Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau

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Salt Lake makes headlines, and here you'll find the places where Salt Lake has been making waves in the media - newspapers, magazines, and television.

Top five bargain destinations for winter
November 20, 2009
By Christine Sarkis, USA Today -- Whether winter calls for sun or snow in your book, there are plenty of deals to put a vacation on your horizon. As destinations attempt to pull themselves out of the recession funk, they're offering winter deals worth serious consideration. Salt Lake City and the surrounding mountain destinations stand out as an affordable winter vacation spot this year. Domestic airfare sales and ski-friendly offers make getting there a bargain, and more discounts on hotels and ski expenses can bring down the overall cost substantially. continue reading...

All-purpose Rail Event Center boasts modern vibe
November 19, 2009
David Burger, Salt Lake Tribune -- "We are a great concert hall, but we're not just a concert hall," said Brad Davis, general manager of The Rail. The Rail has been booking weddings, corporate events, quinceañeras, Sweet 16 parties and community events. The owners spent nearly $7 million to renovate what was once a Modern Display warehouse into a 42,000-square-foot, all-purpose venue. continue reading...

Salt Lake airport a great place to get stuck
November 18, 2009
Paul Beebe, Salt Lake Tribune -- A traveler could do a lot worse than get stranded at Salt Lake City's aging airport, according to SeatGuru.com, which bills itself as the Web's most complete resource for airline information. On Tuesday, SeatGuru released its pick of Salt Lake City International Airport and four other domestic airports as the best places to be stuck during the heavy holiday travel season, which starts next week. continue reading...

Facing the wild snowy yonder
November 11, 2009
TRACY L. BARNETT, Houston Chronicle -- Curled up in front of the fire, I look out to a line of snow-frosted pines. Twenty-three inches of snow fell last night, so the snow is still fluffy and soft. Beyond the trees, I can see the tops of the mountains I will be ascending tomorrow. I'm trying not to think of all the things that can go wrong. I'm fluctuating between “Really, it's no big deal,” and “What in the world was I thinking?” continue reading...

Happiest U.S. states are wealthy and tolerant: Utah tops list
November 10, 2009
By Jeanna Bryner, MSNBC--Though you might not be able to run away from your problems, moving to another state could be good for the soul. New research suggests U.S. states with wealthier, better educated and more tolerant residents are also happier on average. continue reading...

Powder Play: Eight reasons to ski Utah
November 07, 2009
STEPHEN REGENOLD, Special to the Star Tribune -- Utah's Wasatch Mountain Range has it all: deep snow, steep slopes and good value, with cheap flights to nearby Salt Lake City. Staked like a wall at the western edge of the Rocky Mountains, the Wasatch Range towers over Utah's Great Salt Lake and the vast desert basin beyond. For skiers and snowboarders, the range's sharp peaks and plunging valleys -- plus hundreds of inches of powder snow each season --create an ultimate playground for fast descents in deep snow. continue reading...

City Creek casting noteworthy shadow: Mixed-use project changes downtown landscape
November 04, 2009
Paul Beebe, The Salt Lake Tribune -- Three years after demolition of the Crossroads Plaza kicked off construction of City Creek Center, the massive retail, residential and office project in downtown Salt Lake City is beginning to take shape. The project is widely credited for keeping the worst of the recession in Utah at bay. And when completed in 2012, City Creek is expected to spark more economic growth in the area. continue reading...

Ski season kicks off in Salt Lake!
November 03, 2009
MacKenzie Geidt, Sunset Magazine -- Very exciting news, people....Salt Lake's ski season kicks off THIS FRIDAY, November 6th, at Solitude Mountain Resort. Time to get your ski on! I personally don't like being marooned at a ski resort (no matter how great it is), and Salt Lake is really the perfect place to base yourself in the city, with awesome skiing a quick 30 minutes away. continue reading...

America's top snow: Skiing readers laud Utah resorts - again
October 30, 2009
Mike Gorrell, Salt Lake Tribune -- Readers' choice: Alta and Snowbird, two iconic areas that continue to draw hard-core skiers, are once again featured in Skiing magazine as among North America's top 10 ski areas. continue reading...

Salt Lake City convention bookings look promising in recession-tinted picture
October 20, 2009
Les Roka, The Selective Echo -- There is no doubt that Scott Beck, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau, relishes a challenge. In competing with other venues to host association conventions and meetings, corporate business gatherings, and city-wide events, many of which have had their budgets severely curtailed in the recession, Beck sees a long-term payoff in building the destination value of Salt Lake City especially once the economy rebounds. continue reading...

Which Airports Have the Fewest Delays?
October 18, 2009
ABC News, Ron Scherer -- This might be one of the few good things to come out of the recession: airport delays are down. Yes, you read that correctly – even if you are sitting in an airport wondering when your flight will take off. The best of the metro airports: Salt Lake City. continue reading...

Greater Salt Lake City: CROSSROADS OF THE WEST
September 22, 2009
John Anderson, Smart Meetings -- We’ve all heard that flat is the new up, with businesses and meeting planners adjusting to an economy that’s more about sustaining revenue than growing it. Assuming that’s the case, then bland might just be the new wow, pleasingly plump the new slim and, if the hotel folks in Utah have their say, Salt Lake City the new Las Vegas. And while no one will mistake “The Entertainment Capital of the World” (as Vegas bills itself) for the capital of the Beehive State—you won’t find mammoth casinos, a faux New York City or miles of neon in Salt Lake City—there are plenty of advantages for not being Las Vegas these days. continue reading...

Off the Brochure Travel Guide: Salt Lake City, Utah
September 17, 2009
Ann, Cochran, Peter Greenberg Worldwide -- Salt Lake City has dual mecca status: religious and athletic. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is based in and around glorious Temple Square and there are seven world-class ski resorts 30 to 45 minutes away, 11 within an hour’s drive. Utah’s tourism slogan, “Life Elevated,” couldn’t be a more appropriate personification of its state capital. Salt Lake City is orderly, clean, flowered and treed. The rugged Wasatch Mountains provide a movie-set backdrop for a vibrant downtown where broad boulevards and avenues are usually free of traffic. The valley is blessed with good weather—in the winter, daytime temperatures are usually above freezing, while the surrounding slopes are blanketed in dry powder. continue reading...

Skiing Magazine -- Best Snow: Alta/Snowbird, Utah
September 16, 2009
The heavens really open up in Utah. These neighboring resorts at the end of Little Cottonwood Canyon typically get more than 600 inches a year. During winter, Utah State Highway 210 winds up Little Cottonwood Canyon, passes Snowbird, and dead-ends near Alta and the canyon’s head, at 8,600 feet. Storms follow the same path. Moisture-laden air moves up the canyon, gets Heismanned by a wall of 11,000-foot peaks, and, in a meteorological miracle known as orographic uplift, often barfs more than 600 inches of light, dry powder in a single winter. In the 2007–08 season it snowed an astounding 701.5 inches. continue reading...

Salt Lake hopes to benefit from travel agents' meeting
September 08, 2009
Mike Gorrell, Salt Lake Tribune -- The 600 travel agents meeting in Salt Lake City later this week aren't really coming to learn about Utah. Their focus is expected to be on seminars the Travel Leaders company put together to help franchisees nationwide understand and react to trends in the struggling industry. Or on the chance to network with their counterparts from all around the country. Still, the company meeting Thursday through Saturday at Grand America Hotel exposes Salt Lake City's attributes to the trained eyes of people who know what is important to the traveling public. "Just having them here promotes Salt Lake," said Scott Beck, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau. "They get to experience our hospitality, go to dinner at the Metropolitan or get a beer at Squatters. ... They'll get to see Salt Lake as a viable destination, overcoming the reputation of no night life, that there's nothing to do here, that there are goofy liquor laws." continue reading...

Utah to host 2011 national meeting of governors
August 26, 2009
Robert Gehrke , The Salt Lake Tribune -- Salt Lake City will host the 2011 gathering of the National Governors Association, the association announced Wednesday. It will be the fourth time the association has met in Utah since 1919. continue reading...

Salt Lake City airport tops in on-time flights...again
August 13, 2009
Salt Lake City International Airport remains the best airport in the country for on-time travel, according to an article this month in Travel and Leisure Magazine. The publication ranked the best and worst airports for on-time performance using data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics from April 1, 2008, to March 31, 2009. For a second time, Salt Lake International had the best record. continue reading...

Pastrami Meets The Patty in Utah
July 28, 2009
John T. Edge, New York Times: RAGGED strips of pastrami, fatty edges tinged russet by a long immersion in a serving-line vat of paprika-spiked beef broth, spilled from beneath the bun of Cindy Rutland’s burger... Here, Crown Burgers and various imitators have, over the last three decades, convinced the citizens of Utah that it is perfectly normal to wedge a quarter pound of thin-sliced pastrami between a cheese-draped charbroiled beef patty and a sesame seed bun, slathered with a Thousand-Island-like sauce and dressed with sliced tomatoes, shaved lettuce and onions. continue reading...

Retailer expo can translate into big money
July 20, 2009
Lana Groves, Deseret News: Utah made its mark on the winter sports community when the Olympics arrived in 2002, and now the Beehive State is taking all types of outdoor recreation by storm. As thousands roll into Salt Lake City for the outdoor retailer convention this week, Utah's economy welcomes the growing reputation for outdoor recreation and the $19 million impact officials say the 20,000 attendees make during the weeklong visit. continue reading...

SLC to host world congress for convention and meeting planners
July 06, 2009
Les, The Selective Echo: Thousands of representatives from more than 30 nations will convene in Salt Lake City this coming weekend at the annual World Education Congress of Meeting Professionals International (MPI), the world’s largest association for the event and convention industry. continue reading...

Utah's private clubs fade into history Wednesday
June 30, 2009
Lisa Riley Roche, Deseret News -- Starting Wednesday, Utah's private clubs won't be so private anymore. That's when the new law eliminating private club membership requirements takes effect, turning the state's equivalent of bars into, well, bars. continue reading...

Utah relaxing liquor laws to entice tourists
June 22, 2009
Valerie Richardson, Washinton Times: Utah's liquor laws are set to relax July 1, bringing them more in line with those of the rest of the nation, but don't expect Salt Lake City to morph into Sin City any time soon. continue reading...

Visitors Bureau extends ski pass idea to golfing
June 16, 2009
Mike Gorrell, Salt Lake Tribune -- Because the super pass idea has worked so well stimulating tourist interest in skiing Salt Lake County's resorts, why not try it with golfing in the summer? And why not make it available to locals, too? The Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau is giving the idea a shot. continue reading...

Nonstop flight from Utah to Tokyo begins
June 03, 2009
Associated Press: A nonstop flight from Tokyo is making its way to Salt Lake City. The 12-hour flight is the first in a new service from Delta Air Lines. It is the first time Salt Lake City will see an Airbus 330 jet on a regular basis and the first trans-Pacific service in the intermountain region. The flight will run five times a week. continue reading...

Bureau markets S.L. to …Utahns
May 27, 2009
By Lee Benson, Deseret News -- The staggering economy has changed more than a few vacation plans this summer. Before you were thinking of maybe the Left Bank in Paris or a Serengeti safari, or at least the three-day park hopper pass at Disneyland. Now you're thinking something a little more conservative and a wee bit closer to home. The Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau knows this. Which is why its marketing plan for the summer of 2009 is targeting a tourist who looks very familiar: Us. continue reading...

Second Homes: Skiing, hiking and biking in Salt Lake City
May 15, 2009
Larry Olmsted, USA Today: In February, Salt Lake made the news when it was named the nation's fittest city by Men's Health magazine. But second-home owners have known this for years. Skiing is the highest-profile active pursuit, especially since the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. Utah receives "Champagne powder," and 11 major ski resorts are within an hour, with some as close as 10 minutes. continue reading...

Overlooking the Mormon Temple, a New Center
May 12, 2009
Linda Baker, New York Times: While the economic crisis has silenced hundreds of real estate projects around the country, 1,100 construction workers are toiling on a 20-acre development here that is springing up across the street from the Mormon Temple in the center of downtown. continue reading...

Inspiration takes Wing at Tracy Aviary bird festival
May 11, 2009
Judy Fahys, Deseret News: Visitors to this year's urban bird festival are enjoying about $1 million in improvements to aviary exhibits since Labor Day. The Kennecott Wetlands Immersion Experience opens to the public later this month, as does the updated Amazon Adventure. continue reading...

It's (Zion) 'curtains' for restaurant booze barriers
May 10, 2009
Lisa Riley Roche, Deseret News: Starting Tuesday, the restaurant portion of the state's sweeping changes to liquor regulation becomes law. Utah's version of bars, private clubs, have to wait until July 1 to eliminate their membership requirements, however. continue reading...

Boxing: Utahn works his magic
May 08, 2009
Jay Drew, Salt Lake Tribune: Salt Lake City's Rick Montoya doesn't need validation, after spending most of the last 20 years of his life developing Utah youngsters into some of the finest amateur boxers in the country. But if this week at the Golden Gloves National Tournament of Champions is proving anything, it is that Montoya deserves to be called one of the state's best trainers. continue reading...

Visitors bureau launches carbon offset program
May 06, 2009
Paul Beebe, Salt Lake Tribune: Green-minded visitors, whatever their political hue, can now fly or drive to Salt Lake City without worrying about their carbon footprints. The Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau has started a carbon offset program on its Web site, www.visitsaltlake.com, for travelers to gauge the number of tons of carbon dioxide that will get belched into the atmosphere on their trips to and from Salt Lake City. continue reading...

At 25, Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau masters a sustainable brand
May 02, 2009
The Selective Echo: Perhaps there is no better way to mark the 25th anniversary of the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau than to gain the global housekeeping seal of approval from Meeting Professionals International (MPI), the world’s largest association for the event and convention industry, which will hold in SLC its annual World Education Congress this summer. continue reading...

SALT LAKE CITY - GREAT POWDER, PRICES : More snow, fewer skiers means Salt Lake City is ideal
April 08, 2009
Michael Cervin, SANTA BARBARA NEWS-PRESS -- To ski or not to ski, that is the question. Aspen boasts movie stars and the chance to be seen, but it has crowds. Whistler is beautiful, but it's a whole other country. Then there's Utah. Not necessarily on everyone's short list, the Salt Lake City region offers four prime skiing locations, all within a 40-minute drive from downtown. Dollar-conscious travelers would do well to stay in Salt Lake City and commute the short drive to ski or snowboard rather than stay at a secluded resort. continue reading...

SLC hotel proposal raises hope
April 07, 2009
Jeremiah Stettler, The Salt Lake Tribune -- Should Salt Lake County accommodate a new 1,000-room hotel overlooking the Salt Palace? That's the question the County Council will raise today as officials consider creating an exploratory committee to figure out whether a Salt Palace hotel makes financial sense for Utah's capital and whether public funds should support it. The hotel would rise within easy walking distance of the Salt Palace, offering convention-bookers 1,000 rooms, about 90,000 square feet of meeting space and full-service accommodations, including fine dining, gift shops, fitness centers and an indoor swimming pool. continue reading...

Pedicabs rolling into SLC
April 03, 2009
Derek P. Jensen, The Salt Lake Tribune -- Downtown Salt Lake City's public transportation scene just got a leg up. Well, two. A new bicycle taxi service called Stick Dog Pedicabs is cruising the capital's bar and restaurant scene -- ready to pedal people between stops, back to the hotel and even home for a "driver" tip. The rickshaw-like rigs, brightly colored and able to carry two at a time, can be hailed afternoon or evening. And they are rolling just in time for LDS conference weekend. continue reading...

Top 10 Drive-Free Resorts: #4 - Salt Lake City
April 02, 2009
SkiNet (SKI/Skiing Magazines) - Ok, so Salt Lake City isn’t typically known as a ski resort. It’s a city, obviously. But it’s so much more: it’s a city with an international airport that lies within one hour of 11 different resorts, including Snowbird, Alta, Solitude, and Brighton. For that reason, it qualifies as a premium-access region. continue reading...

Utah lifts 'weird' drinking curbs
March 31, 2009
BBC News - Utah has eased its strict controls on public drinking by announcing the end of restrictions under which bars had to function like private clubs. From 1 July, anyone wanting a strong drink in the largely Mormon state will no longer have to fill in a form and pay a fee in order to enter a bar. continue reading...

Delta beefs up Salt Lake City connections
March 27, 2009
Associated Press, Salt Lake Tribune: Delta Air Lines will launch a nonstop daily flight from Salt Lake City to Chicago's Midway Airport to compete with low-cost carrier Southwest Airlines. continue reading...

Ski tour group impressed with SLC
March 26, 2009
Mike Gorrell, Salt Lake Tribune: One day, visiting ski tour operators were taken skiing up Big Cottonwood Canyon. The next day, they hit the Little Cottonwood resorts. But skiing was not the only activity on the itinerary of the Ski Tour Operators Association during its four-day stay last week in Salt Lake City. Far from it. There was a night at a Jazz game, and an excursion to the Utah Olympic Oval, where they could skate laps, play a little hockey, even try their hands at curling. continue reading...

Liquor laws may be immediate boon
March 19, 2009
Brice Wallace, Deseret News: The changes in Utah's liquor laws could have positive consequences even before the measures take effect this summer, a member of the Utah Board of Tourism Development said Thursday. continue reading...

Salt Lake convention business strong despite recession
March 11, 2009
Salt Lake Tribune (Mike Gorrell) -- This is a big year for the Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau. It's celebrating its silver anniversary, 25 years of marked growth that includes a prominent supporting role in securing and staging the 2002 Winter Olympics. But like everyone else, the bureau is trying to withstand the onslaught of the recession -- something it has been able to do thus far. continue reading...

Utah Tops List of America's Best States To Live
March 11, 2009
Rebecca Ruiz, Forbes: Utah earned the highest marks. Here residents reported a high level of satisfaction in several areas, including work environment, emotional health and their local communities. One major factor for Utah's strong performance might be its unemployment rate: When last reported in January, it was 4.6% compared with a national rate of 7.6%. continue reading...

Goodbye private clubs
March 09, 2009
The Salt Lake Tribune -- Legislators and Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. announced a deal Monday that would make the most sweeping changes in decades to Utah's liquor laws, including an end to the state's one-of-a-kind private-club law. Huntsman, who made doing away with the nettlesome club law a priority before the session, said it was a task that "many thought to be quite impossible early on." continue reading...

Salt Lake's reputation may now be an asset
March 06, 2009
Mike Gorrell, Salt Lake Tribune: The Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau has not had any companies or associations cancel meetings out of fear they might look like a junket in difficult economic times. continue reading...

Salt Lake City’s come a long way
February 25, 2009
Houston Chronicle (Tracy L. Barnett) -- Skiers who flock to this region for its legendary white powder and steep slopes often grab the first shuttle to their resort of choice, bypassing the state’s capital city. But to do so is to miss half the fun. continue reading...

Ski Photo Competition
February 23, 2009
Brett Prettyman, Salt Lake Tribune: After a successful first run in 2008 the second annual Ski Salt Lake Shootout got underway Monday at the four resorts in Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons. The contest brings local and global ski photographers to the canyons and pairs them with Utah-based athletes for four-days of skiing and shooting. continue reading...

Temple Square Ranked One Of America's Most Visited Tourist Attractions
February 20, 2009
Rob Baedeker, ForbesTraveller.com: The Mormon church's headquarters are here, but Temple Square is more than just a destination for Latter Day Saints. In 2008, visitation to the square, which is festooned with lights for the holiday season, numbered around five million, making it Utah's top tourist destination. continue reading...

Salt Lake Airport on top
February 19, 2009
Laura Hancock, Deseret News: For the second consecutive year, Salt Lake City International Airport is first in the nation for on-time arrivals and departures, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. continue reading...

Salt Lake rolls out 'aggressive' green plan
February 17, 2009
Deseret News -- Salt Lake City leaders rolled out an "aggressive" environmental agenda aimed at curbing emissions, imporoving air quality and drastically reducing waste sent to landfills. continue reading...

Utah's ski resorts offer plenty of powder at affordable prices
February 13, 2009
USA Today -- In a season in which ski areas from Maine to California are offering cost-saving balms to soothe the economically battered, Salt Lake City-area resorts remain a haven for value-conscious skiers. Eleven ski areas are within an hour of the airport. Competition among city hotels - particularly if you avoid visiting when major events are in town - bring substantial savings over slope-side lodgings. Public transit eliminates the need for a rental car, an added bonus for inexperienced snow drivers. The city offers diversions on days when weary skiers want a break. And the Super Pass offers savings and flexibility. continue reading...

Brew Pubs Gain an Unlikely Following in Utah
January 25, 2009
New York Times (Vanessa Chang) -- In the 1980s, a good beer was hard to come by in Utah. Although the state wasn't dry, its alcohol laws were strict, a reflection of a traditional Mormon culture that frowns on drinking. But masses of skiers were invading, bringing their thirst into Utah along with their boots and poles. Greg Schirf, a ski bum who had been making his own beer at home, saw opportunity. continue reading...

2009 Fittest Cities: #1 Salt Lake City, UT
January 16, 2009
Men's Fitness Magazine Now that's an impressive debut. A newcomer to MF's annual list, the Utah capital jumped (or shall we say, slalomed) to the top of the survey because of its abundance of park space, athletically motivated residents, and below- average obesity rates. While the 2002 Winter Olympics host is known for its abundance of cold-weather activities, Salt Lake City is also athletically impressive away from the mountains. continue reading...

Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau Celebrates 25th Anniversary
January 16, 2009
Utah Business Magazine -- Salt Lake for many years has been a hot attraction for skiing, vacations and even business conventions. In recent years, the Salt Lake area has seen a rise in tourism from people all over the world, a result of the 2002 Winter Olympics. The Salt Lake Convention and Visitor’s Bureau (SLCVB) is one the key organizations involved in bringing people from countries all over the globe to Salt Lake. The organization, which is the most senior convention bureau in Utah, celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. continue reading...

The Best Cities For Men
January 16, 2009
Men's Health Magazine -- Our annual statistical showdown reveals which city ranks as America's top metropolis for men. How does your hometown stack up? The 10 best 1. Madison, Wis. 2. St. Paul, Minn. 3. Salt Lake City... continue reading...

The Best Cities For Women
January 16, 2009
Women's Health Magazine -- Only one city can reign supreme in our first-ever nationwide search for America's Capital of Health. And the tiara goes to... The 10 best 1. Salt Lake City 2. San Francisco 3. Seattle ... continue reading...

Uncovering Utah's Epicurean Side
January 16, 2009
Wine Enthusiast Magazine -- Thoughts of Utah might include visions of spectacular mountains filled with incredible powder, miles of rugged red rock landscape, proselytizing Mormon missionaries; rarely does fine wine and food make the list. For the past decade, though, this notoriously dry state has undergone a quiet culinary evolution. As hundreds of stars alight on Park City for the Sundance Film Festival and as the 2009 ski season commences, we present some tips on experiencing Utah's myriad epicurean delights. continue reading...

Best Affordable Ski Resorts
January 05, 2009
Travel & Leisure Magazine -- Where to find downhill ski bargains in an economic downturn. Savvy skiers, listen up: This could just be your year to find great deals at some of America’s best ski resorts. continue reading...