Picking up where we left off, after a fun morning of exploring a slot canyon and dinosaur tracks site then enjoying a delicious lunch in Kanab, we made our first drive into the iconic park.

Day 7, part 2

1:45 pm: Armed with our trusty audio tour, we drove into Zion National Park via the East Entrance. You cannot convince me there is a more scenic way to enter the park for the first time. Breathtaking doesn’t even begin to describe it. With our other plans, we knew we probably wouldn’t be back to the eastern side of the park and I really wanted to do the 1 mile Canyon Overview Trail. Deep in my parenting soul I knew this was a bad idea. We’d had an active morning and arrived at the trailhead approximately 75 minutes into what should have been nap time. But we found an elusive parking spot and I convinced myself and Brandon that it was meant to be.

Spoiler alert: It was not meant to be. I would like to personally apologize to anyone on the trail that afternoon for the meltdown that occurred when we were juuuuust close enough to the end to decide it was worth it to push through rather than turn around immediately. The (slightly) less cranky adults took turns sitting in the shade with Harrison while the alternate parent completed the hike to the scenic overlook. It was truly stunning, but the hike back, which could not be avoided, was somewhere between miserable and soul crushing. I would say lesson learned, but we all know me and know I have not, in fact, learned this lesson.

3:00 pm: Thankfully, it was a short and beautiful car ride to the Springhill Suites in Springdale. After a much needed rest, we enjoyed some pool time before dinner.

6:00 pm: We walked across the street to the very delicious Bit & Spur, which we chose partly because of proximity (loooove a nice walk to dinner) and partly because they actually served cocktails (see above). I got this green chili pork stew with a cheesy biscuit top that was utterly delightful. And there was queso. Perfect recovery meal. No notes.

7:30 pm: No surprise, we had an early bedtime. Do we know how to have a good time, or what?

Summary: We made the poorly advised decision to do the Canyon Overlook Trail despite a culmination of factors that should have steered us in a very different direction (the view almost made it worth it, though). We spent the rest of the day recovering with naps, pool time, an extra yummy dinner with drinks, and a much needed early bedtime.

Day 8

6:00 am: This would be our only full day in the park, so we were determined to make the most of it. Zion is notoriously crowded, especially in the summer, so getting ahead of the crowds is especially important. Most of the year, you are not allowed to drive the main scenic road in the park and must use the shuttle system. We arrived early to snag a parking spot and enjoy the last of the sunrise along the easy Pa’rus Trail. We walked along this accessible riverside trail until we felt like turning around and returning to the Visitor’s Center to catch the park shuttle.

7:30 am: It was still early, but we were ready for more. We rode the shuttle allllll the way to the end, where we hiked the 2 mile Riverside Trail, which is the beginning of the iconic, but much more challenging, The Narrows. We weren’t quite up for a nine mile hike that involved wading upriver with Harrison, but we did the first crossing just for fun.

10:30 am: We caught the shuttle to the Zion Lodge. We enjoyed a shady break and began our final hike before the day became too unbearably hot. We hiked the 1.5 mile Lower Emerald Pool trail and then returned to the lodge for lunch.

1 pm: We returned to our hotel with an exhausted Harrison and all enjoyed extended naps. We ended the day with more pool time and a delicious dinner at Oscar’s Cafe. The burritos and burgers were both excellent. I’ve heard their breakfast is great, too.

Summary: With another early start, we managed to complete a trio of easy and moderate hikes at Zion National Park. Having throughly exhausted our son, we rested and swam and ate good food.

Day 9

9 am: You read that right, 9 am. We actually slept in and had a lazy morning. We packed our bags and caught the end of the breakfast buffet and eventually checked out of our hotel.

11:30 am: We left the charming town of Springdale and headed toward another part of the national park that happens to be practically deserted yet just as stunning. This is probably because Kolob Canyons is about 40 miles from the main park. I highly recommend making time to visit here. We did the short scenic drive and the short, but gorgeous Timber Creek Overlook trail. If you’re wondering how to do Zion without the crowds, go here. We enjoyed a post-hike picnic before leaving the park.

2 pm: We had something fun planned for our final night in southern Utah. And by we, I obviously mean me because clearly I’m the planner in the family. Brandon had no clue where we were staying. We would be staying at a glamping resort outside of the town of Virgin, so we made a stop at the nearby Fort Zion. It was a bit kitschy, but fun for Harrison. And there was ice cream.

3 pm: After a quick stop for groceries, we checked into our covered wagon for the evening. That may sound like we were roughing it, but rest assured we were quite comfortable. We spent the evening cooking a meal in our outdoor kitchen, relaxing in the hot tub, and roasting marshmallows by the fire.

Summary: After several days of early mornings, miles of hikes, and just generally packing our days full of fun, it was nice to wrap up an amazing week exploring all five of the national parks in Utah with a slightly more relaxing day. We hiked at Kolob Canyons, stopped by Fort Zion, and spent a slow evening at an amazing glamping resort.

Day 10

10 am: We had a gentle start to the day that included more time in the hot tub before reluctantly checking out of our covered wagon and beginning the drive back to Salt Lake City.

12:30 pm: To break up the drive to the city, I planned a stop about halfway at Mystic Hot Springs. It was probably more Instagramable than it was enjoyable. Perhaps if it had been slightly less hot outside. Or if you are less weird about anything involving water or water features that other people put their bodies in… Anyway. It broke up the drive and got us out of the car for a bit.

4 pm: We spent our final, final night in downtown Salt Lake City. We walked to dinner at the Blue Iguana and then called it an early night because sadly we had to fly home the following morning.

Where we stayed

This post contains a trio of overnight spots. Each one was great for different reasons, but I’ll try to keep it short.

Springhill Suites Springdale Zion National Park: Woo, that’s a mouthful. A Springhill Suites may not be the first thing that comes to mind for a unique stay, but this spot was fantastic. The rooms were large and comfortable, the property made the most of the gorgeous views, the amenities like the pool and included breakfast were wonderful, and the location is hard to beat. If you’re looking for a points hotel, this is a great option, too. There is also easy access to the shuttle to the park and to many delicious restaurants. Of course, there are SO MANY places to stay in and around Springdale, but this is a solid choice.

Zion White Bison: To be completely transparent, this was solidly in the splurge category for us. It was the perfect way to wrap up our national parks trip, but it was not inexpensive. However. It was amazing. There are several accommodation types, including RV sites, but I had to choose the covered wagon. It may sound like roughing it, but the wagon had plumbing and air conditioning, so we were hardly living an authentic Oregon Trail experience. Outside of the wagon, there was a full outdoor kitchen, fire pit, and hot tub. Yes, a hot tub. The property is also beautiful and has only expanded since our night there. If this is in your budget, go here!

Kimpton Hotel Monaco Salt Lake City: This was a perfect use of an IHG free night certificate. It was in a great location and, as always with Kimpton resorts, the design was colorful and fun. I will say it was showing a little wear and tear, but we the rooms were beautifully appointed and clean. It does appear that there has been a substantial renovation since our stay and it looks stunning, so I would not hesitate to recommend it now.

For next time

We barely scratched the surface of all there is to do in Zion. You could probably spend a month here and still have more to explore, but I was happy with what we were able to do in the time we had. With that said, here’s what is at the top of my next time list.

Kodachrome Basin State Park - I should have included this with the Bryce Canyon area sites, but here we are.
Under Canvas - this may never be in our budget, but it would be fun to stay at one of their locations for a night or two.
Angels Landing - if you know anything at all about this hike, I don’t have to explain why we didn’t do it with a young child in tow. I’d love to do it, though.
An off road adventure - there is much of Zion that is not reachable by road. There are several outfitters, including Dreamland, who offer adventure tours. I would especially love a sunset tour.
Floating down the Virgin River

Bonus

This pic was too cute not to share. Harrison was invited to check out the cockpit on our flight home. He was just waking from a nap and a bit out of it, but once he was fully awake, this is all he talked about for the rest of the day. This might have been his favorite part of the entire vacation.

Southern Utah is a spectacular place. There are so many ways to plan a great trip, but I’d venture to say that our itinerary was almost perfect, especially for traveling with a young child. I’m going to (finally) wrap up this series with one more post all about the budget.

Utah's "Magnificent" Five: Zion