into park, check out the Park City Mountain side. From there, Canyons Villages offers tougher blues to difficult double blacks.

With lots of lifts be mindful of the time you want to spend skiing vs. waiting/ sitting on the lift. You will catch your day flying by with only have finished few runs if not careful.

Park City Mountain

Parking/ Getting to the lifts

Parking on the PC side is a little more difficult, with far fewer spots than Canyons Village. This part of the mountain is reached by passing Canyons Village (if you are coming from Parleys canyon) and heading about 10 mins longer. From Provo Canyon, you will reach this side first. If you are planning to ski all day (especially on a Saturday), you better show up an hour before the resort opens to ensure any luck in finding a spot to park.

The pro about PC is that you can pretty much ski right to your car, whereas Canyons Village, you have to take one if not two gondolas back to the parking lot.

Mountain Skill Levels

The Park City Moutain side has a lot more variety when it comes to skill level. The main trail that funnels down to the parking lot is green. There are also many blacks and more difficult blues that you can find your fun on. This side of the mountain offers a few parks, one which has its own lift (Three Kings) and one-off the lift Bonza. Both mountains also offer hiking options if that is the terrain you are looking for.

One con to the PC side is occasionally the lines are ridiculously long. From having less terrain on Park City side, the lifts tend to have more traffic.

The Sweet Spot

The sweet spot at Park City Mountain Resort is parking on the side you want to ski. Yes, exploring is fun but riding on lifts all day is not. In order to get all PCMR has to offer, I would suggest knowing where you want to ski and how long it will take you. Covering the whole mountain in one day is quite impossible unless you are a super fast skier and the lines are in your favor, just pick a side and go have fun!

Where to get Food on the Mountain

Canyons Village

There are many lodges on the Canyons side where you can find food, though these tend to be quite pricey. If you go down to the main plaza, you may be able to find better-priced food. If you don’t mind the price, at the bottom of Tombstone Express there is a bbq joint that always smells delicious.

Park City Mountain

On the Park City side of the mountain, the Town Lift will take you straight to Park City Main Street where there are lots of restaurants to grab a bite to eat. A super fun option that is easy to pop off your skis and walk a few minutes to is Davanza’s. You can enjoy a slice of pizza or a burger for a couple of bucks, after one time, you’ll be going back for more.