Travel & Hotel

We've Gathered the Best of Salt Lake City!

On this page you'll discover everything from where to stay, to the best restaurants and places to relax!

Where to Stay:

Book Your Hotel Room Early to take advantage of reduced rates!

SIIS 2012 and CCI 2012 will both take place in the Hilton Salt Lake City Center, a beautiful, recently renovated luxury hotel located in the heart of exciting Salt Lake City, Utah. Salt Lake has been named one of America’s best cities by Travel and Leisure, Outside Magazine and Forbes Magazine.

Radisson Salt Lake City (.35 miles from the Hilton)       Singles and Doubles      $119
Deadline for discount: July 6, 2012

Hilton Salt Lake City Center (Headquarters Hotel)         King/single                     $155
Deadline for discount: July 1, 2012

Don't wait until the last minute to book a room-- there are a limited number of rooms available at these rates. To insure you get the special School Improvement Innovation Summit and Common Core Institute rate, click on one of the links above and use the special reservation web page.

Make sure to check the arrival and departure dates (the defaults may not be the same as your personal dates).

The Hilton and the Radisson are both located just a few minutes' drive from some of the most beautiful and varied mountains, forests, and lakes in the country. 

Leave yourself some time before or after the Summit and Common Core Institute to do some exploring.

Things to Do:

There are Tons of Places to Visit While in Utah!
Utah offers a very diverse and wondrous landscape made famous by film makers and outdoor photographers.

Explore the spectacular beauty of the Southwest at its best:

• Utah is home to some of the most beautiful national parks and scenery in the country, with a rich history of film making including hundreds of films, made for TV movies, TV series, documentaries and commercials that have been shot here 
• Explore historic western Ghost Towns
• Visit Robert Redford's Sundance Resort
• Historic frontier mining town Park City is just a 30 minute drive from Salt Lake City
• Utah is famous for its dinosaur museums, and early Native-American dwellings and petroglyphs.
• The greatest  inland sea, known as the Great Salt Lake, and Bonneville Salt Flats, where land speed records are set and movies and commercials are filmed, is just 30 minutes away by car

Useful Links:

• Salt Lake City
• Temple Square
• Capitol Theatre (showing in July: Wicked)
• Gilgal Sculpture Garden
• Clarke Planetarium
• Red Butte Gardens
• Hogle Zoo
• This is the Place Heritage Park
• Great Salt Lake / Saltair
• Shopping
• City Creek, Trolley Square, Tanger Outlet Mall, Gateway Mall, Farmers Market, Gardner Village
• National Parks:
  Zion's National Park | Arches National Park | Bryce Canyon | Canyonlands | Capitol Reef | See them all
• Park City
• Dining Options
• Outdoor Activities
• Top Spots in Utah
• Day Hikes

Nightlife in Salt Lake City:

Salt Lake City has many clubs and night spots to keep things lively in the evenings.

Choose from intimate piano clubs, bohemian music scenes, and high-end cocktail bars. Try country-western line dancing, groove to the smooth sounds of jazz and blues, or rock n' roll the night away.

A few of the dozens of nightlife options:

Poplar Street Pub - Friendly neighborhood pub
Legends Pub and Grill - Sports Bar
The Bayou - Local brew pub with a cajun flair
Club Piastra - Contemporary, upscale, full beer and wine selection inside the Marriott
EPIC Brewing Company - Oldest brew pub in SLC brewing high alcohol content ales and ber
Keys on Main - Dueling Piano Bar
Lumpys Downtown - Sports Bar
Cheers to You - Local hangout with pool, pinball, and local charm
Area 51 - Alternative rock and aggressive tech

Important High Altitude Information:

The elevation in Salt Lake City is about 4,300 feet, and it’s possible you may feel the effects of the higher altitude when you arrive here, especially if you go up into the mountains.

Tips to enhance acclimatization:

• Limit exertion on the first day
• Avoid alcohol for at least the first few days
• Drink plenty of water
• Don’t smoke

What Physical Reactions Can You Expect at Higher Altitudes?

Dehydration- the air is dryer up here (due to the lower barometric pressure) and you breathe faster, so you lose a lot of water just breathing.

Sunburn-The sun is strong up here and the atmosphere is thin, so there is less filtering of the UV rays that can cause sunburn. Wear sunscreen when outside, even when it is cloudy, and wear sunglasses with UV protection.

 Think you know your altitude facts? See how you do with these common misconceptions!

True or False?

• Alcohol has no effect at higher altitudes.
  False - Limit your alcohol intake for the first few days at this altitude. There is evidence that alcohol intake may slow your adaptation to altitude, and it is a diuretic, so it can increase the risk of dehydration, which is already a problem at higher altitudes. Alcohol also decreases your breathing rate and respiratory responses, inhibiting one of the most critical early mechanisms for adaptation.

• Don’t drink caffeine.
  False - There is no proven relationship between caffeine intake and either altitude sickness (also called AMS) or impaired acclimatization. However, caffeine is a diuretic, and if you drink caffeine you must be more watchful of your fluid intake to compensate for what you lose.

• Drink lots of fluids.
  True - But with a disclaimer- it IS important to drink more water than usual at a higher altitude because you get dehydrated easily. But that is not the same as AMS, and the relationship between the two is far from direct. You can get quite sick at this altitude from dehydration, but if you feel better after rehydrating, your headache or nausea was probably not AMS, just mild dehydration.

• If you can't sleep, try sleeping pills.
   False - The reason you don’t sleep well is due to an abnormality in your breathing that occurs at higher altitudes called Cheynes-Stokes respiration- alternating periods of deep and shallow breathing. This can interfere with your your ability to fall into a deep sleep, and during the shallow sleep periods you may even wake  feeling short of breath. Using drugs that can decrease respiration can make you sicker. If you continue to feel short of breath, let someone know.
   
• Smokers won't face any problems in the altitude.
  False - Smokers can experience a number of particularly bad effects at higher altitudes. Smokers already have increased levels of carbon monoxide in their blood, which interferes with the ability of red blood cells to carry oxygen. Nicotine constricts blood vessels, so less blood can flow to your extremities.

Utah is a beautiful and exciting place to explore and enjoy. Knowing the facts with help you fully enjoy the experience here in our lovely state.