Plan the Perfect 7 to 10 Trip to Zion and Bryce Canyon
In 2013, the State of Utah Office of Tourism introduced a brilliant ad campaign to lure travelers to its then-underrated national parks, rebranding them “The Mighty Five.” The wildly successful campaign led to an increase in attendance at the parks of almost four million people in just three years. Since then, the power of social media has only fueled the parks’ popularity further. Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capital Reef, Canyonlands, and Arches National Parks are now considered bucket list destinations. But should you visit all five of them in one trip?
After researching what a Mighty Five itinerary would look like for my family, I decided against it. For one, my family likes vacations to be no more than about a week to 10 days long. And two, my family likes getting to know an area for a while before moving on. I saw no good way to meet both of those requirements with a five-park itinerary.
Instead, I focused on creating a 10-day itinerary that included only two of the parks, Zion and Bryce Canyon. Ultimately, the trip we took was satisfying and fun, and I recommend it to anyone searching for a good compromise for a Utah national park family vacation. Based on our experience, here’s my complete guide to planning a one week to 10-day Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary.
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Our 10-Day Zion and Bryce Canyon Itinerary
- Day 1 Fly into Las Vegas
- Day 2 Drive to Zion National Park in morning, spend afternoon at Zion National Park, overnight there
- Day 3 Zion National Park
- Day 4 Zion National Park in morning, drive to Bryce Canyon National Park in the afternoon, overnight there
- Day 5 Bryce Canyon National Park
- Day 6 Bryce Canyon National Park
- Day 7 Drive to Kanab, day in Kanab, overnight in Springdale
- Day 8 Drive to Hoover Dam, overnight in Las Vegas
- Day 9 Las Vegas
- Day 10 Fly home
While we opted for nine nights, you could easily shorten this itinerary by omitting the days in Kanab and Las Vegas.
Getting to Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks
While you have a couple of choices for airports if you’re doing a full Mighty Five tour, your best bet for a Zion and Bryce Canyon trip is Las Vegas. Located 175 miles from Zion National Park, Harry Reid International Airport serves every major airline and offers around-the-clock rental car services. It’s an easy and scenic three-hour drive from the park.
For this Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary, a rental car is the way to go because you’ll be road-tripping to both parks, as well as taking a short side trip to Kanab. You can find all the major rental car companies on site, including Hertz, Enterprise, National, Alamo, and Avis. With our rental, we received a complimentary upgrade to a Jeep Wrangler. We don’t usually pay for upgrades, but we had so much fun driving around the parks in the Jeep that I just might consider it for future trips.
Where to Stay in Zion National Park
The Zion Lodge
I’m a big fan of staying in national park lodges, and I’ve written about several of my family’s past national park stays in posts on Yellowstone, Grand Teton, and Grand Canyon. Staying inside a national park gives you unparalleled access after all the other visitors have left for the night and allows you to see the park in a different way.
Thanks to our national park accommodations, we’ve strolled around Old Faithful Geyser at sunset, admired Jackson Lake from the deck of our cabin, and watched the sun rise over the Grand Canyon. Zion Lodge is no different, providing the unique opportunity to drive the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive at any hour of the day. The drive is closed to all but lodge guests and park shuttle buses from mid-March to late November. With the T-tops off our rental Jeep, we were treated to amazing views of the canyons towering overhead, lit by the rising and setting sun.
And what’s more, this access allowed us to avoid the summertime crowds that Zion is known for. On the morning of our Narrows hike, we simply walked from our room to the adjacent shuttle stop, popped onto the shuttle with no wait, and were at the trailhead by the time most visitors were still stuck in line at the main visitor center.
As with most park lodges, Zion Lodge reservations open on a 13-month rolling basis. The sooner you can book your accommodations there the better.
Lodging in Springdale
While the benefits to staying in Zion National Park are unmatched in my opinion, those looking for more luxurious accommodations may want to consider staying in nearby Springdale. Located just outside the park’s entrance, Springdale is a charming town of outfitters, hotels, and restaurants.
We ultimately stayed one night at the Marriott Springhill Suites at the end of our Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary. This hotel was the most beautiful Springhill Suites I have ever seen. It has a luxe wood-trimmed lobby and a pool with a stunning canyon view (a close second to the mind-blowing view of Boynton Canyon at Enchantment Resort in Sedona). We had a suite that was new, large, and nicely appointed, and it made me think twice about whether staying in the spartan Zion Lodge had been the right decision after all. Kudos to Marriott for making me doubt myself.
Similar impressively located Springdale hotels include the Cliffrose Springdale Curio Collection by Hilton, the Cable Mountain Lodge, and the Desert Pearl Inn.
What to Do in Zion National Park
Zion National Park is a hiker’s paradise. With two nights in the park, we were able to do several of the most popular hikes, including the Emerald Pools trail, the Narrows, and the hike to Scout’s Lookout. Here are some details about each.
Emerald Pools Trail
The Emerald Pools Trail is a three-mile loop that begins across from the Zion Lodge. This was a perfect hike for us to do when we arrived midday after our drive from Las Vegas. We grabbed some lunch on the deck of the Red Rock Grill, which has a beautiful view of the canyons, and then walked across the street to the trailhead. We did the full loop, visiting the Lower, Middle and Upper Pools, but you can make this hike shorter by stopping at only one or two of the pools. The hike to Lower Emerald Pools is just 1.2 miles roundtrip and follows a paved path. The Middle Emerald Pools are 2.2 miles roundtrip and are considered a moderate hike. The trail to Upper Emerald Pools is the most strenuous, with more elevation and sandy and rocky terrain.
This trail took us about two hours, including time for pictures and to watch rock climbers scaling the sheer sandstone cliff walls.
The Narrows
If you can only do one thing in Zion National Park, it should be the Narrows. This famous hike lives up to the hype. In fact, my son who often poo-poos our hiking adventures told me it was the best hike we’ve ever done. His excitement (and mine) was obvious as we stopped to giddily snap pictures of ourselves between the colorful, majestic canyon walls.
The bottom-up Narrows hike does not require a permit and entails walking through the Virgin River for up to 4.7 miles and then turning around and heading back down. For most of the year, every visitor will need to take the shuttle to the Temple of Sinawava stop. From there, take the paved Riverside Walk until you reach the Narrows trailhead.
We spent about five hours doing the Narrows hike and turned back shortly before Big Spring. For more tips, stay tuned for my upcoming post on everything you need to know to hike the Narrows.
Angel’s Landing/Scout’s Lookout
Another world-famous hike at Zion National Park is Angel’s Landing. Known for the dramatic ridge that soars above the canyon, Angel’s Landing can now only be accessed by permit. Hikers can apply for the permit to hike the arete in a seasonal or day-before lottery. We didn’t receive a permit in the seasonal draw, but it was probably for the best as I had some concerns about doing this hike anyway. It requires using chains to navigate the ridge, which has steep 1,000-foot drops on both sides.
The good news is that visitors can do most of this hike without a permit. Take the West Rim Trail to Scout’s Lookout, which brings you to the base of Angel’s Landing. From Scout’s Lookout, you get some of the same stunning views. And if you go farther up the West Rim Trail and turn around, you’ll get an incredible, not-to-be-missed view with Angel’s Landing in front of you.
Zion-Mount Carmel Highway
On our last day in Zion National Park, we took the scenic drive along the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway on our way to Bryce Canyon National Park. The highway passes through the East entrance of the park and offers different scenery along the way. The route features fascinating rock formations, including the impressive Checkerboard Mesa and the Great Arch. It also passes by the popular Canyon Overlook Trail, a moderate one-mile out-and-back trail to a spectacular viewpoint. Along this road, we saw our first and only bighorn sheep of the trip.
This drive was a great opportunity to listen to our favorite audiotour, GyPSy Guide, which provides fascinating commentary about the history, geography, and wildlife of the park. Download the GPS-enabled tour to your phone and the commentary plays through the car radio via Apple CarPlay. We’ve used GyPSy Guides in Maui, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, the Great Smoky Mountains, and Vermont, and we swear by them.
Where to Stay in Bryce Canyon
While Zion National Park and Springdale is a hub of tourist activity, Bryce Canyon couldn’t be sleepier. It has limited accommodations and restaurants both inside and outside of the park. Based on lodging availability, we spent two nights in Zion and three nights in Bryce, but I’d reverse that number for a perfect itinerary given Bryce’s lack of amenities.
We stayed in Bryce Canyon’s Western-style cabins, located just steps from the rim of the park’s magnificent amphitheater. The amphitheater is the bowl-shaped area formed by water flowing down the limestone of the Paunsaugunt Plateau, now filled with colorful cliffs, spires, and pinnacles. The cabins were basic, without television or air conditioning, but once again we enjoyed the convenience and the unique experience of being in the park after most visitors had left.
What to Do in Bryce Canyon
Hiking Queen’s Garden and Navajo Loop
Hiking a couple of Bryce Canyon’s trails should be on any Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary. Two of the most popular are Queen’s Garden and the Navajo Loop. Navajo Loop is a moderate 1.4-mile loop that descends into the Bryce Canyon amphitheater. It takes about an hour to complete and includes a series of switchbacks into a ravine known as Wall Street. It also passes between impressive hoodoos—rock pinnacles that have weathered over time to a variable thickness, making them look like people, animals, and things to a creative mind.
Visitors can make the hike longer by connecting to the Queens Garden trail. Or you can opt to tackle Queens Garden separately from the trailhead at Sunrise Point. Queens Garden is a 1.8-mile roundtrip out-and-back trail that is considered the easiest route to access the amphitheater.
Horseback Riding in Bryce Canyon
Another terrific way to see the Bryce Canyon amphitheater is on horseback. One-and-a-half and three-hour trail rides are available through Bryce Canyon’s only horseback-riding concessionaire, Canyon Trail Rides.
I wondered if the three-hour ride would be too long for my family, but it was just the right amount time and was without a doubt the most spectacular horseback ride we’ve ever done. The three-hour Bryce Canyon ride follows the Peak-a-Boo Loop trail, allowing you to see the amphitheater’s most stunning views. The horses walk along much of the same trail as the hikers, making it a great way to change up the activities on a hiking-heavy trip. Our horses and mules were surefooted in the canyon, but they prefer to walk on the trail edge. When booking, keep that in mind if you’re afraid of heights.
We were impressed with our capable guide and wowed by the otherworldly scenery. And we all agreed it was one of our top experiences of the trip.
Bryce Canyon Scenic Drive
Some of the most impressive overlooks in Bryce Canyon can be found along the Southern Scenic Drive. The road extends 15 miles past the amphitheater and passes nine scenic overlooks, which increase in elevation the farther you go.
We chose to drive out to the farthest overlook first, Yovimpa Point, and make our way back toward the visitor center. On our drive, we again listened to GyPSy Guide, which helped us decide which of the nine overlooks we were most interested to see. A couple of our favorites were Aqua Canyon, with hoodoos called “The Hunter” and “The Rabbit,” and the arch at Natural Bridge.
Nearby Sights for a Zion and Bryce Canyon Itinerary
Kanab and Peek-a-Boo Slot Canyon
As part of your Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary, consider a stop in nearby Kanab, Utah. Kanab is just 75 miles from Bryce Canyon National Park and can be reached in under an hour and a half. The area has numerous hikes and adventure activities.
With two teenage boys in our travel party, we opted for an ATV tour with Kanab Tour Company. Since we couldn’t make it to Page, Arizona, to see the Antelope slot canyons during this trip, we chose the Peek-a-Boo Slot Canyon tour as an alternative. Riding in two ATVs, we spent three hours blasting through sandy trails, stopping at the slot canyon, an underground lake and cave, and a picturesque arch.
Our tour guide was informative and friendly. He was also happy to take family photos of us, even suggesting the best poses in the slot canyon and pointing out key photo opportunities. This tour, while pricey, was another highlight of the trip, especially for my 18-year-old who was old enough to drive one of the ATVs.
Other popular Kanab things-to-do include renting sandboards and sliding down the dunes of the Coral Pink Sands State Park, hiking The Wave or Buckskin Gulch, seeing the Toadstool Hoodoos, walking through the Belly of the Dragon, and exploring the Kanab Sand Caves, also known as the Moqui Caverns.
Hoover Dam and Las Vegas
Finally, since you’ll be flying into and out of Las Vegas for this Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary, consider visiting the Hoover Dam and spending a day in Las Vegas. We left Springdale in the morning and arrived at Hoover Dam by midday where we purchased tickets for the Guided Power Plant tour. The Power Plant tour allows visitors to walk through the original construction tunnels for the dam and see the commercial generators.
The following day we recuperated from our national park activities by taking in the sights of the Las Vegas strip and relaxing at the pool, capping off the vacation with a Sting concert at Caesar’s Palace. A truly perfect end to a perfect trip.
Interested in more national park vacation tips? You might like 3 Amazing Days in Acadia National Park or Grand Teton and Yellowstone in 7 to 10 Days: How to Plan an Epic National Park Trip.
