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High in the mountains and near several lakes, Park City is one of America’s favourite outdoors destinations. Outdoors adventure opportunities there are varied and spectacular. Rock climbing around Park City is incredible. There are numerous mountain biking and hiking trails for people of all abilities. There are several world-class ski hillswithin driving distance, and numerous rivers and lakes for canoeing, rafting, and kayaking. Enough cannot be said about this place.

Park City Location

Park City is located in northern Utah, 51km (32m) south of Salt Lake City.

Geography of Park City

Park City is a city of 45.5 square kilometres (17.6 square miles) with a population of 7500 in the Wasatch Back, are region of the Rocky Mountains in northern Utah. It’s located high in the mountains at an elevation of about 2000m (7000ft). The city is surrounded by high mountains and in close proximity to several world-class ski resorts.

Park City Weather and Climate

The summers in Park City are mild with highs around 22 °C (70°F), and the winters are cold and snowy with lows around -12°C (9°F). There is plenty of snow in the winters here, with an average of 360cm (142in) falling each year.

Park City Description

For a small town, Park City has a huge name. The city has held many memorable events, including many events for the Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympics, and the annual Sundance Film Festival. It has been reported that Park City adds $530 million each year to Utah’s economy through tourism.
Park City’s mountain location makes it a fantastic location for outdoors adventures of all kinds–the best known of which is skiing. Park City is in close proximity to several world-class hills and gets a fantastic annual snowfall. For this reason it is home to the United States Ski Team and is the training ground for the Austrian Freestyle Ski Team.
Park City is quite accessible, located just 58km (36m) from the Salt Lake City International Airport and, as a tourist hot spot, has plenty of restaurants and hotels (although during the busy season Park City hotel reservations are notoriously hard to come by).s

Park City Adventure Highlights

• One of the few via ferrata courses in the US is located nearby in Ogden
• The skiing and snowboarding are world class with 12 resorts close enough for day trips.
• There is a unique warm-water scuba diving opportunity in the Homestead Crater
• There are lots of whitewater rafting companies in Park City offering tours of many local rivers.
• The surrounding mountains are full of trails for hikers, trekkers, and mountain bikers of all levels.

Park City Outdoor Adventure Activities

• Scuba diving
• Snorkeling
• Sailing
• Kitesurfing
• Windsurfing
• Paragliding
• Hang gliding
• Sky diving
• Bungee jumping (nearby in Salt Lake City)
• Hot air ballooning
• Whitewater rafting
• Kayaking (river and lake)
• Canoeing
• Caving and spelunking
• Hiking/trekking (all levels)
• Via Ferrata (nearby in Ogden)
• Ziplining
• Rock climbing (all levels)
• Ice climbing
• Abseiling/rappelling
• Mountain Biking (novice to expert)
• Horseback Riding
• Skiing and snowboarding
• Cross-country skiing
• Snowshoeing

Budget Accomodations in Park City

• Some of the cheapest hostel beds in Park City (just under $50) can be found at the AAE Chateau Lodge. Rooms for about half that price can be found in Salt Lake City, 58km (36m) away in Salt Lake City.
Check out this site for more information about hostels in Park City.

Travel Insurance

I like to use World Nomads. It’s not too expensive and signing up is fast and straightforward. They also have pretty good coverage for sports equipment like surf and snowboards, but it varies depending on your country of origin, so be sure double check. You can get a free quote on their website.

Park City Photos

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Images (in order) courtesy tomkellyphoto, a4gpa, Lil’ El, DennyMont, tomkellyphoto, josephdepalma, tomkellyphoto, and Tom/Hancks on Flickr.

Park City Map

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Disclosure: If you purchase insurance, book a hostel, or purchase one of the recommended books on this page using the links provided, I will receive a small commission. I do not, however, recommend these products simply to make money. I recommend World Nomads travel insurance because I use it myself and feel that they offer a good product that suits my needs at a fair price. I recommend Hostelbookers.com because they have the cheapest booking prices that I have seen online and a large selection, and I recommend the selected books from Amazon.com because they have reputations for quality information and were up to date at the time of writing. If you have found my blog useful I hope that you will consider purchasing some of these products using the links on this page to help me to continue providing free information about adventure travel around the world.

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