The Ultimate Utah Family RV Trip
Throughout the year, there are times when many families are feeling a little stir-crazy or have some cabin fever. For people who don’t have a cabin, the next best option is to take an RV road trip to sunny, southern Utah. In this piece, we’ll outline a fantastic trip for people who feel the need to get out and explore.
Pick a Base Camp for your RV
A good first step to take on an RV excursion is finding a home base of sorts to begin your adventures and activities each day. A great option is to stay at Glampers Inn RV Resort located near Sand Hollow State Park. This is a great location because of the amenities offered by this resort and the ability for the entire family to recreate at Sand Hollow with multiple activities.
Now that we’ve covered a home base location for some RV camping in Utah, let’s dig into the adventures and activities we recommend for people to do in the surrounding area.
Hiking in Zion National Park
A fantastic place to start adventuring after the first night spent in the RV is Zion National Park. Zion is a world-renowned park that features a wide variety of hiking trails friendly to all ages and fitness levels. First, we’ll cover a few of the best hikes that are friendly for young children and everyone else in the family.
Zion Canyon Overlook
This out and back 1-mile trail is accessible year-round. The trail isn’t steep and offers some beautiful views of Zion Canyon. There’s a clearly marked trailhead and plenty of parking.
The Watchman Trail
This trail is couple of miles longer than the Zion Canyon Overlook but it’s still very friendly for beginner hikers. It’s often overlooked by tourists because of its proximity to Angels Landing (more on that one later) but it features fantastic views of the entire Springdale area.
Angels Landing
One of the most popular hikes in the park is Angels Landing. For some, this hike is challenging. The beginning of the hike is steep and depending on the time of year, can be hot. However, most hikers agree that the view of the expanse of the park at the end makes it all worth it.
The Narrows
The best time to use this trail is from May to October. It’s just over 15 miles and features a waterfall. It’s recommended that only experienced hikers embark on the task of hiking this trail. The path takes hikers through slot canyons and they spend a lot of time wading through water. Please pay close attention to weather reports in the days leading up to using this trail to avoid getting caught in a flash flood.
Scenic Drives in Bryce Canyon
No Utah road trip is complete without checking out Bryce Canyon National Park. There’s an abundance of things to do including scenic drives, hikes, horseback riding, the famous Bryce Amphitheater, and other family and kid-friendly activities.
Rainbow Point
The Rainbow Point drive takes drivers to a view of most of Bryce Canyon National Park. From this point, people can see the rim of Pink Cliffs along with several of the park’s hoodoo amphitheaters.
Yovimpa Point
At this point, drivers are treated to one of the best places to see the steps of the renowned Escalante Grand Staircase. Along with this view, this spot provides views of all of the various colors that make up the steps. There are grey cliffs, white cliffs, and vermillion cliffs.
Highway 12 Pitstop
This highway runs across the northeast section of the national park. There’s one pull-off where drivers can hop out of their car to stretch their legs and take an easy walk to Mossy Cave. Near this cave there’s a waterfall a short stroll away that’s quite easy to get to. During the summer months, the cave is nice and cool with hanging plants that have water dripping from them, during the winter months, the cave is filled with beautiful icicles.
Canyonlands: Utah’s Hidden Gem
Despite being the largest National Park in Utah, this park often plays second fiddle to Zions, Bryce Canyon, and Arches. However, this place is a fantastic area for those looking to get the most out of a Utah National Parks road trip. This area isn’t nearly as trafficked as some of the other parks so, for families looking to avoid crowds, this is a great spot to spend a day or two adventuring.
Recommended Hikes in the Canyonlands
Canyonlands features many hikes. It’s entirely possible to spend an entire week exploring all of these amazing locations. However, for travelers with limited time and other destinations on their itinerary for their RV trip in southern Utah, here are a few spots to check out in Canyonlands:
Helicopter Tour of the Canyonlands
All of these attractions feature relatively short hikes and fantastic views. For travelers who started their trip with some hikes and are looking for something else to do, there are helicopter tours of Canyonlands available. It’s not cheap, but a bird’s eye view of the expanse of this vast National Park is something not many people would forget.
Plan Your Utah Road Trip and Have Fun
These activities are just a few of the adventures Utah provides. We didn’t cover every National Park and didn’t even touch on the State Parks. The important thing for an RV camping trip with activities during each day of the stay is planning ahead. Make sure you have a place to camp in your RV to be well-rested for the upcoming days, the necessary equipment for your activities, have the proper permits to explore parks, and do some research to know how much time those adventures will take.