Two Week American Southwest Road Trip: Grand Canyon & Utah’s Mighty 5

This is one of the best road trips in the USA. On this American Southwest road trip, you will visit Utah’s Mighty 5, the Grand Canyon, and a handful of wonderful state parks and national monuments.

If you want to learn more, read our article Is the Grand Canyon Skywalk Worth It?

At the Grand Canyon

Get checked into your hotel. If you are lucky enough that it is still daylight, consider watching the sunset from the South Rim.

Where to Stay at the Grand Canyon

On this itinerary, you will sleep at the Grand Canyon or in Tusayan for 3 nights.

There are five hotels located in the Grand Canyon Village (El Tovar, Thunderbird Lodge, Bright Angel Lodge, Kachina Lodge, and Maswick Lodge). Staying here gives you the advantage of easy access to the shuttles, short walks to several of the viewpoints, and no hassles driving into and out the park every day. However, the hotels get mediocre reviews and many people say they are expensive for what you get.

Click here to view the lodges and get updated pricing. These hotels fill up very far in advance. Make your reservations at least 6 months in advance.

You also have the option to stay in Tusayan. From Tusayan, it is a 15-minute drive into the park. There are several hotels to choose from as well as some restaurants.

We stayed at The Grand Hotel in Tusayan. This is our go-to hotel when we visit the Grand Canyon. For a nicer room, it’s worth upgrading to the Deluxe Queen Room.

The Squire Resort and the Holiday Inn Express are two more hotels to try in Tusayan.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 2 & 3

Grand Canyon National Park

On the Road: Minimal

With two full days in the Grand Canyon, you have plenty of time to visit the overlooks, of which there are many, watch the sunrise and the sunset, take a helicopter tour, and hike one or two trails.

Bright Angel Trail

Most visitors to the Grand Canyon never set foot below the rim. If you don’t mind a short but strenuous hike, going below the rim is an experience I highly recommend. The Bright Angel Trail is a popular pick. It’s easy to get to, since it starts right next to the Bright Angel Lodge, but once below the rim, it lacks the sweeping views of the Grand Canyon you can get from another trail, the South Kaibab Trail.

I recommend taking the shuttle out to Yaki Point Road and hiking a portion of the South Kaibab Trail. Round trip, it is a 1.8 mile hike to Ooh Aah Point. If you go a little farther, the views open up even more. Just keep in mind that it is a hefty climb to get back up on the rim.

South Kaibab Trail

If you are super fit and have lots of hiking experience, consider hiking rim to river to rim. On this massive day hike, you will hike down the South Kaibab Trail, cross the Colorado River, and hike back up the Bright Angel Trail. It is an epic experience to have in the Grand Canyon.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 4

Page, Arizona: Antelope Canyon & Horseshoe Bend

On the Road: 130 miles, 2.5 hours

From the South Rim of the Grand Canyon it takes two and a half hours to get to Page, Arizona. The first part of your drive takes you along Desert View Drive, where you have the opportunity to see more views of the Grand Canyon.

Note: Desert View Drive can close after a snowfall. If this happens on your visit, you will have to drive south to Flagstaff and then north to Page, making this drive much longer.

Midday, visit Antelope Canyon. There are two sections to Antelope Canyon: Upper Antelope Canyon and Lower Antelope Canyon. If you get here early, by 10 am, you can visit both slot canyons.

Upper Antelope Canyon

Tim in Lower Antelope Canyon

Lower Antelope Canyon

American Southwest Road Trip Day 5

Monument Valley

On the Road: 120 miles, 2 hours

In the morning, drive to Monument Valley.

Spend the day exploring Monument Valley. On your own, you can drive the 17-mile Valley Drive loop, which takes you past some of the popular sites in Monument Valley.

Other top experiences include Forrest Gump Point, taking a guided tour of Monument Valley, and making the optional detour to the Valley of the Gods. At the end of the day, watch the sunset over the Mittens.

Forrest Gump Point

Some sections of Monument Valley can only be visited on a tour, since this is located on Navajo land. But these tours are worth it. Take your pick from sunrise or sunset photography tours, see petroglyphs and Anasazi sites, or go off-the-beaten-path to Teardrop Arch.

For a full list of things to do and how to plan your time, read our Guide to Monument Valley.

Where to Stay

You will stay in Monument Valley for one night.

Located in the Monument Valley Tribal Park, The View Hotel offers several types of accommodations. The priciest option are the hotel rooms, all which offer a view over Monument Valley. The higher the floor, the more you will pay, but you will also get the best view.

The premium cabins, which is part of the View Hotel, overlook the Mittens and some have better views than others. We stayed in a cabin in the front row and loved it. We had a deck with a great view and we could lie in bed and look out at West Mitten Butte. The cabins are clean and warm (it got down into the low 30’s during our visit in May).

In Monument Valley, there is a campground and RV parking. The campground is located between the cabins and the hotel and the view is out to the Mittens. This is also a popular spot to watch sunrise and sunset.

Located just outside of the Monument Valley Tribal Park, Goulding’s Lodge offers rooms with a view and a campground. They also operate one of the only restaurants in the area.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 6

The Needles, Canyonlands National Park

On the Road: 220 miles, 4 hours

Today you will drive to Moab. Along the way you will drive right past The Needles, one of four districts of Canyonlands National Park.

Your visit here can be quick, with a drive down the main park road and a quick hike on one of the short hiking trails. The Pothole Point Trail is less than one mile long, very easy, and offers panoramic views of Canyonlands National Park.

If you don’t mind going a little further, hike the Slickrock Trail. This hike is 2.4 miles round trip and offers better views than the Pothole Point Trail, not only of The Needles but also the Island in the Sky District.

Slickrock Trail

For one of the best views in The Needles, hike out to Chesler Park. It is 6 miles round trip to a fabulous viewpoint. From here, you will have sweeping views over The Needles, out to the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands, and the La Sal Mountains.

But if you want to add on a very cool slot canyon and a longer walk through the Needles, do the full Chesler Park Loop (11 miles, 5 to 7 hours).

Joint Trail

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE NEEDLES: 12 Amazing Things to Do in The Needles

After visiting the Needles, continue to Moab and get settled into your hotel.

Where to Stay in Moab

Here are some recommended hotels in Moab. You will stay here for three nights.

UPSCALE: Hoodoo Moab. This is one of the newest hotels in Moab and this is where we stayed on our most recent visit. I have mixed reviews about this hotel. The location is great, right in the heart of Moab with a walk or short drive to most restaurants. The hotel is gorgeous. The décor and the layout are impeccable and our room was very comfortable. However, the walls are paper thin. We could clearly hear our neighbor’s conversations and they weren’t being overly loud. If you are a light sleeper, you might want to consider staying in a different hotel. But if a little bit of noise doesn’t bother you, and you want to stay in the nicest hotel in Moab, stay at the Hoodoo.

MID-RANGE: Red Cliffs Lodge. This property gets rave reviews. Every room has a patio with views of the river. Onsite is a restaurant, bar, pool, tennis courts, winery, museum, and horse corral. Red Cliffs Lodge is located outside of Moab, on Highway 128, in a beautiful setting along the Colorado River. It’s just a short drive into town and Arches National Park.

MID-RANGE: Homewood Suites. This is another property that gets excellent reviews. All suites have kitchenettes and some suites can accommodate up to six people. There is a small indoor pool and gym onsite.

MID-RANGE: Hyatt Place Moab. This is a newer hotel in Moab and very highly rated. It is located on the north end of town, so from here, it is a very quick drive to enter Arches National Park.

BUDGET: MainStay Suites Moab. Rooms come equipped with a kitchenette. Some suites can accommodate up to six people so this is a great budget choice for families.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 7

Arches National Park

On the road: 46 miles, 1.5 hours

TIMED ENTRY PERMIT: In order to enter Arches National Park from April 1 through July 6 and August 28 through October 31, you must have a timed entry permit. These tickets are released six months in advance.

Arches National Park is a relatively small, compact national park. One day is all you need to visit the highlights.

Arches Scenic Drive is the main road that runs through the park. It is 19 miles long and it takes roughly 30 minutes to drive the entire length of it.

With one day in Arches National Park, I recommend driving to end of Scenic Drive until it dead-ends at the parking lot for Devils Garden. The Devils Garden Trail is a 7.8 mile loop where you get to see eight arches, including the famous Landscape Arch.

What makes the Devils Garden Trail so great is that you can pick and choose what you want to do. You can simply hike round trip to Landscape Arch (it’s only 1.6 miles round trip). You can hike a little bit farther to see several more arches. And for the ultimate adventure, you can hike the entire loop, which takes most people three to four hours.

For more information about this hike, take a look at our post How to Hike the Devils Garden Trail.

As you drive back along Scenic Drive, there are many more arches to visit, like Sand Dune Arch, Broken Arch, and Skyline Arch. Visit the Garden of Eden and then hike the short loop trails around the Windows, Turret Arch, and Double Arch. Next, visit Balanced Rock and Park Avenue. Your day ends with sunset views of Delicate Arch.

Park Avenue

Delicate Arch

Tonight, sleep in Moab.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 8

Canyonlands National Park

On the road: 100 miles, 2.5 hours

Several districts make up Canyonlands National Park. You already visited The Needles. Today you will visit the Island in the Sky District. This is the most popular part of Canyonlands National Park and this is where you get to see this park’s most iconic sights.

Start at Mesa Arch. This is an extremely popular sunrise photography location, as photographers capture the image of the rising sun through the arch. If you want to do this, plan your visit so you arrive before sunrise in order to get a prime tripod location in front of the arch. If you have no desire to roll out bed in the early hours of the morning, you can still get very nice photos within one hour after sunrise.

From Mesa Arch, drive down Grand View Point Road and enjoy the jaw-dropping views from Grand View Point. From here, you look out over canyons carved out by the Colorado River and the Needles District. There is a short hiking trail here along the rim which is nice to do if you want to stick around longer to enjoy the view.

Drive back up Grand View Point Road and consider hiking to White Rim Overlook, a short but sweet trail to another spectacular viewpoint. Take in the view from Buck Canyon Overlook, Green River Overlook, and then drive to Upheaval Dome.

Upheaval Dome is a large crater that was most likely formed by a meteorite, although there are other theories about its creation. To get the viewpoints you will have to do some hiking. It’s an easy to moderate hike on well-marked trails. There are two overlooks and the second one was our favorite. The entire hike is 1.8 miles round trip and it takes 1 to 1.5 hours to hike the whole thing.

Next, you have the option to hike Whale Rock (a 1-mile hike to the top of a dome for panoramic views of the park) or Aztec Butte (a 2-mile round trip hike where you get to see ancient granaries).

Before leaving Canyonlands, visit the Shafer Canyon Viewpoint and the Visitor Center Viewpoint for awesome views of Shafer Canyon Road as it switchbacks down Shafer Canyon.

Shafer Canyon Overlook

For more information about Canyonlands National Park, read our articles How to Spend on Day in Canyonlands and Best Things to do in the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands National Park.

Optional: Dead Horse Point State Park or Shafer Canyon Road

If you are doing well on time, there are two options to add on to this day.

Dead Horse Point State Park is simply amazing. It has easy but fun hiking trails, low crowds, and a jaw-dropping view that rivals those in the nearby national parks. Plus, its small size makes it easy to explore if you are short on time. You can simply drive to Dead Horse Point and take in the view or hike a mile or two along the West Rim Trail.

If you like scenic drives and white-knuckle roads, this is a good one! On this route, you will drive the legendary Shafer Canyon switchbacks, pass below Dead Horse Point, get a close-up view of the Colorado River, and see a famous movie filming location, Thelma and Louise point.

Shafer Canyon Road and Potash Road are two dirt roads that connect Canyonlands National Park with Moab. You do not need a permit to do this drive…just a high-clearance SUV and a great sense of adventure.

Shafer Canyon Switchbacks

Tonight, sleep in Moab.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 9

Goblin Valley State Park and Little Wild Horse Canyon

On the Road: 190 miles, 4 hours

Today, you will drive to Capitol Reef National Park, visiting Goblin Valley and Little Wild Horse along the way. From Moab, it takes 2 hours to get to Goblin Valley and Little Wild Horse Canyon.

Goblin Valley is another gem of a state park in Utah. It’s small and super easy to explore. You can either hike one of the designated trails or simply wander through the hoodoos. If you are doing this road trip with kids, they will love this. A visit here lasts anywhere from one hour to half of a day, depending on how much fun you are having.

Little Wild Horse Canyon is one of the most thrilling slot canyons in Utah. With tight passageways, curving, scalloped walls, and short sections of easy rock scrambling, this hike is fun for both kids and adults. You can hike the narrowest (and most fun) section of Little Wild Horse as a quick out-and-back hike, or do this as a loop, adding on Bell Canyon.

Goblin Valley and Little Wild Horse Canyon are just 10 minutes apart. You can visit them in either order. We started at Goblin Valley and then hiked Little Wild Horse Canyon.

From Goblin Valley State Park, drive to Capitol Reef National Park. This drive takes just under two hours.

Tonight, sleep in Torrey. You will spend two nights in Torrey.

Where to Stay in Torrey

Capitol Reef Resort. This is the most interesting place on this list. Located in Torrey, very close to the west entrance of Capitol Reef, this property offers a wide variety of beautifully decorated rooms. You can even sleep in a teepee or a Conestoga Wagon. We spent five nights here and had a great experience. The rooms were clean and quiet. The convenient onsite restaurant, The Pioneer Kitchen, serves great food and staff are very friendly.

Cougar Ridge Lodge. This property gets exceptional reviews. Stay in a two-bedroom villa that can accommodate up to seven people, perfect if you are traveling as a family. Each villa has its own patio with stunning views of the surrounding mountains.

The Noor Hotel. This is a nice option if you are looking for a budget accommodation. Located in Torrey, this hotel offers rooms that can accommodate up to four people.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 10

Capitol Reef National Park

On the Road: 40 miles, 1.5 hours

On this American Southwest road trip, you have the option to spend two days in Capitol Reef National Park. Or, you can spend one day in Capitol Reef and the second day in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (details on how to do this is listed under day 11).

On your first (and maybe only day here), I recommend visiting the highlights of Capitol Reef. From historic Fruita, drive Capitol Reef Scenic Drive to Grand Wash. Hike Cassidy Arch and walk through the first section of Grand Wash. Grand Wash is very similar to the Narrows in Zion, only without the river, so your feet stay dry but you still get to hike through a wide slot canyon.

Cassidy Arch

Hickman Bridge

Continue down Capitol Reef Scenic Drive and then drive the very cool Capitol Gorge Road to the end. Walk through Capitol Gorge to the Pioneer Register, where settlers in the late 18th century and early 19th century scrawled their names on the canyon walls.

Drive back to Fruita and consider hiking Cohab Canyon Trail or to Hickman Bridge if you still have the energy. See the petroglyphs and end your day with the view from Sunset Point.

Get the full details on how to do this: One Perfect Day in Capitol Reef National Park

Tonight, sleep in Torrey.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 11

Capitol Reef or Grand Staircase-Escalante National Park

On the Road (Torrey to Bryce Canyon): 105 miles, 2 hours

Today you have a choice to make: spend more time in Capitol Reef or explore part of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument as you drive to Bryce Canyon.

Your day will end near Bryce Canyon National Park, in either Tropic or Bryce.

Here are some ideas of what you can do today.

Capitol Reef National Park: Cathedral Valley

Cathedral Valley is the northernmost section of Capitol Reef National Park. If you want to go on a remote, scenic drive and leave the crowds behind, this is something to consider.

Temples of the Sun and Moon

To drive the full loop, with detours, you will drive a total of 73 miles and this will take all day. If you only want to drive out and back to the Temples of the Sun and Moon, it’s only 34 miles, plus driving time to and from Torrey. You need a high-clearance SUV to do this, although a 4WD vehicle is ideal.

This is the longest option of the day. Once finished driving the loop, it is a 2.5 hour drive to Bryce Canyon (135 miles).

LEARN MORE: Complete Guide to the Cathedral Valley Loop

LEARN MORE:  16 Epic Day Hikes in Capitol Reef National Park

On the Rim Overlook and Navajo Knobs Trail

Capitol Reef National Park: Loop the Fold

This incredibly scenic drive takes you through the remote, southern section of Capitol Reef. On this drive, you will circle around part the Waterpocket Fold, a wrinkle in the Earth’s crust that stretches for almost 100 miles.

Often overlooked by most visitors to Capitol Reef, this road, and the hiking trails that lead away from it, get very few visitors. When we did this (November 2020) we saw just two people on the entire drive.

Along this drive, you will hike two very short and easy slot canyons (Surprise Canyon and Headquarters Canyon) and drive the thrilling Burr Trail switchbacks.

Notom-Bullfrog Road

Entering Headquarters Canyon

Hiking Headquarters Canyon

On this itinerary, you won’t drive the whole loop but you will still get to do the best parts. Drive south on Notom-Bullfrog Road, climb the Burr Trail switchbacks, and drive Burr Trail Road through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument to Boulder. From Boulder, take Highway 12 south to Bryce. It takes about an hour and a half (76 miles) to drive from Boulder to Bryce.

LEARN MORE: How to Loop the Fold in Capitol Reef National Park

American Southwest Road Trip Day 13

Zion National Park

On the Road: Minimal

Zion National Park is one of the best places in Utah to go hiking. Angels Landing, the Narrows, and Observation Point are the top hiking trails, but there are many more to choose from. With one day, you can hike one longer trail in the morning and spend the afternoon exploring Zion Valley or hiking a shorter trail.

Observation Point

The Narrows

Tonight, sleep in Springdale.

American Southwest Road Trip Day 14

Drive to Las Vegas and Fly Home

On the Road: 170 miles, 2.5 hours

In the morning, drive to Las Vegas. In the afternoon, fly home.

How to Modify this American Southwest Road Trip Itinerary

Want more time in Las Vegas? Spend day 1 in Las Vegas. On the morning of day 2, drive out to the Grand Canyon. You will lose some time in the Grand Canyon but for some people it may be worth it. Or, you can add a day or two onto this itinerary and visit Las Vegas at the beginning or end of this American Southwest road trip.

Want more time in one of the national parks? If you don’t mind giving up a day in the Grand Canyon, you could use one of these days and add it Zion, Canyonlands, or one of the other national parks on this road trip.

With Less Time

It is very difficult to do this American Southwest road trip with less than two weeks.

The easiest way to shorten it is to take a day from the Grand Canyon, making this a total of 13 days.

If you need a shorter itinerary, we have a lot of great 7 to 10-day options. These are variations of the above itinerary:

10 Days in the American Southwest: visit Sedona, the Grand Canyon, Antelope Canyon, Monument Valley, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Bryce Canyon, Zion and Las Vegas.

The Ultimate Utah National Parks Road Trip Itinerary. Get suggestions on how to visit Utah’s Mighty 5, whether you have 7 days or 2 weeks. 

Arches, Canyonlands & Capitol Reef National Parks: 10 Day Road Trip Itinerary. Spend 10 days visiting three national parks. This is perfect for those who want to spend more time in the parks and go off-the-beaten-path.

Grand Canyon Road Trip: This post has 5 itinerary ideas that start in Las Vegas and include the Grand Canyon. These also include parts of Utah, Arizona, and even Death Valley in California.

The Ultimate Arizona Road Trip: Visit 3 national parks (Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, and Saguaro) plus Sedona, Monument Valley, and Antelope Canyon.

Zebra Slot Canyon in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. You have the option to hike here on day 11 of this American Southwest road trip.

Best Time for this Road Trip

You can do this itinerary all year.

The best time to do this American Southwest road trip is in the spring (March through May) and the fall (mid-September through November), when temperatures are mild.

During the summer months, temperatures soar in Arizona and Utah, and it is not unusual for temperatures to go above 100°F. If you plan to do this road trip in the summer, be prepared for intense midday heat. Try to do most of your hiking and sightseeing in the morning and evening, taking a break midday.

In the winter, it can be quite cold. In January, the average high lingers in the low 40’s with freezing temperatures at night. Snow is a possibility from November through February in Utah and at the Grand Canyon, but for the most part, the weather is dry and skies are clear. Snow can temporarily close the roads in the parks, in particular the unpaved backcountry roads.

Our favorite time to visit the American Southwest is in October, with great weather and lower crowds than you typically see in the summer months. If you want decent weather and low crowds, November and March are also good times to do this American Southwest road trip.

American Southwest Road Trip: Planning Checklist

Hotel Reservations

For this road trip, you will need to make the following reservations:

Grand Canyon/Tusayan: 3 nights
Page, Arizona: 1 night
Monument Valley: 1 night
Moab: 3 nights
Torrey: 2 nights
Bryce or Tropic: 1 night
Springdale: 2 nights

Rental Car

For this itinerary, a standard vehicle is fine, but you will not be able to do some of the off-the-beaten-path experiences, such as Cathedral Valley, Looping the Fold, or Willis Creek. You will be able to drive Hole-in-the-Rock Road as long as it is dry.

A high clearance SUV is recommended if you want to Loop the Fold and visit Willis Creek. If you like the idea of visiting Cathedral Valley in Capitol Reef, consider renting a 4WD.

National Park Fees

Here are the fees to enter each park. When you pay the entrance fee, it is valid for 7 days.

• Grand Canyon: $35
• Canyonlands: $30
• Arches: $30
• Capitol Reef: $20
• Bryce Canyon: $35
• Zion: $35

Grand Total: $185

Save your money and purchase the America the Beautiful Pass. This annual park pass costs $80 and is valid for one year. Purchase your pass at the first national park that you visit (in this case, at Grand Canyon National Park) or you can get it online.

Click here to learn more.

If you have any questions about this American Southwest road trip, let us know in the comment section below.

More Information for Your Road Trip

For more information, take a look at our Utah Travel Guide and Arizona Travel Guide. To see all of our articles about the USA, take a look at our United States Travel Guide.

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