Utah Olympic Park
3419 Olympic Pkwy, Park City, UT
Park City, UT
The soaring ski jumps and icy sliding track built for the 2002 Winter Olympics, still a working training ground for future Olympians and an open, free-to-wander park in the mountains above Park City.
When the Winter Olympics came to Salt Lake City in 2002, the daredevil events, the ski jumping, the bobsled, luge, and skeleton, were staged in the mountains just outside Park City at a purpose-built venue called Utah Olympic Park. Two decades later the jumps still tower over the hillside and the sliding track still curls down through the pines, because the park never became a relic. It became a training center where the next generation of Olympians learns to fly.
For visitors it is one of the most rewarding free stops in the Wasatch. The grounds are open to wander, two museums tell the story of the 2002 Games and of skiing itself, and in summer you can watch aerial skiers launch off ramps and twist into a giant splash pool. For those who want the full rush, the park also runs a zip line, an alpine slide, and even public bobsled rides on the real Olympic track.
What Guests Love
- Standing at the base of the towering Olympic ski jumps
- Watching athletes train on the jumps and the aerial splash pool in summer
- Free museums on the 2002 Games and the history of skiing
- Miles of world-class mountain-bike trails right out the door
Worth Knowing
- The grounds and both museums are free to visit, while the thrill rides and guided activities are paid and seasonal
- The park sits above 6,800 feet, so take the altitude and strong mountain sun seriously
- Summer brings freestyle aerialists training over the splash pool, one of the best free shows here
- It is a working training center, so some areas may be closed for athlete use on any given day
Details
Park City, UT
Learn about Utah Olympic Park
Where the 2002 Games came alive
Utah Olympic Park was built for the 2002 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, hosting the ski jumping, Nordic combined, bobsled, luge, and skeleton competitions. Its centerpiece is a set of ski jumps that climb the hillside like ramps to the sky, next to a mile-long refrigerated track where sliders reach highway speeds. Standing at the bottom of the jumps, craning up at the take-off, gives an instant sense of the nerve those events demand.
After the Games, rather than let the venue fade, Utah kept it running as an official U.S. Olympic and Paralympic training site. On many days you can watch national-team athletes practicing, which turns a sightseeing stop into a look behind the scenes of the sports most people only see once every four years.
Museums, jumps, and the splash pool
The park is home to two free museums. One tells the story of the 2002 Salt Lake City Games with torches, medals, uniforms, and footage; the other traces the history of skiing and the athletes who shaped it. Together they make an easy, weatherproof visit even on a day you do not want to ride anything.
The signature summer sight is free and unforgettable: freestyle aerial skiers training over a huge splash pool. They rocket off ramps on skis, flip and spin high in the air, and land in the water below, honing tricks they will later perform on snow. Watching them from the deck is one of the best shows in Park City, and it costs nothing.
A mountain-bike mecca out the door
Park City is one of the great mountain-biking towns in America, with hundreds of miles of interconnected singletrack ribboning across the surrounding hills, and Utah Olympic Park sits right in the middle of it. Lift-served downhill trails drop through the venue itself, and the wider Park City trail network spreads out from the mesas and valleys nearby, from mellow flow trails to lung-burning ridgeline climbs.
That combination is what makes the park such a good base for an active day. You can spend the morning touring the Olympic venue and its museums, then trade the history for handlebars and ride the same mountains the athletes train on, with the jumps and the sliding track visible above the trees.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near Park City
Park City mountain-bike trails
At the park and beyond
Hundreds of miles of interconnected singletrack, from lift-served downhill at the park to the flowing trails of nearby Round Valley.
Historic Main Street, Park City
About 5 miles
A preserved silver-mining street of 19th-century storefronts, galleries, and eateries, and the heart of the Sundance Film Festival.
Swaner Preserve and EcoCenter
About 2 miles
A protected mountain wetland with boardwalk trails, birdlife, and views across the Snyderville Basin.