Know Before You Go: Montage Deer Valley (Utah)
Located just ten minutes up the Wasatch Mountains from the historic silver mining town of Park City, Montage Deer Valley is situated at — what feels like — the top of the world, overlooking the valley below. Despite its somewhat remote location, the resort offers an abundance of family-friendly diversions adapted to the seasons and the service experience here is top-notch. Whether visiting in ski season or warmer months, families can expect to find much to do and enjoy at this lovely alpine resort, whether on- or off-property.
OVERALL RATING
💛💛💛💛💛
Exceptional
Overview
At-a-Glance
Date of stay: May/June 2023
Length of stay: 6 nights / 7 days
Trip type: Family mountain getaway
Property type: Luxury ski-in / ski-out mountain resort and spa
Tailor-made for: Families, outdoor enthusiasts, and foodies
Highlights
The destination — Park City is an incredible town with well-preserved silver mining history, charm, and character, plus all the parks, trails, and services of a mountain resort village
Unexpected bonus room and being the very first guests to stay in the newly-renovated accommodations
Exceptionally warm and attentive service experience throughout our stay
Amazing family amenities — kids club, Montage Merits badge program, onsite bowling and arcade (free when we visited), welcome plushes, family-friendly pools, and more
Dining was consistently remarkable
Cadillac Experience — free 4-hour Cadillac “rental” per stay, with new fleet every year (we were the first guests to drive the car we got)
The resort’s Grand Bernese mascots, Murphy and Monty, visit the grand hall every weekday at 11am for guest meet and greets
Nightly s’mores with warm cocoa held from 7-8PM
Dinner at River Horse in Park City (upscale but family-friendly with kids menu) and ice cream at Java Cow (don’t miss the Banksy painting on the south wall)
Lunch and exploring The Lodge at Blue Sky
Olympic Park Village — don’t miss the alpine coaster and summer ski jump demos
Exploring City Park Playground and the nearby Rail Trail
Good to Know
Renovations are expected to continue at the resort through early 2024, though all services are open
Although the resort offers a complimentary shuttle service with a large fleet of cars and shuttle-buses, having a car is the best way to get around — most of the area’s notable restaurants and shops are in Park City, which is not walkable from the resort
Deer Valley Resort and all hotels close seasonally in the Spring — some resort and Park City services are limited between Memorial Day and mid-June, and trails may be closed during this time
The resort offers snow-tubing on the Grand Lawn during ski season
Bring sunscreen and hats — high elevation means intense sun exposure across seasons
The resort does a lot of conferences and events, so staying here during times when large groups are staying could make for a less personal experience
Residences are available to rent, though these won’t be renovated for a while
Camp Compass / Paintbox, the resort’s kids club, has great programming with field trips and high-quality activities, but comes with a considerable fee ($195 per morning or afternoon session per child, including lunch) and was less flexible than many of the kids clubs at other hotels we’ve visited
—
Location & Setting
💛💛💛💛+
A 50-minute drive from Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC), Deer Valley is the sister resort to Park City, located 10 minutes further up the Wasatch mountains past the city. A historic mining town, downtown Park City is a character-filled, charming destination with lots of hiking and biking trails, quaint shops and restaurants, and a free trolley that runs through town. Many of the homes and buildings in town are on the historic register and are meticulously preserved. The elevation in Deer Valley is 8,300 feet so be sure to hydrate and allow downtime to adjust on arrival (one of us did not and suffered the consequences, not saying who!). The simultaneous strength and drawback of Deer Valley (versus Park City) is its remote location — Deer Valley is ideal for skiing in winter and hiking in fall, but in the off-season, on-property activities are somewhat limited, especially for longer stays. We booked airport transfers through the hotel — and Snow Country Limousine was excellent — but we would rent a car next time.
—
Property & Grounds
💛💛💛💛💛
Built in 2013, Montage Deer Valley is a 1M+ sq.ft., ski-in / ski-out mountain resort touted as an “elevated alpine escape”. The resort is tucked in a stand of Aspen trees high in the mountains with breathtaking valley views. It is common to see lots of wildlife around the resort, like marmots, and even the occasional black bear and mountain lion. When we stayed, the resort was a few months into a property-wide renovation with all rooms (not residences) and public spaces getting a refresh (construction is expected to continue through early 2024, though all services are open). With an abundance of services, amenities, and privacy, the resort comprises:
174 rooms and suites, 81 of which are private residences (39 are in the rental program)
10 on-site dining options, including 4 restaurants, a coffee shop, poolside dining, two bars, an Apres-ski lounge (seasonal), and in-room and private dining
A 35,000 square foot spa and health club — the largest in Utah
Indoor heated pool, outdoor heated pool, 4 hot tubs (3 indoor, 1 outdoor), and an outdoor baby pool
Ski / apres-ski amenities and services
Paintbox kids club, Montage Merits program, arcade, and bowling alley
Compass Sports on-site outfitters and activity center
Complimentary shuttle to Park City and Cadillac Drive Experience
Extensive conference and event facilities
One somewhat confusing element of the property to note is that there are multiple sets of elevators, with some going to certain floors but not others, and this is not always clear.
—
Room
💛💛💛💛💛
We booked a One-Bedroom Mountain View Suite through Chase Ultimate Rewards with points and cash. When we arrived, we learned that our room had just been renovated and we were the very first guests to stay in it. The floorplan of the suite we booked included a half bath, which the renovated room did not have — however, upon bringing this to the hotel’s attention, we were offered a connecting Superior King Room at no additional charge for the entirety of our stay, which was an incredibly generous gesture. The connecting rooms were set in a private enclave accessible via a hallway through double doors. The Suite had a large, open entry area with a dining setup for 4, bar and mini-fridge, living area with sofabed, and balcony with a King bedroom with balcony access, two closets, and bathroom (with heated floors!) with shower, tub, separate WC, and Gloss Moderne toiletries. The King Room had a similar layout to the Suite bedroom and bathroom (no living area) with a small dining nook, and also had its own balcony.
—
Service
💛💛💛💛💛
Service throughout our stay was superb from every team member we encountered. At check-in, Fowler gave the girls their plushes, escorted us to our room, and gave us a brief property and room tour on arrival. In the room was a lovely welcome amenity (gifted by the hotel) with a tower of house-made suites, cheese and crackers, sparkling waters, cookies and milk for the girls along with a personalized welcome poster “from” Murphy and Monty (the resort’s mascot dogs), and a framed picture of our family (talk about a wow experience). In the main restaurants, Tudor, Jordan, Lauren, and Spencer went above and beyond to take care of our family, remembering our previous favorite items. Trixie and Taylor with Camp Compass / Paintbox are total pros with the kids and left us feeling confident that our girls were in great hands. Tom is perhaps the friendliest, most knowledgeable driver in Park City, and Ron will make sure you get to wherever you’re going with ease. Emily and Yesenia from the Concierge team were also a huge help with all of our planning questions and activities.
—
Dining
💛💛💛💛+
We tried most of the resort’s open dining venues during our stay and were impressed with the dining overall at Apex and Burgers and Bourbon (Yama Sushi, Vista Lounge, and SlopeStream had not yet opened for the summer season). All dining menus had kids menus and the kids meals for lunch and dinner were a solid value. Our dinner at Apex was a highlight — our food was delicious and our server, Lauren, was wonderful and especially attentive to our girls. At breakfast and lunch, Tudor took care of us with the professionalism and familiarity as if we were long-time, repeat guests. The avocado toast is one of the best preparations we’ve ever had, with a sweet chili sauce that made the dish as creative as it was craveable. All of our in-room dining meals were quality and well-prepared, though there was some inconsistency with the service and having all items show up that were ordered. Poolside dining was solid (same food as Burgers & Bourbon), though the pool attendant was gone for long periods of time so this made dining with kids a little longer than desired. For lighter breakfast fare, the resort’s coffee shop and patisserie, Buzz, has yummy muffins and yogurt parfaits.
Outside the resort, dining highlights included a family dinner at River Horse (upscale with live music and a kids menu), lunch at The Lodge at Blue Sky (located on a ranch 30 minutes from Deer Valley — make a reservation and enjoy the breathtaking views), and ice cream at Java Cow (don’t miss the Banksy painting on the south side of the building).
—
Family Services & Amenities
💛💛💛💛💛
The resort truly excelled in family services and amenities. On arrival, the children were offered themed plushes. In the room, children’s robes and slippers were placed in the closet and there was a sweet personalized welcome poster and cookies and milk for the kids. All dining venues had children’s menus and multi-page coloring books. The resort pools were all family-friendly, and there was a heated outdoor baby pool. Perhaps our girls’ favorite place to play was the arcade (free), along with the outdoor chess board, bowling and darts. They also loved the Montage Merits program, where they could earn “medals” to pin to a necklace for completing a variety of activities. Nightly s’mores and meeting Monty and Murphy, the resort’s Great Bernese mascots, were also highlights. Our youngest spent a day at the Paintbox kids club — which included field trips to a local farm and a nearby hiking trail, as well as an onsite cookie decorating class with the resort’s pastry chef. She loved it. That said, the kids club comes with a considerable fee ($195 per morning or afternoon session per child, including lunch) and was less flexible than many of the other kids clubs we’ve visited — reservations are required / recommended at least 48 hours in advance and children who are not registered in the Paintbox program cannot play in the playroom even with adult supervision.
—
Activities
💛💛💛💛💛
Outdoor enthusiasts will feel right at home here with a plethora of exploration and adventure activities on and off property. Compass Sports is the onsite outfitter and activity center for all sporting equipment rentals, guides, and excursions. As mentioned previously, Daly’s is home to two bowling lanes, darts and a great free arcade. Outdoor chess and lawn games are available in summer months. S’mores and warm cocoa are provided fireside nightly from 7-8pm. Some of the more unique activities on offer here include a snow-tubing track from the Grand Lawn during ski season, the Cadillac Experience with 4-hours of free drive time per stay, and Montage Excursions — once-in-a-lifetime guided “fly and drive” experiences to Utah national parks. There is a complimentary shuttle service into downtown Park City (with lots of cars and shuttle buses in the fleet), which was great. While the resort offers a plethora of daily activities, we were surprised there was no print or digital resort activities schedule available, as this would have been helpful.
In Park City, we loved exploring the paved Rail Trail along Poison Creek through Shoe Tree Park, playing at the City Park playground, taking pictures in front of the Banksy painting outside Java Cow, and shopping for books and looking for cats in Dolly’s Bookstore. There’s a free trolley that runs through town, though we didn’t take it while there. During the summer, the city hosts Park Silly Sunday Market, a free weekly eco-friendly open air artist market and street festival with live music, and Main Street becomes pedestrian-only. But the biggest highlight of all was visiting Olympic Park Village — the alpine slide and ski jump demonstrations were the most memorable experiences.
—
Wellness
💛💛💛💛💛
Montage Deer Valley boasts Utah’s largest spa and health club. The spa facilities include a variety of treatment options — many of which are geared toward skiers / guests engaging in active pursuits— an indoor heated pool and hot tub, separate men’s and women’s lounges with relaxation areas, hot tubs, steam rooms, saunas, and cold experience showers. An afternoon using the women’s spa facilities was a highlight. There’s also a spacious and well-equipped fitness center with incredible valley views from the cardio equipment. The resort’s setting is wellness-oriented with fresh air, forests, and lots of hiking / biking trails. Some healthy menu options were available in the dining venues, but overall the fare was on the heavier side (burgers, steaks, pizza, etc.).
—
Wow Factor
💛💛💛💛💛
Park City itself is perhaps the coolest mountain resort town we’ve ever visited. Deer Valley has more limited services and amenities outside of ski season but the views are breathtaking and its more of a serene vibe (outside of ski season). The service experience and thoughtful touches at Montage Deer Valley delivered wow at every turn.
—
Value
💛💛💛💛+
Park City and Deer Valley are expensive destinations overall, and this resort is no exception. The best value, in our opinion, was the $11-14 kids lunch and dinner options, which included a generously-portioned meal, a side, a drink, and a dessert. Otherwise, expect to pay a premium for dining, services, and activities here. Alcohol is heavily taxed in Utah, but corkage is allowed in restaurants, so we brought The Wine Check with some of our favorite selections from home to enjoy at dinners out.
—
Overall
💛💛💛💛💛
We truly fell in love with this destination and resort. While we typically feel ready to go home toward the end of most vacations, at check out here, we found ourselves wishing we could stay longer and decidedly eager to return. Park City is a gem of a town with easy access to an international airport, so much history and character, and incredible outdoor activities and scenery but without the scene-y, party vibe of some other resort towns we’ve visited (looking at you, Vail). Our kids readily made vacation friends with several other kids at the resort and at the City Park playground, which was another fun aspect of this trip. On top of all that, the resort delivers A+ service and an elevated family vacation experience that hits on all cylinders.
Would return in a heartbeat.
Rating Legend*
💛💛💛💛💛 Exceptional
💛💛💛💛 Notable
💛💛💛 Standard
💛💛 Substandard
💛 Unsatisfactory
*All ratings are relative to similar-class properties
