Utah itinerary ideas
Feb 15th, 2007, 03:50 PM
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Utah itinerary ideas
Last summer my wife, 10 year-old grandson and I took our first trip west to Yellowstone and Grand Teton. It was a great success due mostly to the good people on the Fodor's site who provided us with a plethora of ideas on thnings to see, lodging and meals. We're hoping for the same type of help as we plan this year's excursion. We've scheduled our trip from June 16 through July 3. The must-do's include the Grand Canyon, Bryce and Zion. We're in pretty good shape, and the grandson is indefatigable, so we plan to do a bit of hiking in each park. We're from PA, and plan to fly into Las Vegas or Phoenix. How about an itinerary for the time we've planned? We want lodging with someplace where our boy can swim and where nearby we can get a great meal. All suggestions are welcome, and again thanks for the help.
Feb 15th, 2007, 05:15 PM
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We spent 10 days last May, did Vegas,Hoover Dam, then Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, Arches,(these are ALL National Parks), Moab, Monument Valley,Grand Canyon in that order. We HAD to fly in and out of LA, put 2500 miles on our rental car. LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF THE TRIP. The National Parks are gorgeous! Buy a National Parks annual pass 50 bucks. Our favorite was Canyonlands NP.
Feb 16th, 2007, 02:13 AM
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Fly to Las Vegas then by car to Zion n.park(stay in Springdale near the entrance,Best western;great place with pool near high mountains)-then on to Bryce canyon(do the combination hike Navajo trail-Queen's garden trail)-then on to Lake Powell (Page)(the motel6 is fine there with pool)-then on to the G.C.(we stayed in Tusayan,near the park entrance-Red Feather motel-then drive to Kayenta (visit Monument valley)the Holiday inn is fine.-then you could drive on rte 12 to Capitol reef nat.park(In Torrey: Rimrock motel)-then back to LV via rte 72-IS 70 and 15. I would not de more since you like hiking and all those places are a hikers paradise so you'll ned time to de so. Paul
Feb 16th, 2007, 03:47 AM
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Last summer, we planned a 2 week itinerary for my sister and her husband for a Utah trip and they loved it! I would recommend flying into LV since it is so close to Zion and the car rentals are really inexpensive. My sister rented a mid-size car and ended up with a small SUV which worked out great.
Their itinerary went like this:
LV to South Rim for a few days - stayed in the park.
South Rim pass thru Monument Valley - stay a night at San Juan Inn. (They would have stayed at Valley of Gods B&B which we highly recommend if room is available).
Drive thru Valley of Gods, drive up Moki Dugway to Natural Bridges, drive into Canyonlands Needles District, etc. on way to Moab. Spend 3-5 nights in Moab - lots to see and do. Float trips, Arches, Canyonlands, Dead Horse, 4 WD trips. We prefer staying right in town so we can walk to dinner, etc. Stayed at River Canyon Lodge in a junior suite last time - it was inexpensive, in a great location and set up nicely.
From Moab on to Torrey/Capitol Reef for a few nights. My sister stayed at Austin's Chuckwagon and liked it very much. On the way, I suggest you stop at Goblins State Park - very strange and fun place. Lots of other stops along the way - Green River, Sego Canyon.
We love the town of Boulder and always stay at least a night just so we can dine at Hells Backbone Grill. We have also driven the Burr Trail, stoping to hike and play all along the way. We very much enjoy backroads and always rent an SUV. The hike into Calf Creek is lovely and the waterfall at the end is gorgeous and refreshing. Stay at Boulder Mtn Lodge. Nice park/museum in Boulder.
From Boulder on to Bryce. My sister stayed in the park - Bryce was one of her favorite places. We've never stayed in Bryce but plan to do so next trip. This is a spectacular place - stay for a few nights. Great hiking- Queens Garden.
Lastly, on to Zion. Springdale is a great little town, and we've stayed at a few places including the Desert Pearl which is lovely. Lots to see and do in Zion and the shuttle is fantastic. From Springdale, the drive back to LV is only 2.5 to 3 hrs. We truly hate Las Vegas and only use it as an airport so each time, we've left Springdale in the morning to make a late afternoon flight in LV.
There are lots of places along this route that can be added on and we are not big fans of Lake Powell (too depressing) so we've never spent time there. You may want to. Also, many folks like staying at Gouldings at Monument Valley; we prefer Valley of the Gods area which is just north.
You'll get lots of wonderful info and opinions on Fodors from all the great folks who love the area. Good luck with your planning and check out our photos if you're interested:
http://www.pbase.com/peterb/utah04
Their itinerary went like this:
LV to South Rim for a few days - stayed in the park.
South Rim pass thru Monument Valley - stay a night at San Juan Inn. (They would have stayed at Valley of Gods B&B which we highly recommend if room is available).
Drive thru Valley of Gods, drive up Moki Dugway to Natural Bridges, drive into Canyonlands Needles District, etc. on way to Moab. Spend 3-5 nights in Moab - lots to see and do. Float trips, Arches, Canyonlands, Dead Horse, 4 WD trips. We prefer staying right in town so we can walk to dinner, etc. Stayed at River Canyon Lodge in a junior suite last time - it was inexpensive, in a great location and set up nicely.
From Moab on to Torrey/Capitol Reef for a few nights. My sister stayed at Austin's Chuckwagon and liked it very much. On the way, I suggest you stop at Goblins State Park - very strange and fun place. Lots of other stops along the way - Green River, Sego Canyon.
We love the town of Boulder and always stay at least a night just so we can dine at Hells Backbone Grill. We have also driven the Burr Trail, stoping to hike and play all along the way. We very much enjoy backroads and always rent an SUV. The hike into Calf Creek is lovely and the waterfall at the end is gorgeous and refreshing. Stay at Boulder Mtn Lodge. Nice park/museum in Boulder.
From Boulder on to Bryce. My sister stayed in the park - Bryce was one of her favorite places. We've never stayed in Bryce but plan to do so next trip. This is a spectacular place - stay for a few nights. Great hiking- Queens Garden.
Lastly, on to Zion. Springdale is a great little town, and we've stayed at a few places including the Desert Pearl which is lovely. Lots to see and do in Zion and the shuttle is fantastic. From Springdale, the drive back to LV is only 2.5 to 3 hrs. We truly hate Las Vegas and only use it as an airport so each time, we've left Springdale in the morning to make a late afternoon flight in LV.
There are lots of places along this route that can be added on and we are not big fans of Lake Powell (too depressing) so we've never spent time there. You may want to. Also, many folks like staying at Gouldings at Monument Valley; we prefer Valley of the Gods area which is just north.
You'll get lots of wonderful info and opinions on Fodors from all the great folks who love the area. Good luck with your planning and check out our photos if you're interested:
http://www.pbase.com/peterb/utah04
