During a recent trip to Zion National Park, we had the opportunity to stay at the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort in Orderville, Utah. As the name suggests, the property has a number of accommodation options. In addition, there are several amenities available to those staying at Ponderosa. The following is a quick review of the property to help decide if it is right for you.
Location
The first discriminator for this property is its location. The Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort is a few minutes from the Zion National Park East Entrance. This is very different than many of the other Zion National Park accommodations. The vast majority of these accommodations will be found in Springdale to the south of the park. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage.
If you are the type of person who prefers solitude, this location will be a bonus. Besides the local resort guests, there is very little around. During the high season, Springdale has a tendency to be flooded with a lot of people. Therefore, it will be more peaceful and quiet on this side of the park. The east side of the park is also closer to Orderville (a popular location for adventure activities) as well as Bryce Canyon National Park.
Solitude is also a potential downside depending on what you like to do. Almost all the restaurants, grocery stores, shops, and activities are located in Springdale. The visitor’s center and shuttle bus stops for Zion National Park are also located at the Springdale entrance to the park. All of this means that guests at the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort will need to drive to the other side of the park to enjoy most of the activities and park hikes. This trek across the park often takes 45 minutes to an hour depending on the time of day and traffic conditions. This can be a major disadvantage and detractor from staying at the resort. It also means that activities in the park take much longer when two one-hour car trips are required on each side.
Accommodations
The Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort offers a wide array of accommodation options to visitors.
At the largest end, there are a number of house rentals available in the Zion Ridge development. This development is immediately adjacent to the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort and enjoys the use of all its amenities. It also enjoys a little more space and privacy than many of the other options on the resort. The houses vary widely in the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, and shared spaces available. These can be the perfect space for large groups or families and can make up for the distance from Springdale in the flexibility that they provide.
The resort also caters to more rustic accommodations. These options include camping sites, RV campgrounds, glamping, wagon rentals, cabins, and cabin suites. Each of these varies in size and provides different options to guests. Amenities range from grills and bath houses for the campsites/glamping to picnics tables and porches on the cabins. While I was able to see the majority of these from the outside, I did not stay in them so I can’t offer too much insight into these. However, all of these are on the more rustic side than most hotels reviewed on this site.
Many visitors to this resort are large groups or families. These large gatherings will be happy to know that the rustic offerings are grouped together such that they are conducive to renting multiple sites/cabins/wagons/etc. while keeping the group together. In addition, those who are staying in the wagons, glamping, cowboy cabins, or cabin suites have a hot buffet breakfast included in the rate.
Amenities
The amenities of the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort are where it really begins to shine. They offer so many options that it would be very difficult to experience all of them during a one-week stay. As a note, just about all the activities are outdoors (as would be expected at a national park).
Included Amenities
First are the free/included activities at the resort. All visitors to the resort have access to these activities either through the accommodation rate or a minimal add-on per person. The free activities include a pool, basketball court, tennis court, beach volleyball court, and a small watersports pond. Van transportation to a couple of nearby Zion National Park Trailheads is also free for guests. The pool area consists of two small tiered pools. Unfortunately, the area gets pretty crowded in the high season, and there is a lack of shade. If neither of those dissuade you from going, there are a couple of kid-friendly water slides that make it a good area for the younger demographic. The watersports pond is very similar in that it is small and lacking shade. However, if you want to try your hand a paddle boarding or kayaking in a small area you can do it here.
Extra Charge Amenities
In addition to the free activities, there are a number of additional activities that can be done for a minimal fee. These activities include a bungee trampoline, climbing walls, putt-putt golf, virtual reality simulations, and stargazing.
The bungee trampoline is located outside the main activities barn and can be a fun way for the kids to use some energy. The bungee assist means that you can bounce higher than a normal trampoline while being safer at the same time. Right beside the trampoline is the outdoor climbing wall. There are also some indoor climbing walls. If you plan do some canyoneering or climbing while in Zion, this is a great way to warm up for those activities.
An 18-hole putt-putt golf course is located on the property which can be a fun group activity. As with all of these activities, remember that they are in the heat of the Utah desert without much shade. The final activity to highlight is stargazing. Due to the remote nature of the resort location, star visibility is particularly good in this section of the country. The resort offers a guided stargazing experience.
Guided Activities
Finally, Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort partners with East Zion Adventures, a local outfitter, to provide access to larger activities. These options include canyoneering, guided hikes of Zion National Park, horseback riding, Jeep tours, and SWAT shooting experiences. All of these activities are more expensive, but it is nice to arrange them through the resort. In a large number of cases, this will mean that you are able to leave from the resort rather than from another meeting site.
During my stay, we took part in a canyoneering experience. There are several to choose from depending on the length and level of difficulty desired. We did one in the afternoon with moderate difficulty courses, and it was a great experience for the family. We even had a number of young children on the trip, and the experience was great for them. While these may not be the cheapest adventure options around, they are well worth the price premium as the staff and customer experience was great. They regularly tailor the adventure to the needs/skill set of the group participants.
Restaurant and Dining
At the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort, there are a few dining options available.
Obviously, the vast majority of the accommodation options have the ability to cook meals on site. These range from rustic grills at most of the tents and cabins to full kitchens in house rentals.
For those with only grills, there are several restaurants in the surrounding area. In addition, the resort has its own restaurant, Ponderosa Eats, that is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I did not personally experience the food quality due to cooking most of our meals in the rental house. However, the menu looks appropriate for a simple meal on a western ranch. Options include burgers, hot dogs, club sandwiches, Brazilian-inspired chicken, fish, and pork shoulder dishes, and pizzas. The restaurant also servers a variety of soups, salads, desserts, and beverages (including beer and wine) to round out the meal. This is sufficient for a few nights at the resort, but you would probably want to find other options since the menu isn’t extensive enough to support a week of meals.
The other option at the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort is something they call “Ruth’s Country Dinner”. This is a western-themed dinner and show. The typical menu includes beef tips or barbeque, baked beans, corn, potato salad, cucumber salad, and biscuits. During and after dinner, “The W Duo” performs live bluegrass music. The show turns interactive by the end of the meal with the performers encouraging everyone to dance. If you are looking for a fun evening activity for a group, this may be a great option. Reservations are required for this dinner.
Cost
The cost of staying at the Ponderosa Ranch Resort is highly variable based on the accommodations that you prefer. To provide some examples, the following are the nightly prices for booking about 1 year in advance (June 2023):
| Accommodation Type | Sleeps | Price | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cowboy Cabin | 6 | $156 | Queen Bunks + Pull-Out Sofa Bed |
| Conestoga Wagon | 4 | $167 | King Bed + Twin Bunk Beds |
| Glamping | 5 | $147 | Queen Bed + 3 Twin Beds |
| House Rentals | 8 – 34 | $367 – $1,100 | Varies |
| RV Campground | N/A | $104 | Includes Full Hookup |
| Camping | N/A | $37 | Includes Full Campsite and Access to the Shower House |
Bottom Line
The Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort was a nice accommodation option for exploring Zion National Park. It is more important to put emphasis on the ranch portion of the name than the resort part when thinking about the accommodations, amenities, and activities provided. If you are looking for a western-style or rustic accommodation, Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort can fit the bill. I would recommend it if you will use the amenities because the ranch resort is sort of a destination to itself. However, if you won’t use a lot of the amenities, will be going to Zion National Park almost every day, or prefer something less rustic, I might recommend looking for accommodations in Springdale. The drive through the park each day (40+ minutes each way) really takes a lot of time.
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