Park City Utah Summer Vacation Guide

Park City Utah Summer Vacation Guide

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Spending your summer vacation in Park City?  Lucky you!  Not only does our resort town offer gorgeous views and mountains just waiting to be explored, but it also has a significant art scene, excellent restaurants, and plenty of family fun. Read on for our Park City Vacation Guide, with some local insights.

Order your Groceries Before You Arrive
When you first get into town, you may be feeling tired from a day of traveling, or excited to get out and start exploring. Either way, grocery shopping is not going to seem like the most appealing way to spend your time. Before you arrive, place an order with Stacey’s Grocery Services, and let them take care of the food buying for you. With their careful shopping and use of coupons, Stacey’s will save you not only time and hassle, but money as well. They buy what you request from over five Park City stores and respect your specifications for local, Kosher, organic, or gluten free.  They’ll even hit the State Liquor Store, disproving the common misconception that you can’t get a drink in Utah.

Adjust to the Dry Climate and High Elevation
Park City, Utah is considered a high desert environment at around 7,000 feet above sea level. Because there is little moisture in the air, you’ll need to drink more water here than you would, say, in Atlanta. Unfortunately, it’s common for first time visitors to get dehydrated which can then lead to altitude sickness, a surefire way to ruin a vacation. The best rule of thumb is to drink water often, and before you even feel thirsty.

The high elevation also means that the air has less oxygen in it, causing out-of-towners to get out of breath more easily than they might back home. Take it easy your first day or two up here, and save the more intense physical activities for after your body has had a little time to get used to these new conditions. Olympians train at altitude for a reason – because it’s harder. So cut yourself some slack if your morning run or afternoon bike ride seems more difficult here than it does back home.

Dine Out
Even with the convenience of Stacey’s Grocery Services, you’ll also want to experience some of the many delicious restaurants in Park City. From casual to upscale, Japanese to Mexican, there are lots of great places to dine and enjoy the mountain town night life.

Main Street is always a popular destination, and in recent years, restaurateurs have taken advantage of the mountain views by building outdoor decks to increase al fresco dining options. Just remember to bring along a sweater. Once the sun dips behind the mountains, temperatures can quickly drop as well.

Appreciate the Arts
Park City’s Main Street is known, not only for the multitude of restaurants, but also for a wide variety of art galleries. Enjoy a few hours of strolling among the galleries located on Main Street and beyond.

If you’re lucky enough to be in town on the last Friday of the month, check out the Gallery Stroll from 6-9pm where local galleries provide refreshments for art aficionados during this self-guided tour.

And Park City is really the place to be if you want to enjoy outdoor events such as concerts almost every summer evening, and food and art markets a couple times a week as well. Both the Canyons and Deer Valley offer regular outdoor concerts, and the weekly Park City Farmers Market and Park Silly Market are not to be missed.

Enjoy Mountain Recreation
Hiking, mountain biking, road biking, fly fishing, and rock climbing are all prime activities in and around Park City. The mountain recreation experts at Jans and White Pine Touring can get you set up with the right equipment, point you in the right direction, and even take you on guided tours to help you get the most out of your mountain experience. Whether you’re new to mountain sports or a long time participant, these guides are a wonderful resource.

Share Some Family Fun
Park City Mountain Resort caters to families for summer fun with activities including an alpine slide, an alpine coaster, a zip line, an adventure zone, and a little miners’ park, among other attractions. These outdoor adventures offer something for the youngest kids up to the hard-to-impress teenagers.

While rainy days are rare in Park City, they do happen, mostly just in the late afternoon. The Mine bouldering gym is a great place for all ages to explore rock climbing indoors. If you get hooked and want to try the real thing, there is nothing quite like rock climbing in the Uinta National Forest.

Drink Like a Local
The beer sold in grocery and convenience stores in Utah has a lower alcohol content than beer sold in similar stores in other states. It’s called 3.2 beer because it contains a limit of 3.2% alcohol by weight. You can purchase “regular” beer as well as wine and spirits only at Utah State Liquor Stores (closed on holidays and Sundays) or in restaurants or bars.

Plan Your Next Vacation
With all the great things to see and do in Park City, Utah, you probably won’t have time to experience it all in one week. That’s okay though; come on back, we’d love to see you here again soon!

Kendall Fischer, Content Writer