yentravel

I'm planning a trip from las vegas to the above places. I would like the best route that would cut down the time to get to these places and come back to vegas . I could fly back from phoenix sky harbor but prefer to fly back from las vegas since it is cheaper to return car to same place. Also please advise the amount of time driving , places to stay and how many days to spent there. Thanks in advance.

utahtea

I prefer to do this itinerary in the reverse order you stated for a couple of reasons. You do Sedona first and you get the longest drive over with in the beginning. Las Vegas to Sedona is about 280 miles and a 4 1/2 hour drive. You might want to plan on longer if you want to check out some of the Old Route 66 in Kingman, AZ. Sedona is to civilized for me so if it were me I'd only spend a day there if you don't have a lot of time for this trip.

Sedona to South Rim Grand Canyon is about 115 miles and a little over 2 hour drive. I'd spend at least two nights to have one full day at the Grand Canyon. Three nights or more if you want to do any serious hiking into the canyon.

Grand Canyon to Page is about 140 miles and about 2 1/2 hour drive. The second reason why I like this order is for the view when leaving Grand Canyon. When you drive east from the Desert View section towards Cameron, AZ you have this wonderful view of painted desert as you descend down to Hwy 89. The Antelope Slot Canyon only takes two hours tops so you could also do the short Horseshoe Bend hike. http://www.travelsw.com/southwest-tr.../horseshoe.htm There are other activities to do at Lake Powell like the 1/2 day float trip on the Colorado River or a boat tour on Lake Powell to Rainbow Bridge National Monument. To just do Antelope Slot Canyon you only need one night. Two if you want to do the float trip or boat tour.

Page, AZ to Bryce is about 150 miles and about 2 1/2 hour drive. You drive though Red Canyon which is a scenic drive. Depending on how much hiking you want to do, two nights and one full day should be enough to see all the view points and get in a hike.

Bryce to Zion is 85 miles and less than a 2 hour drive though the Zion Tunnel. You can see a lot of the park with two nights and one full day but if you want to get in some of the longer hikes, then more nights would be better.

The last reason I like this route better is because on the last day you only have a 160 miles - three hour drive from Zion to Las Vegas so you can spend some time doing a hike in Zion before heading out.

We camp so I can't help with accommodations other than to say staying in the park lodgings would be my preference.

Utahtea

Tomsd

Good suggestions by Utahtea. We did it the other way (actually left from here in SD at Oh dark thirty - see my trip report from a couple of years ago) - and driving back from the GC to Vegas is what - about four and a half hours - but all freeway pretty much - so you can bullet it.

If you can't make Sedona work this time - save it for another time and just fly into Phoenix.

cd

As always Utahtea gives great advice! We just loved Cable Mountain Lodge for our stay in Zion. It is right next door to the park and takes you just a few minutes to walk over a little bridge and you're in Zion where a hop on hop off bus picks you up and takes you where in the park you want to go. It has flat screen TVs and a little park out back of the lodge where you can have morning coffee by the Virgin River or BBQ, there is a little market next door to purchase items.

J62

I agree with utahtea, and second the recommendation for Cable Mountain Lodge at Zion. Many people will recommend staying IN the part at Zion. Personally I prefer to stay just outside, and the location of Cable mtn can't be beat.

Why do I prefer outside?

1. easy to walk, in-town shuttle bus, or drive to many dining options in Springdale, as well as outfitters for renting narrows hiking gear. boots/poles, and depending on the water level and temp, wet or dry suit.
2. pool at the hotel to cool off
3. food market to buy breakfast/lunch/snack items
4. more modern hotel conveniences
5. You are still IN Zion canyon and the location of Cable Mtn or Desert Rose hotels right on the river is fantastic.

yentravel

Thank you. Can Sedona be worth as one trip?

yentravel

I only want to do Sedona because I wanted to do a round trip and not having to trace back so I can return the car to las vegas. But if I skip sedona. What's best way to go back to las vegas without having to trace back? Thanks in advance.

J62

LV - Zion - Bryce - CG back to LV is a loop. No trace back.

PRLCH

We are recently back from LV - Grand Canyon North Rim - Lake Powell - Monument Valley - Moab (arches and Canyonlands)- Bryce - Zion - LV

smetz1

I did exactly the same trip a few years ago. The only difference is we went from Page to Sedona, then GC, then back to LV. If you look at a mapping program, you might find that's a little more efficient. We spent the first and last nights in LV, then 2 or 3 in Zion, made Page a stop on the trip from Zion down to Sedona (only to see Horseshoe and Antelope), 2 or 3 in Sedona, and 1 in GC. The amount of time in each place was about right, but if I had it to do over again, I'd skip the first night in LV and add it to Zion. It's about a 3 hour drive from LV to Zion. I agree very much with staying outside the park at Zion, the town is very nice, and provides good bus service into the park. The drive from Zion down to Sedona via Page is a whole day drive (with the stop), Sedona to GC is about 2-3 hours, and the trip from GC to LV takes about 5 hours. If you stop at Hoover Dam you'll add a couple of hours to the drive back to LV.

It's doable but its a lot of driving, and I agree that it might be worth it to save Sedona for a separate trip if you can. It's definitely worth a separate trip. Plus, on that trip you could fly in and out of Phoenix, which is only about 2 hours or so from Sedona.

emalloy

If you skip Sedona, then you could do the trip as planned out by utahtea with the first day being the ~5 hour drive from Vegas to Grand Canyon south rim, then on to Page, etc.

I would look into lodging first. Ideally you want to be in the NP at Grand Canyon and Bryce, IMO, so look at those possibilities first. The NP lodging is a bit overpriced and basic except for elTovar in GC, but it is nice to be there when the crowds leave and you can walk to see sunset and sunrise without driving on curvy roads with animals crossing in the dark. There is plenty of lodging in Page and near Zion in Springdale. If you can't get in park at Grand Canyon you can look at any of the motels in Tusayan south of the park or at Cameron Trading Post east of the park. For Bryce, look at Ruby's or the Best Western near the entrance to Bryce.

If it works better for you do the trip in your original direction, LV, Zion, Bryce, Page, GC south rim, LV. If you get into LV by early afternoon, you could head up to Zion the first night.

yentravel

Thanks for the advice. So this is what I plan to do. Let me know if it sounds ok. I will fly into LAS. Stay a night then head to Sedona next morning. Stay 3 nights at Bestwestern Plus, then to GC and spend one night in the park. next day head to Page for two nights for Antelop slot. Next Bryce one night at Bestwestern plus bryce canyon, then zion 3 nights in Springdale. Then back to LAS spend a night Mandalay bay to enjoy the lazy river. Then head home.

emalloy

If all you are going to do in Page is one of the Antelope Canyons, then one night is more than enough. If you are going to do a smooth water raft trip from there then maybe another night but we did Horseshoe bend the afternoon of arrival, raft trip the next morning, Antelope Canyon early afternoon and were off by mid afternoon.

Add the extra day to one of the other parks.

smetz1

I would agree with emalloy, that one night in Page is probably enough. Hiking to the edge of Horseshoe Canyon doesn't take much time at all, and Antelope is probably 1/2 day. An extra night in Bryce would probably be more valuable.

bballj228

PRLCH on Aug 18, 14 at 11:03pm
We are recently back from LV - Grand Canyon North Rim - Lake Powell - Monument Valley - Moab (arches and Canyonlands)- Bryce - Zion - LV

Hi PRLCH,

if you see this, i am interested in how this trip went for you? i am thinking of something similar. please let me know.

viewgirl

PRLCH I too am in the first stages of planning such a trip---in and out of LV but we don't want to backtrack. Can you please respond with a day to day driving itinerary and how long you stayed at each place? hotels? very much appreciated.

yentravel

If I take a day out of Page . Should I add it to Grand canyon or Bryce?

yentravel

Can someone advise on which route to take from sedona to gcnp? There is at least 3 routes. Thanks

yentravel

i will follow your advise and do the reverse. Can you tell me which route from sedona to gcnp? THanks

mhempy

We are looking to fly into Vegas stay a few days, do Grand Canyon and then Sedona - fly out from Pheonix. We have 11 nights 12 days built in. What is the best use of our toe?