Explore Utah’s capital city at these standout rentals with epic pools, mountain views, and incredible design.

Courtesy Airbnb

I was lucky enough to grow up in Salt Lake City , Utah, before it gained notoriety as an Olympic host city and was spotlighted as one of the locations on the wildly popular The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives reality show. But when I attended college in Seattle in the mid-2000s, and people learned I was from Utah, many were still bewildered that I could come from such an unfamiliar place. (Even more so when I announced my move back after graduation, longing for the mountains and our nearly always sunny days.)

Today, public opinion about Salt Lake City is changing, with folks focusing less on its predominant religion and more on its towering peaks, incredible restaurants, and nearby national parks .…