SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2016 SECTION T ON ON9

BANFF REVAMPS BOOZE-MAKINGThis ski resort town produces craft beers and glacier-fed spirits that have locals and tourists coming back for more, T4

UTAH—How’s this for a brazen claim? Utah has thegreatest snow on earth. Utahan skiers and other out-doorsy types slip that bold statement into casualconversation. Drivers get it emblazoned on licenceplates. It’s a marketing slogan, admittedly, but onethat had tourism officials endure an epic trademarkbattle up to the U.S. Supreme Court with RinglingBros. and Barnum & Bailey (“The Greatest Show onEarth” folks) in order to keep using.

Snow hyperbole aside, here is an actual fact: Ten ofUtah’s 14 ski hills are within 30 minutes of Salt LakeCity, so people can tackle a new resort each day, ifdesired, plus have “Ski City” to play in every night.You can even ski four to six hills in one day. Deb Lovci,lead guide for the Ski Utah Interconnect Tour, callsthis experience “pretty unique. You’re not jumping ina van. You’re not jumping in a helicopter. It’s musclepower. It’s for that adventurous skier.”

The route changes depending on the conditions, butit usually hits Deer Valley Ski Resort, Park City Moun-tain Resort, Solitude Mountain Resort, Brighton Re-sort, Alta Ski Area and Snowbird resort.

“So many people feel they might not be good enough

and they show up tentative and anxious,”Lovci says over a Mexican feast at RedIguana in Salt Lake City.

“I wish I had that magic wand to tellthem a) you’re going to be safe and b)you’re going to have fun.”

Lovci, a Coloradan, is a staunch “great-est snow on earth” believer. “The snowstays drier because we’re a high mountaindesert and we have such little moisture inour air. You can’t make a snowball — wejust don’t have the moisture.”

The way University of Utah atmospher-ic scientist Jim Steenburgh, author of Se-crets of the Greatest Snow on Earth, ex-plains it, is that specific climate condi-tions that brew over the Wasatch Rangeresorts in the Cottonwood Canyons cre-ate light, dry snow.

Light snow falls on heavier snow andcreates “flotation.” Meanwhile, the rightnumber and strength of “Goldilocksstorms” also help produce “just right”snow conditions.

It’s a little cerebral, but I can say theUtah snow was kind to this lapsed skierduring a half day at Park City under thewatchful eye of guide Steve Parker.

Ski Utah’s mascot is a Yeti, a Himalayan snow monster who went searching for “the greatest snow on earth” and now lives in Utah.HAILEY KLOTZ/SKI UTAH

‘Greatest snow on Earth’Utah boasts 10 ski hills within a half-hour of Salt Lake City

JENNIFER BAIN TRAVEL EDITOR

Deer Valley Ski Resort (a ski-only resort in Utah) has what’s known as a “ski beach."DEER VALLEY RESORT

UTAH continued on T3

ON ON9 SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2016 TORONTO STAR⎮T3

>>TRAVEL

Things have changed since I lastskied in 2009. Skis are shorter and“parabolica,” and boots are in “mon-do sizing.” You’re not supposed towear a hat under your helmet andnothing goes in your boot except “legand sock,” according to Eric Bjornn,client relations manager at Ski ’N Seerentals.

Over at the luxe Montage Deer Val-ley in Park City, where I stayed acouple of nights, Compass Sportspreheats rental boots to about 90 F(32 C) and slips them on your feet.Tyler Lee did this just so I could havethe experience. Park City — nowowned by Vail Resorts — is a scenebut the rental boots are merely roomtemperature.

What’s unique here is that this re-sort is home to the National AbilityCenter, so you’ll share the slopeswith people with physical and men-tal challenges using adaptive andcustomized equipment.

What Parker really loves — besidesthe way you can have kosher meals inSilverado lodge or take the Town Liftor Quittin’ Time run to the town ofPark City for lunch — is the fact thathistoric silver mining buildings arescattered throughout the resort,bearing plaques for history buffs.

The other thing Parker loves isVail’s EpicMix app that tells you liftline times and tracks your move-ment with RFID-enabled lift tickets.We did five runs and accomplished4,256 vertical feet in a couple ofhours. He achieved 1 million verticalfeet last season.

Over at the five-star Deer Valley SkiResort (which as the name suggestsis a ski-only mountain), my ski legsare too shaky to continue so I un-wind over tea with Ryan Mayfield,content and social media manager. IfI’d known All Seasons Adventureswas on-site and offering winter fly-fishing excursions, I would have ral-lied.

Instead we chatted about Deer Val-ley’s ski valets, free ski storage andlimited lift tickets to reduce crowds.The big draw here is apparently thefood.

The luxury resort flies in seafooddaily for an evening buffet at theSnow Park Village base area that in-cludes a poke station. At night, Em-pire Canyon Lodge turns out four-course meals served from stone fire-places.

Don’t get the wrong impression —Utah’s resorts aren’t all posh. Go to a“locals mountain,” such as Alta SkiArea, which is actually another rare,skier-only zone. “We allow snow-boarders here, but they have to haveskis on,” quips marketing and publicrelations director Connie Marshallover lunch at Alta Lodge.

The area’s five, family-run lodgeshave a tradition of providing break-fast and dinner since the town of Altahas just 232-odd residents. Word isyou can even join the après-ski scenein your bathrobe.

What Marshall really likes, though,is the fact this former silver-miningarea has stayed alive with skiing. “Ithink it’s neat to think these canyonsand mountains have several lives.”

Back in Salt Lake City, I meet Yeti,the mythical snow creature whosearched the planet for “The Great-

est Snow on Earth” and settled inUtah. OK, technically it was the in-flatable Yeti since the “real” Yeti wasat an out-of-town wedding, but it wasafitting end to the ski side of my Utahtime.

I had just met with Jerry Jensen,one of the lawyers who successfullydefended Utah in that “trademarkdilution suit” with Ringling so itcould keep using the promotionalphrase, “The Greatest Snow onEarth.” The state actually started us-ing the phrase in 1962 but the legalbattle ran from 1988 to 1997 and was

settled before Salt Lake City hostedthe 2002 Winter Olympics (some-thing that comes up in most con-versations about snow).

“I think that was a great victory forthe state, and I felt like I was doingsomething for the state of Utah,”Jensen reminisces. “Thanks for let-ting me relive one of my victories.”

So does Jensen believe Utah’s snowis the greatest? “It’s a great advertis-ing slogan, but I don’t know how youprove it.” He skis with his grandsons,loves Snowbird and takes an annualski trip to one of Utah’s best-keptsecrets — Beaver Mountain.

After posing for pictures with Yeti,Jensen drives away in a car bearing —you guessed it — a “Greatest Snow onEarth” licence plate.Jennifer Bain was hosted by the UtahOffice of Tourism and its partners, whichdidn’t review or approve this story.

Utah’s mountains have ‘several lives’UTAH from T1

Get there: I flew Delta from To-ronto to Salt Lake City.Get around: I took the All ResortExpress shuttle from the airport toPark City. Canyon Transportationis another option, and it also hascamper Jeep rentals. You can getfrom the airport to downtown SaltLake City by public transit on theTRAX/light rail for $2.50 (U.S.)Car rentals are another option.Interconnect Tour: The Ski UtahInterconnect Tour costs $395 andruns daily for up to 12 advanced toexpert skiers with two guides.You’ll ski four to six areas in resortand backcountry terrain. You mustbe 16 to ski with a parent or 18 tocome without one.Ski deals: The Ski City Super Passlets you visit Alta, Brighton, Snow-bird and Solitude, and get a freeride out there from Salt Lake Cityon TRAX light rail and UTA skibuses.Stay: I stayed at the MontageDeer Valley in Park City, and at thePeery Hotel in Salt Lake City.Eat: In Park City, I ate at Burgers &Bourbon in the Montage (get abourbon cocktail), Legends Bar &Grill at the Park City MountainResort’s base area (get the gnoc-chi), and High West Saloon in ParkCity (get the chicken schnitzel).Do your research: skiutah.com,parkcitymountain.com, deervalley-.com, alta.com, visitparkcity.com,visitsaltlake.com, visitutah.com

> WHEN YOU GO

People who live in Salt Lake City can ski four to six hills in one day because of the city’s proximity to ski hills.UTAH OFFICE OF TOURISM

Lawyer Jerry Jenson helped the state win a trademark case so it couldcontinue to claim that Utah has "The Greatest Snow on Earth."

JENNIFER BAIN/TORONTO STAR

Steve Parker is aguide at ParkCity MountainResort who’spassionateabout skiing in Utah.

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MIDWAY, UTAH—No serious yogiwants to tumble off a standup pad-dleboard during yoga, but whenyou’re in a crater and the geothermalwater hovers between hot bath andhot tub temperatures, it’s not a hard-ship to get wet during a warrior poseor two. The tough part is climbingback up on the board instead of justluxuriating in the soothing warmthof the mineral hot springs.

It’s winter in Utah and I’m about ahalf-hour’s drive outside of the ParkCity ski area at the Homestead Cra-ter, a natural wonder and one-of-a-kind oddity. The crater is on the pri-vately-owned Homestead Resortproperty in a small city called Mid-way.

The crater boasts a geothermal hotspring within a 17-metre tall, bee-hive-shaped limestone dome. Thewater temperature hovers just above33 C and the murky depths reachalmost 20 metres. There’s a tunnelentrance and rudimentary changerooms. The bathroom is across theparking lot.

Open to the public since 1996 foryear-round, warm-water scuba div-ing, snorkelling, swimming and ther-apeutic mineral bathing, the crater isa leased concession by HomesteadCrater, but I’m here with Park CityYoga Adventures, a company thatstruck a deal to use the crater at thestart and end of the day for SUP(standup paddleboarding) yoga.

It’s all about getting yoga out of thestudio, according to guide BlakeSummers. “This crater was over10,000 years in the making,” he en-thuses. “I’ve done quite a bit of re-search in the last five years andhaven’t seen anybody else in theworld that does this.”

To prepare for our sporty adven-ture, we meet Summers in the park-ing lot of Wasatch Mountain StatePark at 6:30 p.m. for a little nighttimesnowshoeing. There’s not a lot ofsnow, so we slip on Yaktrax (“winterfootwear traction devices”), strap onheadlamps and grab poles for a briskand dark walk through the park.

There are elk, deer, moose, bobcats,coyotes, mountain lions and more inthese parts, but Summers is sure“we’ll be OK as a group.” We don’tbump into any wildlife and, to be

honest, we cut short our 90-minuteoutdoor romp because we’re so keento get to the main event. I save myorganic apple, mandarin, Picky Bar(Ah, Fudge Nuts!) and thermos of teafor later.

It’s a short drive to the crater andwe pull up just as euphoric scubadivers tumble out with wet hair. Atthe man-made entrance, there’s aposted list of rules (including No. 13,no lifeguard on duty, and No. 9, “al-

ways swim with a buddy”). Inside,there’s a 34-metre long tunnel thatprovides access to the water and acouple more signs warning againthat there are no lifeguards here.

“It’s kind of a novelty to go to the

mountains to go scuba diving,” Sum-mers says. We attach the Velcro cuffsof our SUP leashes to our ankles inlieu of life-jackets. Summers came inearly to cover the crater openingwith plastic because of the cold win-ter air.

The crater is dark and misty, thewater murky. There are buoys fordivers and ropes for paddleboards.Our first challenge is to get on theboards, then paddle out and anchorourselves to the ropes. The rest is,unsurprisingly, just like a yoga class,except one where I can’t wear myglasses and so I can’t actually see theinstructor. He’s on the dock, so hecan’t tweak our poses. (This is a goodthing in my book.)

Summers leads us through anAnusara yoga session, starting slowand mellow, turning on MC Yogi inthe middle and ending with a wateryversion of savasana (the corpsepose). There were a few times duringdownward dog poses where he said,“flip your dog into the water,” but therest of my watery tumbles wereequal parts deliberate and acciden-tal.

That probably makes my sessionmore swim and soak than yoga, butwhatever it was, it’s an experienceI’m not likely to forget.Jennifer Bain was hosted by the Utah Office of Tourism and its partners,none of which reviewed or approved this story.

Practise your downward dog in a Utah craterYogis get out of the studio,onto standup paddleboardsunder beehive-shaped dome

JENNIFER BAIN TRAVEL EDITOR

Do this trip: Park City Yoga Ad-ventures (parkcityyogaadven-tures.com), based in Park City,Utah, offers year-round pad-dleboard yoga in the 33 C, geo-thermal Homestead Crater innearby Midway. You must book inadvance and rates for the one-hour experiences are $115 (U.S.)per person for two people (withlower prices for groups of three to10 people). You can add a 90-minute snowshoe experience firstif you wish (those rates are from$165 per person for two people). Crater experience: The crater atHomestead Resort in Midway isopen daily and offers variousactivities by reservation only. Theyinclude a 40-minute soak/swimfor $13 to $16, snorkelling, scubaintroduction or lesson, scubadiving for certified divers andscuba certification. Get there: I flew Delta (delta.com)from Toronto to Salt Lake City.Get around: I took the All ResortExpress (allresort.com) shuttlefrom the airport to Park City.Canyon Transportation(canyontransport.com) is anotheroption, and it also has camperJeep rentals. You can get from theairport to downtown Salt Lake Cityby public transit on the TRAX/light rail for $2.50. Stay: I stayed at the MontageDeer Valley in Park City(montagehotels.com/deervalley)and at the Peery Hotel in down-town Salt Lake City(peeryhotel.com).Do your research: visitutah.com,visitsaltlake.com, visitparkcity.com

> WHEN YOU GO

In Midway, Utah, you can do standup paddleboarding yoga in the Homestead Crater, a natural wonder. ANDY JENKINS/PARK CITY YOGA ADVENTURES

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SALT LAKE CITY—Utah isn’t dry. Thatsurprises people who know preciouslittle about this state other than thefact the Mormon members of theChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-daySaints — who make up at least halfthe population — can’t drink.

Booze has been sold here since1935, two years after the end of Pro-hibition.

OK, so you can’t gamble or buy lot-tery tickets in this conservative stateeither, but in return Utah offers anembarrassment of ski hills and na-tional parks in a family-friendly play-ground, and a surprisingly progres-sive capital full of left-leaning de-lights, namely thriving craft-beer,food, music and arts scenes.

Make your first stop in downtownSalt Lake City at Squatters Pub andorder a Polygamy Porter. “Why havejust one” is the award-winning beer’stag line, and the black T-shirt goeseven further with the slogans “I’vetried polygamy” on the front and“bring some home to the wives” onthe back.

“I think you can be pretty cheekyhere,” says brewmaster Jason Stock,a former Mormon missionary, “and Ithink there is a line.” He will admitSalt Lake’s “very thriving craft-beerscene” (with more than a dozenbreweries) has to work around somequirky liquor laws.

Squatters has a club licence thatmeans people who are at least 21 candrink without eating, but anyoneyounger than that must be with anadult and sit at a table instead of thebar. At restaurants, however, youcan’t drink without ordering foodand you can’t pour alcohol withinview of patrons. Utahns have coinedthe term “Zion curtain” for the barri-er (wall, curtain or separate room)that drinks must be poured or mixedbehind.

It makes for fascinating small talk,no matter what you drink or don’tdrink.

If you’re lucky enough to be in SaltLake City for the monthly “Old JewsTelling Jokes Night” at Feldman’sDeli, secure yourself a ticket for thefixed-price menu and stand up to tella joke to get $5 off your meal. Other-wise, come here if you crave the bestdeli food west of New Jersey.

Mike Feldman specializes in SloppyJoe double-decker sandwiches, ahalf-pound of corned beef, pastramiand coleslaw with homemade Thou-sand Island dressing on Jewish rye.He says a local politician took theHavana-born sandwich to Maple-wood, N.J., where it was reinvented

and became a staple in Jewish delis. The four-year-old, kosher-style deli

is at the crossroads of four neigh-bourhoods “filled with people whomoved to Utah from somewhereelse” and aren’t necessarily Jewishbut who know deli. Insider tip: Feld-man’s wife comes from a long line ofJewish bakers (and knows the back-breaking hours) and so Feldman’smakes just 30 boiled and baked ba-gels a day.

For another authentic local food ex-perience, I lined up in the rain inDecember for the signature moledishes at Red Iguana (“killer Mexi-

can food that’s worth the wait”). Theoutdoor check-in counter, benchesand free hot cider are part of thescene at this 31-year-old hot spot cre-ated by Ramon and Maria Cardenas.(Insider tip: There’s a food-court ver-sion called Taste of Red Iguanadowntown in City Creek Center).

Two more food spots of note: Popinto Eva’s Bakery Boulangerie forkouign-amann (a Breton cake), andPago for farm-to-table fare, such asthe pork chop served on white gritswith braised kale.

At Feldman’s Deli, get the Sloppy Joe, a famous doube-decker sandwich with a half-pound of corned beef, pastrami and coleslaw on Jewish rye. Mike Feldman presides over the deli.JENNIFER BAIN/TORONTO STAR PHOTOS

What to do in Salt Lake CityUtah’s capital reveals manysurprises in its progressivefood, drink and arts scene

JENNIFER BAIN TRAVEL EDITOR

Get there: I flew Delta (delta.com)from Toronto to Salt Lake City.Get around: You can get from theairport to downtown Salt Lake Cityby public transit on the TRAX/lightrail for $2.50 (U.S.). Car rentalsand taxis are other options.Souvenir shop: The Salt LakeVisitors Center in the Salt PalaceConvention Center (90 SouthWest Temple) has brochures and agift shop.

Save money: The Visit Salt LakeConnect Pass offers one, two, threeand 365-day passes that help yousave 50 to 80 per cent on regularadmission prices at more than adozen spots. I explored the NaturalHistory Museum of Utah(nhmu.utah.edu), the Leonardo (ascience/arts space) (theleonardo.org)and Tracy Aviary (tracyaviary.org).Passes start at $32 for adults and $26for kids ages 3 to 12.

Read up: Salt Lake City Weekly(cityweekly.net) will tell you where togo and what to do at places such asthe State Room (thestateroom.com)and the Depot (depotslc.com).Stay: I stayed at the Montage DeerValley in Park City (montageho-tels.com/deervalley) and at the PeeryHotel in downtown Salt Lake City(peeryhotel.com).Do your research: visitutah.com, visitsaltlake.com

> WHEN YOU GO

While inUtah, besure to havea cheekilynamedPolygamyPorter atSquattersPub.

Continued on next page

“I think you can be prettycheeky here, and I think thereis a line.”JASON STOCKBREWMASTER

T8⎮TORONTO STAR SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2017 ON ON9

>>TRAVEL

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ON ON9 SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2017 TORONTO STAR⎮T9

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Speaking of City Creek Center, headhere at 10 a.m. on a Saturday and help feedthe cutthroat trout (Utah’s state fish) thatlive in the re-creation of a creek that oncemeandered through the city. The mall hasa scenic pedestrian skybridge, retractableroof, two waterfalls and musically cho-reographed shows at fountains designedby the creators of the Bellagio fountainsin Las Vegas.

Ask for the “architectural tour” pam-phlet.

While wandering the walkable down-town admiring the new Eccles Theater,Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center orCapitol Theatre, one quirk that standsout is that the city leaves a container ofneon orange flags at each end of certaincrosswalks so pedestrians can wave themwhile crossing the street to be more visi-ble and less likely to be hit.

Salt Lake’s top tourist attraction, youwon’t be surprised to learn, is TempleSquare, a 35-acre complex owned by theChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-daySaints.

The Mormons will pick you up at theairport for a quick tour on a stopover oryou can take a free guided tour (in 30languages, no less). The iconic Salt LakeTemple is off limits, though.

I delved into my family tree at theworld’s largest genealogy library, and

quizzed my tour guides about the reli-gion’s ban on coffee and tea, variousnames (Mormon, LDS and the Church ofJesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) andglobal missionary work. I’m still mullingover their questions, such as, “How areyou able to recognize truth when you seeit?” and “How do you find your sense ofstrength?”

I also caught the famous Mormon Tab-ernacle Choir’s Christmas Concert withtenor Rolando Villazon at the church’sConference Center. You can watch Sun-day broadcasts and other recitals and re-hearsals.

Salt Lake City got its name from thestate’s famous salt-water lake in the mid-dle of the desert and I managed a quicktrip out of town to dip my finger in GreatSalt Lake and see the bison at AntelopeIsland State Park.

It was too cold to see if you really canfloat better in this unusual water withextra-high salinity and where only algae,brine shrimp and brine fly larvae cansurvive.

I’ll be back to Utah, heading further westto the Bonneville Salt Flats to catch noisyland speed events at the “BonnevilleSpeedway,” or be mesmerized by the flats’“otherworldly silence.” Utah, you see, isjust fine with contradictions.Jennifer Bain was hosted by the Utah Officeof Tourism and its partners, none of whichreviewed or approved this story.

At Temple Square you can see (but not enter) the iconic temple.DOUGLAS PULSIPHER/UTAH OFFICE OF TOURISM

Continued from previous page

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Turn Key Units Include:• Access to All Resort amenities• Freight • Setup • Cement Pad• Deck • Sodded Yard • Driveway• Propane Tank • 50amp Service• 8X10 • Shed • Fully Furnished

We manage the details soyou enjoy the destinations.

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At Senior Discovery Tours, we take care of all the details, big and small, soall you have to do is enjoy our beautiful world. As Canada’s largest andmost trusted operator of escorted tours and cruises for the mature traveller,what people have loved most over our 40-year history is how carefree ourtrips are.

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GREECE - CRUISE AND TOUR16 Days • Departs May 12

4-day Greek Island cruise (daily shore excursions included),4-day Classical Coach Tour, 3 days Mykonos and 3 days

Athens. Air Canada Rouge flights, 1st class cruise and hotels,breakfast and dinner daily, 4 lunches and touring throughout.

$5,797 p.p. double from Toronto

SOUTHERN FRANCE AND TUSCANY14 Days – Departs April 26

6 nights in Nice (France) and 6 nights in Tuscany (Italy).Excursions to Grasse, Monaco, Monte Carlo, Florence, Pisa,Portofino and the Cinque Terra. British Airways flights,

1st class hotels and breakfast and dinner (with wine) daily.

$5,297 p.p double from Toronto

The world is beautiful.

Reg

#2160711

T8⎮TORONTO STAR SATURDAY, MARCH 25, 2017 ON ON9

>>TRAVEL

PARK CITY, UTAH—The thing thatstands out about two nights at theMontage Deer Valleyis lobby ambas-sador John Ostezan.

He’s the guy tasked with creating a“warm and welcome environment”in the lobby. You won’t find him at adesk or behind a counter. Ostezanroams the lobby, greeting, helping,directing, arranging transportationand talking up the luxury resort andthe area. He showed me his favouritenooks (like the bowling alley), toldme what time to hit the s’morescampfire, gave me a heads up on theheated ski boot service and escortedme to my room.

The Montage is all about the “high-ly personalized guest experience”and starts the moment you arrivewhen you come into Ostezan’s orbit.

Canine cuisine: I was the first guestto try the hotel’s new “canine cui-sine” room-service menu in Decem-ber. Steamed jasmine and seasonalvegetables are topped with a primeburger patty, organic chicken breast,grilled salmon or scrambled eggs andserved in silver bowls.

“I guarantee we’re going to havepeople order off the dog menu,” pre-dicts chef de cuisine Christian Ojeda.

I also went to the daily meet-and-greet with the hotel’s ambassadordogs (Bernese mountain dogs), Park-er and Monty.

“In a 1.3-million-square-foot build-ing with every available amenity, thedogs are such an unbelievable draw,”says the hotel’s assistant finance di-rector and dog owner Brian Reeder.“Everybody loves them.”

People food: The big food draw forhumans is the daily s’mores firepit.There are store-bought graham wa-fers, milk or dark chocolate and chef-made artisan marshmallows in fla-vours such as peppermint, cinna-mon and mocha.

Of the resort’s five restaurants, Iloved Burgers & Bourbon. Try rose-mary sea salt fries with fry sauce — a“very Utah” mix of ketchup, mayoand Sriracha. Get the Ol’ Smoky

cocktail with Booker’s small-batchbourbon, demerara sugar, house bit-ters, peat and orange. Slightly un-nerving: the fact the servers knowyour name and use it.

Ski perks: Most guests come forDeer Valley Resort and the Montageoffers online ski equipment rentalsand quick fittings when you arrive.Compass Sports also warms boots toabout 32 C and slips them on forguests. I didn’t use their rentals, butcouldn’t resist having Tyler Lee give

me the preheated boot treatment. Ski valets will carry gear outside

and staff will print lift tickets thatwere ordered online.

Compass staff will even gear upyour kids and escort them to andfrom ski school.

Non-ski perks: When money is noobject, Montage has private day tripsto Arches, Zion, Bryce Canyon andCanyonlands national parks. It alsohas a snow-tubing park with a magiccarpet. More affordable outings,

such as dog sledding, sleigh rides,snowshoeing and snowmobiling, canbe arranged.

The resort has a spa, fitness facil-ities, a pool and yoga studio, plus afour-lane regulation bowling alleyinside a pub.

Alas, the only perk I had time totake advantage of was the free shut-tle into town for dinner.

Rooms: There are 220 rooms and allkinds of choices, starting with king ordouble queen rooms, with resort, vis-

ta or peaks views, private balconiesor patios.

Rooms average a generous 600square feet and boast marble bath-rooms, gas fireplaces, commissionedartwork and sitting areas.

There are suites and residences, aswell. Trust me, though — as lovely asthe rooms are, you’re here to get out-doors. Jennifer Bain was hosted by the UtahOffice of Tourism and its partners, noneof which reviewed or approved thisstory.

At Montage Deer Valley, service gets personalUtah resort welcomes guestswith dogs, ski-boot heatingand plenty of other perks

JENNIFER BAIN TRAVEL EDITOR

Lobby ambassador John Ostezan is the man tasked with creating a “warmand welcome environment” at the Montage Deer Valley in Park City, Utah.

MONTAGE DEER VALLEY PHOTOS

Parker, a Montage ambassador dog, prepares to chow down on a bowl ofcanine cuisine. (Dogs can only have room service.)

The resort has a s’mores firepit and guests can make their own daily. AskJohn Ostezan for the best time to make one.

Big Agency Deals…Small Agency Feel

1-800-854-9664cruiseplus.caCruisePlus.ca

New bookings only. Fares are per person in the currency noted, based on double occupancy, are capacity controlled, subject to availability at the time ofbooking and may be withdrawn without notice. Optional & locally payable supplier charges may apply and are not included. Amenities, if offered, areavailable for the first two in a stateroom only & based on double occupancy unless specifically stated otherwise. CruisePlus reserves the right to correctany human or electronic errors in the offers above. Ships’ registry: Netherlands. CruisePlus Management Ltd. Consumer Protection BC License #: 3325-0.

Aloha cruisers! If youcan leave with rela-

tively short notice, westill have availability onour 10 night Waikiki stayand cruise to Vancou-ver package on April 20th.$2499 CAD includes roundtrip Toronto air, 3 nightsin a 4 star Waikiki hotel, 7 nights in a balcony stateroom aboard the msNoordam, taxes and more. A longer roundtrip Vancouver option (19 nights

in total) on April 25th is $3349 CAD for an outside stateroom, 1 night in Vancouver,roundtripTorontoair, taxesandmoreaboardthemsZaandam.Wehavesomeexcellentsuitepricing too. In the fall we’re going to have a terrific 15 night package on the ms Noordamon September 23rd. This one will be 1 night in Vancouver, an 11 night cruise and 3night’s hotel in Hawaii. We are just finalizing pricing on this package as I write this – soask us as we are likely to have it set in the next few days. If a fall roundtrip Vancouveris more your style, the lovely ms Eurodam has a 17 night package on September 30th– including roundtrip Toronto air, 1 night hotel in Vancouver, 16 nights with taxes in abalcony stateroom and more - you’re looking at $4449 CAD. Mahalo!

Dave’s cruise Destinations

DaveFrintonCo-Founder& PresidentCruisePlus

HAWAIIAN CRUISE OPTIONS!

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