How to Plan the Best Zion to Bryce Canyon Road Trip Itinerary
This Zion to Bryce Canyon road trip itinerary features the best hikes and views at the two most popular Utah national parks.
Pink cliffs, orange hoodoos, river gorges, rock tunnels — some of the best natural wonders and national parks of Southern Utah are all a part of this Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary.
Zion National Park to Bryce Canyon National Park is a bucket-list road trip for lovers of Southwest scenery. The region is packed with jaw dropping feats of nature like canyon walls that soar hundreds of feet overhead and rock stacks that magically balance in strange formations.
I’ve been to the pair of parks twice now and have sent family and friends using this exact Bryce Canyon to Zion National Park itinerary. Below you’ll find a map and day-by-day guide featuring the best trails and overlooks at Bryce Canyon and Zion, plus tips like when to go, where to stay, and what to expect from the Zion to Bryce Canyon road trip.
Keep reading to get started on the Bryce Canyon Zion National Park vacation of a lifetime!
Zion National Park to Bryce Canyon National Park Map
This Zion and Bryce Canyon road trip map pinpoints the best things to do in each park. Click on the image to open a Google Map and save the suggested activities.
Zion and Bryce Canyon National Park Itinerary
This Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary for four days could start from the international airport in either Las Vegas, which is about 4 hours from Bryce Canyon and less than 3 from Zion, or Salt Lake City, which is also 4 hours from Bryce Canyon but closer to 4.5 from the Springdale side of Zion National Park. If you do a one way road trip, you could fly into Salt Lake City, visit Bryce Canyon and Zion, and fly out of Las Vegas.
If you only have a long weekend in Utah, you can squeeze Bryce Canyon into a half day by sticking to the four main viewpoints on the shuttle route and doing a short hike like the Navajo Loop. You’ll need at least one full day in Zion to ride the shuttle into the canyon to the famous hikes.
For longer visit to Southern Utah, check out this 7 to 8 day Utah road trip or this 10 day Utah and Arizona itinerary — both include time for Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks.
Day 1 — Las Vegas to Bryce Canyon National Park
This suggested Zion and Bryce road trip itinerary route starts in Las Vegas, a popular major airport close to the national parks. For more ideas of where to begin this journey, scroll down to the tips section.
The most direct drive from Las Vegas to Bryce Canyon is about 4 hours, and you should plan to arrive by late afternoon if possible to watch the sunset from the rim of Bryce Canyon.
Kolob Canyons
If your flight lands early in the day and you have enough time, make a stop at Kolob Canyons about midway on the drive. The orange canyons are a part of Zion National Park, but this section is almost an hour away from Springdale so most people skip it on their first trip to Zion.
On a short visit, you can drive the 5-mile scenic Kolob Canyon Road and hike the Timber Creek Overlook Trail (1 mile) at the end to an elevated view of valleys and canyons. For a longer visit, more remote day hikes include the Taylor Creek Trail (5 miles) to a box canyon and the Double Arch Alcove, and the La Verkin Creek Trail (14 miles) to the Kolob Arch, one of the largest natural arches in the world at 287 feet.
After this pit stop, keep driving from Zion to Bryce Canyon National Park.
Bryce Canyon National Park Sunset
If you arrive to Bryce Canyon National Park by late afternoon, you should have time to hop around to the four most popular viewpoints — Bryce Point, Inspiration Point, Sunrise Point and Sunset Point. The lookouts are connected via the Rim Trail (about 3 miles each way) but you can also drive or ride the shuttle between them. Any of these make a great spot to watch the sunset, but it’s hard to beat the sweeping views from the rim between the Sunrise and Sunset overlooks.
Day 2 — Bryce Canyon to Zion National Park
On this day of your Zion to Bryce Canyon road trip, you’ll explore the trails of Bryce Canyon before embarking on a scenic drive from Bryce Canyon National Park to Zion National Park. This Bryce Canyon itinerary highlights the best things to do in a day. When you arrive at the park, you can either leave your car at the park and ride just outside the gates and take a free shuttle (mid April to mid October) to the four main viewpoints, or drive yourself. The parking lots at the more popular lookouts can get full at busier times, so it’s best to arrive early to hike if you want to bring your car into the park.
Bryce Canyon Hikes
Start with an early morning hike into the canyon at Bryce. The best moderately difficult Bryce Canyon trails for a shorter visit are Navajo Loop Trail (1.3 miles), the Queen’s Garden Trail (1.8 miles), or the Queen’s Garden and Navajo Loop (2.9 miles).
I recommend doing the loop, as you’ll get to experience a larger section of the canyon and pass by some really cool rock features like the Queen Victoria hoodoo and Thor’s Hammer. You can do either start at Sunrise Point to hike down on the Queen’s Garden Trail for sweeping views or from Sunset Point to go down the steeper Two Bridges or Wall Street sections of the Navajo Loop. I chose to hike clockwise down from Sunrise Point as the National Park Service recommends because descents are safer on the less steep side and you get wider views of the amphitheater in front of you. On the way back up, the steep Wall Street section of the Navajo Loop has switchbacks between narrow canyon walls that tower overhead.
For a longer and more strenuous hike in the main amphitheater, you could do either the Peekaboo Loop (5.5 miles) from Bryce Point to the canyon floor, or the Figure 8 Combo (6.4 miles), which includes all the hikes mentioned above.
Bryce Canyon Southern Scenic Drive
With the rest of your time at Bryce Canyon National Park, head down the Bryce Canyon Scenic Drive, a 15-mile (each way) route to Rainbow Point. There are 9 overlooks along the way that you can stop at, like the Natural Bridge, Agua Canyon and Yovimpa Point.
The scenic drive is not on the main shuttle route, but you can book a free guided tour down this road between mid-April and mid-October. It takes about 3 hours and you have to reserve a spot ahead of time. You can also drive yourself. This road closes when conditions are icy.
Bryce Canyon to Zion National Park
If you’re doing this as a 3 or 4 day trip, I recommend leaving by mid-afternoon to drive to Zion National Park. The route from Bryce Canyon to Zion is about 2 hours, with breathtaking scenery like the Red Canyon and pink sandstone Checkerboard Mesa along the way. As you enter Zion National Park from the east, you’ll drive on the historic Zion-Mount Carmel Highway and through the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel, a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.
Just before the tunnel, the Canyon Overlook Trail (1 mile) heads uphill for an elevated vista of Zion Canyon and Pine Creek Canyon. With any extra time at the end of the day, you can hike paths near the visitor center like the Watchman Trail (3.3 miles) up to a lookout of the lower canyon or the family-friendly Pa’rus Trail (3.5 miles) along the river. Longer hikes in the Zion Canyon are best saved for your full day in the park.
Day 3 — Zion National Park
This one day in Zion National Park guide will help you narrow down the best things to do during the next part of your Zion to Bryce Canyon itinerary. Plan to ride the shuttle into the Zion Canyon today. The Floor of the Valley Road is closed to private vehicles for most of the year so free park shuttles transport guests from the visitor center to various trailheads. Transit usually starts at 6 a.m. during the summer season (late spring to early fall), and you’ll want to catch one of the first few buses to avoid waiting in super long lines later in the morning.
There are two super famous hikes in Zion National Park — Angel’s Landing and the Narrows. If you start early enough, you could do them both in one very exhausting day. But, if you have a second day to spend in the park, I recommend splitting them up so you have more time to enjoy them. You can flesh out the rest of this first day in Zion with some of the easier trails along Floor of the Valley Road or near the visitor center.
Angel’s Landing Hike
Many people visiting Zion National Park have the famous Angel’s Landing hike on their bucket list. You need a permit to hike the final portion of Angel’s Landing, where you climb up a narrow ridge with chain assists for sweeping views over the canyon. The West Rim Trail to Angel’s Landing (5.4 miles) starts from the Grotto shuttle stop (number 6) and you can hike all the way to Scout Lookout without the permit. It takes about 4 hours for the whole hike, which includes 1,488 feet in elevation gain.
Riverside Walk and The Narrows Hike
Where Floor of the Valley Road ends, the canyon starts closing in on the Virgin River. The Riverside Walk (2.2 miles) is a pretty easy paved path along the water to get to the start of the Narrows, the narrowest part of Zion Canyon. On The Narrows hike (up to 9.4 miles), you have to hike and wade in the Virgin River where the towering canyon walls squeeze closer and closer together. You can only go as far as Big Spring and back without a permit, but you can turn around earlier for a shorter hike.
Emerald Pools Trails
The Emerald Pools trails cover varying levels of difficulty to lower and upper waterfalls from shuttle stop 5 at Zion Lodge or 6 at the Grotto. The Lower Emerald Pool Trail (1.2 miles) is an easy walk to a waterfall and pool. The moderately difficult Middle Emerald Pools Trail (2.2 miles) continues on up a sandstone ledge from the same trailhead near the Zion Lodge. For the Upper Emerald Pools Trail, start on the Kayenta Trail at the Grotto for a moderate 3-mile hike up about 200 feet to a pool at the base of a cliff.
Day 4 — Zion to Las Vegas
On your final day of this Zion to Bryce Canyon road trip, you can either head straight to the airport if you’re flying out, do another of the Zion National Park hikes, or stop at the Valley of Fire State Park on the way back to Vegas. The drive from the Zion-Springdale area to the airport in Las Vegas takes a little under 3 hours, while driving to Salt Lake City will be at least 4.5.
Valley of Fire State Park
If you have time on the way between Zion and Las Vegas, Valley of Fire State Park is about an hour outside Sin City and has a striking orange and red rock landscape. Just driving through on the Valley of Fire Highway adds about an hour to the trip, but most of the good stuff is along Mouse’s Tank Road in the park, which you’ll need at least another hour for just for some window sightseeing.
If you have a couple of hours, add on short hike, like the Fire Wave Trail (1.5 miles), White Domes Loop (1 miles) or Rainbow Vista Trail (1 mile). My favorite is the White Domes Loop at the end of Mouse’s Tank Road, where you get to cross through a short slot canyon and see huge sandstone formations in shades of pink, orange and yellow.
Read Next: These are the Best Utah National Parks to Visit
Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park Tips
Our Zion and Bryce Canyon road trip guide has tips for where to stay, what to pack, and when to go to southern Utah.
Where to Stay Near Zion and Bryce Canyon
When embarking on a short Zion to Bryce Canyon road trip, I recommend staying in two different places near each national park to avoid any excess commuting.
For Zion, check out this post that breaks down the closest cities to Zion National Park since there are a variety of options and prices. Springdale is by far the closest, just outside the south entrance station, but it is pricey and the best spots book up early.
Where to Fly Into for Zion and Bryce Canyon
Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas is the closest major airport for a Zion and Bryce road trip, about 3 hours from Zion and a little over 4 to Bryce Canyon. Salt Lake City International Airport is about the same distance from Bryce but close to 5 hours from Zion National Park.
St. George Regional Airport, about an hour from Zion and 2.5 from Bryce, has flights on a few major carriers.
Distance from Bryce Canyon to Zion
The drive between Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park is about 85 miles or 2 hours from visitor center to visitor center. It takes about 1.5 hours to get from Bryce to Zion’s east entrance on the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway.
Bryce Canyon and Zion are a part of this Colorado to Utah road trip
How Many Days to Visit Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park
You could do this Zion to Bryce Canyon road trip in a weekend, though a full three or four days is ideal if you plan to hike. To keep it short, devote about half a day to see the main lookouts at Bryce Canyon and hike a part of the Rim Trail or the Navajo Loop. Allow a full day at Zion to ride the shuttle into the canyon, hike a trail, and drive the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway.
This 4 day road trip in Utah and Arizona includes Bryce Canyon, Zion and the Grand Canyon and this one focuses on just Zion and the Grand Canyon.
What to Pack for Bryce Canyon and Zion
Seasonally appropriate outdoorsy outfits are perfect for both parks on this Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary. Dress comfortably and bring layers as both parks can see temperature swings of 30 degrees in a day. If you plan to hike, boots with ankle support are recommended for some of the trails, but make sure you at least have a pair of hiking sneakers with good traction.
This packing list will help you with national park and camping necessities.
Zion and Bryce National Park Weather
Even though they’re close to each other in Southern Utah, you may notice a difference in the temperature at Bryce and Zion and even within the same parks as you move between higher and lower elevations in the canyons.
At Zion, summer highs average in the 90s to 100 and while lows drop to the 60s to 70. Late summer is also the monsoon season with a chance of flash floods in the canyon. Spring and fall here see high temps change from the 80s to 60s moving away from the summer months with lows often in the 40s and 50s. Average winter temps peak in the 50s and lows drop to the 30s.
At Bryce, summer temperatures are more comfortable, with daytime highs averaging in the 70s and 80s and lows in the 40s and 50s. In spring and fall, you can comfortably hike even in the middle of the day, since highs are typically in the 50s and 60s, but overnight temps can drop below freezing in these seasons. Winters are even chillier with highs in the 30s and lows in the teens and an average of 14 to 18 inches of snow monthly.
