SKI UTAH! The greatest snow on earth... yet thousands of people come here and ski or board on mediocre snow or conditions because they chose poorly whether it be time of year, resort choice or just plain bad snow year. Some ruin their trip by poor planning or poor choices... a simple error can ruin the entire trip if you are vomiting the whole time.... Here is our scoop on skiing in Utah. Americans often have no clue what we have here because freezer ice is more fun then east coast skiing, or heartlanders that get excited when the vertical drop is more than 100 feet.

Skill Level: We can lead you to the best places, like snowbird, but if you are a beginner you will be very limited since over half of the place is expert only. Consider all of the members of your group when making your choice of resort.
Cross Country:There is the Solider Hollow cross country Olympic park that they used during the Olympics a few years ago, that is about 20-25 minutes away in Midway Utah. I think they rent snowshoes there too. 
Altitude: Notice the elevation of resorts; if you are coming from sea level you may be toast trying to ski back to back days at 10,000 ft. and it may really screw up your trip and your body; plan wisely, maybe a day on, day off, day on... and if you pre purchase your tickets buy trip insurance!   
Drink Water:  You are at elevation and will dehydrate quickly- drink more than you expect- we have had guests land them selves in the hospital with dehydration issues.

Hot tubs: As much as they feel awesome after a day on the slopes save it for your last day unless you are used to skiing a lot. The hot water will increase blood flow in your torn muscles making the 'injury' worse and you will be MORE sore and take longer to recover. Drinking lots of water will assist in recovery and improve performance.
Things to carry: Water, Sunscreen (yes, even on cloudy days), chapstick (Carmex, etc), water, electrolyte drink, power gel, water, sunglasses (for lunch on the deck), two way radios with everyone on the SAME CHANNEL AND MODIFIER. Plan ahead where and when to meet.Water: Drink double or tripple your normal amounts; it will help adjust you and dehydration happens really fast in the mountains as it is sooo dry.

Park City Mountain Resort and The Canyons are now ONE mammoth resort, one ticket for both. 30-35minway  

The Scoop: Some years we get killed with snow by December, some years robbed. On the "robbed" years don't bother until at least January or Feb. The best powder is Jan to early March. The deepest days are typically mid Feb to late March. The highest chance of freshies is late feb to late March. Warmest skiing is late April to mid May on corn. Drink twice as much water as you usually do on ski trips as you dehydrate faster and will bonk and get headaches. Lowest crowds are March. The lower the elevation of the resort the greater chance it sucks. Don't bother with low elevation resorts in late April or May, and they are covered with rocks in Nov and Dec. The weatherman is often wrong.

Backcountry: Unless you are an experienced backcountry skier stay out or buy a guide. With 20 years in the back country I have seen a lot of errors, the most costly coming from thinking they could just 'do it'. Always know what's up and have your 4 essential pieces of gear; if you don't know those then stay out, save your family the disaster.

RESORTS: Downhill ski and snowboard resorts ranging from closest to the cabin to furthest away.... only listing those 90 minutes away or closer.
DEER VALLEY: No snowboarders! :( great powder and tree skiing. Posh. 20-25 minute backside lifts from the cabin. good overall mountain.
PARK CITY: Now linked to Canyons, the largest resort in the US.  ok terrain, better with the Canyons terrain they added., ok snow, high crowds, cool town. 35 min from cabin to lifts, one ticket includes Canyons resort too.
SUNDANCE: Beautiful, but low elevation. Rather small, beautiful back drops. Good beginner and intermed. Redford was not an adrenalin junkie. 35
THE CANYONS: Now a part of Park City resort, Lovely. Good for beginners, intermediates and lots of open terrain. Great place to find fresh snow and lower crowds; is the size of Maine, easy to get lost. 35+ minutes away and now linked to Park City- one ticket, together the largest ski resort in North America.
SNOWBIRD: Awesome mountain, mostly expert terrain. Ski with the best here, this place rocks; Due to efficient lifts/ Tram it gets tracked out very quickly and fresh tracks may be hard to find. 80min.
ALTA: No Snowboarders!:( LOTS of powder, Big mountain and GREAT terrain for all levels. great views, 85 minutes without traffic.
SOLITUDE: GREAT place, low crowds, great powder, LOTS of snow; great all around mountain; boring for those in need of big air. 85 min away without traffic.
BRIGHTON: Snowboarder mecca, GREAT mountain, TONS of powder!  A locals only hang-out. There are some flat spots that sand trap you if not careful. Lots of lifts; 90 minutes without traffic. Kids ski free, major bonus.
POWDER MOUNTAIN: Superb mountain, low crowds, LOTS of powder and decent terrain for all levels. 90 minute haul and seems not to get traffic

 

Those are the biggest ones, there are a lot more smaller not-so-great options.