driving to national parks around vegas

hi guys, planning a trip sometime this year to vegas, but mainly to the national parks around there. please let me know if this is a good plan, looking for advices and any suggestions.

i will arrived in vegas from nyc about noon on saturday, will drive to zion national park the same day, stay there for a night.

sunday, visit zion and bryce, stay around bryce canyon national park.

monday, drive to arches national park, might stop by some senic view area, heard lots of good thing about the road to moab from bryce national park.

tuesday, full day in arches.

wednesday, drive to grand canyon south rim in the moring, try to be there before dark, stay in grand canyon at night.

thursday, full day in grand canyon.

friday, leaving g.c. back to vegas, will stop by hoove dam.

saturday, if i am not too tired, i will try to go to death valley, or just to the the red rock canyon

sunday, back to nyc.

so you think this is too much for the week? any suggestions?

thanks, jason.

driving to national parks around vegas

You%26#39;re planning the same kind of trip I generally take - lots of time spent in a car driving. A couple of years ago I hit many of the parks in Utah - fantastic!

Honestly, I think your plans are a bit ambitious. I haven%26#39;t done the drive from Vegas to Zion, but I%26#39;m guessing it%26#39;s about a 3 plus hour drive.

You can really spend a whole day in Zion and Bryce. I had Bryce on my itinerary, but ran out of time and opted for Zion instead. There%26#39;s some great hiking in Zion and I%26#39;m sure the same can be said for Bryce too. The hotel within Zion looked nice and there are many choices in Springdale (I stayed at the Desert Pearl Inn and loved it).

The ride from Bryce Canyon to Moab is very long and desolate. Be sure to NEVER allow your gas tank to fall below 1/2 a tank. Oh yeah, bring lots of CD%26#39;s with you too. It will take you most of the day to get to Moab.

Arches is a great park, but don%26#39;t forget about Canyonlands - that%26#39;s a nice park too and the entrance is a bit north of Arches. You can really spend a day in Arches and one or two days in Canyonlands if you decide to visit both sections. There are many hotel choices in Moab. Eat breakfast at the Jailhouse Cafe - it%26#39;s fantastic! They%26#39;re located right on main street and don%26#39;t forget to try their bacon.

It looks like the drive from Moab to the Grand Canyon will be another long one. I%26#39;m assuming you%26#39;ll be doing this in the warmer weather as during the winter many roads are closed around the north rim and it may be difficult getting to the south rim. That doesn%26#39;t mean you can%26#39;t get to the south rim, it just means it may take longer. I hear the north rim has less crowds than the south rim and no vehicle restrictions. The nicest hotel on the south rim would be the El Tovar, but it%26#39;s also a bit pricey and I%26#39;m not sure what your budget is like. I stayed outside the park in Tusayan at The Grand Hotel - I enjoyed it a lot, but I was there during the off-season. Avoid the restaurant at The Grand Hotel - the food is blah and the service is horrible.

The drive from the Grand Canyon to Vegas is another long one, about five plus hours. It%26#39;s not quite as desolate as the drive from Bryce to Moab, but it has its moments.

I enjoyed Death Valley, but depending on what time of the year you visit it can be VERY hot. I was there in January and it was about 20-30 degrees warmer than Vegas. It%26#39;s about a 3 hour ride to the park and another few hours exploring. You can spend a whole day out there. Again, you want to have a full tank of gas and plenty of water. There%26#39;s a gas station within the park, but plan on getting raped at the pump for sure. I paid a good .30 more than Vegas.

Red Rock Canyon is interesting and there are plenty of hiking opportunites. Again, if you%26#39;re in Vegas during the summer it may be too hot to go hiking - can you tell I hate the heat?. If you do visit during the summer a nice drive is to Mt. Charleston where it%26#39;s a lot cooler.

Whatever you decide on doing, enjoy your trip!!

driving to national parks around vegas

thanks for the info, taking my parents there, so want to go to as many parks as possible, i might just take 2 more days off so have a little more time stay in the park. i know its going be a long long drive, but i really enjoy the view there. thanks again

Dear Jason,

First of all, good for you for actually wanting to spend time in the parks. So many people try making one day trips to the parks, coming back to Vegas for the night. That does not work. You have the right idea.

Your plan is good. If you were looking to hike or explore any of the parks you might want more time. You will mostly drive around the parks, stopping at the scenic spots. It will be a lot of dirving, but you will get a good feel for the parks.

Don%26#39;t consider going to Death Valley at any time other than the winter. It is simply too hot, and potentially dangerous. You will have had your fill of driving by that point. I agree that Red Rock Canyon would be good alternative. It is only a short drive from Vegas.

Staying at one of the lodges inside the park is always preferable. Sometimes reservations can be hard to get. But keep checking back, my experience is there are many cancellations a few days before.

If you cannot get into Zion Lodge, try Zion Park Inn. If you cannot get into Bryce Lodge, try Ruby%26#39;s. At the GC try for the Thunderbird, Kachina, or Maswik lodges. I don%26#39;t know accommodations at Arches.

Have a great trip.

Michael

Great plan, and here%26#39;s my two cents. My opinion of Death Valley differs from Michaels. Summer is the BEST time to visit Death Valley IMO so that you can experience the full blast furnace of 115-120 degree heat at Badwater, the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere. I found it boring the one time I drove thru in the winter.

Obviously you won%26#39;t want to stray more than a few yards away from your car or do any off-road driving or hiking in that kind of heat. That would be dangerous. Just make sure you have plenty of gas in the car and a gallon of drinking water, and you%26#39;ll be fine. And don%26#39;t go if thunderstorms are predicted -- flash floods have killed people in the past few years.

El Tovar is the grand old lodge in Grand Canyon Village, but it%26#39;s tough to get a room there. Usually booked up solid.

We%26#39;re driving to the South Rim on Wednesday as well!

Don%26#39;t forget about Valley of Fire - it%26#39;s a great spot too. About 50 miles from Vegas and worth the drive there.

TOOOO much travelling.

Be sure you have CONFIRMED room reservations with a deposit and control number.

GAS will eat your lunch.

Bumper to bumper traffic in the parks. Slow driving, Air conditioning not cooling properly due too slow driving.

AHHHHH, a nice cold beer at the air conditioned crap table.

Have a safe trip.

Someone mentioned Valley of Fire being 50 miles from Vegas. I thought about heading to Hoover Dam then taking 166-167 around Lake Mead all the way up to Valley of Fire and then I-15 south back to the airport. Does that seem like too much for one day?

Hoover Dam- Valley of Fire in 1 day is not too much. I took a Grey Line day sightseeing bus tour with same itinerary a few years ago. The petroglyphs in Valley of Fire are amazing. Be sure to take time to search them out.

Oznelli: Hoover damn and then up to Valley of Fire state park is not too much in one day. Hoover damn is interesting to see, but I can%26#39;t see spending a whole lot of time there. It%26#39;s a nice day trip from the glitz an glamour of Vegas.