Salt Lake City

Embraced by snow-topped magnificent mountains, Salt Lake City is known by some as ‘Ski City’, by others as home to ‘The Greatest Snow On Earth!’ and still others refer to the city as ‘The Crossroads of the West’. Nestled in northern Utah on a prime Mother Nature-perch at approximately 4,300 feet above sea level, Salt Lake City is one of the West’s most coveted cities thanks to its stunning setting, cosmopolitan business and financial districts, higher education institutions (including the University of Utah and Westminster College), plethora of arts and cultural venues, numerous lush parks and easy access to world-famous ski- and snow-sport destinations. Salt Lake City is also a highly sought-after convention town and was home of the 2002 Winter Olympic games; the Olympic venues are now used for sporting events, competitions and athlete training.

Housing options reflect the fact that residents here represent most walks of life: kid-centric families, singles and couples, professors and students, ski-buffs and buffettes, and folks of pretty much every jeans-and-blue-collar and white-shirt-and-necktie persuasion. To meet the needs of this variety of lives and lifestyles, you’ll find homes encompassing the complete residential spectrum including brick-accented ramblers, sprawling ranch-style abodes, intimate bungalows, renovated Victorians, mid-century homes, million-dollar (and plus…) mansions, high-rise condos, duplexes, shared-wall townhomes and more. Neighborhoods can be distinctive and grand, modern and gated, hip and happening, old-school neighborly, stickball-in-the-street-ish or comfy-cozy micro-‘hoods.

Just by looking at the magical mountains surrounding the city, you might think that skiing and snow-sporting are all there is to see and do. Ding-ding-ding: wrong answer. The city brims with foodie-aficionado eateries (both casual and fine-dining), coffee shops and bakeries as well as theaters and entertainment venues, a symphony and ballet company, a thriving music milieu, gorgeous parks, proud independent bookstores and eclectic shopping sites that ooze character and charm. In addition to being the home of the NBA’s Utah Jazz, the city hosts portions of the acclaimed Sundance Film Festival and boasts a vibrant nightlife filled with plenty of hotspot breweries, wine bars and clubs — and yes, this hipster urban scene is mere minutes from the spectacular Wasatch Mountains.

People in Salt Lake City love their parks and trails, a reality evident in the number of luxuriant green public spaces and the wealth of hiking/biking trails that dot the city’s landscape. At 217.5 acres, the largest park in Salt Lake City is This Is the Place Heritage Park which is a re-creation of the typical 19th-century LDS pioneer life. The next-largest park is Sugar House Park at 110 acres, while third in size is the 100-acre Liberty Park. A very small sampling of museums includes the LDS-operated Church History Museum, Discovery Gateway (a children’s museum) and the Clark Planetarium which houses an IMAX theater.

Salt Lake City boasts a wealth of museums, music festivals, theaters and entertainment venues, a symphony and ballet company, lush parks and eclectic shopping sites that ooze character and charm. In addition to being the home of the NBA’s Utah Jazz, the city hosts portions of the acclaimed Sundance Film Festival and offers a vibrant nightlife filled with plenty of hotspot breweries, wine bars and clubs — and yes, this hipster urban scene is mere minutes from snow-sport heaven in the Wasatch Mountains.

Here’s just a small sampling of what else there is to do and see in Salt Lake City.

Museums

• Clark Planetarium (houses an IMAX theater)
• Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum
• LDS-operated Church History Museum

Big-time sports

• Vivint Smart Home arena (home of the Utah Jazz)

Theaters

• Eccles Theater (concerts and Broadway shows)
• The Capitol Theater (home of Ballet West)
• Abravanel Hall (home of the Utah Symphony)

Bird-watching

• Tracy Aviary (America’s oldest and largest bird park; located inside Liberty Park)

Shopping

• City Creek Center (mall and restaurants)

Historical

• Temple Square and The Tabernacle

Parks, parks and more parks
The three largest parks in Salt Lake City are:

• This Is The Place Heritage Park (217.5 acres; re-creation of the typical 19th-century LDS pioneer life)
• Sugar House Park (110 acres)
• Liberty Park (100 acres)

Popular restaurants and eateries

• Valter’s Osteria
• Oquirrh Restaurant
• Settebello Pizzeria Napoletana
• Bambara Salt Lake City
• White Horse Spirits and Kitchen