Brian Head Ski Resort

Brian Head Utah is a far cry from the lavish Park City ski resorts and the steep and deep of the likes of Snowbird and Alta ski resort. Brian Head Resort is very different to most of the other Utah ski resorts. Brian Head is small and intimate and has a very laid back atmosphere. Everything is ridiculously inexpensive, and with the exception of the peak holiday periods, Brian Head Ski Resort is completely uncrowded.

The little town (aka village) of Brian Head at the base of the resort was previously known as “Monument Peak” and has a massive population of ……. about 120 people.

Pros and Cons of Brian Head UT

Pros

• Don’t expect super world class facilities, but you’ll score bargains with lift tickets, equipment rentals, and ski and snowboard lessons. Lodging is very affordable too.
• Brian Head Utah is very family friendly.
• The Brian Head snow is generally dry and lovely.
• The ski terrain is particularly well suited to beginner and intermediate riders.
• There are usually no crowds and you can have the slopes to yourself.
• The ski resort affords spectacular scenery.

Cons

• Brian Head is a reasonably small ski resort, and it will seem like a molehill for those used to big mountain ski resorts.
• There’s not much on offer for advanced riders and very little for experts.

Pro or Con Depending on Your Perspective

• Brian Head is a complete antithesis to nearby Las Vegas. It’s a peaceful sleepy town where there’s negligible nightlife and not many restaurants to choose from.

Ski and Snowboard Terrain

The Brian Head ski resort is also fairly small with 10 lifts (including one high speed quad), 1,320 feet (402 metres) of vertical drop, 71 runs and 650 acres (263 hectares) of skiable terrain, which is about one third of the average size for a Utah ski resort.

The terrain is spread across two peaks. The Brian Head Peak side is primarily blue and single black diamond runs, whilst Navajo is the smaller of the two ski areas and consists of green and blue runs. The small size of the resort makes it easy to keep track of the family, particularly on the Navajo side where the majority of the green runs all terminate in one area near the Navajo Lodge.

Brian Head Resort is predominantly suited to mini park rats, beginners and beginner-intermediates. The official trail stats are 30% green, 35% blue and 35% black, although the black runs aren’t particularly steep and consist of short mogul fields and quick glades interspersed with mellow trails. Brian Head has some challenging terrain in the sidecountry, outside the resort boundaries.

Brian Head Snow

Brian Head receives 360 inches (9.1 metres) on average per season of the world famous Utah powder, and even though it’s further south than the other Utah ski resorts, it has high elevation (9,600 - 10,970 feet; 2,926 – 3,344 metres) and beautiful desert powder. When Mother Nature doesn’t fully cooperate, there’s also a little bit of snowmaking.

Where is Brian Head Utah?

The Brian Head ski resort and town are located in southern Utah in the Dixie National Forest in the southern Wasatch Range. Brian Head Utah is 202 miles northeast of Las Vegas (3 hour drive) and 245 miles south of Salt Lake City (3.5 to 4 hours).

Brian Head Lodging

The town of Brian Head offers affordable lodging including a couple of hotels, condos and cabins. This Brian Head lodging is just a short walk to the Navajo day lodge and slopes (beginner side of the resort).

The Grand Lodge at Brian Head is a resort hotel with 100 guest rooms and 12 luxurious suites, an indoor swimming pool, hot tubs, sauna, steam room and day spa.

Cedar Breaks Lodge provides studios, and 1 and 2 bedroom villas, and the resort has amenities such as a swimming pool, gym, hot tub and day spa.

The Navajo side has various ski-in ski-out vacation rentals and private condos, and there are private condos near the base of the Brian Head Peak side that are a short walk to the lifts.

Brian Head Lodging Listings

Ski Resort Facilities

The ski resort has two central base lodges; the Navajo Lodge Learning Center and the recently remodeled Giant Steps Lodge. The ski resort amenities across the two lodges include ski and snowboard rentals and repair, a retail shop with ski and snowboard gear and souvenirs, and a ski and snowboard school (kids 4+ for ski lessons, 6 and up for snowboard lessons).

Daytime eating and drinking is taken care of with a bar (Last Chair Saloon), a Starbucks, and a couple of cafeterias. Both day lodges have some nice outdoor seating areas.

Activities

Tubing is a very popular Brian Head activity; so popular that you often have to pre-book to use one of the two tubing parks (at each base area). Other winter activities include cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling and day trips to nearby Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park. Or to get into full R&R mode, you can head to one of the two day spas.