While attending a family wedding recently, I discovered that breath-taking canyon walls, amazing fall colors, spectacular winter snow, and a famous film festival are just a bit of what makes Sundance a great place to retreat to from the rest of the world. This resort has all of the traditional high-end treatments that travelers expect, but they are combined to work with instead of against nature. Sundance is a unique escape into nature.

Sundance Resort, located in the canyons near Provo, Utah, is the place that Robert Redford built. Named after the legendary character he played Butch Cassiday and  the Sundance Kid, Redford bought the property in 1969 from  the Stewart family. When he acquired their small  family-skiing operation, it had  only a single chair lift and a rope tow. While developers snatched up property in the majestic mountains of Utah to cash in on the new alpine skiing craze, Redford decided not to dot the area around Sundance with modern condos. Instead, he believed that it was an “ideal locale for environmental conservation and artistic experimentation.”

So, Sundance became home to a unique blend of summer and winter recreation venues, art galleries, nature preserves and environmentally friendly buildings. Redford has been able to hold true to his personal mission to “develop very little and preserve a great deal” while creating a warm and cozy resort getaway. Guests are made to feel like they are part of an intimate community during their stay at Sundance.

As a visitor to the resort you will have many recreational options, some traditional and some non-traditional. Below are just a few of the unique experiences available to guests.

Art

Redford believes that art and nature are inseparable, so he created an art center, called the Art Shack, which houses an art gallery, featuring the art work of the artists in residence at Sundance. The artists in residence provide workshops for guests in such artistic endeavors as jewelry making, pottery, watercolors, and drawing. The workshops are available to anyone interested in finding their inner artist.