jorda

My husband and I are flying into Vegas on a Wed., and flying out on Monday am, EARLY. We really don't need to spend any time in Vegas, other than to use the airport, and spend the night prior to flying out Monday morning. (Any hotel suggestions for this purpose?)
After combing through the Utah threads, I've booked 4 nights at the Desert Pearl ( it sounds perfect for our needs). I wanted to spend one night at Bryce Lodge, but they are booked solid. These are the areas I haven't narrowed down....
We'd really like to see Bryce NP- how feasible is it to drive there from Zion, spend the day, and then drive back?
We're contemplating stopping at the Hoover Dam on the way back to Vegas on Sunday- is this an all day event?
Any other highlights that anyone thinks we need to squeeze in? We intend on making a similar trip in the near future with our 2 sons- we love to hike.
Can Capitol Reef fit into our plans anywhere, or would it be too much driving?
Any advice is most welcome.

baybee510

You can certainly make a day trip to Bryce, it's not very far from Zion. I think it took us about 2 hours to get there. Leaving in the morning you'll have time to enjoy Bryce's scenary.
The Hoover Dam is not an all day event (at least it wasn't for me). Even if you do the tour, at most you'll probably only spend a couple of hours there.

elnap29

Hoover Dam is not on your way back to Vegas; it is the opposite direction. It would be best on a trip from Vegas to Grand Canyon or Sedona.
We LOVE Zion - in fact 4 nights there is great. Since we love to hike also, we prefer to stay inside the park at Zion Lodge, usually 5 nights when we go, because we love the easy access to hiking trails. In fact I'll be there 5 nights April because my Paris trip did not work out. Bryce is wonderful for the view and for great hiking, but I've never been in April, so I can't say what the trails will be like. You can try the reservation # again as they do get cancellations.

POlson

First, we loved Desert Pearl and our trip to Zion. A word of caution, however, if you do the day trip to Bryce be very careful on your drive home. We encountered many deer on the side of the road, starting at dusk. The highway was not well lit and at one point a herd ran into the road; we were lucky oncoming drivers had stopped, because we would not otherwise have seen the deer until we hit them. (We didn't hit any.) Very tense driving.

Dayle

Hi Jorda,

Save Capitol Reef for another trip and enjoy Zion and Bryce. As others have said, you can drive to Bryce in 1 1/2 - 2 hrs. Start early, it will be a long day, but it's well worth it.

Yes, watch out for deer. There are thousands in the area!