Visiting Moab, Utah

Latest visit: October 2017

Tips for visiting Moab:

Under Canvas glamping experience in Moab is a must. Not too far from the city but far enough that you don’t feel close to the city, this little campsite had everything you needed to feel like you were in the wilderness without roughing it too much.
There were more hotel options in Moab than at Zion and Bryce. Hotel chain options, like the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Moab and the Best western inn Canyonlands Inn looked nice and recently built.
The town has multiple restaurant options including the Moab brewery, which offers home-brewed beers and a huge variety of food options that come in enormous portions. It also has one liquor store, a few café options including a Starbucks (but I strongly recommend Moab Garage Co), a big supermarket, a McDonalds and even a yoga studio.
Weather: we were ‘unlucky’ with the weather since it was colder than expected for early October. It rained at night and was very windy. I wore all my layers here: long-sleeved shirt + hoodie+ North face down jacket. Plan for any type of weather!
You must visit Arches National Park, Canyonlands and Dead Horse Valley.
Activities in Moab: hike, rent UTVs, go skydiving, or go on a jeep tour and/or mountain biking.

Impressions of Moab:

Glamping Under Canvas:

I would redo the glamping experience anytime. At first, I was a little bit disappointed because I thought the site was going to be more remote. It’s surprisingly close to the highway so at night you can hear the trucks driving by in the distance. The tents are also quite close to each other but luckily our neighbors were all very respectful. Everything else is very well organized. The showers and restrooms were very clean and as glamorous as it can get while camping in the wilderness. Hot coffee, water and fruit were served all day/night long in the reception tent which was very welcomed on both cold mornings! They even offer breakfast delivery options! Every tent has power outlets (& USB outlets!), fans and battery operated camping lights.

The first night the winds were too strong to sit around the communal fire pit and make smores (but we ate a bunch on the second night). I thought our tent was going to tear in half in the middle of the night due to the strong winds and rain. I was fully dressed and had 4 quilts and my hat on and I was comfortably warm which means the tent was cold.

When we woke up the next morning, it was quite cool and there was no sun. It only came out mid-afternoon and was not strong enough to warm up the tent for our second night, which was very cold. The temperature dropped close to the freezing point and I was cold that night under those 4 quilts and the extra layer of clothes. The sun was shining when we woke up and we could feel a hint of warmth from it as we sat outside our tent, wrapped in a duvet sipping on some hot coffee.

If I were to redo it and book ahead of time, I would get the most glamorous tents with the toilets and small stoves in the tent. The tents with the king beds looked extremely cozy and romantic.

As we sat around the fireplace on the second night and I looked up at the stars, I felt instantly happy. I could see millions of stars and the milky way was the clearest, brightest I’ve ever seen it! I spent over an hour taking pictures of it, trying to capture it as best I could. (I should have bought a tripod!!)

About Moab :

You can tell the people in this city are very outdoorsy. Everyone has either a canoe or a mountain bike on the roof of his or her car. The restaurants aren’t fancy (great potential for at least one higher-end option), the staff and customers are very welcoming and the food is abundant. Seems like there might be more nightlife here than in Zion or Bryce, although the bar wasn’t very busy when we ate at Eddie McStiff’s.

The city center is cute and easy to walk around. There are a bunch of shops, restaurants and bars within walking distance of each other.