Grand indeed: A look inside Deer Valley’s new $800 a night luxury hotel

Staff SergeJensen and Micailey Martinez with Grand Hyatt Deer Valley general manager Anthony Duggan (right). Photo: TownLift // Randi Sidman-Moore

PARK CITY, Utah — The Grand Hyatt Deer Valley opened its doors Wednesday. Staff Sergeant Jensen Martinez and his family were among its first guests, marking a special moment for both the luxury resort and the military community.

The Martinez family, including Jensen’s wife, Staff Sergeant Micailey Martinez, and their 7-month-old daughter Kaia, were impressed by the resort’s commanding presence against the Wasatch Mountains. “Just coming up the highway and seeing it up on the mountain, this big, beautiful building, that was our first initial thought,” Jensen said. The family particularly appreciated their balcony room overlooking the Jordanelle Reservoir, where Micailey captured stunning sunrise photos their first morning.

The visit represents more than just a luxury stay for the Martinez family. For Jensen, who recently returned from a six-month deployment to Saudi Arabia in March, just before his daughter’s birth, the resort offers a perfect setting for reconnecting with family and getting settled back into civilian life.

“Being able to come here with your family and just kind of settle down and take a relaxer for a bit… it’s needed,” Jensen explained.

The 436-room resort, which includes 55 residences, features nearly 30,000 square feet of event space and multiple dining venues, including the Remington Hall restaurant, where the Martinez family enjoyed their first dinner.

“The dry-aged burger was perfect,” Jensen said, jokingly adding that his daughter Kaia “had some milk.” Remington is one of several dining options that include Hidden Ace, a speakeasy-style venue for the 21-and-over crowd, and Double Blacks, a street-side coffee shop where customers can send in their own pictures to be printed on their latte.

Jensen and Micailey started dating just two days before he left for boot camp. Now, they both serve in the Utah Air National Guard, he as an HVAC technician and she as commander support staff. The couple’s stay was made possible through the resort’s partnership with the Military Installation Development Authority (MIDA) program, which provides discounted accommodations for service members.

TownLift interviewed Jensen and his family in the resort’s North Star Lounge, a private retreat where service members can relax and connect. On the lounge’s shelves is a display case for military challenge coins, a token of appreciation. The practice has a long history among military personnel and first responders as a way to honor service.

Jensen shared one of his recent challenge coins and graciously offered to have it displayed in the North Star Lounge. The coin commemorates Jensen’s recent deployment to Saudi Arabia. “It has … five or six states that I deployed with,” he explained. “And it has all their state flags. And then it has our missions that we were involved with, and on the back it has the base that we were at, with the flag behind.”

The Martinez family, who traveled from Spanish Fork, about an hour away, is already planning return visits. “Especially for anniversaries and birthdays,” Micailey said. She’s especially excited about the resort’s upcoming amenities, including a heated outdoor pool and three hot tubs scheduled to open around mid-December and the spa scheduled to open in the summer of 2025.

A tour through the hotel brought to light just how much space this resort really has. From the massive escalators bringing you down to the grandiose ballrooms and the floor-to-ceiling windows providing all-encompassing views of Deer Valley or the Jordanelle, if there’s one thing anyone can say about the new Grand Hyatt, it’s grand.

Winter rates at the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley begin at $799 per night, with special military rates available through the MIDA program. The resort will celebrate its official grand opening on Jan. 9 with a formal ceremony including military personnel and government officials.