At Black Desert Resort, meeting guests can start their day out on the right foot with guided nature walks, taking in views of the burnt red sandstone cliffs and the striking black lava beds unique to this region. Other guided adventures include longer hikes close to the resort or a day trip to Zion National Park to e-bike around the colorful sandstone walls and witness, first-hand, the hanging valleys and dusty red canyons that draw 5 million visitors each year.
“The sky’s the limit,” says Steven Graves, Director of Outdoor Recreation and Retail at Red Mountain Resort, a sister property to Black Desert Resort.
Black Desert Resort is poised to become a premier meeting destination, with 45,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting and event space, bucket-list golf already on the PGA and LGPA tour schedules, and luxury hospitality. On top of all that, the resort is surrounded by Southern Utah’s rugged beauty.
This pocket of Utah is so unique, Graves says, because it’s at the confluence of three different ecosystems—the Mojave Desert borders the resort, and then there’s the Colorado Plateau and the Great Basin.
“It creates this iconic land mass that people think of when they think of the Southwest—the red Navajo sandstone, the cliffs, the desert environment,” Graves says.
Inspired Meetings Surrounded by Scenery
Want to crack the code to productive and creativity-fueled meetings? Get outside. A growing body of research shows just how powerful immersing in nature can be for productivity, from one study that found gazing at nature can help improve attention and performance in the workplace and another that shows getting outside can help spark creative problem-solving.
Black Desert Resort is just the place for these kinds of inspired meetings. The resort, which is spread out across 600 acres, offers easy access to preserved land and six miles of hiking trails and scenic bike paths, in addition to being close to some of Utah’s most stunning natural attractions.
Set to become Utah’s largest resort, the resort’s first phase will include nearly 800 rooms and suites, plus seven dining venues, a 15,000-square-foot spa, as well as heated outdoor pools and hot tubs.
Meeting spaces include 18 venue options that span from expansive ballrooms with breakout capabilities to 24,000 square feet of adaptable outdoor space with scenic terraces.
To help arrange and execute events, Black Desert Resort will have a dedicated team of event specialists and culinary experts.
Dining concepts range from Basalt, which features prime, dry-aged beef and sustainable seafood and 20th Hole for a clubhouse experience with a wide range of beers on tap to Oasis, a Mexican-style taqueria. Club 73 will offer a unique dining experience next to “The Yard,” with a large outdoor screen, 36-hole putting course, outdoor hot tubs and views of the Vermillion Cliffs, which are fantastical rock formations colored with bands of reds and oranges.
One more thing: The stars are the night lights here. Black Desert Resort is in Ivins, Utah, which is hard at work to become recognized as an International Dark-Sky Community, which encourages communities to turn off the lights to make the night skies as dark as possible. Utah is home to the highest concentration of certified Dark Sky places in the world, which means visitors have a good shot at seeing the Milky Way, Big Dipper, and zodiac constellations.
One-Of-A-Kind Golf
Black Desert Resort opened its doors for an initial preview phase in October following the Black Desert Championship, which was part of the PGA Tour’s 2024 FedEx Cup that took place on the resort’s Tom Weiskopf-designed championship course. In May 2025, the resort will host the LGPA Tour on the course.
The championship course is a bucket list one for golfers. Ancient basalt rock formations were integrated into the course, providing a gorgeous contrast to the green fairways. Golfers can also take in views of the towering sandstone cliffs in the backdrop.
The 7,500-yard course was designed by professional golfer and golf course architect Tom Weiskopf, who counts the British Open among his PGA Tour wins. The resort’s course was the final one that he designed before his passing in 2022. Golfing here is special because players can get in high-tech carts that are equipped with GPS and feature hole-by-hole commentary from Weiskopf.
In addition to the championship course, guests can practice their skills at a state-of-the-art driving range that uses golf ball-tracking TrackMan technology to help them better their swing. Players can brush up on their short game at the 2-acre, 36-hold putting green.
Adventures in Utah’s Great Outdoors
Those coming to Black Desert Resort will have several ways to get out and explore the scenery, from bird watching to hiking in lava tubes or even learning how to rappel or rock climb. For those who have an entire day, Graves expects day trips to Bryce Canyon National Park or Zion National Park are favorites. Having a guide is the confidence boost some people need to tackle an iconic national park adventure, Graves says, like hiking The Narrows in Zion, a route that takes hikers into the canyon and follows the Virgin River along the way.
Aside from the national parks, some other adventures include a day at Kanarra Falls, which is a stunning slot canyon that’s one of the most photographed waterfalls in Utah. A 4.5-mile round trip hike starts on a red dirt path along the banks of Kanarra Creek before veering into the stony creek bed. Or hike on wave-like red sandstone at the Candy Cliffs, and keep your eyes peeled for interesting rocks, like a heart-shaped formation.
Those staying at Black Desert Resort can enjoy the region’s unique beauty close to the resort, too, at a treasured spot like Snow Canyon State Park.
Guides will lead daily walks for those who want a quick dose of nature, as well as explorer and challenger hikes that log some more mileage and come with some elevation gain. The outdoors team can switch up the hikes each day so that repeat hikers can tackle new routes during their stay. Some of the hikes include views of petroglyphs (ancient rock carvings).
“Snow Canyon is an amazing resource that’s right out our back door,” Graves says. “The scenery is spectacular—you’ve got the cliffs, the red sandstone, and petrified sand dunes all around you.”