Salt Lake City Overview

This city balances small town tradition with big city sophistication. Rooted in history, rich in technology and surrounded by beauty, this is, as founder Brigham Young declared more than a century ago, The Place.

Districts

With its wide city-center streets, the busy coming-and-going of the TRAX light rail system and the constant bustle of new construction, Salt Lake City has an atmosphere of expansion and growth. Situated at the base of the magnificent Wasatch Mountains, the city is booming economically and evolving at a rapid rate. While most business travelers limit their activities to the city center, many tourists come for the outstanding outdoor recreation found throughout the Salt Lake Basin. In winter, skiing is the main reason for a visit to this vast area, but when the snow melts, it becomes prime mountain biking and hiking country. Salt Lake City offers a variety of activities no matter what the season, so a visit here any time of year is recommended.

The downtown area is a mixture of contrasts that situates the most modern of sports arenas, the Delta Center, across the street from the old Victorian Devereaux Mansion. The stately Temple Square is flanked by high-rise office buildings and the modern Crossroads Plaza shopping center. Brigham Young's Beehive House creates a 19th-century oasis across the street from office towers of the 21st century. Arranged on a logical grid pattern with Temple Square at its center, all addresses in the city can conveniently be found with little effort.

Like many metropolitan areas, Salt Lake City has sprawled past its designated boundaries into numerous suburbs and outlying areas. North of the city center lie Farmington, Hill Air Force Base and Ogden, home to the Hill Aerospace Museum, Eccles Dinosaur Park and Lagoon Amusement Park. West of the city center is home to Salt Lake International Airport and much of the area's rapidly expanding industry. To the east of the city lies the magnificent Wasatch Front. These craggy peaks and bucolic valleys shelter Park City and world-renowned ski resorts such as Deer Valley Resort, Park City Mountain Resort and Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort.

Entertainment

Since the city's beginnings, various avenues of entertainment have multiplied in Salt Lake City as fast as the inhabitants of the valley. Whether you are in Salt Lake City for a day, week, month or years, rest assured there is entertainment just around every corner.

With nearly a dozen ski resorts within an hour of downtown, you are never far from the swish. Whether your interest lies in downhill, cross-country, night skiing, snowboarding, sledding, snowshoeing or any other snow sport, you will find it here.

Even the greatest snow on earth is only here for six months a year. When you put the skis and sleds away, break out the hiking boots, picnic baskets and rock climbing gear. The numerous canyons that surround the Salt Lake valley are filled with hiking trails without number. There are five National Parks just a few hours south of Salt Lake. If you enjoy red rock vistas, enormous canyons, rock arches, bluffs, petrified sand dunes, towering plateaus or just plain breathtaking scenery, do not miss Arches, Bryce, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef or Zion National Parks.

Salt Lake's club scene has much to offer. Most local clubs are "private clubs" for members, but do not be intimidated. "Private club" is basically another name for "bar" in Utah in order to comply with the state's somewhat arcane liquor laws. You must be 21 or older to purchase a club membership, which are generally pretty cheap. Most clubs offer a two-week membership if you are in town for more than a night or two.

Dining and Drinking

The Salt Lake Valley is bursting with exciting eateries in every neighborhood to please all palates and pocketbooks.

The downtown area is certainly the cultural center of the Salt Lake Valley. Restaurants for every taste and occasion serve the lunch crowds of shoppers, Temple Square sightseers and professionals from local businesses.

By welcoming the 2002 Olympics, Salt Lake City has become more international and a variety of ethnic eateries have sprung up in the last several years.

Drinking in Utah: It is not an oxymoron!
If conventional wisdom sent patrons to Park City for dinner, it used to be said that you had to venture to Evanston, Wyoming to get a drink. Well, no more! Utah's liquor laws have become more liberal each year, reflecting preparations for the Olympics, the influx of national and international business, and the valley's commitment to greet the new century with cosmopolitan flair.

But vestiges of blue laws remain in the valley, and it is important for visitors to be savvy. Restaurateurs and servers will be happy to acquaint you with some of the quirkier rules. You will find, for example, that drinks are one to a customer. As it is not permissible to have more than one glass in front of you, it is not unusual for a server to stand next to your table, refill in hand, waiting for you to finish your first beer or cocktail.

Dining and drinking establishments in Utah have a strange hierarchy of liquor licenses and are governed by a system of laws that differentiate between restaurants and private clubs. The major distinction is that private clubs seem to all allow smoking, and they are the only establishments that can serve mixed drinks without a meal. But some of the finest eateries in the valley are private clubs for members. Day or weeklong memberships are available for purchase at a modest price (usually around $5), to allow patrons admission and club privileges.

Most restaurants in the valley have beer and wine available. Indeed, many have home-brewed beer and/or truly excellent wine lists. Brew pubs and microbreweries are springing up around the valley with top choices for locally brewed beer and delicious cafe fare.

As Salt Lake continues to grow, it has developed into a cosmopolitan city rich with culinary delights. Explore the exciting array of dining options in the valley and you are certain to find a number of favorites.

Where To Stay

Thousands of travelers descend upon Salt Lake City every day. Most already have a good idea of whether they will be sleeping under the covers at a plush hotel, or making their bed under a blanket of stars. The supply of comfortable rooms in Salt Lake City's high-rise hotels is ample, and is complemented by the many camping spots on the skirts of the city. If you are looking for a room with a view, level ground to pitch a tent or anything in-between, you will likely find it in Salt Lake City.

Salt Lake City by the Numbers

Elevation: 4330 feet
Average Annual Rainfall: 15.7 inches
Average Annual Snowfall: 64 inches
Average January Temperature: 39 degrees F (High), 25 degrees F (Low)
Average July Temperature:89 degrees F (High), 67 degrees F (Low)

Time Zone: GMT-7
Area Code: 801 (the area code must be also be dialed, even for local calls)

Population: 181,743
Major Industries: food processing, oil refining, iron smelting, electronics, mining
Ethnic Mix: 77% Caucasian, 17% Hispanic, 4% Asian, 1% African American

Did You Know?

Salt Lake City, home to the 2002 Winter Olympics, was founded in 1847 by Brigham Young and became capital of the Mormon community.

Orientation/Geography

Salt Lake City is the capital of Utah and located in the north central part of the state. Denver lies to the east 534 miles, Boise to the northwest 340 miles, and Las Vegas to the southwest 425 miles.


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