Going out West...Trip advice for Vegas, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone
- Thread starter UKMKG
- Start date
Following, as I am thinking of doing a similar trip. Probably want to do Monument Valley, too.
well grand canyon is a big ditch and yellowstone has some big sprinkler systems. would stick to vegas. gambling and whores and such.
If you’re driving, that’s a heck of a haul. Yellowstone is about 11 hr drive from Vegas. Whereas the GC is about 4 hrs from Vegas. So, if you’re just flying to Vegas then renting a car, you’re probably better off staying local.
If you’re doing a massive road trip it would probably be best to do a 10-14+ day SouthWest trip......or a 10-14+ day NorthWest trip. We used to take massive road trips when I was younger and can tell you tons of stuff to do.
If you’re doing a massive road trip it would probably be best to do a 10-14+ day SouthWest trip......or a 10-14+ day NorthWest trip. We used to take massive road trips when I was younger and can tell you tons of stuff to do.
^ I was getting ready to say I hope OP has more than a week.
He will be passing right by Zion and Bryce, either of which you could spend a couple of days.
He will be passing right by Zion and Bryce, either of which you could spend a couple of days.
Bryce is prettier than the GC I think. And it’s closer to other things that are worth a stop.
It's a toss up for me. OP could, maybe should split them up in order to see more. There are easily 10+ days of stuff to see in Northern Arizona and Southern Utah. Canyonlands area.
Northern New Mexico
-Villanueva State Park is a great spot to camp on the Pecos River if you drive out....great first stop
-Sante Fe and Taos are wonderful places to visit
-Bandolier is awesome in the area
-A little further drive from the area is Chaco. Chaco used to be a huge Native American city. It's kept very well preserved and much of it is not soiled by the general public. You can walk around and see pottery that's been sitting there for hundreds of yrs.
Southwestern Colorado
-Durango is a great town. Go to an old-time saloon and grab a beer. Ride the steam train to Silverton/Ouray which are mining towns. Raft the Animas River. Mountain bike or hike through the mountains.
-Go to the Bar D Chuckwagon and get a Old West dinner and show
-Stay and Mesa Verde National park and visit the cliff dwellings
Southern Utah
-Zion
-Bryce Canyon
-Capitol Reef - where the Mormon's used to stash their wives
-Moab/Arches National Park.....and go off roading on the red rocks
-Canyonlands
Arizona
-Canyon De Chelly
-4 Corners - not worth the money to stand on the spot, just drive by and claim you were there.
-The GC is kind of an outlier. Because it takes so long to drive there, you might miss out on some other things.
Get an Eagle Pass......it'll save you a ton of money. There's a lot more than this, but the above would be a very full 2 wks.
-
-Villanueva State Park is a great spot to camp on the Pecos River if you drive out....great first stop
-Sante Fe and Taos are wonderful places to visit
-Bandolier is awesome in the area
-A little further drive from the area is Chaco. Chaco used to be a huge Native American city. It's kept very well preserved and much of it is not soiled by the general public. You can walk around and see pottery that's been sitting there for hundreds of yrs.
Southwestern Colorado
-Durango is a great town. Go to an old-time saloon and grab a beer. Ride the steam train to Silverton/Ouray which are mining towns. Raft the Animas River. Mountain bike or hike through the mountains.
-Go to the Bar D Chuckwagon and get a Old West dinner and show
-Stay and Mesa Verde National park and visit the cliff dwellings
Southern Utah
-Zion
-Bryce Canyon
-Capitol Reef - where the Mormon's used to stash their wives
-Moab/Arches National Park.....and go off roading on the red rocks
-Canyonlands
Arizona
-Canyon De Chelly
-4 Corners - not worth the money to stand on the spot, just drive by and claim you were there.
-The GC is kind of an outlier. Because it takes so long to drive there, you might miss out on some other things.
Get an Eagle Pass......it'll save you a ton of money. There's a lot more than this, but the above would be a very full 2 wks.
-
Glacier is a lot like the GC in that it's so far out of the way that you'll miss other points of interest. That being said, it's INSANE and is a bucket list destination for sure. I can't wait to take my kids now that we're older.
You are right, it’s very hard to get to, but oh so worth it!
If you have a couple,of weeks do the grand circle tour. I did this with my family last summer and it was amazing. Bryce, Zion, canyon lands, arches, capitol reef, monument valley, page Arizona (horse shoe canyon, glen canyon dam, and antelope slot canyon), and grand Canyon. I took a pit stop to visit Mesa verda to see the cliff dwellings. I loved every minute of it. We flew into Vegas and spent the night before heading out.
Last edited:
I moved here (Tucson) about a year ago
If you hit the Grand Canyon make time to drive south from flagstaff and see the town and surrounding area of SEDONA
Day 1
-throw a coin off Hoover Dam, drive to GC, watch the sunset, stay the night.
-I wouldn’t hike to the bottom unless you stay an extra day
Day 2
-drive through Mon Valley on route to either Mesa Verde
-get some fry bread at the lodge and visit the dwellings.
Day 3
-drive to Moab, take an off road tour and/or hike to Delicate Arch
Day 4
-if kids, you might want to break up the drive at Dinosaur Nat Mon.....
-or drive through Flaming Gorge area on route to Yellowstone
-this will be a long leg of the trip. Granite Hot Springs is a fantastic place to camp and rest before heading into Yellow.
Day 5-6
-might want at least 2 days at Yellowstone.
Day 7
-drive through SLC to Bryce/Zion area.
-ugh.....this doesn’t leave you a lot of time at Bryce/Zion unless you make up time elsewhere. You’re gonna half to figure out what’s best for y’all
Day 8
-Vegas baby
Sedona is something to behold. The mystique, the Red Rocks and the weird locals make it cool. Gotta check out the church in the Rock.
The rotaries you have to drive through make it suck.
Depends on your time length. If no more than two weeks, pick LV & GC areas & skip distant Y-stone areas or reverse.
Unless into gambling & whores, no more than two days in LV. Then do GC & as many of following as you can allowing 2 days each: Monument Valley ( 1 day), Canyonlands, Arches, Brice, Zion. Could venture further to Monte Verde & Silverton Narrow Gauge RR or north to Capitol Reef - underrated I think. A stop at Hoover Dam tour worth a few hours.
Unless into gambling & whores, no more than two days in LV. Then do GC & as many of following as you can allowing 2 days each: Monument Valley ( 1 day), Canyonlands, Arches, Brice, Zion. Could venture further to Monte Verde & Silverton Narrow Gauge RR or north to Capitol Reef - underrated I think. A stop at Hoover Dam tour worth a few hours.
Took my 9 year old to Vegas with my GF and we had a blast. We walked the strip one night and saw the sights and the fountains. It was early enough so we didn't see any HUERS.
Rented a car and drove out to the Hoover damn. Get there early or there will be a long line entering through security. There is some hotel/Casino close to it on the left that has a hiking area with great views of the lake. Stop there as well. Walk on the bridge that overlooks Hoover damn for some other great views.
Next day we drove out to Grand Canyon West. Probably 2-2.5 hour drive. There is an old west town there, a glass floor observation bridge, helicopter tours, hiking, and other stuff. Had a blast out there. Very impressive views. You can buy tickets for it in vegas or at gas stations on the way.
Red Rock Canyon is also pretty nice.
Saw a Cirque du Soleil show as well.
Plenty of non-casino/huers things to do in the Vegas area with family.
Rented a car and drove out to the Hoover damn. Get there early or there will be a long line entering through security. There is some hotel/Casino close to it on the left that has a hiking area with great views of the lake. Stop there as well. Walk on the bridge that overlooks Hoover damn for some other great views.
Next day we drove out to Grand Canyon West. Probably 2-2.5 hour drive. There is an old west town there, a glass floor observation bridge, helicopter tours, hiking, and other stuff. Had a blast out there. Very impressive views. You can buy tickets for it in vegas or at gas stations on the way.
Red Rock Canyon is also pretty nice.
Saw a Cirque du Soleil show as well.
Plenty of non-casino/huers things to do in the Vegas area with family.
If you do get up near Yellowstone, make sure to see Jackson Hole / The Tetons about an hour south of there. Incredible. IMO, better than Yellowstone, although Yellowstone is pretty awesome too.
If you have time go to Grand Canyon from the north and spend a day at Mt. Zion National Park.
How many hours is it from say, Zion NP to Sedona? I really want to go back to the area also.
You almost need 2 separate legs, one north and one south, to enjoy these parks.
Really, you're right, you do. That's why earlier in the thread I mentioned either taking 10-14+ days......or trying to forget about venturing out too far (ie Yellowstone). If you want to cover Yellowstone, you're better off flying into SLC or Bozeman/Billings. You can spend 1-2 wks on Yellowstone alone.
