Local Lore
The Great Salt Lake is the second-saltiest in the world after the Dead Sea, but some species find it to be a comfortable habitat. While fish can’t live in it, a species of brine shrimp can. These are commercially harvested, and their eggs are sold as prawn food.
CONVENTION CENTERS & FACILITIES
Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center (675,000 sf of meeting and exhibition space, including 515,000 sf contiguous exhibit hall space and 160,000 sf of meeting rooms)
ROOM TAX
Salt Lake City 12.6 percent
Park City 10.35 percent
The St. Regis Deer Valley boasts stunning views
Utah is a state gifted with incredible natural beauty. Even on the streets of Salt Lake City — a safe, clean metropolis with excellent public transportation and venues — many streets end in stunning mountain views. Its nature preserves, including Arches National Park, Zion National Park, and Monument Valley, are some of the most beautiful in the nation.
Utah has some of the best skiing and winter sports destinations in the country, notably Park City, home of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. In the summer, there’s rafting on the Green and Colorado rivers, as well as activities such as mountain biking, horseback riding, and golf.
With the state’s liquor laws loosened in 2009, Salt Lake City is developing an increasingly vibrant dining and nightlife scene to complement the rollicking Park City activities 35 minutes away.
Salt Lake City
In May 2012, The Salt Lake City’s Salt Palace Convention Center became a lot greener, turning on its new 6,000-plus-panel solar energy roof. The 600,000-square-foot, 1.65-megawatt installation is expected to provide 17 percent of the annual energy needs of the central downtown facility, which had already achieved LEED Silver status.
In November 2011, the Natural History Museum of Utah’s $103-million, 163,000-square-foot Rio Tinto Center opened at the University of Utah. Set in the foothills near the university campus, the museum’s signature Canyon space can hold 700 for a reception or 375 seated.
Another new museum is The Leonardo, which blends science, technology, and art to engage visitors’ curiosity about big ideas. Located in Library Square, it opened this past October with a 194-seat auditorium, two event spaces capable of holding 60, and an outdoor courtyard that can hold 500 attendees for a reception. Other spaces are available after hours.
By the end of the year, Salt Lake City’s excellent TRAX light rail system — which has a major station by the convention center — will be extended to the airport, making a direct, 20-minute connection to downtown.
The biggest change to downtown Salt Lake City is the 23-acre City Creek Center development next to Temple Square and the Salt Palace. A mixed-use development with more than 100 stores and restaurants, this “Main Street” is an outdoor shopping center with a retractable roof and city street-like paths.
Park City
On the heels of the London Olympic Games, Park City’s extensive Olympic facilities will be worth a second look. Facilities available include those for skiing, bobsledding, and the luge — there are summer versions of the latter two events — to say nothing of zip lines, ice skating, and (Canadians take note) curling. The Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation has redesigned many venues to be corporate group friendly.
As for hotels, the Washington School House, built in 1889, opened this past December in Park City as a 12-room luxury boutique hotel with a spa and heated pool. The 150-room, ski-in/ski-out Hyatt Escala Lodge at Park City’s restaurant and 10,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor function space were renovated last winter.
In nearby Deer Valley, the 220-room Montage Deer Valley resort opened in late 2010 with ski-in/ski-out access, an Alpine-inspired spa with 29 treatment rooms, and 55,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space, including a 20,000-square-foot event lawn with valley views that stretch 75 miles to the mountains.
Notable Deer Valley properties include the Stein Eriksen Lodge, a Forbes Five-Star, AAA Five-Diamond property which was voted the top resort spa in the continental U.S. in 2011 by Conde Nast Traveler readers. The 177-room St. Regis Deer Valley offers ski-in/ski-out accommodations, a Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant, and 14,500 square feet of indoor/outdoor event space
Elsewhere in the State
An additional destination planners should consider is Provo’s brand new Utah County Convention Center, opened in May 2012. The LEED Silver facility has 83,578 square feet of meeting, pre-function, and garden space, including a 16,894-square-foot ballroom.
The Moab Adventure Center’s exhilarating new high ropes course offers teambuilding on a series of lines connected to 40-foot towers. Challenges include a climbing wall, giant swing, and a skateboard zip line. Other activities include Colorado River rafting, Hummer safaris, mountain biking, horseback riding, and national park tours.