Traveling To Utah For A Nordic Tattoo | Ancient Marks & Jon Poulson

Many Ancient Marks clients travel from outside Utah — and quite a few travel across the country specifically for Jon’s work. Because of that, we’ve structured the process to make larger projects as smooth and realistic as possible for traveling clients.

Ancient Marks operates out of a Private space adjacent to Aloha Tattoos in Murray, Utah, located just south of Salt Lake City and roughly:

• 15–20 minutes from Salt Lake International Airport

• Surrounded by hotels, restaurants, and shopping

• Centrally located for easy transportation throughout the valley

Planning Your Trip

If you are traveling for your tattoo, please mention that early in the inquiry process.

Traveling clients are often scheduled differently than local clients so we can:

• Maximize tattoo progress during your stay

• Coordinate drawing sessions efficiently

• Build realistic timelines

• Reduce unnecessary travel back and forth

Many traveling clients choose:

• 2–3 day session blocks

• Consecutive tattoo days

• Drawing sessions scheduled immediately before tattooing

• Follow-up trips later in the project

Before You Arrive

Traveling for a tattoo is physically demanding, especially for larger projects.

Before arriving, we strongly recommend:

• Hydrating heavily for 1–2 days beforehand

• Sleeping well before travel

• Eating consistently

• Avoiding alcohol prior to tattooing

• Arriving with realistic expectations for long sessions

Travel itself can already fatigue the body. Taking care of yourself beforehand makes a major difference in how well you sit and heal.

Hotels, Transportation & Recovery

Murray and the Salt Lake Valley are generally very easy to navigate.

Most clients choose:

• Nearby hotels within 5–15 minutes of the studio

• Uber/Lyft for transportation

• Rental cars for larger trips or mountain travel

After long sessions, many clients prefer to keep the rest of the trip fairly relaxed. Large-scale tattooing can be physically exhausting, especially during consecutive session days.

We highly recommend:

• Staying hydrated

• Eating substantial meals

• Prioritizing recovery and sleep

• Avoiding heavy physical activity after sessions

Healing While Traveling

If you are flying home shortly after tattooing, we will go over aftercare instructions carefully before you leave.

Most clients travel home without issue, but proper aftercare becomes even more important when:

• Flying

• Driving long distances

• Staying in hotels

• Being exposed to dry climates or changing weather

We typically use professional healing barrier products during the initial healing phase and will explain exactly how to manage things while traveling.

Building The Project Over Multiple Trips

Many Ancient Marks projects are completed over multiple visits to Utah. Some are done in one go. others keep it flexible and plan subsequent trips as they go.

That is completely normal.

Large-scale work often evolves over time, and many clients return:

• Every few months, scheduled after each session block to keep things open and the best prices on travel on the table.

• Some simply Stay for 3 weeks, planning 2 session blocks with 2 weeks healing time. Giving them time to explore the mountains and deserts nearby

• 1 or more session blocks Planned 6 months to 1 year in advance. - a more strict schedule to get the piece done in a timely manner.

• Stay with friends, loved-ones, or family members.

The process is built to be flexible and realistic long-term. If we can finish a project by adding several more hours the day after a session block ends, we will make that happen so there is no un-necessary traveling.

Make A Trip Out Of It

Salt Lake City also gives clients a chance to experience:

• The Wasatch Mountains

• National parks

• Hiking and nature

• Snowboarding and skiing

• Local coffee shops and food

• Utah’s unique landscape and culture

A lot of clients turn the experience into a full personal trip instead of simply “coming for a tattoo.”

And honestly, that tends to fit the spirit of Ancient Marks pretty well.