Me too ! Seeking advice on Utah itinerary 4/18

[sun starved Gayle]

I have some reservations that I can cancel. My husband has been to Utah several times to go canyoneering in Zion and mountain biking in Moab, and absolutely loves it. He has wanted to take me there for a long time. Aside from a quick, mostly non-stop drive across the state 40 years ago, it will be a first for me. This is the itinerary my husband has come up with. I know I am late to the game with reservations. Opinions on itinerary ? Thanks in advance for any input.


Day 1: Fly into Las Vegas rent car drive to Page, AZ and spend the night.

Day 2: Tour Antelope Canyon, drive to Monument Valley, stay the night near by.

Day 3: Tour Monument Valley, Drive to Goblin Valley explore and spend night near Capital Reef.

Day 4: Explore Capital Reef. Spend second night at same hotel.

Day 5: Finish Capital Reef. Drive to Escalante, Spend the night

Day 6 Explore Escalante, spend second night at same place.

Day 7: Finish Escalante, drive to Bryce N.P. Stay nearby.

Day 8: Explore Bryce, drive to Zion, stay at St George. ( My husband thinks St. George is too far away, but I have WM reservations am inclined to save some money and stay there.)

Day 9: Explore Zion, second night at St. George.

Day 10: Maybe back to Zion, then back to Las Vegas to drop car off for an evening flight home.

 

[geist1223]

When we toured Bryce several years ago the Gift Shop folks recommended drive to the very end and spend time there enjoying all the views. Then on the way back stop at all the overlooks to view. This is assuming you are not going to hike anywhere in Bryce Canyon. St. George is not a long drive from Zion. But you do want to get started early. Hwy 12 is a gorgeous drive. 3 years ago in June we got stopped for about 30 minutes for a cattle drive. They were moving the herd to summer pasture. We had a very long day. We drove from Park City to Capitol Reef, then through Zion to St George to meet my DIL's parents. The next day the four of us did Bryce Canyon and Zion. We need to go back and do Zion for an entire day.

 

[DaveNV]

Gayle, I question the timing on parts of this.

Monument Valley is pretty much a drive-through, on the way to somewhere else. So you'll be basically done with it by the time you get to wherever you're staying there. Not really any reason to stay overnight there. And it's only two hours from Antelope Canyon to Monument Valley, so by staying overnight, you're wasting a fair amount of time there.

You don't say the route you're driving to get to Goblin Valley from Monument Valley, but you may want to consider taking 191 up through Moab and stay there, rather than staying in Monument Valley. It's only 4.5 hours from Antelope Canyon to Moab, while going through Monument Valley. That would give you a chance to catch Canyonlands or Arches on the way to Goblin Valley. After Moab, continue up 191 to I-70, head West, and drop down to Goblin Valley.

And unless you're going to spend a lot of time hiking in Capitol Reef, (you're giving it more than a full day, which I think is about twice as long as it needs), then driving down to Escalante, which is only about three hours away. You may want to look at maybe spending a second night in Moab, then do Goblin Valley, see Capitol Reef, and then get down to Escalante. The drive from Escalante to Bryce is only an hour.

Unless you have great plans to hike all over the place, you may find yourself tapping your feet in various places, while waiting to leave for somewhere else. I think you'll see some amazing stuff, but you may find yourself questioning your itinerary.

Dave

 

[JeffDH]

We've toured parts of that area multiple times this time of year, staying at Cedar Breaks Lodge in BrianHead since that's where we had timeshare. That's not a very convenient location for touring the parks, and note that the road south from Brianhead through Cedar Breaks N.M. will be closed till summer sometime... but I digress. We did day trips to Bryce and Zion, and I'd suggest a couple of ideas. Expect chilly temps at Bryce. As geist1223 suggested, you can drive all the way to the end and see the sights on the way back... and if you are doing any hiking it will warm up as the day goes on, and its a little more convenient for most of the viewpoint turnouts as I recall as well. Note that the views change dramatically with the light - sun position/time of day and sunny vs cloud cover, etc.

A second idea is on your Day 8, find someplace to stay enroute between Bryce and Zion - but don't expect much more than wide spots in the road for towns! That back country is sparsely populated. Enter Zion from the east side the morning of Day 9, really cool to see the morning sun on the rock formations. You drive right through the south end of the park and past the visitor center to get to St George. The Zion valley is the heart of the part and you can't drive it. Aim to get to the main visitor center well before noon - it gets busy early, and if you find a spot to park near the valley entrance take it.

Have fun, its incredibly scenic.

 

[DaveNV]

A second idea is on your Day 8, find someplace to stay enroute between Bryce and Zion - but don't expect much more than wide spots in the road for towns! That back country is sparsely populated. Enter Zion from the east side the morning of Day 9, really cool to see the morning sun on the rock formations.

The town of Panguitch, Utah is small, but interesting. There are several motels. It's only a half hour from Bryce.

Kanab, Utah, is further south on 89 from the east entrance to Zion, but it's a really cool place. A lot of old western movies were filmed there, and it's worth checking out, if you're looking for a place to spend the night. In the morning, it's an easy 15 minute backtrack to the Mt. Carmel Junction entrance to Zion's East side.

Dave

 

[sun starved Gayle]

Thanks for all the good advice ! My husband is tweaking our itinerary !

 

[chemteach]

I'm jealous. Just got back from Utah yesterday. I would make one suggestion that you do the Willis Creek Narrows near Cannonville/Bryce. It's a great 2.4 mile out and 2.4 mile back hike through a slot canyon with a creek. Great fun to go through, skipping around trying to keep your feet dry the whole way. You have to drive 6 miles on a dirt road to get there. We spent only one day in Capitol Reef. There was more to see - but we focused on slot canyons. Peekaboo and Spooky Gulch in Escalante Grand Staircase were fun and challenging. You have to climb up a 20 foot face - not impossible, but definitely challinging - to enter peekaboo. And if you go down peekaboo and come back via spooky gulch, you have to do a 6ish foot drop below a big boulder to continue on in Spooky Gulch. Had the students a bit freaked, but they all managed. I did a lot of reading before deciding which hikes to do. Hickman Bridge and Grand Wash are probably the most popular hikes in Capitol Reef - we did those and enjoyed them tremendously. Easy to do them both in a single day. Zion was a bit too crowded for us. The entrance from the north (entering on the way from Bryce to Zion) was not crowded at all, but the south entrance in Springdale seemed a half-mile long. Was not something I would want to go through on the way into a beautiful park... Have fun. You really can't make any bad choices! (As long as you don't go into a slot canyon when there is threat of rain.)

 

[ml855]

Our trip is all planned for late August/early September. We're flying into Salt Lake City, renting a car and heading to Moab in order to visit Arches and Canyonlands. We're staying in a Marriott for 3 nights in Moab. We already have the "fiery furnace" hike reserved while spending the day at Arches which is a Park Ranger guided hike. This guided hike is the only way you can get into this part of the park. After spending a full day at Arches and another full day at Canyonlands we'll be heading toward Bryce. On the way to Bryce we plan on stopping by Capital Reef National Park, here we will stay part of the day before moving onto Bryce where we will be staying 2 nights in the National Park Lodge. I figure 1 1/2 days at Bryce will be plenty of time to do a hike into the canyon as well as watch the sun rise and set over the canyon. From here we will drive to Zion and spent 3 nights in their National Park Lodge. We plan on hiking Angel's Landing and the Narrows while enjoying the wonderful scenery. We will be staying our last night in Las Vegas before flying home. On our route from Zion to Las Vegas my Husband wants to stop by Hoover Dam for the afternoon. We're hoping to get to Las Vegas early enough to have dinner and take in a show.

I'm really looking forward to this trip since it's been about 30 years since we last drove through Utah.

 

[Passepartout]

We will be staying our last night in Las Vegas before flying home. On our route from Zion to Las Vegas my Husband wants to stop by Hoover Dam for the afternoon. We're hoping to get to Las Vegas early enough to have dinner and take in a show.

The only real snag I see is that to take the 'Dam Tour', it's first-come first-served. Timed tickets are issued at the visitor's center, and iirc you can't get tickets in advance. The 1930's elevators only hold a limited number of people, and of course, since the dam is solid concrete, they can't add more. Once the day's maximum number of elevator trips is reached, they stop issuing tickets.

But it sounds like a great and memorable trip. We were just in Moab the week before Easter, and saw Arches and Canyonlands. It's a beautiful area.

Jim

 

[ml855]

The only real snag I see is that to take the 'Dam Tour', it's first-come first-served. Timed tickets are issued at the visitor's center, and iirc you can't get tickets in advance. The 1930's elevators only hold a limited number of people, and of course, since the dam is solid concrete, they can't add more. Once the day's maximum number of elevator trips is reached, they stop issuing tickets.

But it sounds like a great and memorable trip. We were just in Moab the week before Easter, and saw Arches and Canyonlands. It's a beautiful area.

Jim

Jim, thanks, he would like to do the tour, but it might not work out on this trip, we'll have to play it by ear. One question with your experience do you know when the tickets are usually all handed out. What time we should arrived at the visitor center with hopes of still getting tickets for the tour.

 

[Passepartout]

Jim, thanks, he would like to do the tour, but it might not work out on this trip, we'll have to play it by ear. One question with your experience do you know when the tickets are usually all handed out. What time we should arrived at the visitor center with hopes of still getting tickets for the tour.

You should try to be there as early as possible. My gut feeling is that they are gone by noonish. If it's a school holiday time, they will be more impacted than if school is still in session. We got there at 8:00 am. I dropped my wife at the entry of the parking structure while I parked the car. We were in something like the 5th or 7th group, and by the time we returned to the top of the dam, that days' tickets were gone. Not that it's a complete waste, there is a museum and movie of the construction, and you can see a lot from the top of the dam, just not the Art Deco Terrazzo floors and the turbines inside the dam.

 

[DaveNV]

Not that it's a complete waste, there is a museum and movie of the construction, and you can see a lot from the top of the dam, just not the Art Deco Terrazzo floors and the turbines inside the dam.

I'm thinking I've done this, but it was a long time ago. I remember it as being pretty interesting.

Dave

 

[ml855]

Thanks guys, I guess we'll be getting up early our last morning in Zion with hopes of getting to the Dam in time to pick up tickets. We'll be keeping our fingers crossed.

 

[Karen G]

Thanks guys, I guess we'll be getting up early our last morning in Zion with hopes of getting to the Dam in time to pick up tickets. We'll be keeping our fingers crossed.

Yes, try to leave as early as possible since it's about three hours from Zion National Park to Hoover Dam. One thing in your favor is that Utah is in the mountain time zone and Nevada is in the pacific time zone so you'll gain an hour as you head west.

If you don't make it in time to get tour tickets, it still is very interesting to just park and walk on the pedestrian bridge that spans the highway. There's a designated parking lot for this. You can't see the dam when you drive across from Nevada to Arizona as they've built the sides of the roadway up high enough to avoid distracted driving. But, walking across is really spectacular to see the whole dam.

You do realize that the Hoover Dam is not "on the way" from Zion to Las Vegas. You'll be driving through Las Vegas, through Henderson, and part of Boulder City to get to the dam--all freeway of course--and then back to Las Vegas for whatever dinner & show plans you make there. It's all doable, of course, and you'll have a long, fun day.

 

[ml855]

Yes, try to leave as early as possible since it's about three hours from Zion National Park to Hoover Dam. One thing in your favor is that Utah is in the mountain time zone and Nevada is in the pacific time zone so you'll gain an hour as you head west.

If you don't make it in time to get tour tickets, it still is very interesting to just park and walk on the pedestrian bridge that spans the highway. There's a designated parking lot for this. You can't see the dam when you drive across from Nevada to Arizona as they've built the sides of the roadway up high enough to avoid distracted driving. But, walking across is really spectacular to see the whole dam.

You do realize that the Hoover Dam is not "on the way" from Zion to Las Vegas. You'll be driving through Las Vegas, through Henderson, and part of Boulder City to get to the dam--all freeway of course--and then back to Las Vegas for whatever dinner & show plans you make there. It's all doable, of course, and you'll have a long, fun day.

Thanks for all the information. We just included visiting the Dam into our trip within the last couple of weeks, I didn't even think about tickets, so whatever we see will be nice and I'm sure the views will be spectacular. I thought about booking a room at the Hoover Dam Lodge but my Husband wanted to stay an extra night in Zion and our last night in Las Vegas, so if we don't get to the Dam in time for tickets then just walking the Dam will be nice to experience. I also thought about staying our last night at the Dam since our flight doesn't leave till 4:15, but I really don't want to stress over doing a tour in the morning and rushing to the airport to catch our flights in the afternoon especially since it's the last flight of the day.

 

[Karen G]

I thought about booking a room at the Hoover Dam Lodge but my Husband wanted to stay an extra night in Zion and our last night in Las Vegas

I agree that spending the night in Las Vegas would be better than at the Hoover Dam Lodge. There will be more to see & do and you'll have a much easier ride to the airport the next day.

Another thing I thought of, when you leave Zion to drive to Las Vegas, be sure it is daylight when you'll be driving through the Virgin River Gorge on I-15. It's right after St. George. The scenery is amazing and you don't want to be in the dark when you drive through there.

 

[Passepartout]

Another thing I thought of, when you leave Zion to drive to Las Vegas, be sure it is daylight when you'll be driving through the Virgin River Gorge on I-15. It's right after St. George. The scenery is amazing and you don't want to be in the dark when you drive through there.

I agree. Seems to me that I read somewhere that the Virgin River Gorge was the most expensive- per mile- freeway section in the country. I don't know, but it's pretty spectacular.

 

[ml855]

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. We're not usually early raisers especially on vacation so I'm sure that won't be a problem. But on the other hand I really would like to make it to Hoover Dam before all the tickets are handed out. I'll make sure it's light before we leave Zion, don't want to miss anything.

I'm really looking forward to this trip, it's really overdue.

 

[Karen G]

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. We're not usually early raisers especially on vacation so I'm sure that won't be a problem. But on the other hand I really would like to make it to Hoover Dam before all the tickets are handed out. I'll make sure it's light before we leave Zion, don't want to miss anything.

I'm really looking forward to this trip, it's really overdue.

Another thing: When you come into the Las Vegas area on the I-15, look for the highway interchange that says "515/95 to Phoenix." Take that freeway as it will curve around and take you through Henderson and on to Boulder City to the dam. It will save you a little time rather than taking the I-15 right through all the morning traffic of Las Vegas. There is a lot of construction going on in that area so be prepared for a little craziness.

 

[Passepartout]

To add to what Karen said, As you are coming into Las Vegas from the north, you come over a little rise and the whole valley spreads out ahead of you, with the Strip in the center and the sun behind you early in the morning. It's kind of an OMG!!! moment. Whoever is driving will need to be pretty alert from that moment, really until you get to the parking structure at the dam.

Jim

 

[DaveNV]

To add to what Karen said, As you are coming into Las Vegas from the north, you come over a little rise and the whole valley spreads out ahead of you, with the Strip in the center and the sun behind you early in the morning. It's kind of an OMG!!! moment. Whoever is driving will need to be pretty alert from that moment, really until you get to the parking structure at the dam.

Jim

That was my first impression the first time I drove into LV from the north, back in the mid-1970s. Each time since, it's the same impressive view, only bigger. It's quite a sight.

Dave

 

[taterhed]

Great thread! Hoping to hit this next year or 2020.

 

[Karen G]

I'll have to add my story about driving toward Las Vegas from Utah for the first time. When we were moving down here from Washington my husband and I were in a truck and our son was in our van ahead of us. Before you get to the Virgin River Gorge there's an exit sign along I-15 for a highway that leads to the Grand Canyon and elsewhere. Our son had gotten out far enough ahead of us that I couldn't see the van as we approached Virgin River Gorge. I called him on the cellphone and asked where he was. His reply was "I'm driving through the Grand Canyon." It was his first time on this route, too, and that kind of gives you an idea of what you see as you pass through this amazing stretch of road through the Gorge.

As you exit that part of the Gorge the scenery changes dramatically to the desert and then the spectacular view of the Las Vegas valley Jim described.

 

[Passepartout]

That was my first impression the first time I drove into LV from the north, back in the mid-1970s. Each time since, it's the same impressive view, only bigger. It's quite a sight.

Dave

The only thing more impressive than a morning arrival into Las Vegas is after hours and hours of REALLY dark driving cross the desert as it's 450 miles of darn near nothing driving down US 93 from our home in Twin Falls (with a few 'wide spots') and the signs say that Las Vegas is only 20- then 10 miles away and it's still dark, then you come over that hill at night and the whole valley spreads out in front of you, punctuated by the incredible lights of the Strip, like a huge solitaire diamond in a giant ring. It's one of the great sights in the world.

 

[Germanyboy]

We went to Hoover dam a few weeks ago and the tours including the ride in the elevators to the bottom of the dam were canceled because they've had issues with the elevators jamming and people getting stuck down there so they're working on it. Carlsbad caverns in New Mexico has had the same issue for two years now.