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To be totally honest, I had no idea how amazing Utah was until I moved here. So I can understand if you only have a few days to visit, but I promise you, you will want to come back! In order to plan your Southern Utah road trip, you will first need to decide if you want to see more from the car or if you want to get out and hike. Obviously if you are (mostly) staying in your car, you will make it to more stops and if you are hiking you will experience each area in a completely different way.

This Southern Utah road trip itinerary will focus on driving. I have covered this previously, and you can check out this Southern Utah road trip series: Southern Utah Day 1, Day 2, & Day 3 – however, this post will be more “all in one”. If you plan to do more hiking, check out this post here. With more time, check out this post on visiting all of the Utah Mighty 5 National Parks. If you want to spend more time driving around Utah, check out the best scenic drives in Utah.

Getting there

Depending on where you are coming from, you have a few options as far as getting to Southern Utah. Las Vegas and Salt Lake City ares the closest international airports. With so many direct flight options, this is likely your best bet. However there is an airport in St. George, Utah which would be closer. It currently has flights on Delta through SLC, American through PHX, and United through LAX and DEN.

To learn how to book cheap flights using Google flights, check out this post here. Or if you would rather travel for free, learn more about travel hacking in this post.

Southern Utah Road Trip

I have two suggested routes depending on where you are flying into.

Regardless of where you fly into, your order will be the same. However if you have a little extra time, you could consider a few other additions:

• Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada
• Snow Canyon State Park in Utah
• Cedar Breaks National Monument in Utah
• Grand Staircase Escalante in Utah
• Kanab Utah

Day 1 – Southern Utah Road Trip – Capitol Reef National Park

Capitol Reef is the perfect place to start your Southern Utah Road trip. It’s a beautiful national park but it often gets overshadowed by the neighboring Zion & Bryce.

Much of Capitol Reef can be seen from the car but if you do want to do a short hike, I would recommend Hickman Bridge. It’s a relatively short hike with a great reward at the end. It would likely be best to go ahead and head over toward Bryce Canyon and stay the night there so you can wake up and not have to drive in the morning.

For a full one day itinerary for Capitol Reef, check out this post here.

Day 2 – Southern Utah Road Trip – Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon is a great park to add to your Southern Utah Road trip as it’s a very driveable park. If you get started early in the day, consider doing a horseback ride if going April 1-October 31 (departure times at 8a, 9a, 2p, & 3p). Alternatively you can hike (or really just walk) from Sunset Point to Sunrise Point – 1.1 mile, 82 ft of elevation gain.

Once again, you might consider driving closer to Zion to stay the night. The surrounding area is much more developed so there will likely be more for you to do in the way of restaurants, etc.

Day 3 – Southern Utah Road Trip – Zion National Park

If you stayed last night in Bryce, you will want to drive over to Zion National Park pretty early so you can get started with your day.  Depending on the time of year that you are visiting, you can either see all of Zion from your car or park at the visitor center and take the shuttle down the canyon.

Due to COVID-19, Zion National Park is currently operating with advance shuttle reservations only. The only hike available if you have not booked a shuttle would be the Zion Canyon Overlook hike. To learn more about the shuttle, click here.

If you are looking for an adventure but nothing too crazy, check out the Zion Canyon Overlook Trail. This is 1 mile with 442 ft of elevation gain. There is not much parking near this trail so keep that in mind as you plan. You also do not need to take the shuttle in order to access this trail.

Tips for the West

If you are not originally from the west, welcome to the desert! Because this is potentially new terrain, here are some important tips:

• Drink more water than you normally would. It’s the desert! When hiking, I like to use a hiking pack with a water bladder like this one.
• In addition to water, when you sweat you lose electrolytes, remember to replace these as well.
• Chapstick is your best friend as it is dry.
• Visiting a few national parks? Your best “bang for your buck” might be to buy a national parks pass. It’s good for one year and costs $80. You want to decide this with the very first park you visit to make sure you get the most use out of it.
• Sunscreen is important even in the winter. Utah has DOUBLE the national average of melanoma incidence for a reason. Apply and re-apply.
• No matter what, make sure someone (who isn’t on the hike with you) knows where you are if you are going on a hike. You likely will not hve cell service, so don’t plan on it.
• LEAVE THE TRAIL BETTER THAN YOU FOUND IT – similar to leave no trace, except you can always help make things better. Pick up trash, follow trails (and avoid the “social trails”), and be a good human being.
• Remember that uphill hikers have the right of way
• Dress in layers as the temperature fluctuation is no joke
• Regular sneakers may cut it for many hikes, however consider getting some hiking shoes/boots for better traction.
• Always check in with rangers for latest information on trails, road conditions, etc.
• The “All Trails” app available for both iOS and Android is super helpful for finding hikes. You can also use the routes with your phone on GPS and download trail maps before you leave.

You May Also Enjoy These Posts:

• Best Hikes in Utah
• Easy Hikes near Salt Lake City
• Best Scenic Drives in Utah
• 21 Places to Visit in Utah that aren’t National Parks
• 11 Things to do in Kanab
• Visiting the Utah Mighty 5 National Parks

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