Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce Trip Recommendations

[ivinsfan]

And the weather is highly variable in the shoulder seasons/different elevations. We went in mid- October. Zion's weather was beautiful, but a few days earlier we had snow/freezing temps at Bryce.

Exactly why you have less crowds, it depends on personal preference. Bryce is high elevation.

 

[Uncle]

Thanks for the suggestions! We do have a lot packed in, but I'm still working so we're making the most of the time we have. We decided to split our lodging so we're closer to the parks. We'll stay in Virgin, UT for our 2-3 days at Zion, and in Hatch or Panguitch for Bryce. It will still be a good amount of driving, but hopefully it is doable.



I just saw a video of Angel's Landing. I had no idea.


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[Surewhitey]

Are crowds lower late April/earlyMay?

Most parks I would imagine as they are pre-summer vacation times. We did Yosemite in early May, leaving on what appeared to be first day of summer vaca. The incoming flow of traffic was miles long, literally.

We don't typically do summer in any parks. Early Sept 2023 we did Mammoth Lakes with CA friends and it was very nice, highly recommend for scenery, hiking and renting a pontoon on the lake (many lakes all around). Also renting bikes and taking the trolly (free) to the top (Horseshoe 9000') and riding the trails downhill.

Yosemite was a zoo & I'm pretty sure that's where I got my first Covid experience from riding their valley buses.

Zion is a great park for hiking and scenery. Pretty sure we stayed in Springdale, backing up to the Virgin River. Can't go wrong there. Angel's Landing has awesome views, but pretty intense uphill climb. Off season would likely be the time for that.

Call me crazy, but I wasn't enthralled with the Grand Canyon. Drove the south rim and it just didn't do much for me.

 

[Montecfo]

Call me crazy, but I wasn't enthralled with the Grand Canyon. Drove the south rim and it just didn't do much for me.

Drive? Maybe that was your problem. I do not recall seeing much from the car. Been three times.

Best was rim to river to rim hike down the Kaibab and up the Bright Angel trail.

Stunning views and amazing experience.

 

[Surewhitey]

Drive? Maybe that was your problem. I do not recall seeing much from the car. Been three times.

Best was rim to river to rim hike down the Kaibab and up the Bright Angel trail.

Stunning views and amazing experience.

Not being literal... Not just driving by.

 

[5Miler]

DGF and I have done this circuit a couple of times hitting Sedona, Monument Valley, Lake Powell, Zion, Bryce and the Grand Canyon. We chose to do it via a bus tour (same tour 6 or 7 years apart) and enjoyed a tour guide and driver. Our accommodations were always within the parks, usually in the main hotels on site with most meals provided. Our first trip was with family while in our late 50's so we hiked the Bright Angel Trail out to 3 Mile Station which took it's toll on DGF and her sister although they were used to walking.

Looking at some web sites now I see the Bright Angel Trail is only open for the first half mile until April 2024 due to trail construction.

Having taken the same tour twice, it's obvious we enjoyed ourselves on it and we are actually looking at doing it yet again with our normal cruise travel group. It makes for an easy trip as no real travel planning is necessary except for the airline tickets. Both times we were sorry to see the tour end. Both of our trips were in late August just before Labor day.

The downsides included a couple of early morning departures to make our scheduled stops. I'm not a morning person if it doesn't include a dive boat. Lake Powell was getting pretty low by the second trip in 2019 but I understand water levels have risen a bit this past year. Our tours included a cruise on Lake Powell which was an eye opener re: water level changes.

 

[ivinsfan]

PSA for those talking about Angel's Landing this is the first year you need a premit to hike that trail...info on the Zion National Park page.

 

[shainker]

Consider the Bucky Oneil suite at El Tovar, at the Grand Canyon. It will put you 30 to 40 feet away from the rim of the canyon. Your front door to that suite, leads you directly to the canyon rim. We really enjoyed it.

 

[meleana]

We stayed at Cable Mountain Lodge Resort at the entrance to Zion and also traveled to Bryce from there.

Grand Canyon we stayed right at the lodge there.

 

[BubbaChris]

Home base for us became St George UT 12 years ago, we fell in love with the region while playing tourist in the 90’s. We revisit all these areas via RV now, so I won’t have lodging suggestions.

Page AZ - Horseshoe Bend is worth a short visit. El Tapatio is our consistent dining out option there. Consider stopping at The Toadstools on your way between Page and Bryce.

Bryce UT - 8,000’ elevation makes it the most dicey for off weather days. Check to see if there are any night-sky ranger led activities while you plan to be there. If so, build your day around participating. It is truly a Dark Sky park and really seeing the Milky Way is worth the effort. Also be sure to schedule at least one hike that takes you below the rim. If for some reason a single day there is enough for you, the day-2 uncrowned nearby option is Kodachrome Basin State Park (the Panorama Trail is worth the work).

Zion AZ - 4,000’ elevation, and can get very warm if the weather is trending that way. BTW, the canyon generates its own wind at dawn and dusk as the sun hitting or leaving the canyon walls affects temperatures. Oscars is my favorite dining suggestion. The town of Springdale has successfully kept out chain restaurants except Subway, so use your favorite reviews site to select other options. The Canyon Overlook Trail is the best option if you don’t want to use the shuttle and still get a canyon view, another choice is to have a more boring hike from the East entrance area to Observation Point (higher than Angel’s Landing). Within the canyon the West Rim trail as a destination gets you away from the crowds after you get by Scouts Landing (part of the Angels Landing route). And for something away from the main sites is the Many Pools Trail, one you don’t need to use the shuttle for. Many Pools is not on the park issued guide, but pretty easy to find instructions. You won’t get big views, but you also won’t have big crowds.

Hope you enjoy the trip!

Best regards,
Chris

 

[urn2bfree]

2 suggestions

1) invest in the app Just Ahead for all the parks- puts a guide in your phone that chimes in based on where you are using your GPS…it will tell you all you need to know to maximize your experience

2) if you go from Lake Powell to Bryce as we did, avoid our mistake. We applied sun block at Lake Powell and closed the bottle. Then drove to Bryce. Next day, opening the bottle created a slowly oozing sun block volcano (given the change in altitude of 1000’s of feet.)

 

[qwerty3656]

Lake Powell to Bryce

Was it a crazy scenic drive? I remember our drive from Bryce to Lake Powell being the most scenic drive I've ever taken

 

[glasswave]

Kodachrome Basin is worth a look. So is Snow Canyon.


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[livingalmostlarge]

doing this as well memorial day weekend. So i want to follow. into vegas that night, 2 days zion, 2 days bryce, back to lv and then out. 6 days.

I booked the cabins in the parks. Are they not nice?

 

[Dawg52]

Are crowds lower late April/earlyMay?

I took the trip in Oct of 2018 and I didn't find the crowds bad. Catching a shuttle in Zion's park wasn't bad at all. Summer apparently is bad due to children being out of school and post Covid.

 

[DrRoy]

I would suggest staying close to Bryce & Zion instead of driving between them. Bryce, in particular, is spectacular at sunrise.

Yep
.

 

[ivinsfan]

doing this as well memorial day weekend. So i want to follow. into vegas that night, 2 days zion, 2 days bryce, back to lv and then out. 6 days.

I booked the cabins in the parks. Are they not nice?

Cabins are fine...basic but fine.

 

[Toga83]

OP-Be aware of the driving distances between Vegas and the Parks you plan on visiting:
-Vegas to South Rim is nearly 300 miles
-South Rim to Zion is 250 miles
-Zion to Bryce 100 miles
-Bryce to Vegas 250 miles

Night driving is not a good option. Refill your gas tank when get to half

Before leaving Vegas go to the nearest Walmart for supplies.

You’ll need the following:
- hard sided cooler
- case of water
- fruit and snacks
- binoculars
- backpack
- sunblock
- hats
- sturdy hiking shoes

YouTube has videos on most of the popular trails that you can hike.

The Southwest scenery is awe inspiring but you and your family need to be cautious on every step on the hiking trails.

 

[folivier]

Yes! don't forget the water. If you're not used to being in the desert and drinking much more water than you usually do you can get dehydrated quickly. Combine that with the altitudes and you can get into trouble quickly.