Sun Valley, Idaho Family Vacation

As the first destination ski resort in the United States and a favorite haunt of celebrities in the 1940s, Sun Valley has the feel of understated elegance and unbridled fun at the same time. The Sawtooth Mountains provide a spectacular backdrop to the ski scene, plus endless recreation for year-round adventurers -- kids and grown-ups alike.

Winter is prime time to go to Sun Valley. Skiers and snowboarders of every level can blast down two mountains, plus explore miles of cross country trails.And amateurs and pros alike enjoy the famed ice rinks. But the fun doesn't stop at the end of ski season: Spring through fall, kids and families go hiking, mountain biking, rafting, and horseback riding, soak in the natural hot springs, and enjoy world-class music and theater performances. And the ice skating rink is open year round!

They don't call it Sun Valley for nothing -- with an average 250 days a year of sunshine, chances are good that your vacation will be under blue skies. Summer is on the cool side, with an average temperature of 78 degrees. But winter is temperate, with temperatures hovering around 23 degrees. The average snowfall exceeds 200 inches, and with Sun Valley's enormous snowmaking operation, skiiers are guaranteed to enjoy great conditions.

Two airlines fly into Sun Valley: Horizon Airlines (in conjunction with Alaska Airlines) and SkyWest (with Delta). You'll land at Friedman Memorial Airport in Hailey, about 12 miles south of the Sun Valley area. Once there, you can rent a car from Avis, Hertz, or Enterprise and make the short drive north.

You can also fly into Boise, with about 60 daily flights. From there you can rent a car and drive (about three hours), or let someone else do the driving and take the Sun Valley Express or Sun Valley Stages shuttle to Sun Valley.

Keep in mind that it's usually more expensive to fly into Sun Valley, but airlines and hotels frequently offer "kids fly free" packages that make it just as economical as flying to Boise. So it's worth checking both options.

The Sun Valley resort area is made up of five neighborhoods: Warm Springs, River Run, Ketchum, Sun Valley Village, and Elkhorn. A free local shuttle, the Mountain Rides bus, serves all these areas plus the ski areas. Mountain Rides also makes several daily trips from Sun Valley and Ketchum to Hailey and Bellevue.

The winter months feature tons of winter sporting events and ski races, like the annual Boulder Mountain Tour.

• Solfest (Mar.)
• Sun Valley Wellness Festival (May)
• Sun Valley Food and Wine Festival (June)
• Fly Fishing Film Festival (June)
• Ketchum Arts Festival (July)
• Sawtooth Mountain Mamas Art Festival (July)
• Sawtooth Music Festival (July)
• Sun Valley Shakespeare Festival (Aug.)
• Northern Rockies Folk Festival (Aug.)
• Sun Valley Arts & Crafts Festival (Aug.)
• Sawtooth Salmon Festival (Aug.)
• Wagon Days Celebration (Aug.)
• Sun Valley Jazz Festival (Oct.)

First-time visitors may confuse Sun Valley Village with Sun Valley Resort . In fact, the Village is only part of the Resort, which also includes the charming town of Ketchum, plus Elkhorn and the Warm Springs and River Run lift areas of Bald Mountain. A free local shuttle, the Mountain Rides bus, serves all these areas and the ski areas.

If you're flying into Sun Valley, check with your airline and also your lodging for a "Kids Fly Free" special. These deals often include lodging discounts and free lift tickets, so it's worth doing a little comparison shopping. Deals also appear on the web site for the Sun Valley & Ketchum Chamber and Visitors Bureau .

• Sun Valley was the United States' first destination ski resort, built in 1936.
• Sun Valley was the first ski resort in the world to build a chairlift, adapted from a system used to haul bananas onto fruit ships in Panama. A lift ticket cost 25 cents.
• Ernest Hemingway finished his novel "For Whom the Bell Tolls" while staying in suite 206 of the Sun Valley Lodge. He liked Sun Valley so much, he stayed on and became a part-time resident of Ketchum for the next twenty years. He and his fourth wife are buried in Ketchum Cemetery.
• Gary Cooper was a frequent visitor to Sun Valley, as were Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Lucille Ball, Marylin Monroe, and several members of the Kennedy family. Celebrities still flock to Sun Valley, and it's not unusual to spot celebs like Tom Hanks, Bruce Willis, and Steven Spielberg.
• Poet Ezra Pound was born in Hailey, about 12 miles south of Sun Valley.
• Sun Valley is the gateway to the Sawtooth National Recreation Area, including the spectacular Sawtooth Mountains, with more than 40 peaks over 10,000 feet.
• Sun Valley has the largest automated snow making system in the world, operating on both both Bald and Dollar Mountains.
• Sun Valley's Gretchen Fraser was the first American to win an Olympic gold medal in skiing, in 1948. Other Olympic medalists from Sun Valley include Christin Cooper, Picabo Street, and Muffy Davis. All four have runs named after them on Bald Mountain: Gretchen's Gold, Christin's Silver, Muffy's Medals, and Picabo's Street.
• During World War II, the resort was closed and converted to a convalescent hospital for the U.S. Navy (Pacific Theater). It re-opened to the public in December 1946.
• Many movies, old and new, have been filmed in the Sun Valley area including "I Met Him in Paris" (1937) starring Claudett Colbert, "Sun Valley Serenade" (1941) starring Sonja Henie; "How to Marry a Millionaire" (1953) starring Marilyn Monroe, Betty Grable, and Lauren Bacall; "The Tall Men" (1956) starring Clark Gable and Jane Russell; "Bus Stop" (1956) starring Marilyn Monroe; "Ski Party" (1965) starring Frankie Avalon; "Pale Rider" (1985) starring Clint Eastwood; and "Town and Country" (2001) starring Warren Beatty and Goldie Hawn.

The public lands near Sun Valley are operated by the Ketchum Ranger District in the Sawtooth National Forest, and the use of the land is restricted. Restrictions are looser about eight miles north, at the entrance to the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. Check in with the SNRA headquarters on Idaho Highway 75, and the staff there can direct you to places with fire rings and established trails. Popular campgrounds include Deer Creek, Federal Gulch/Sawmill, Boundary, Park Creek, Caribou, Murdock, North Fork, Wood River, Easley, Boulder View, and Baker Creek.