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Going beyond Dry July, alcohol-free getaways known as “dry tripping” continue to influence travel year-round. Utah is not a dry state, but its soda culture easily supports sober sojourns. Utah is home to the “dirty soda” – fountain soda with added ingredients such as heavy creams, flavoured syrups, fruit juices and even candy pieces. Due to Utah’s enormous population of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who abstain from alcohol and hot beverages (such as coffee and tea), the dirty soda trend took off. Visitors will find the widest variety of soda shops in the U.S., with various chains and hundreds of drink combinations. These soda shops are located across the state, including at the Salt Lake City International Airport. They are often a drive-through model, allowing road trippers to grab a dirty soda to go quickly.
Netflix co-founder creating a skiable open-air art museum.
Utah’s Powder Mountain, the largest ski resort in the U.S., recently purchased by Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, is creating an open-air art museum and sculpture park where visitors can experience site-specific artwork integrated throughout the terrain. Access is free and open to the public for hiking and biking during summer and fall, and it is available with a season pass or lift ticket during the winter. The land art movement has strong ties to Utah, and renowned artists such as Nancy Holt, whose Sun Tunnels sit on the opposite side of the Great Salt Lake from the resort, have been commissioned. Aiming to attract visitors who love art as much as skiing, Powder Mountain plans to ensure guests can view some of the installations regardless of mobility levels and feature female, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists.
Heber Valley home to new resort gateway
Deer Valley Resort has soft-opened its highly anticipated expanded terrain, Deer Valley East Village, for the 2024-25 ski season in Utah’s Heber Valley, located 45 min. from Salt Lake City International Airport and halfway between Park City and Sundance Mountain Resort. This gateway will offer visitors an alternative arrival option to Deer Valley Resort and provide access to three new chairlifts, over 300 acres (121 hectares) of terrain, and several debut ski runs. The brand new Grand Hyatt Deer Valley has also opened in the Heber Valley, providing luxury accommodation with 400 rooms and suites, five food and beverage outlets, an outdoor heated swimming pool with three hot tubs, and a spa opening later this year. Four Seasons Resort and Private Residences Deer Valley has also announced it will be building in the Heber Valley.
Castle Valley’s latest dark sky to be preserved.
It is widely known that Utah is home to the darkest sky parks and places in the world, and it is accredited by DarkSky International (formerly the International Dark Sky Association). Still, it is not resting on its title and continues its conservation to keep the state Forever Mighty. Case in point, Castle Valley, located east of Moab and Arches National Park, is the newest designation. It has become Utah’s fourth International Dark Sky Community and added to the state’s overall count, now at 26 accreditations, including all five of Utah’s Mighty 5® national parks. Utah publishes the free Dark Skies Exploration: A Beginner’s Guide for visitor use, and Astro-tourists to the area seeking guided stargazing experiences can look to Moab RedRock Astronomy.
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