Visiting Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Latest visit: October 2017

Tips for visiting Bryce Canyon National Park:

If you plan on making it to multiple national parks, including Bryce Canyon National Park, within the same year, the Annual pass will be worth it ($80). You can purchase it at the park entrance or online (ahead of time).
You will be driving to the end of the park and back and you can do so within a few hours. You can stop at multiple places for small hikes and viewpoints.
Hikes: walking shoes are acceptable for the hikes we did.
- Sunset point was beautiful at sundown.
- Inspiration point also offers nice views of the Bryce amphitheater.
- Horseback riding is a must. Your journey will start at The Lodge where you will meet your cowboy guides. We did the 2-hour ride but I would have taken a lot more time on those trails- we went down into the canyon and it was another wonderful experience. Don’t expect to be alone or in a small group though and book ahead of time.
- If you have time for only one hike/walk- do the Navajo trail! This may be the highlight of my 8-day trip (visiting the Mighty 5). This easy hike down to the bottom of the canyon is breathtaking because of the orange color of the walls and hoodoos you are surrounded by, not to mention all the switchbacks.
Book your hotels ahead of time! We stayed at the Best Western Grand Hotel and it was okay. Options around Bryce Canyon are VERY limited. Don’t expect glamorous, high-end options. Camping in the park is possible, seemed nice and looked like they rented out tipis. Lastly, you can stay at The Lodge, in the park.
Restaurants: Also quite limited and get very crowded. We went to the Ruby’s Inn Cowboy’s Buffet & Steak Room as it was the place with the shortest wait time and what seemed like the best dining options. Bryce Canyon Pines was another recommendation but the wait time was 1 hour so we turned around!
Pack a lunch so you can stay in the park for the day.
Weather: we were there early October and the weather colder than at Zion. If you’re planning to go out early in the morning to explore I would recommend a warm jacket, a hat and some gloves.

Impressions of Bryce Canyon National Park:

There is no cute town close to Bryce Canyon National Park. Right before the entrance, you will find a few hotels and restaurants but it’s definitely not a cute place to hang out. I think this area could use some nice hotel and restaurant options for the number of visitors they get.

Once again, my friend and I were the youngest around, or so it seemed.

The park was beautiful. We had less time to explore here but I must say the horseback riding experience and the Navajo trail made this park very memorable. I’ve never seen such a mix of sand, pine trees and natural orange colored columns… and to be able to hike and ride down into it made it so magical. I wish we had had at least one more day to drive to Rainbow and Yovimpa point.