7 Day Zion National Park Exploration

The Western United States is known for some absolutely stunning national parks. Utah is home to several of these including Zion National Park and the nearby Bryce Canyon National Park. These two parks embody the landscape of the American Southwest: rugged, rocky, dry, and desert. However, that landscape is very different than what most people normally see in their day-to-day life. This is what draws at least 3.75 million people to the park every year. The following is a great 7 Day Itinerary to see the best of Zion National Park (with a small side trip to Bryce Canyon as well).

Day 0 – Arrival

The vast majority of people will arrive in Zion from Las Vegas. Harry Reid International Airport (also known as McCarron Airport) in Las Vegas is the largest airport in the area. It has the most connections and generally the cheapest flights. There are closer airports to Zion National Park in St. George and Cedar City, Utah. However, these airports are very small and have limited flights each day. They also tend to be fairly expensive.

Assuming you arrive in Las Vegas, the driving distance between Las Vegas and Zion National Park is 2 hours and 30 minutes. Keep in mind that while Las Vegas is in the Pacific Time Zone, Utah and Zion National Park are in the Mountain Time Zone. This means it will be one hour later in Zion than in Las Vegas. Factor this into your planning on what time to leave Las Vegas and what time you will arrive in Utah.

The vast majority of people won’t need to drive through Zion National Park on the first day as the day will be spent checking into accommodations, stocking up on snacks and groceries, getting accustomed to the town, etc. Springdale is a cute town that forms the commercial heart of Zion National Park. I recommend driving or walking around the town to familiarize yourself with everything it offers. If you need to stock up on drinks, snacks, trail food, or other groceries, Sol’s Market is a great option to get these items.

A Note on Days 2 – 6 of this Itinerary
The time in Zion National Park and the surrounding areas is very malleable. As all the sites and activities are generally open every day during the high season, it doesn’t matter too much what day you do each of the activities. What follows is an ideal spread of activities to keep one day from becoming too busy. However, you should feel empowered to move the activities around to fit your schedule or your ability to book some of the guided/ticketed activities.

Day 1 – Zion Introductory Hikes

On the first day in Zion National Park, it’s a great idea to get some introductions to the landscape and the heat. For that reason, hike one or two less strenuous but still very beautiful hikes today. A few of the most recommended hikes include the Emerald Pools Trail, Zion Canyon Overlook Trail, and the Watchman.

The Emerald Pools Trail is an easy 3.0-mile round-trip hike that takes hikers past three different natural clear pools. Many of the pools are surrounded on several sides by cliff faces which create great reflections in the water at certain times of the day. The trailhead for the Emerald Pools Trail is located at Zion Lodge along the Scenic Canyon Drive.

The Zion Canyon Overlook Trail is a very short and popular trail as well. The Canyon Overlook Arch is a popular stopping point while driving through the park. The trailhead for the Zion Canyon Overlook Trail is located just beyond this point but before reaching the tunnel. At approximately 1-mile round-trip, this is a hike for anyone who can do a moderate ascent and descent along steps. The view of the canyon from the top of this trail is great and provides an overview of Zion’s central valley.

Finally, the Watchman trail is the longest of these three (but not by much). The trail is about 3.3 miles round-trip and leaves from the entrance of Zion National Park (The Visitor’s Center). This departure location makes it a really easy trail to start with. While you are at The Visitor’s Center, you can get the lay of the land and figure out how the shuttle system works without having to worry about catching one while trying to make a hike lottery time slot. This trail does contain some elevation change as you climb the Watchman, but it’s not very difficult. As the trail climbs in elevation, views of the park and downtown Springdale are visible to the hiker.

Day 2 – Angel’s Landing

By day 2, visitors can get into the meat of some of the well-known hikes in Zion National Park. One such hike is named “Angel’s Landing”. This is a truly strenuous and difficult hike, so you should be of good physical fitness to participate. The trail is a 5.4-mile out-and-back type of hike. See our full post on what Angel’s Landing is like to hike, how to start the hike, what to expect, gear to bring, how to get a ticket, and more.

As mentioned above, a pass is required to hike Angel’s Landing. These are capacity controlled and chosen by a lottery. Therefore, it’s difficult to guarantee what day visitors are able to hike Angel’s Landing. For this reason, you need to be flexible with the ability to move this activity around in the itinerary if the lottery doesn’t allow you to hike this on day 2.

During the high season, access to the trailhead is only available via the park bus system. Therefore, you will need to budget time to park your car, walk to the bus stop, and ride the bus to the trailhead. All of this will need to be done prior to the start time of your hiking permit which requires a fair amount of work and planning. If you are physically able to do the hike, the views are amazing, and the feeling of accomplishment is exhilarating.

Time Off in Springdale

After hiking Angel’s Landing, you won’t want to do too much physical activity the rest of the day. Given the likely early arrival time and strenuous activity, planning some relaxation should be in order. Most of the time, you also won’t know your start time (before 8 AM, 8 AM – 11 AM, or after 11 AM) until the day prior. This means that you can’t schedule any other excursions or ticketed tours/activities this afternoon for fear of having that and your permit overlap time slots.

A large number of the accommodations in Springdale have outdoor pools, decks for reading and enjoying the views, and spas among other amenities. All of these are excellent options for spending the rest of your day. In addition to the amenities at your hotel or place of accommodations, Springdale also has a lot to offer. There are a number of nice galleries throughout the town showing off photography, jewelry, pottery, and similar items. Everyone is welcome to view the galleries for free, and they all sell artwork and other items to visitors. There are a number of shopping opportunities (gift shops, outfitters, and even rock shops) throughout town too. Finally, if your accommodations don’t have a place to relax, a number of small coffee shops around town will fill that need nicely.

Day 3 – Canyoneering

Welcome to day 3. The week is about halfway over at this point, but fear not because there is a lot still to enjoy around Zion National Park.

Zion National Park is famous for the main canyon running through the center of the park. All the major hikes in the park occur in the canyon (Angel’s Landing and the Narrows) or lead to the canyon. However, the main Zion Canyon containing the Virgin River is not the only canyon in Zion National Park and the surrounding areas. There are hundreds of canyons in the area that make great opportunities to do some adventurous canyoneering.

For those unfamiliar with canyoneering, it is the process of traversing and exploring canyons. This could include sections of climbing, rappelling, scrambling over rocks, hiking, and a number of other activities. Unless you are very experienced and brought your own equipment for this type of activity, you will want to join a guided expedition. There are a number of companies who provide guided canyon expeditions in and around Zion National Park.

During a recent trip, I had a great experience with Zion Adventures. Zion Adventures has a variety of canyoneering offerings to suit each traveler’s skill level and desire for adventure. All trips include only those in the group at booking (no groups are combined into large tours). While this is nice, it does increase the cost for smaller groups. Finally, they are able to tailor trips to all participants. During our most recent trip, participants as young as six and as old as the mid-sixties participated in a half-day version of the Canyon Adventure Day.

Day 4 – Relaxation Day

At this point in the trip, if you have been doing a lot of hiking, you may be looking for a mini-vacation within your vacation. Staying around Springdale and checking out many of the non-hiking activities on offer is a great plan for the day.

Depending on where you are staying in Springdale, you may have access to a pool, spa, or balcony. Any of these are great options for relaxing. In addition to these, travelers should also explore the downtown areas of Springdale. As mentioned previously, Springdale has a lot of art galleries and shops to explore. While visitors may have looked at some of these on the day of hiking Angel’s Landing, there are always more that are slightly different.

In addition to the art galleries and shops, there are a number of great cafés, bakeries, and other restaurants. You can go for a full meal or enjoy a snack or an appetizer while you have a relaxing day.

Finally, if it isn’t too hot, Springdale Town Park is a great place to enjoy the outdoors. The park has a complete playground, tennis courts, a basketball court, a volleyball court, and a pickle-ball court. This is a great stop for families with youngsters who need to burn off energy.

Day 5 – The Narrows

If you have followed the itinerary thus far, you will have done Angel’s Landing on day 3 (or whenever your group secured a permit). Zion National Park claimed fame with Angel’s Landing as one of its top two hikes. The other hike that has given Zion National Park fame is “The Narrows”.

The Narrows is a hike up the main Virgin River Canyon in the park. It starts at the northernmost point of Zion Canyon Scenic Drive. The hike continues north into the park as the canyon gets narrower and narrower (hence the name). For the vast majority of the hike, visitors actually walk in the Virgin River upstream. At this point, the river is not very deep. The vast majority of the hike will be spent in water between half a foot and two feet deep. A few small sections will approach three and four feet deep shortly after a rain.

Whereas Angel’s Landing was very strenuous, The Narrows is much more leisurely and enjoyable. There will be certain difficulties involved in hiking in water upstream. However, this is the more accessible hike between the two. The hike is an out-and-back style hike so the total distance traveled is determined by the hiker. Those who do the entire trail will cover approximately 10 miles. During the high season, access to the trailhead is only available via the park bus system. Therefore, you will need to budget time to park your car, walk to the bus stop, and ride the bus to the trailhead. See our full post on The Narrows is like to hike, how to start the hike, what to expect, gear to bring, how to get a ticket, and more.

Day 6 – Bryce Canyon National Park

Southern Utah has several US National Parks. Zion National Park is one of these. Just under a two-hour drive away from Zion is another renowned park, Bryce Canyon National Park. Bryce Canyon provides visitors with unique canyon trails and the ability to see “hoodoos”. “Hoodoos” is the name given to the pillar-like geological formations that are found throughout Bryce Canyon. These are so unique to this park and appear almost like an alien planet. The concentration of these formations in the park and the varied landscape from that of Zion are what make this a great candidate to visit.

Many will question traveling two hours each way to another national park when you are already at the front door of Zion. I agree that this is worth consideration. At the end of the day, the deciding factor in my mind is how likely are you to visit the area again. If you live close and can come back to do a trip (or even just two or three days) dedicated to Bryce Canyon, then skip it today and do other hikes in Zion. However, if you are unlikely to make it back to southern Utah, you really need to check out the major sights in Bryce Canyon before you leave.

As with the other specialized hikes and trips, see our post with everything you need to know for a successful trip to Bryce Canyon.

Day 7 – Return Home

The week-long stay at Zion National Park has come to an end. Hopefully, you have enjoyed your time with some breathtaking natural beauty.

As mentioned in the arrival section, the vast majority of flying travelers will come through Las Vegas. The return trip to Las Vegas takes a little over two and a half hours assuming no accidents or construction. Give yourself plenty of extra time on this return journey. Due to the remoteness of the drive, there are no alternative routes to use in an attempt to avoid traffic or construction slowdowns. One element in your favor as you return is the time zone change. Unlike the drive to Zion where visitors lose an hour, travelers back to Las Vegas gain an hour (if you leave at noon Utah time, it is only 11:00 AM in Las Vegas).

Also, take into account the rental car return time at the Las Vegas Airport. The Las Vegas Airport Rental Car Facility is located away from the airport and requires a shuttle to get to the airport terminal. During peak travel times, this shuttle can take some time to arrive and drive to the airport. Our most recent travel experience required a little over 30 minutes between dropping off the car and getting to the check-in counter at the airport.