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Shutdown affects tourism

Alexandria Gonzalez, The Park Record

With the government shutdown still in effect, vacationers nationwide are having to make new plans due to the closing of all national parks.

Visitors who planned on visiting the "Mighty 5" national parks in Utah Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands are forced to find new places and new activities to enjoy.

Stephen Lane, tourism marketing manager for the Park City Chamber/Bureau, said that the city is seeing traffic trickle in with visitors looking for alternatives.

"We are doing our best to promote local state parks and recreational activities in the area," Lane said. "You hear a lot of stories about people saying their vacation was cut short or cut completely, so they are looking for stuff to do."

Lane said they are also working to promote the Utah State Office of Tourism’s "50 Awesome Alternatives to Utah’s National Parks" published on its website on Monday.

The director of communications and digital strategy for the Office of Tourism, Jay Kinghorn, said that they have begun to see a slowdown in terms of visitors to national park areas and surrounding gateway towns, and at least 10 of the alternatives on the website are within the Park City area.

"For visitors coming to Park City, we are trying to let them know that there is a wealth of options in and around the area that are not closed down," Kinghorn said.

He said that they are concerned about the economic impact and disruption in visitors’ plans, but there has not been a huge enough influx of re-routed visitors to wrap a tourism strategy around just yet.

Until then, Kinghorn said it is one of the best months of the year to enjoy the trails in town and encouraged visitors to look past national parks and look at the great options the state has, such as scenic byways and state parks.

According to the Mountain Trails Foundation website, there are "over 7,000 acres of preserved open space, [serving] as the canvas for over 350 miles of non-motorized, recreational trail." Almost 20 different trailheads are dispersed throughout Park City and the surrounding area where visitors can meet up to walk, hike or bike.

Visitors can also explore 43 state parks across the state, several of which Historic Union Pacific Rail Trail, Jordanelle, Wasatch Mountain and Red Butte Garden are in and around Park City.

"There are still a lot of great recreational activities to enjoy besides the fabulous ‘Mighty 5,’" Lane said. "It gives people a chance to discover other parks and things to do that they might not have thought of before."

To browse the list of the Utah State Office of Tourism’s "50 Awesome Alternatives," visit http://www.visitutah.com/national-park-travel-advisory.

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