Just because this is a ski town doesn’t mean there aren’t fun things to do in Park City in summer. In fact, you’ll enjoy slightly lower lodging rates and great weather in the summertime! (Just don’t be lured by the super-low rates in April and May…we call that mud season as the snow is still melting, and summer activities aren’t quite open yet) They say people come to Park City for the winter and stay for the summer. For those few blissful months between mud seasons, these Park City Summer activities are the best.

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Utah Olympic Park

While Utah’s Olympic Park was built for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, it’s actually even more fun in the summer! They have an alpine slide, ropes courses, zip lines, bobsled tracks, and extreme tubing, which is shown in the photo below. I thought extreme tubing was extremely terrifying, but it’s a must for adrenaline junkies. Buy a Gold Pass that covers everything but the bobsled for a 1/2 day period. After your adventures, stop at the swimming pool and watch world-class athletes practice ski jumps.

Mirror Lake Scenic Highway is a great summer day trip from Park City!

River Rafting

Park City rafting is a bit milder than some other whitewater spots in Utah, but you can still spend a day floating the Weber or Provo Rivers under towering alpine peaks. Both rivers are pretty mellow, which means they attract a lot of partying tubers on the weekends. Families should go during the week to enjoy a quieter experience. Either way, it’s a beautiful day in the mountains and on the water. Make sure you know what to wear whitewater rafting!

Book Weber River Rafting with AllSeasons Adventures

Visit Moab for the best whitewater rafting in Utah!

Horseback Riding

One of my favorite summer activities anywhere is horseback riding. I love horses and even stayed at a Tucson dude ranch once. I didn’t want to leave! Any chance I have, I will go horseback riding, and I always want to go more often than I’m able. In Park City, horseback riding is just a beautiful way to spend a day in the mountains. There are tons of outfitters around, some with longer seasons than others. So far, my favorite views have been the Deer Valley trails with Boulder Mountain Ranch or the Uinta views from North Forty Escapes. Rocky Mountain Outfitters goes year-round and also has a ride to Stewart Falls at Sundance Mountain Resort.

Fly Fishing

I grew up in a fishing family; my grandma lived on the Mississippi River, and her husband ran catfish lines from their house. We often fished on family trips to Colorado, but I never tried fly fishing until I moved to Utah. It’s way more fun than traditional fishing or lake fishing. You’re constantly moving around, and it’s very active. Plus, the scenery!

Book Park City Fly Fishing Excursion

Hot Air Balloon

One of the most expensive but “worth it” travel experiences is a hot air balloon tour. I was terrified of hot air balloons, but at a blogger conference in Gallup New Mexico, I had the opportunity to go up and it was amazing. It is the most peaceful experience, just floating towards the clouds while people and objects on the ground get smaller and smaller. Naturally, when I moved to Park City, I had to try a hot air balloon tour. Floating over the valley surrounding Park City with the summer-green mountains in the distance is incredible. Totally worth getting up at 5 am! If this is on your wishlist, make reservations early as they fill up really far in advance.

Book Bigfoot Balloons Excursion

ATV Tours

An ATV tour was the last Park City summer activity that I just finally got around to trying this summer! I actually first tried it down in St. George and immediately booked a Park City UTV tour when I got back home. This particular tour takes place in Wasatch Mountain State Park. The two-hour tour took us up in the mountains for amazing views, and lots of fun splashing through mud puddles along the way. This is a messy outing, but so fun! I look forward to more ATV trips in the future.

Book Park City ATV Tours

There are tons of scenic drives to explore near Park City, too!

Paddleboarding / Kayaking

I spent so much time kayaking in Chicago, and I've really missed getting out on the water. I don't really have space to keep a kayak in Park City, so I decided to give paddleboarding a try. There are several ladies from my work who all have paddleboards, and we've been going out weekly in the evenings. Jordanelle State Park is a great spot for paddleboarding in Park City! There is a water sports rental shop, and you can also rent at Deer Valley Resort or Deer Creek State Park. With these hot summer days, being on the water is about the only activity I can tolerate. There are tons of great places for paddleboarding in Northern Utah!

Take a daytrip to go paddleboarding in Utah County!

Park City Mountain Resort

Utah's ski resorts are also super fun in the summer! Park City Mountain runs a few of their chairlifts to access mountain bike and hiking trails, plus they have a whole Adventure Park for summer visitors. The Adventure Park features an alpine slide, an alpine coaster, and a zip line. At the Canyons Village base, there's an 18-hole golf course, a disc golf course, an 18-hole mini-golf, and a summer concert series. If you want to splurge on a ticket for the Red Pine Gondola, there are some great hikes at the top and you can have lunch afterward at Red Pine Lodge. (If you pre-purchased an Epic pass for the following season, it should also be good for summer lift rides!)

Deer Valley Resort

While Deer Valley doesn't have an Adventure Park like Park City Mountain, it's still a great destination in the summer. 3 chairlifts run in the summer to ferry hikers and bikers to the upper reaches of the mountain. Chairlift hiking is my favorite! If you want a guided hike, Deer Valley offers guided historic hikes one Sunday a month that point out some cool mining sites around the Deer Valley area. You can also rent paddleboards at the Deer Valley ponds.

The Deer Valley Concert Series is a huge hit. Reminiscent of Chicago's Ravinia, the DV Summer Concert Series pulls in some big acts while the audience kicks back on the lawn near Snow Park Lodge. Popular shows sell out months in advance, so be sure to sign up for the Deer Valley email list so you can know when tickets go on sale. You can also rent chairs and purchase pre-made picnic baskets for the shows.

Check out my year-round local's guide to Deer Valley Utah!

Park City Hiking

Hiking is my favorite Park City Utah summer activity! So much so that I have a totally separate post planned for the best hikes in Park City. Stay tuned for that one! In the meantime, some of my favorite Park City-area hikes include:

• Tombstone Trail at Canyons Resort
• PC Hill
• Mine Shaft Loop
• Brighton Lakes Loop
• Bloods Lake Trail
• Solamere Loop at Deer Valley

Don't forget to carry these hiking essentials!

The Park City Museum is not only a great destination for families visiting Park City, but they also organize guided hikes, walking tours of Main Street, and Park City home tours.

Park City Golf Courses

Although I'm not a golfer, I've been a Park City concierge for over five years now, so I've booked my share of tee times and heard lots of feedback from guests. Here's a few of the most beautiful golf courses in Park City and the surrounding areas.

• Park City Golf Course
• Wasatch Mountain Golf Course
• Canyons Golf Course
• Soldier Hollow Golf Course
• Mountain Dell Golf Course

Sundance Mountain Resort

While Sundance isn't technically in Park City, it's still one of my favorite destinations in all seasons. It's about 45 minutes from Park City and a lovely place to spend a summer afternoon. They have horseback riding, scenic chairlift rides, zip lines, mountain biking, and hiking. The 3-mile round-trip hike to Stewart Falls is a favorite, especially in the fall. You can eat at the Foundry Grill or grab a sandwich to go and sit outside next to the creek. It's heavenly!

Park City Summer Events

In addition to all of these fun Park City summer activities, there are some fun annual events to plan for.

• Park Silly Sunday Market is an open-air market/festival held (almost) every Sunday on Historic Main Street. It's a great opportunity to shop for local goods, and enjoy live music and fabulous food and drinks!
• Summer concerts are scheduled throughout the season at Deer Valley, Canyons Village, Newpark Amphitheater, and other venues. The best source for a schedule of live music is Mountain Town Music.
• July 4th always features a parade on Main Street; because of frequent summer droughts, fireworks aren't always a given, but Canyons Village put on a cool drone show in lieu of fireworks last year.
• July 24th is Pioneer Day, a Utah holiday that is as big as July 4th. As it commemorates the arrival of the Mormons in Utah, non-Mormons celebrate this as "pie and beer day."
• The Kimball Arts Festival is always the first weekend of August and draws around 200 artists each year.
• Miner's Day closes out the summer over the Labor Day holiday weekend. Celebrate Park City's mining history!
• In September, Deer Valley hosts the Mountain Beer Festival at Silver Lake Village. This popular event includes lift tickets, and tickets will sell out well in advance.

Want to know where the Real Housewives of Park City hang out?

Outdoor Dining in Park City

There are so many fantastic Park City restaurants to choose from, and fortunately, many of them have outdoor dining, so you can take in the summer weather and enjoy the sights and sounds of Park City in summer! A few spots have permanent patios, however, many set up a temporary outdoor seating deck right on the sidewalks for the summer months. Some (not all) of these patios are even open to well-behaved dogs. Here are a few of my favorite Park City patios to hang out on:

• No Name Saloon has a great rooftop deck looking out over Main Street
• Cafe Terigo has the cutest patio on Main Street (no dogs allowed)
• Grappa has a beautiful patio at the top of Main Street, and you can reserve patio seating
• Butcher's Chop House and the Bridge Cafe both have fun patios under the Town Lift
• Fletcher's, Purple Sage, and Handle all have patios that face Swede Alley on the back side of Main Street.
• Off Main Street, Boneyard Saloon and Tupelo both have nice outdoor seating
• At the ski resorts, there are also some great options:
  • Silver Star Cafe at the base of Park City Mountain's Silver Star chairlift
  • St. Regis, Stein Eriksen, and Goldener Hirsch at Deer Valley all have amazing scenery and food!
  • At Canyons Village, there's epc at the Hyatt Centric Park City, Drafts Burger Bar, the Umbrella Bar, and several restaurants at Pendry Park City.
• There are also several Kimball Junction restaurants with outdoor dining, including Maxwells, Bartolo's, Sushi Blue, Ghidotti's, and Red Rock Junction.

Park City Summer Travel Tips

When planning your Park City summer trip, keep these things in mind:

• The nearest airport is Salt Lake City; Park City is just 30 minutes from the airport!
• A rental car is useful in the summer, but once you are in Park City, there is a free bus system serving downtown Park City.
• Park City sits at 7,000' elevation; the sun is stronger and the air is thinner. Make sure you hydrate before and during your trip to avoid a Park City altitude headache. Also, make sure you top up your sunscreen; it's so easy to get sunburned in the mountains!
• Book your Park City accommodations well in advance; summer is almost as busy as ski season in Park City!
• Some of the passes and trails don't open until July as June can still be muddy with snow at higher elevations.
• Don't forget to make dinner reservations at the best Park City restaurants. Yes, they fill up in the summer, too!
• Utah fall colors start early at higher elevations, so if you want true summer in Park City Utah, then come in July or August.

Wondering what to do in Park City in winter besides ski?