The fifth annual Deer Valley Mountain Beer Festival runs Saturday, September 19 and Sunday, September 20, 2026, from noon to 5 p.m. each day, with more than twenty Utah breweries pouring on the lawn at Silver Lake. The venue is reachable only by chairlift — parking and check-in are at Snow Park Lodge, and the Silver Lake Express carries you up.
That last detail is the one worth planning around. A festival built on tasting tokens, reached by a mountain road, is not an event anyone should drive home from. This guide covers the 2026 weekend in full — tickets, the Friday Brewmaster Dinner, what is actually on the mountain — and then makes the case that the smartest version of this trip is not two nights. September 20 is the final day of Deer Valley’s summer season, and the ten days that follow are the best of the Park City year.
What the 2026 Festival Actually Is
Deer Valley built this event to celebrate Utah brewing specifically, and the lineup reflects that: Athletic Brewing, Chappel Brewing, Epic Brewing, Heber Valley Brewing, Moab Brewery, Offset Bier, Roosters, Second Summit Cider, Talisman, and Uinta are among the confirmed pours, with more added as the date approaches. Full-strength selections are part of the pour list, which is not a given at every Utah festival.
Beyond the tastings, the mountain runs a full day. Live music plays from 3 to 5 p.m. on both afternoons — Dylan Cotrone on Saturday, G. Love & Special Sauce closing the festival on Sunday. There is a kids’ zone, lawn games, a photo booth, vendor booths, and dining from Silver Lake Restaurant alongside seasonal additions. Scenic chairlift access across the resort is included with every package, which means the ticket is as much a day on the mountain as it is a tasting.
2026 Tickets and Packages
| Package | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Imperial | $155 (21+) | 8 tasting tokens, commemorative mug and t-shirt, VIP BBQ access |
| Reserve | $90 (21+) | 5 tasting tokens, commemorative mug |
| Sessions | $70 (21+) | 3 tasting tokens |
| General Admission | $45 (21+) | Entry; tasting tokens available for purchase |
| Non-Drinking | $20 (under 21) | Alcohol-free entry; ages 2 and under free |
Each token is a five-ounce sampler, and every package includes unlimited scenic lift access. Tickets are sold only through Deer Valley, and cancellation is permitted up to 72 hours in advance. Pricing above is as published by the resort — confirm current details at deervalley.com before purchasing.
Friday, September 18: The Brewmaster Dinner
The weekend opens the night before with a five-course dinner at Silver Lake Lodge, each course paired with a beer from one of the five breweries voted highest by last year’s festival attendees, served with live acoustic music and the Wasatch on every side. It is ticketed separately at $240 per guest.
This is the detail most visitors miss, and it is the reason to arrive Friday rather than Saturday morning. It turns a day trip into a proper weekend, and it is the most genuinely culinary thing on the festival calendar.
The Bus: Why Main Street Is the Practical Base
Park City runs a free electric bus system, and the Old Town Transit Center sits two minutes on foot from Summit on Main. From there it is roughly five minutes to Snow Park Lodge, where festival check-in and the Silver Lake Express are waiting.
Walk two minutes. Ride five. Ride the chairlift up. That is the entire journey, and it works identically in reverse at 5 p.m. when the festival closes.
For a group, this is the whole argument. Nobody draws the short straw and skips the tastings. Nobody is doing arithmetic about tokens and drive time. Nobody is coordinating rideshares off a mountain road at closing. The people staying at Deer Valley are closer on a map; the people staying on Main Street are the ones who can all participate and then walk to dinner afterward. Our location page has the full walkability picture.
September 20 Is the Last Day of Deer Valley’s Summer
Deer Valley’s 2026 summer season runs June 19 through September 20, which means the Beer Festival is also the closing weekend. The lift-served mountain bike trails off Silver Lake Express and Homestake Express, the scenic chairlift rides, the mid-mountain dining — all of it ends when the festival does.
If any of that is on your list, this is the last weekend of the year to do it, and your festival ticket already includes the lift access. Ride in the morning, taste in the afternoon.
Do Not Reserve Two Nights. Reserve the Week.
Here is the part almost nobody plans for. The Beer Festival lands at the exact moment Park City turns over from summer to fall, and the following week is arguably the best stretch on the calendar — warm afternoons, cold mornings, thinning crowds, and aspens starting to go.
Fall color peaks the week after
Color begins above 9,000 feet in mid-September and peaks in the last week of the month, holding into early October. Guardsman Pass climbs to 9,700 feet through continuous aspen groves. Empire Pass is fifteen minutes east with a panoramic view of the range. On foot, the Armstrong Trail starts three minutes uphill from Main Street and connects to the Mid-Mountain traverse at 8,000 feet — the highest-value fall hike in town, and it requires no car. See our Main Street trail guide.
Park City Mountain is still running
Park City Mountain keeps summer operations going through September 27 on a Thursday-through-Sunday schedule. Town Lift is a five-minute walk from the door, which makes a mid-week mountain day effortless.
Park Silly closes out its season
The Park Silly Sunday Market takes over lower Main Street on September 20 and again on September 27 for the final market of the year — live music, a farmers market, a beer garden, and food vendors, running 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. right past the building.
Main Street dining opens up
After Labor Day, restaurants that book weeks out in July take reservations the same week. Riverhorse, Handle, Firewood, and the rest of the Main Street lineup are all within walking distance. The Park City Dine About prix-fixe program begins October 1, so a stay that runs into the first days of the month catches the opening of that as well.
Put together, the case for a longer stay is simple: you are already here, the mountain is at its most beautiful for exactly ten days, and the town is quieter than at any other point in the operating year. Our full September guide covers the rest of the month, including Miners Day and Tour des Suds.
A Weekend That Works
| Day | Plan |
|---|---|
| Friday, Sept 18 | Arrive, settle in, bus to Silver Lake Lodge for the Brewmaster Dinner |
| Saturday, Sept 19 | Morning on the trails from Main Street, festival noon to 5, dinner on Main Street |
| Sunday, Sept 20 | Park Silly on Main Street in the morning, festival and G. Love in the afternoon |
| Monday, Sept 21 | Guardsman Pass drive for early color, rooftop fire pit at dusk |
| Tue–Thu | Armstrong and Mid-Mountain hikes, Town Lift, spa, unhurried dinners |
| Sunday, Sept 27 | Final Park Silly Sunday Market of the season |
Practical Notes
Chairlift access only. There is no walking or driving to the venue. Check in at Snow Park Lodge and ride Silver Lake Express.
Rain or shine. September afternoons at 8,100 feet can turn. Bring a layer.
No dogs, no outside alcohol, no drones. Bags are subject to search, and pop-up tents and large umbrellas are not permitted.
Buy directly from Deer Valley. Tickets are not transferable for resale, and only tickets purchased through the resort are accepted.
Cancellation is 72 hours. Outside that window, purchases can be cancelled without penalty; inside it, they cannot.
Where to Stay for the Deer Valley Mountain Beer Festival
For the Beer Festival weekend, nothing beats being directly on Historic Main Street. Summit on Main is a luxury five-bedroom penthouse with a private rooftop hot tub, fire pit, and panoramic mountain views — sleeping up to 10 across five en-suite bedrooms.
Two minutes to the bus that goes to the festival. Three minutes to the fall-color trailheads. Five minutes to Town Lift. Fifty-plus restaurants within walking distance for the evenings, and a rooftop deck for the nights when nobody wants to go back out. It is the address that lets a group do the whole weekend without a single person volunteering to drive. We make the same case for the summer concert season in our Deer Valley Music Festival guide.
Reserve Summit on Main for Beer Festival Weekend
Five bedrooms. Private rooftop hot tub. Two minutes from the free bus to Deer Valley. Stay for the festival, stay for the fall color. Our where to stay in Park City guide compares Main Street against staying at the resorts.
Check Availability →Frequently Asked Questions
The fifth annual Deer Valley Mountain Beer Festival runs Saturday, September 19 and Sunday, September 20, 2026, from noon to 5 p.m. each day at Silver Lake. The weekend opens with the Brewmaster Dinner on Friday, September 18 at Silver Lake Lodge, ticketed separately.
Festival access is only available by chairlift. Parking and check-in are at Snow Park Lodge, and guests ride the Silver Lake Express up to the venue. From Historic Main Street, Park City’s free electric bus reaches Snow Park in about five minutes from the Old Town Transit Center, which removes the need to drive to or from a beer festival entirely.
For 2026, Deer Valley lists General Admission at $45 for ages 21 and over, the Sessions package at $70 with three tasting tokens, the Reserve package at $90 with five tokens and a commemorative mug, and the Imperial package at $155 with eight tokens, a mug, a t-shirt, and VIP BBQ access. Non-drinking admission for under 21 is $20, and children two and under are free. All packages include unlimited scenic lift access. Confirm current pricing at deervalley.com.
Yes. The festival includes a kids’ zone, lawn games, and family activities alongside the tastings, and non-drinking admission is available for guests under 21. Children two and under enter free. Dogs are not permitted, the event is held rain or shine, and outside alcohol is not allowed.
Historic Main Street is the most practical base for the Deer Valley Mountain Beer Festival because the free electric bus to Snow Park leaves from the Old Town Transit Center, so no one in the group has to drive. Summit on Main is a luxury 5-bedroom penthouse two minutes from that bus stop, sleeping 10 across five en-suite bedrooms, with a private rooftop hot tub and fire pit.