Which Salt Lake City neighborhoods work best with a dog?
Downtown Salt Lake City has wide streets, long blocks and most of the hotels; staying on the northeast side puts you near Memory Grove and City Creek Canyon, where the mountains begin a few blocks from the Capitol. Sugar House, to the southeast, is the most walkable neighborhood, with a large park, a creek trail and many patios. The Avenues is a quiet historic district on the slope above downtown. Hotels near the University of Utah are convenient for the foothill trails, and Cottonwood Heights and Midvale are the usual bases for ski trips.
Where can I take my dog in Salt Lake City?
Parley's Historic Nature Park, also called Tanner Park, is the city's best off-leash area: a wooded ravine with a creek where dogs swim. Memory Grove has an off-leash trail leading toward City Creek Canyon, and Lindsey Gardens and Herman Franks Park have designated off-leash areas. Millcreek Canyon is the mountain option, with trails where dogs may be off-leash on odd-numbered days and must be leashed on even-numbered days; there is a small canyon entry fee. Liberty Park and the Jordan River Parkway are flat, leashed walks, and the Bonneville Shoreline Trail overlooks the valley.
What should I know about the canyons, winter air and leashes?
The most important local rule is the watershed restriction: dogs are not allowed at all in Big Cottonwood and Little Cottonwood Canyons, which supply the valley's drinking water. That covers Alta, Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude, and it applies even to dogs left in a parked car, with substantial fines. Use Millcreek Canyon instead. In the city, leashes are required outside off-leash areas. Winter brings snow and periodic temperature inversions that trap poor air in the valley, and summer is hot and very dry, so carry water on exposed foothill trails.
How do pet fees work at Salt Lake City hotels?
Salt Lake City is a convention, business and ski-gateway market with a large number of select-service and extended-stay hotels, and that mix generally means moderate room rates and nightly pet fees with a cap. Full-service hotels downtown tend toward a flat fee per stay. Because the Cottonwood Canyon resorts cannot accept dogs, skiers traveling with pets stay in the valley, which keeps demand for pet-friendly rooms in Midvale, Sandy and Cottonwood Heights high all winter. Rates jump during large conventions, the Sundance Film Festival period and the twice-yearly church conference weekends.