The Ultimate Southwest Trip: Utah and Arizona
The beauty of a Southwest road trip is that you can visit many epic National Parks in a short span of time. These parks are all unique in their own way and definitely worth seeing. Not having many PTO days forced us to make this trip compact, so if time allows you can take more time at each stop. However, if you’re like me and like to see as many sites as possible, this article is for you. We were able to see 6 National Parks (including the Utah Mighty 5) and paddle board in Lake Powell, AZ!
Some beginning tips to get done before your trip:
Flights: in and out of Salt Lake City (SLC)
Rent a car from the airport. Renting a car is a must as there is no good public transit to get around to your destinations
Pack plenty of reusable water bottles! There are refill stations at each visitor center. The climate in Utah and Arizona is very dry, hot, and sunny so make sure to stay hydrated especially on hikes
Other things to pack: protein bars (i.e.-Cliff Bars), hiking boots, hiking socks, bug spray, hats to protect from sun, lip balm, a day hiking backpack, hiking poles if needed
Pack sweatshirts and sweatpants. Although during the day the National Parks are very hot, because of the desert-like climate the temperature drops heavily at night so make sure to pack layers
Map of entire route
High-Level Itinerary
Day 1: Salt Lake City / Park City
Day 2: Arches National Park
Day 3: Canyonlands and Capitol Reef
Day 4: Bryce Canyon
Day 5: Lake Powell
Day 6: Grand Canyon North Rim
Day 7: Zion National Park
Day 8: Park City and Salt Lake City
Details of the Road Trip:
Day 1: Salt Lake City / Park City
Arrive in Salt Lake City during the daytime. Check out the downtown and tale at look at the largest church in the center, The Salt Lake Temple
Grab lunch in downtown. I went to Zest Kitchen and Bar, a well-known vegan restaurant in Salt Lake
Before sunset, drive the scenic way to Park City and take in the Canyon views along the way. There are lookout points to get a nice photo alongside mountains
We stayed in Park City for the night. There are many hotels or Airbnbs to stay at, and the downtown is walkable with shops, bars, and restaurants. For a fun experience, dine at the Alpine DIstillery on Main Street for good food and even better whiskey cocktails
Day 2: Arches National Park
Get up early to make the 4 hour drive to Arches National Park. As a pitstop along the way, stop in Helper to see a classic, well-kept Western town. It has one main road and some cafes and restaurants to grab a meal
Arrive at Arches. The two trails we did were some of the most famous ones: Double Arches and Delicate Arch. Double arches can be challenging for some as there is a steady incline in the sun, but many people make it up to see both iconic arches. Delicate arch is probably the most famous arch, as it is on the Utah license plate.
Only a 10 minute drive away is Moab, Utah. Here is a built up town that has restaurants, camp sites, grocery stores, and more. This is where we stayed for the night
Day 3: Canyonlands and Capitol Reef
Only a 30 minute drive away is the second National Park on the agenda- Canyonlands. This one is oftentime is overlooked in the “Mighty 5” but is 100% worth the trip. It is a HUGE National Park, averaging about 257,000 acres of land and 527 square miles. It would take around 3 days to completely drive around the entire thing, so we just did the highlights.
The hikes we did were Mesa Arch and White Rim Overlook. Those were not too difficult and held amazing views. We packed PB&Js at the beginning of our hike and ate them for lunch at the end of the white rim.
After the 2 hikes and early afternoon, we headed to Capitol Reef (2 hours away). Around the entrance of the park, there is a small store that sells homemade, fresh apple pies daily. However, they sell out quickly so you may or may not get the opportunity to taste one.
Due to a lack of time, we drove the scenic drive to the end and did a hike at the end through the bottom of the Canyons. It was beautiful and quiet, not many tourists were around this spot.
Afterwards, we stayed at an adorable town outside of the park, Torrey. It has a large Native American population where you can find some hand-crafted jewelry and things to buy at some of the local stores.
Day 4: Bryce Canyon
Get up early to make the most of Bryce!On your way out of Torrey, stop at the Chuckwagon General Store for some homemade donuts for the road. The trip to Bryce Canyon is about 2 hours away
Drive to the Sunrise point of Bryce Canyon to begin your hikes. Since we were spending the entire day here, we chose to do the longer hike, The figure 8 loop. It encompasses the peekaboo loop, queens garden, and navajo loop all in one. Thai might have been my favorite hike the entire trip with all the unique nature!
Take the shuttle to Bryce Point to start your journey of the hike.
Afterwards, we drove to Page, Arizona (2.5 hours) to end our day and got dinner at an authentic Mexican restaurant- Fiesta Mexicana. There are plant-based options upon asking
Day 5: Lake Powell
Today we had a more relaxing day, as the first part of the trip was very busy and strenuous. We rented paddleboards to do a paddleboarding day on the lake. We rented our paddleboards from Lake Powell Paddleboards and Kayaks
We paddle boarded all the way to the end of the lake, set our paddleboard aside, and walked through the Antelope Canyon (highly recommended). Exploring this area is extremely picturesque and fun, as the narrow pathways lead to different areas
Note: I would recommend renting kayaks instead of paddle boarding. Although paddleboarding was fun, Kayaking is less strenuous on the body going farther distances
Day 6: Grand Canyon National Park North Rim
After leaving Page Arizona, make the 2 hr 20 minute drive to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. During the time we went, there were certain roads blocked off that made it very difficult to get to the South Rim. Even though the North Rim is lesser known than the South Rim, it is equally as beautiful.
We drove to the end of Bright Angel Point trail and did a hike and went to a lookout. There are smaller hikes near the visitors center that were fun and not too strenuous!
Drive to Zion which is 2.5 hours away. We stayed in the town of Hurricane which is outside the park. There are some decent lodging there
Day 7: Zion National Park
Tip #1: In order to meet demand of the park, you need to reserve a shuttle on recreation.gov exactly 9am the day prior. They sell out very quickly so this is important to do right on time. We learned this while at other national parks hearing from people around us. Without this reservation, you won’t be able to park and get to the proper hikes. The reservation only costs $1 and is pivotal to your trip
Tip #2: If doing the Narrows, you should buy water shoes and poles to walk. We went to Zion Outfitters right outside the park to purchase for about $25 each. If you do not plan on exploring the Narrows, this is not a necessary tip
We did one of the most popular hikes, Angels Landing. I give this hike a 10/10 as the views going up and down are truly remarkable. It is a steady incline of switchback and the opposite on the way down. If you are relatively in shape, it should not be that hard and you can take breaks along the way and at the top.
The famous part of the hike is the chains that overlook steep drops but have incredible views. I have a fear of heights so I skipped this part, but my partner did it and said it was awesome!
Next we headed over to the Narrows. One thing to note is that at certain times of year, there is dangerous algae in the water so you need to be careful. Any open wounds can be extremely hazardous and I would not recommend going if you have one. We personally did not do the entire duration of the Narrows as you can dedicate an entire day to doing that.
After our adventures we got dinner at Zion Canyon Brew Pub where they served yummy burgers and pub food (multiple veggie burgers and plant-based options). There also are interesting beer flights to end your night
Day 8: Park City and Salt Lake
Grab breakfast at River Rock Roasting Company. There are great cinnamon rolls and bagels.
Make the 4.5 hour drive back to Park City or Salt Lake
Depending on your flight home, grab a meal at the Red Iguana. This is very well-rated and has an amazing assortment of mole. Authentic Mexican cuisine you don’t want to miss
Return your rental car and enjoy the flight home!
All of these destinations can be customizable, we just did it in this order because it worked out for our road trip. Feel free to do additional research on hikes you might like and where to spend some extra time.
