Utah Archives - Fishing4Deals

What to Do with Teens in Cedar City, Utah

May 18, 2014 by Fishing4Deals

My Family at the Soda Fountain at Bulloch Drugs, Cedar City, UT

If you can look beyond the chain restaurants, you will find that Cedar City, Utah has its funky side.

Most people come to Cedar City for ready access to the National Parks of southern Utah.

Cedar Breaks National Monument is a stunning park just outside of town, and Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park are within striking distance. The outdoor recreation opportunities are outstanding, whether hiking in the spring, summer and fall, or skiing, snowboarding, and tubing in the winter.

What to Do in Cedar City

Beyond the abundant outdoor recreation opportunities, Cedar City boasts some fun cultural events. Cedar City calls itself Festival City USA, so check before you go to see if any special events are happening.

Shakespeare Festival

Cedar City’s most famous festival is the Utah Shakespeare Festival held every summer on the campus of Southern Utah University. This professional theatre festival hires equity actors and features contemporary productions as well as traditional Shakespeare plays performed in a replica of the Globe Theatre.

Greenshow

The best kept secret about the Shakespeare Festival is the free outdoor pre-show entertainment called the Greenshow.

The Greenshow is an re-creation of Elizabethan street theatre, with period refreshments and a crafts fair to boot.

Kannaraville Slot Canyon
Photo found here: http://rujinav.tumblr.com/image/45127013150

The Cabaret

There is also a post-show Cabaret every Thursday night throughout the summer season. Company members from the festival put on a variety show at The Grind coffeehouse on North Main Street.

Acts include singing, dancing, instrumental music, impressions, skits, improv games, magic tricks, poetry, bird calls, and juggling.

Off the Cuff Comedy Club

On Friday nights, check out the local comedy and improv club, Off the Cuff. Many of the performers are students in the theatre department at Utah State University.

Historic Cedar Theatre

Another great year round venue is the Historic Cedar Theatre. Movie tickets are just $3 for children under 12, and $4 for adults. This theatre was established in 1914, and restored in 2012, bringing some vitality to the downtown area.

Kannaraville Slot Canyon

Twelve miles south of Cedar City is is a beautiful slot canyon and a popular hiking area. The Kannarville slot canyon offers waterfalls, slides, and beautiful red rock scenery. You can find details of the hike here.

Where to Eat in Cedar City

Centro Pizzeria

The Centro Pizzeria serves just one kind of food but does it very well. The fresh ingredients are straight from that morning’s farmers’ market and the pizzas are cooked in a wood-fired oven. The food here reminded me of the famous Two Amy’s in Washington, DC.

Old-Fashioned Soda Fountain

If it’s lunchtime, you can get ice cream for dessert at the old-fashioned soda fountain in Bulloch drugstore in the center of town. There are not too many traditional soda fountains left, so I am always happy to find one.

Where to Stay in Cedar City

Cedar City has dozens of chain hotels, but if you are looking for a bargain, Priceline is your best bet. I always cheek Hotwire first, to get a sense of general availability.

Our favorite place to stay is the Best Western Town & Country Inn in the center of town. We’ve gotten this hotel on Priceline for $38 to $48 per night.

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Shoot for the Stars — Win a Trip to the 2014 Sundance Film Festival

January 1, 2014December 31, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

This contest for a trip to the 2014 Sundance Food Festival sure got my attention!

I was in Utah last January but didn’t have the chance to check out the Sundance Film Festival in Park City.

It sure sounded like fun, though.

Enter this contest by January 7, 2014 for a chance to win a VIP trip to for you and a friend to this year’s Sundance Film Fest.

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Best Western Credit Card Boosts Sign-Up Bonus to 64K Points

October 1, 2013September 30, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

Best Western Zion Park Inn, Springdale, Utah

If you are planning a trip to the “Golden Triangle” of national parks and monuments in the Southwestern U.S., you are bound to come across some Best Western Hotels in scenic locations.

Would four free nights at a Best Western enhance your travels, whether to the Southwest, or elsewhere?

If so, the latest offering from Barclaycard may be of interest, because it boosts the sign-up bonus for the Best Western credit card from 16,000 points to a whopping 64,000 points — enough for four free nights at mid-range Best Western hotels.

This is a no annual fee credit card; the full complement of points are awarded after spending $1000 within 90 days.

Best Western’s are not just located in the American West — 4,000 independently owned hotels all over the world operate under the Best Western banner. You might be surprised how many Best Western’s there are in Paris!

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Rafting Utah’s Green River

May 30, 2013May 24, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

We are just back from a camping and rafting trip to Green River, Utah. The scenery was spectacular.

New vistas and interesting rock formations greeted us at each bend in the river.

This formation is named for the Egyptian Queen Nefertiti, but we thought it looked more like Bart Simpson!

Nefertiti Beach in Green River, Utah Photo by Joel Shprentz — Nefertiti Beach in Green River, Utah
Photo by Joel Shprentz

There are a number of well-preserved petroglyphs in the area near Nefertiti beach and sometimes you can spot bighorn sheep.

Further down river is Swasey’s Beach — an expanse of fine white sand shaded by cottonwood trees. It’s a beautiful spot for a family picnic. Just remember to bring pails so the kids can build sand castles.

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Old World Luxury on Priceline – Part 2: Little America Hotel in Salt Lake City

July 15, 2021April 4, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

This mini-series explores stellar properties available through Priceline’s opaque bidding process.

Part 1: The Carolina Inn, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Part 2: Little America -Salt Lake City, Utah

Part 3: Destination Resort Overlooking the Hudson River, Tarrytown, NY

There are no guarantees in life, and certainly no guarantees on Priceline, but if you do your research you can often land a very good deal at a top-rated luxury property.

The Little America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City is one such gem that frequently pops up on Priceline for the lowly price of $53 per night.

This is probably the classiest hotel I have ever stayed in.

The corridor walls are covered in brocade fabric. There is a large fireplace in the wood-paneled central lobby and there are several elegant shops.

The rooms are enormous and comfortable, with real wood furniture, real wool carpets, and beautiful draperies and upholstery. There is a dressing table and an enormous tiled bathroom with a large tub and a separate shower. Rooms with king sized beds have a separate living room area. It is just a very classy place.

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What Does Ladies Hosiery Have to do with Priceline?

August 23, 2013March 15, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

Booking a hotel on Priceline is just like the ladies’ hosiery department. You can choose the opaque, the semi opaque, or the sheer.

*Lehi Roller Mills*
*Photo by David Jolley/Staplegun*

My strategy is to check all three options to inform my bidding.

Here’s an example of a trip I just booked to Lehi, Utah. Lehi is about 40 minutes south of Salt Lake City, in the Utah Valley.

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Romancing the Triple Bump

May 30, 2013March 5, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

The Sundance Film Festival was wrapping up in late January and the Salt Lake City (SLC) Airport was swamped. My United Airlines flight to Washington Dulles (IAD) was booked solid and the gate agent was looking for a volunteer to give up their seat. Usually when these opportunities arise I am too busy to take advantage…but this time I had some flexibility.

View of Temple Square from Salt Lake Plaza Hotel

I volunteered my seat and the agent booked me on the same flight the next day. She issued me a voucher for $400 good for future travel on United, $20 in food vouchers, and booked a hotel reservation at the Salt Lake Plaza Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City.

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How to Get Two Rooms for the Price of One

June 9, 2013March 5, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

When traveling with family or friends, do you ever wish you could afford to book two adjoining rooms? You can, and for the same price you would pay for a single hotel room!

Sandy Utah View — View of the Wasatch Mountains from Sandy, Utah
Photo by Scott Catron

Over the Thanksgiving holiday we arranged a rendezvous with my sister in the Utah Valley. We were treating her to a holiday visit — and room prices were high because of the holiday weekend. As we walked out of the lobby of the newly renovated Hampton Inn in Sandy, Utah, I looked at her and asked, “Do you think all of these people know about Priceline, or are they paying full price?”

A light bulb went off in my head. A lot of people are afraid to use Priceline because they don’t know how or are afraid they won’t get a nice hotel. Or they may think, I need a room with two beds.

I am known in my family as the Priceline Queen because of my knack of finding cheap rooms at nice hotels. I should start a blog to share my money-saving tricks!

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Angling for Last Minute Rental Cars on Priceline

December 10, 2014February 22, 2013 by Fishing4Deals

In January, I found myself stranded in the Salt Lake City (SLC) airport. My flight was massively delayed, and I had free time on a snowy day. I wanted to get up to the mountains, so a four wheel drive rental car was in order.

I have often snagged great last-minute hotel deals bidding on Priceline, but had never tried for a car at the last minute. With “name your own price” hotel rooms, you can bid up until 11:59 pm on the night you want to stay. I have literally placed late night bids from the parking lot of a hotel and even from the business center in the lobby.

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