Unique Places to Stay in Utah: 7 Cool Hotels Worth the Trip

Since 1969, Robert Redford’s Sundance Mountain Resort has dazzled visitors looking to escape the city for a woodsy retreat in Provo Canyon. Today, the property still exudes rustic charm, but is stylishly updated with modern guests in mind. Choose from cabin-style suites with hewn-wood interiors and cozy cottages nestled at the base of 12,000-foot Mount Timpanogos.

When the snow falls, ski or snowshoe Utah’s legendary powder on mountains blanketed in snow, or book a summer stay to enjoy on-mountain horseback riding, hiking, and biking. Get an adrenaline rush and soar above Sundance on zip line spans stretched across the resort. While cinephiles know the resort as a winter Sundance Film Festival screening site, crowds also gather in summer for the acoustic Bluebird Concert Series and al fresco theater performances.

When relaxation calls, start with a complimentary wellness or yoga class. Follow it with a natural healing body treatment or a rejuvenating deep tissue massage in the spa’s grand alpine setting.

Beyond relaxation and natural wonders, guests visit Sundance for its food. Find award-winning cuisine in a cabin built around a tree at the Tree Room, a top-ranked restaurant constructed by Robert Redford in the 1970s.

Love the idea of camping, but not sleeping on the ground in a tent? Under Canvas Moab is the glamping retreat for you. Set on 40 secluded acres—just seven miles from Arches National Park—Under Canvas is designed to get you off the well-trodden path, but keep you near Moab’s world-class recreation destinations.

While you can hike to Utah’s license plate famous Delicate Arch on your own, some area adventures require a guide. With Under Canvas, you can book Wild West horseback rides into Castle Creek Canyon and guided whitewater rafting down the mighty Colorado River.

After an exhausting day of play, gather ’round the communal firepit to meet other campers and share s’mores (often paired with live music). If this desert relaxation isn’t enough action, amble around the property to view Moab’s wondrous natural sandstone cliffs and red desert dirt. Since the whole place is built with tents, Under Canvas closes annually from December to March.

Animal lovers and pet owners rejoice. Finally, there’s a hotel built for you and your four-legged friend. Located in the adventure hub of Kanab, Best Friends Roadhouse and Mercantile goes beyond pet-friendly and bills itself as a pet-centric accommodation.

Bring your cat or dog and make one of the Roadhouse’s 40 rooms your basecamp on a southern Utah getaway. While humans sleep in plush beds, pups will love having their own slide-out pet bed. Kitties can curl up in cozy bedside nooks or snuggle with you in bed. With pet washing areas, fenced dog parks, and a splash pad, Fido will have a heyday playing at the Roadhouse.

The hotel was created by Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, and you’ll find this famed animal haven in a red rock canyon four miles north of the hotel. Here, over 1,600 dogs, cats, bunnies, birds, horses, pigs, and other animals come to live out their lives, rehabilitate, or await adoption. Stay at the Roadhouse and catch a free shuttle ride in to volunteer at the sanctuary.

Kanab is also a southern Utah outdoor mecca home to legendary wonders: red rock slot canyons, coral pink sand dunes, and The Wave—a unique geologic formation you can only visit by acquiring a permit. Beyond Kanab, the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park are a short drive away. The best part: If you head out on a non pet-friendly adventure, the Roadhouse staff can visit or walk your pet while you’re away.

When exploring southern Utah’s red rock wonders, there’s no better home base than St. George’s Inn on the Cliff. This renovated boutique hotel is built right into the cliff, providing stellar desert vistas from each room’s private balcony. Every luxe suite features plush beds with 300-count linens, smart TVs, and modern bathrooms with spa bath products.

The best thing about this inn is its access. Minutes from the hotel, go hiking and biking through Snow Canyon State Park’s sandstone formations, or kayaking among Sand Hollow Reservoir’s red rocks. Though the Inn’s cliffside setting feels remote, it’s just a four-minute drive to downtown St. George’s theaters, art galleries, museums, and restaurants. Amble by pioneer-era architecture in the historic downtown, or pop by the Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum to learn about this early era.

When hunger pangs strike, walk from your suite to the city’s most popular date destination: the Cliffside Restaurant. Ranked as St. George’s best dining experience year after year, Cliffside’s dramatic outdoor patio is the perfect setting for special occasions.

Instead of driving from border towns into Zion National Park, stay just outside its eastern boundary at Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort. The property sits on a forested plateau alongside the park—just 10 minutes from its eastern gate—and boasts unparalleled access to Zion’s backcountry.

Accommodations run the gamut from barebones glamping tents and cowboy cabins to fancy homes and hotel rooms. Whether you’re a couple or a family reunion crew, there’s a place for you at the ranch.

Despite its remote location, this 4,000-acre resort isn’t short on amenities. A chuckwagon-style breakfast buffet is included every morning, and multiple eateries offer dining for the whole family. On select summer nights, book a backcountry wagon ride that ends with an old-fashioned dutch oven dinner.

Venture into Zion National Park to climb Angels Landing, a legendary fin-like formation hikers summit via a metal chain, or walk through The Narrows – a water-filled gorge with spectacularly high rock walls. Back at the ranch, keep the kids entertained with a bungee trampoline, mini golf, and rock climbing, or get your kicks skeet shooting and zooming on the zipline.

Visit Park City to ski the “Greatest Snow on Earth” and stay slopeside at Westgate Park City Resort & Spa. Built into the foothills of Park City Mountain, this ski retreat has easy access to the slopes that make Utah famous. The powder skiing is legendary, and you can be the first one on the mountain by sleeping in one of the property’s 488 guestrooms—steps away from the resort gondola.

A seven-minute ride on the free shuttle takes you to see historic Main Street’s mining landmarks. However, once you’ve checked in, there’s little reason to leave, as the Westgate boasts a lobby coffee bar, elegant steakhouse, casual brew pub, and a marketplace with its own liquor store, so you can imbibe anytime.

With three pools to choose from, adults can hide from kids in the indoor swimming sanctuary, splash with the family in the outdoor pool, or enjoy the best of both worlds at the bustling indoor-outdoor pool with a hot tub and poolside bar.

While the massive size of this property means plenty of amenities. Play tennis or basketball on Westgate’s courts, game the night away in the arcade, take a yoga class in the fitness center, or get on the mountain fast with complimentary valet service that delivers your skis to the lift.

When you’re traveling with a crew, opt for a luxurious villa with a living room fireplace, master bedroom soaking tub, steam shower, and a full kitchen for cooking instead of dining out.

Snuggle with your sweetie at a drive-in movie, sleep in the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse, or bebop around a diner at the Anniversary Inn, where themed rooms let you celebrate in style. No matter the special occasion, skip basic B&Bs and opt for this quirky adults-only inn instead. Located in downtown Salt Lake City (with an additional location in Logan), you can travel to Arabia, the Amazon, or Africa—without catching a flight.

Opt for silly suites like Rich’s Drive-in, where you’ll sleep in a vintage truck outfitted with a cushy bed while movies play on a projector, or Jesse James Hideout where cold root beer and a pool table are ready for a night of fun. If romance is your game, choose the Romeo & Juliet balcony suite, or a sultry rainforest room with a private massage table.

When you wake, enjoy an included breakfast before venturing into the city. Walk to downtown attractions, such as the Salt Lake Temple’s lush grounds, the historic Utah State Capitol Building, or catch a symphony at Abravanel Hall.