Since the American Skiing Company bought this ski area in 1997, it's has undergone North America's most comprehensive ski resort makeover. The skiers who pardoned the dust quickly discovered a spunky, sprawling mountain that earned gold medals for Terrain, Challenge and Lifts. The Canyons' 3,300-plus skiable acres deliver a wealth of options, including bowls, tree-lined steeps, glades and narrow, winding trails reminiscent of New England. "I live in Utah, and The Canyons is much more exciting and challenging than Park City or Deer Valley," one reader says. "Not as crowded because it hasn't been discovered," adds another. The evolving base village, anchored by the finest Grand Summit Resort Hotel in ASC's fleet, isn't about to be mistaken for Vail or Whistler. "It still needs fine-tuning," advises a reader. But The Canyons now has an improved attention to detail and a solid collection of shops, bars, restaurants and beds, all of which helped it collect new silver medals for On-Mountain Food, Lodging, Dining and Service. Likewise, the addition of a cabriolet people-mover from the parking lot to the base village has eliminated the long, uphill trudge for day skiers. And Utah's only true ski town, Park City, is just five minutes away. The Winter Olympics are coming to Utah this winter, but not to The Canyons, which provides one more good reason to visit.
(-) "It's become the winter version of Disneyland." "Food is mediocre at best."
