gyime74

Hi All,
We plan to do a 25-day Western USA road trip in August 2017. Most of the stops and accommodations are set forward, but I can hardly decide what to do and NOT do in Utah & Arizona for 7 days. We are a family of 5, our 3 kids (aged 12, 13 and 15 in 2017) are old enough to endure long driving time and enjoy some walking but young enough to have the need to fully explore a national park. Not that we have such a long time - I am fully aware that our 8-day period makes it quite impossible to see most of the Mighty 5 in Utah. I would really be grateful for every idea about where to go and what to see. Given our time frame, quick hitters would surely do the trick with my kids sometime.

Our agenda is the following:
Day 1 (starting from Las Vegas) - visit Zion and get to Hatch or Panguitch (our budget allows an average 150 USD per night for accommodations)
Day 2 - visit Bryce Canyon and get to Page
Day 3 - visit Grand Canyon South Rim, watch Imax at Tusayan, drive back to Page
Day 4 - visit Navajo Bridge, Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon, get back to Page
Day 5 - visit Monument Valley, go to Cortez, Colorado through Four Corners Monument, maybe visit Mesa Verde
Day 6 - visit Mesa Verde (if we couldn't do it on Day 5) and Dead Horse Point, Canyonlands, get to Moab (this accommodation is already paid for in advance)
Day 7 - visit Arches NP and get to Wellington which is en route to our next destination towards Grand Teton and Yellowstone.

It is quite possible that (majority of) my family decides to spend 1 more day (which has to be Day 1) in Las Vegas doing nothing (knowing that we will travel a lot later). Should we then approach Page through visiting Grand Canyon and thus forgoing our accommodation in Hatch or Panguitch? If we had to decide, should we visit only Zion (from LV) OR only Bryce (from Page)?
Is it possible or too naive to think that Monument Valley and Mesa Verde could be visited in just 1 one day (Day 6)? Or similarly: are Canyonlands and Arches possible to be visited within one day?

I accept that all these "visits" can (and should!) only be good for instilling some awe in my children and to have the urge and need to revisit and explore these National Parks later on. Thank you for all practical advice and information.

tomfuller

Are you flying into LV on Day 1 or late on Day 0?
Are you paying a big drop fee to turn in a Las Vegas rental car somewhere else?
Maybe drop Mesa Verde and go to spend more time in Moab (Arches and Canyonlands Island in the Sky).
You could just drive up the "strip" in LV and then go to Hoover dam and maybe the Valley of Fire State Park.

gyime74

We will fly to Oakland, CA on Day -7. The first week is in California, but that section of our trip is ready. Just like the last part when we return to Oakland. As a matter of fact Day 0 is our first full day in LV. We plan to go to Death Valley that day.

Thank you for the idea of Valley of Fire State Park. I've just read that Total Recall was shot there.

I am still unsure of Mesa Verde. On the plus side: cheaper accommodation, not-the-usual national park and the unique geographical quadripoint. The beauty of Moab (or Page) and the close region might be Mesa Verde's minus side.

StantonHyde

Nix Page and Antelope Canyon--too much squeezed in there and Page is not a nice place. Nix 4 Corners--you could pass through Hovenweep and do a short loop hike at the visitors center instead.

Overall, you have way too much stuff packed into this. I would cut out a bunch and focus on maybe 3 parks or something like that. Remember that you don't really want to drive at night or early morning--too much wildlife (deer, elk) on the roads and in some places it is open range--which means big, dark-colored cows in the middle of the road. And if you hit one, you have to pay the rancher for the damage to his animal.

If you click on my user name you will see trip reports for all of the Utah Parks and Page with kids.

RVvagabond

Why visit S.R. GRand Canyon, when North Rim is closer and in my opinion far more tourist friendly - not packed with people.

While at Navajo Bridge, continue to Lees Ferry and its historic district. Last October, I climbed Spencer Trail. Steep, but excellent views . Walking poles mandatory.

Vaga

gyime74

Working my way through StantonHyde's brilliant trip reports I feel even stronger I would need more time on this. This land is full of adventures yet we have such a small amount of time. I would like to have them all but I can't. We have to make the best out of our 7 days.

I guess I have to handle and accept the fact that Antelope Canyon and Page are overcrowded. Alas, these lucky spots on Earth where the average must-see sights per area are so high are meant to be invented for thousands of tourists (this time including us) who have less time but want to see the best of the best.

Escalante and Peek-a-boo may be better. Should I rearrange my agenda to have them instead of Monument Valley, Four Corners and Mesa Verde? Tough question.

Thanks for your valuable input and thanks for Lee's Ferry and Spencer Trail as well!

emalloy

Once you have decided where you must visit, look at the lodging possibilities before you decide which direction to head out first. You are doing a loop and it can be done in either direction. Here is a posting from another fluorite that I've found helpful in planning routes, scroll down for distances and time estimates:

http://ohiohickstraveltips.weebly.co...-utah-map.html

I prefer staying in the parks if possible, but if that isn't in the range of possibilities, there are some less expensive options and your kids will probably enjoy a place with a pool. If you do decide to spend an extra night in Vegas, you might be able to get a good deal on lodging since it is HOT there in the summer.

What StantonHyde said about driving in daylight is true, we've seen deer, elk, cattle and horses as well as many smaller animals on the roads.

Keep a cooler with food and drinks in the car and fill your gas tank any time it gets to a half and you see a station.

Have a great trip.

gyime74

Great map and practical advices! Thank you!

StantonHyde

gyime--I would focus cut out one part of your trip and figure you will come back next year or some other time. I prefer to spend more time in fewer places. It is just so much time in the car and my kids don't like that. They would rather have time to see all of the various things that are in a few places. And the stuff that wows adults doesn't always wow the kids. They would rather check out bugs and tarantulas and all that other stuff (even as teens!)

Good advice on checking lodging first--find out what is open. I don't like staying in any of the parks in Utah. The lodging outside is so much better. But I don't get up at the crack of dawn to watch the sunrise--for some people that is a big deal. I can give you ideas on lodging when you get to that point.

Glad you liked the trip reports. I get so much from this community, I figure I owe it to the Boards to post trip reports.

gyime74

This is indeed my biggest dilemma: spend more time in fewer places or jump quickly from one place to another. Given that this is a road trip (including CA, NV, UT, AZ, CO, WY, ID, OR and a tiny bit of NM) we are kind of (sweetly) "forced" to choose and be happy with visiting many places for a short time.

I would love to return again but I won't delude myself with false hopes. The very reason that I can return (after 1988 and 2007) next year with family is that I won a quiz show in Hungary and I could finance the cost our airplane tickets. I should win another one to be able to come back again. Oh, and the other reason is the total solar eclipse which I could experience (and fell in love with) in 1999 in Hungary.

I originally planned to watch the solar eclipse in Grand Teton on August 21 (which would have given us more time in Utah) but I figured out that I was too late to fix an accommodation within our "price league". Well, we will watch it in Oregon where we can revisit Crater Lake as a compensation - so far my personal favourite where I have ever had the chance to spend time. (I have never yet been to Utah, Arizona or Wyoming.)

Most of our lodgings are now booked. Here are the check-in dates for this region:
August 7-8 - Las Vegas (no booking yet, I read this should be done much later to get discounts, but I would be happy to get advice on this topic as well)
August 9 - Hatch or Panguitch (the only other place we haven't booked)
August 10-12 - Page (booked 3 nights in Motel 6, can be cancelled)
August 13 - Cortez (booked 1 night in Cozy Inn, can be cancelled)
August 14 - Moab (already paid 1 night in Super 8)
August 15 - Wellington (booked 1 night in National 9 Inn, can be cancelled)
Much of August 16 has to be a long driving to get to Driggs, ID.

Well, given these dates and places, what should we plan?
Oh, I was showing my plan to my older daughter (15) explaining her that we could save time by leaving out Mesa Verde. She checked it on internet and decided to leave it in because she thinks Mesa Verde stands out by being different. Most of the others are musts, aren't they? Is it possible to travel from Las Vegas to Yellowstone in 7 days without seeing Grand Canyon, Zion / Bryce, Monument Valley, Arches? Not easy to decide.

HappyTrvlr

We did Mesa Verde, N. Rim of GC, Bryce and Zion when our kids were younger than yours. Their favorites were Mesa Verde and Bryce and then swimming in tne river at Zion( might not be allowed any more) .
Another trip, we stayed in Panguich as the lodge at Bryce was full. We had an amazing experience of small town Americana in Panguich on the 4th of July, rodeo and all.
Anytime you can get a reservayion in a NP lodge, book it! Driving from less than scenic Page would not match staying inside the parks.

emalloy

I love Mesa Verde and am glad your daughter wants to visit it. It is different from some of the other places you are visiting.

When you leave Moab, I see you are heading for Wellington for the night. Is this just to get part way to Driggs? If that is so, you might consider the alternate route to Driggs which is to stay on 191 all the way. You might be able to get to Vernal (where there is modestly priced lodging) and be a bit closer to Driggs. There is an entrance to Dinosaur NP there and the part with a VC and a wall of Dino fossils, would only add about 2 hours to the trip. 191 is mostly a 2 lane road with a 3rd lane for passing every few miles, but the traffic moves along pretty quickly. This also avoids going through Salt Lake City and possible traffic hold ups there, but that might be a place you want to see.

You don't need to thank me for making one more addition to your already full trip.

tomfuller

Where do you plan to be on August 21 about 10AM?
https://www.greatamericaneclipse.com/oregon/
Nearly all of the motel rooms within the path of totality are already booked.

gyime74

Yes, Wellington serves the sole purpose to get part way to Salt Lake City and Driggs. I figured that if we went any further the prices would soar again. Upon your idea, the family discussed the Dinosaur National Monument vs. Salt Lake City. We keep SLC.
I am still not sure which route we should pick from SLC to Driggs to be the quickest.

On August 21 we will wake up either in Eugene (Crossland Economy Studios) or - hopefully - in Corvallis (with friends we visited in 2007). We plan to make it to Silver Falls State Park which lies in the path of totality.