So I'm planning a family vacation for us and SIL. Total of 8 people (4 adults in their 40s and 4 kids ages 17, 14, 11 and 9). Most of the people are in pretty good shape except for me. We have about one week, maybe 8 days tops and will be flying into Vegas.

High on my list are Zion and Bryce. I initially considered trying to do Arches and Canyonland, but decided it would be too much car time an not enough time to experience it all. We will either be traveling March 29 to April 5ish or April 19th to 27ish.

One or two other places that caught my eye that I'd like to work into the trip are doing some kayaking or other boat type excursion in Glen Canyon NRA (it seemed there were a lot of outfitters located in Page, AZ) and possibly visiting Vermillion Cliffs, the Wave, Buckskin Gulch, or Antelope Canyon.

So here are my questions:

1. Should I be concerned about the weather during that time of year. I'm under the impression if we go in early April there may be snow in some places but I'm not sure how that will impact our experience. We do plan on doing a bit of hiking. Perhaps taking horses/mules into Bryce. Any advice?

2. I've had a non-stop request from my 10 yo son to go to the Grand Canyon while we are there. I've considered driving out to the North Rim, but I'm unsure of how to experience it. (I remember being distinctly let down the one time I was a the Grand Canyon, when I was 10. We went, we saw it, we left. It was crowded. There was no mule ride like on the Brady Bunch. I didn't complain but looking back it's never the experience I want to go for.) From reading about it on Trip Advisor, I'm not that interested in going....but if anyone wants to talk me into it for the sake of making a kid happy...I'm happy to listen.

3. We will rent a car. Does it make sense to move around (2 nights near zion, 2 nights near Bryce and 2 nights near Page, AZ or Kanabe or should we just do Bryce from our Zion lodging and then move on two the Glen Canyon Area.

4. Does anyone have an recommendations about where to stay in the Glen Canyon area. I'm not necessarily looking for recommendations for hotels, but more where to look...Page, AZ?

5. Based on the above does anyone have any suggestions for a more specific Itinerary. I was thinking Zion, Bryce, Glen Canyon Area and then Back to Las Vegas, but I thought someone suggested ending with Zion in a post.

Thanks in advance for any advice or insight.

Amy

1. You might have some concerns about the weather at Bryce. There has always been some snow on the trails when we have been there in late April. I would check to see if they are doing the horse/mule rides when you plan to be there. Unless they are one night would be enough to enjoy the vistas unless you want to hike in snow/mud.

2. The north rim of the Grand Canyon will not be open when you go there but the south rim will. I have never found the south rim crowded in April and you really need to hike down Bright angel or Kaibab trail at least a little to get a real feel for it, although walking along the rim trail gives you some wonderful views too. If you go there take a ranger led tour to get some history/geology/biology etc of the area.

3. It totally makes sense to move around as you would lose too much time each day going to and from the parks.

4. There are plenty of places to stay in Page. You might do Antelope Canyon and/or a smooth water raft trip from Glen Canyon Dam to Lees Ferry also from Page.

5. We have done a loop from Vegas a couple of times and have done it in both directions, depending on where we were able to get lodging and how early the flight got into Vegas. It takes about 5 hours from Vegas to the south rim and 3 hours from Vegas to Zion. We have done the loop: Vegas to Zion to Bryce through Capitol Reef to Page for Antelope Canyon etc. to Grand Canyon with a stop at Hoover dam to Vegas and also done it with other people in the opposite direction. Do check with the Nevada, Utah and Arizona Departments of Transportation for road closures. Route 89 in Arizona was washed out south of Page earlier this year and I don't know if it is/will be open again when you go which adds about an hour to the trip from Page to Grand Canyon.

I would check on lodging first, see where you can stay and think about places that suit your families. The in park lodging is basic, but you are at your destination and the parks really are nicer to visit without crowds early in the day and later in the afternoon. They do not have pools but are clean, some have tv, some do not. There are plenty of places to stay in Springdale for Zion, for Bryce, Ruby's or the place across the street, in Page lots of places, for Grand Canyon either in the park or if to/from Page Cameron Trading post or to/from Vegas Tusayan has several places.

The ride east of Bryce has some gob stopping scenery, but if the kids aren't into beauty, get them some electronics/tapes/etc to use during the drive.

Note that Arizona does not do day light savings time, Nevada and Utah do. Nevada is on Pacific time, Utah on Mountain time. If you are on Reservation land, they will use Mountain time even in Arizona.

Have a wonderful trip.

You mentioned you'll be going to Vegas. If it's to spend some time there then fine. Otherwise I might consider Salt Lake. The reason would be that you could do an arc starting in Arches and end in Zion.

Or, it might cost more with auto drop-off fees but you can start or end in Vegas and Salt Lake for the other.

Arches, Bryce and Zion are all very different so it's not like "seen one, seen them all".

I'm the wrong person to ask about the Grand Canyon since it's far from one of my favorite places.

With 8 days you can easily visit Arches, Bryce and Zion and some places in between such as Goblin Valley State Park, Lower Calf Creek Falls and either Willis Creek slot canyon or some other slot.

There's only 20 permits issued daily for hiking to the Wave - ten a few months ahead of time and ten the day before - so it's really unlikely that the eight of you would be allowed to hike there.

The weather will probably be nice. Although one disadvantage of traveling at that time of year, as mentioned above, is that you won't be able to drive to the North Rim.

We went to the southern Utah national parks last February and really enjoyed visiting that time of year (fortunately, the weather cooperated) but there were a few limitations - e.g. we decided against hiking into Bryce. I'd much rather go then instead of during the summer when it's both hot and crowded.

Also look into Valley of Fire State Park. It's really nice and also close to Las Vegas.

We were in Utah mid-April two years ago. Springdale/Zion was sunny and warm. We were set to go to Bryce for several days, but the weather was less than pleasant--windy and cold--so we opted to just stay in Zion instead. We took that extra time and drove to another area of the park (Kolob) for more camping. Of course, YMMV, but the later you can go the better. The snow on Zion had alredy melted at all but the highest of elevations. We ran into some thick mud on the West Rim Trail and a small amount of snow. The Virgin River was quite high and dramatic. We stayed at the Best Western and found it to comfortable and convenient. I can't speak to the Glen Canyon or the Grand Canyon.

I would definitely recommend taking a day or so to see the Grand Canyon. It is the perfect time of year to go - it won't be over crowded and you can hike down a short distance to really experience it. Well worth the effort - especially if your son is requesting it. The South Rim has incredible views from almost anywhere. If you call soon, you should be able to get rooms/cabins on the rim.

I have not spend time at Lake Powell/Page so I can't help with that, but I'd suggest getting in-park rooms at Bryce. At Zion, you might want to stay in Springdale which is a great little town just outside the park. There are dozens of lodging and dining options.

I'd suggest spending your first night or two in Grand Canyon South Rim, head north to Bryce for 1-2 nights, and then to Zion for at least 2 nights. You can plug in a night at Lake Powell from the Grand Canyon, if you decide.

I think early April is a mistake for Bryce/Zion. I think Arches, Canyonlands, Goblin Valley, Little Wildhorse Canyon/San Rafael Swell, Capitol Reef would be a much better option for that time of year.

Bryce is going to be cold(is the lodge open then?), Grand Canyon North Rim road will be open, but none of the facilities will be.

Two of the very best hikes in Zion(well 2 of the best hikes in all of the national park system) well be iffy. The Narrows will be to cold and running to high/fast most likely. You could encounter snow on Angels Landing. I wouldn't do that trail in ice/snow conditions. If your younger kids aren't well behaved, then I wouldn't take them anyway. That said, I think it's a safe enough trail if the kids don't horseplay and have good sense. One slip here and your gone. But it an amazing spot.

If you do opt for Moab, consider Canyoneering with Desert Highlights. For Moab, I would fly into Salt Lake, Grand Junction, or even driectly into Moab. The plane ride is an event in itself into Moab. Very small plane, everyone has a window seat. The airport(if you can even call it that) is the smallest commercial airport I've been to ever. 1 gate with only a couple flights a day. They perhaps serve 20-50 commercial customers a day I would guess.

Before you take off hiking something like The Wave or Buckskin Gulch, just make sure you know what you are getting yourself into. As said above, extremely hard to get permits(i've tried a few times and failed). 3 or 4 people died last year hiking the wave(heat and getting lost). That would easily make it the most deadly hike in America statistically speaking. About 6000 people per year hike it, so just 1 death would make it the most deadly. Somewhere like Angels Landing might have 6000 people a week hike it. Buckskin and The Wave are really in the middle of nowhere. That said, either would be a fantastic adventure. I just wasn't sure how much experience you have.

Sorry, one more post.

As far as the Grand Canyon goes, I like the other places better. However, everyone should see the Grand Canyon once. It is a huge wow/shock and awe moment. If you aren't doing some fairly serious hiking or rafting it, then it doesn't take that long to see it. I have rafted a portion of it and did enjoy that very much. I hope to hike rim to rim at some point, and I've never been to the North Rim. The views at Bryce and Zion are just as good, but totally different than that of the GC. If you go to Dead Horse Point near Moab, it is an awesome overlook of the Colorado River/Canyonlands National Park and is just about the same view you get at the GC.

Wow. Thank you all for the advice. It's given me a lot to think about. (Sorry for taking so long to get back here...life interrupted my vacation planning...how rude).

I'm reconsidering going in early April because of the limitations. I was planning on doing it because it aligned with my niece and nephew's spring break but maybe we'll have to look at another time.

As for the Wave and Buckskin gulch: I'm just in the early phases of research. I did realize that there was at least one death from hiking the wave last summer, but I assumed we'd be ok b/c of time a year. (I did check out "flash flood" danger for that time of year but found it was a summer phenomena. I'll do more reading about both places but I may hire guides or do it as an excursion...

I just purchased some second hand Utah guide books online, so I guess I'll go back to the drawing board.

I am considering starting the trip by driving to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon now.

Myer: I like the idea of heading to Moab...but I really feel like it will be way to much driving considering we only have one week and we will already be driving alot. Since I'm changing the timing, if I can squeeze some more days into it, I would try it.

Thanks to all. Amy

The Wave is extremely hard to get permits, but you could certainly try. Flash Floods occur any month when it rains just a little bit(yes, it occurs far more in summer, but still).

Do you know much about Buckskin? Most people backpack it. I guess you could dayhike and then turn back around.
Here is a link--it tells a bit abhttp://www.thehikeguy.com/2010/05/30/7-tips-for-hiking-buckskin-gulch/out what you will encounter

Lots to consider and lots of good advice already.
I have always thought April was the best time of year for Southern Utah. Of course that is when we all have cabin fever and spring breaks and so leave the cold north for warmer climes in the south. All my early memories of Bryce, Zion and Grand Canyon were in April and it is still my favorite time of year to travel down there because the trees are leafing out and it is beautiful. I never consider April snow to be a problem, at least for more than a day, but of course with all the wierd weather happening anything goes. So you do have to prepare at least somewhat for the possibility.

The road to the Grand Canyon North Rim does not open until May 15. So definitely plan for the South Rim. If you spend two nights IN the park with the full day and both days on both sides you will find that it will grow on you. Part of the problem with the Grand Canyon is that it is huge. And you just really cannot absorb it in a short visit. My very first visit also was a long drive in, a look see and a long drive back out back when I was a preteen. It didn't impress me either. But I have kept going back and every time I do more there I love it more. It is a truly amazing place.

So after the Grand Canyon head to Page. If you stay in Page you can visit the Antelope Canyons, do the raft trip and hike to Horseshoe Bend Overlook. You could also take a tour to see Rainbow Bridge or even rent a boat for a day and do it yourself. It will be a little cold for water play unfortunately since that is probably what would interest your kids the most.

You could go a couple directions at this point. Either come back around and do the southern drive past the Vermillion Cliffs and Lee's Ferry and Navajo Bridges to Jacob Lake to Kanab. Or you could do the northern route by Big Water and Paria toadstools. Either way you could take the House Rock Valley road if you wanted. It is dirt though so April is a very wet month to try to drive it. I definitely would double check everywhere you can to find out road conditions. Definitely try for the Wave permits. It is a hike of a lifetime. I've been lucky enough to be out there twice and it would be awesome if you could go. If you don't get the permits though take the trail instead to Wirepass Slot. Same trailhead, just go straight. This is the short cut into Buckskin slot and would be a great hike as well. You can go a little ways into Buckskin too if you want, maybe as far as the Paria confluence. Definitely read up about it, be prepared and double check the weather for rain!!

Then head to Bryce for a day and then Zion for two or three. Throw Willis Slot in there, the Narrows if they are open,

So answers to your questions:
1- You may run into snow in the higher elevations (read some of the trails in Bryce) but I wouldn't expect that to interfere with your plans.
2- Couldn't go to North Rim that time of year, make plans for the South Rim. It takes a full day to enjoy the Hermits Rest area, another day for the main village and possibly a hike down to some of the day hike stops on either Bright Angel or South Kaibab. Then at least half a day for the east rim with a stop at Tusayan ruins and Desert Tower.
3-Definitely move around. Base locations are not the best for this kind of trip.
4-Page is almost your only option. There are some places in Big Water and Marble Canyon, but Page would work best.
5- Day 1 drive to Grand Canyon- Main Village
day 2 Grand Canyon- Hermits Rest and maybe a hike
day 3 Grand Canyon to Page- East Rim, then Cameron Trading post, Horseshoe Bend overlook
day 4- Page- Glen Canyon dam, Antelope canyons, raft trip?
day 5 Page to Bryce, see bryce, hike
day 6- Horseback ride?? then on to Zion Canyon overlook
day 7- Zion Narrows, other main canyon trails
Day 8- More Zion then back to Las Vega

I thought the road to GC North Rim would be open, just no Visitor Center, bathrooms, Lodge, etc would be open. I could be wrong.

http://www.nps.gov/grca/parknews/fac...or-day-use.htm

In the fall the lodge and restaurants close on Oct 15 but the road stays open until the snow forces closure. However in the Spring the road does not open until May 15 regardless of snow accumulations.

Amy I had so much success following the advice of several of these posters on our Utah trip. You can find it here http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...-gcnr-zion.cfm
I would NOT have gone to the NRGC except for the advice given here. It was one of my favorite places on a trip full of GREAT experiences. That being said we were there in the summer (arrived July 28) and there was snow on the ground. It had been a record snowfall that year that kept The Narrows closed until mid June. It would be a shame to miss this hike! My sister did it this weekend in full wetsuit and still struggled with hypothermia. She sais it was totally worth it but it took her hours to warm up. I imagine April will be at least this cool. Enjoy!