Empire House , Just Feet Away from the Ski Resort

As a young skier, a few decades ago, all I needed was a rack for my tired body, a wall heater to dry my boots and a sturdy chair to check the dings on the bottom of my skis. Years later, I now appreciate that a ski vacation is more. It's friends to hang around to tell the tall stories of the day, a warm fire in the morning to sip that first cup of coffee, the communal meals around the table. So, now, the place I stay is as important as the mountain. This unit is now on the top of my list in Park City. Five minutes from the front door, we are clicked in and on a lift. And at the end of the day, when we are bone tired, I jab my pole at the back of my bindings, in five minutes, I am sitting on a bench on the first level, pulling my boots off. Yes, they thought of a bench. Alta got 14 inches of new snow overnight, so we were off in our rental car. The private garage (with the bench) means all of our skis and poles were conveniently staged for a quick getaway. Pulling out of the garage, the neighbors were out scraping ice and brushing snow, we were on our way in a warm car. When my adventure group returned to Empire 1279 in the afternoon, the smell of garlic pulled us upstairs. The kitchen is open with chairs along the bar. A group sat around the large barrel dining table, a lazy susan in the middle offered pistachios along with a bottle of vintage red. I headed to the fireplace to warm my backside. Three people were sacked out on the plush couch across the room. At the end of the evening, everyone (three couples and two kids) retreated to their private bedrooms, each with a private full bath. Some watched a late movie, others the evening news, I watched the weather report with fingers crossed for new snow. As I drifted off to sleep, it crossed my mind this was way different than the dormitory hostel of my youth. Thank you.