Basecamp Davis County (2024)

words by Jeremy Pugh

Davis County, located just north of Salt Lake City, and just 20 minutes away from Salt Lake International Airport, is a perfectly situated basecamp for launching your ski adventure in Utah. It’s an affordable alternative that will allow your family to explore beyond the areas outside of Salt Lake City or Park City and is still within one hour of nine of Utah’s famous resorts. Davis County offers more than just access to Utah’s Greatest Snow on Earth. There are down-day attractions for the whole family and natural wonders abound.

Utah is well known for its close proximity to skiing, but often travelers feel like they have to pick among Park City, Salt Lake City or Ogden. Staying in one of Davis County’s quiet cities allows easy access to all. Moreover, the Ogden resorts, Snowbasin Resort, Powder Mountain and Nordic Valley are within 30 minutes while Deer Valley Resort and Park City Mountain are within 45. The famed Cottonwood Canyons— home to Alta Ski Area, Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude Mountain Resort resorts—are all within less than an hour of drive time.

Every ski vacation needs a down day that doesn’t involve schlepping the kids up the mountain. Davis County offers year-round amusem*nt centers where you can get out of the cold and let the kids run around like crazy. Boondocks, in Kaysville, offers bowling, laser tag, mini-bowling (which Northeasterners might recognize as “Candlepin” bowling) and, of course, an arcade. For kids who really like to climb the walls, the Urban Air Adventure Park, in Clearfield, has actual climbing walls in addition to many more ways for the family to fling themselves around—trampolines, ropes courses, foam pits, slam dunk challenges, even bumper cars, mini-golf and bowling.

While you will enjoy breathtaking vistas and views from atop the mountains and ski lifts in Northern Utah, there’s more to be explored. Winter is an excellent time to visit Antelope Island State Park, located in the Great Salt Lake. The 50-square-mile island is home to migrating waterfowl and a herd of resident bison. There are miles of hiking trails and the western side of the island offers an unspoiled view of the Great Salt Lake. Davis County is also home to the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve and Farmington Bay Trail, both excellent hiking and birdwatching areas.

Enjoy live theater at the CenterPoint Legacy Theatre, which features family-friendly performances through the season. The Bountiful Davis Arts Center presents unique art programming and events including free-to-the-public art exhibitions featuring Utah artists and professionally taught art and theater classes for children and adults. The SeaQuest Interactive Aquarium gives kids an up-close encounter with the ocean—they can touch and feed creatures from five continents. Station Park Center is a shopping and living area in Farmington. Its central Fountain Square showcases a light and water show designed by the hydro-engineering wizards who built the famed Bellagio fountain in Las Vegas.

Visit PlayinDavis.com for local hotel discounts designed for the ski traveler and more things to do and see in Davis County.

With all that Davis County has to offer and their proximity to the Salt Lake City International Airport, Utah's famed skislopes and activities, it's a destination you shouldn't overlook for your next ski vacation.

Content sponsored by Davis County