lls

Mom, dad and three sons (14, 12, 10) are headed to Las Vegas in late March. We'd like to take a two-day side trip to either Zion National Park or Death Valley National Park -- we've been to the Grand Canyon recently, so that's not an option we're considering.

We were at Zion about five years ago in the summer and loved it -- we know we'd really enjoy it in the springtime. For the sake of visiting somewhere we've never been, we're also thinking about Death Valley National Park -- seems like such a unique place!

Any thoughts from those who've been to both or either? Thanks in advance!

TheWeasel

Well, I'd vote for Death Valley because you've never been there.

It will be significantly warmer in Death Valley - the average high in March is 80, and 90 in April as opposed to 63 and 73 in Zion. You might still run into some snow in parts of Zion, whereas the main valley floor in Death Valley won't have that, just the mountains. Death Valley is quite large, so 2 days would not be enough to see it all, but you would be able to see new stuff each day.

lls

Thanks! We're leaning toward Death Valley since it would be a new experience. If we make Furnace Creek our base, it seems we could see a lot of the park's highlights in two days. We'd definitely hit Dante's Peak. Any other must-see's? Is Scotty's Castle worth the drive time from Furnace Creek?

Thanks again!

HonestAbe

I think Zion is the more spectacular park, but Death Valley is good if you have an apprecition for the geology and for desert fauna. I, too, would cast my vote to do something new.

mmouse52

I have not been to Death Valley but have been to Zion twice. I would never get tired of the beauty of Zion. My suggestion would be to spend some time in Zion and head a little further to Bryce Canyon another beautiful park well worth the drive.

tigerlilies

Dante's View at sunset is fantastic. I've never been to Scotty's Castle, but my parents love it.

Your kids would probably enjoy hiking on some of the sand dunes. There are some in between Stovepipe Wells and Furnace Creek. There is also a set of sand dunes called Eureka Dunes near Scotty's Castle, but you'll need a high clearance vehicle.

Golden Canyon is a nice, relatively short hike (2 miles out and back) and there is a pamphlet to help your interpret what you're seeing -- It's very close to Furnace Creek.

Also, since you'll be there in March you may get to see wildflowers (depending on the rain this winter) and the pupfish in Salt Creek.