Bryce vs. Zion National Park THROWDOWN ~ Plus Tips for Your Visit

 

With the secret weapon of a 4th grader National Parks pass in our back pocket (more on this below), I decided this summer would be the “Summer of National Parks”! As soon as the kids were done with school, we headed for two parks in Utah that I’ve been dying to see: Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park.

I thought I knew what my favorite would be. But when stacking up Zion vs. Bryce… I was wrong.

We decided to do a combo-trip and visit these two National Parks with our camper and dogs in tow. We had serious doubts about taking our two GIANT GOLD DOGS, as I call them. But it turned out ok. And doggonit, they just love going along with their hoomans.

The Competition: Zion vs. Bryce

Both of these national parks are in Utah, part of the state’s “The Mighty 5” claim to fame. Utah is a gorgeous and diverse state, and is home to five national parks that are in fairly close proximity to each other.

 

 

The National Park Competition: Zion vs. Bryce!

Do you prefer scortching 100 degree heat…. or perfect summer temps in the low 80s?

Do you prefer annyoing theme park level crowds….. or reasonable number of tourists, spread out nicely?

Do you prefer overinflated prices….. or average summer vacation costs?

Ahhh, I’m ruining the surprise so early!

But yeah. Each of those comparisons are pretty much how Zion vs. Bryce went down for us. Don’t me wrong, Zion was gorgeous and offers some stunning views. But it has become one of the most popular US National Parks, and it has the crowds to prove it.  Zion National Park does offer some advantages over over Bryce Canyon National Park. But overall we enjoyed Bryce much more, and wished we had planned to spend a longer time there.

Here are some highlights, so you can plan your trip better than I did.

Zion National Park – Know Before You Go

Our summer of 2021 trip to Zion National Park was planned during a time when there were loosening COVID restrictions, but many were still in place. It’s also very hot, and under extreme drought conditions.

At the risk of being a Debbie Downer… the famous Emerald Pools are not so emerald-ey right now.

My admittedly spoiled Colorado kids were feeling underwhelmed at the end of this trail – lol.

Arrive from the East – Zion-Mount Carmel Highway

If you are debating on an approach route, be sure to drive in to Zion National Park from the East Park Entrance upon arrival. You are allowed to drive your personal vehical along this section of the park on the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway. It will take you to Springdale, and if you’re hauling a camper like we were, you will just need to pay a fee (I think it was $15?) to pass through a narrow tunnel.

This drive is BREATHTAKING. It’s a stunning way to get your first glimpse of the grandeur that is Zion.

Park Shuttle Bus

As for the rest of Zion National Park, in Spring through Fall you cannot drive your personal vehicle into the park along “Zion Canyon Scenic Drive”. You won’t want to miss that section, as it is how you access most of the park’s most popular sites and trailheads.

The park offers a free park shuttle bus for access, and at the time they had a required reservation system to do so. We didn’t score tickets to the shuttle bus. But this is no longer an issue for visitors, as the remainder of the summer (starting June 2021) they discontinued shuttle reservations.

We camped in Springdale, where a free town shuttle will bus you up to the Zion park entrance. Here you enter the park, and can get in line for the park shuttle bus. There was such a large group of people waiting for the town shuttle, that we opted to walk to the park entrance. The park shuttle line was around a 45 minutes wait, but we were just grateful they were no longer requiring a reservation.

As of June 2021, only 5 of the 8 available shuttle stops were open. I think this contributed to crowds, as visitors were then more concentrated at the other areas.

Horseback Trail Ride

In an effort to workaround the shuttle reservation requirement, and somehow sneak us into the park… it lead me to discover something awesome that we highly recommend:  Zion Canyon Horseback Rides!

Tip: My son showed up wearing these gloves, and they immediately offered him a job.

These trail rides are very reasonably priced, at $50 per person for a 1 hour ride along the Virgin River. Plus they are inside the park, starting at the Emerald Pools. Once you book your trail ride online, they email you a parking pass for your car, and code for the gate, so you can drive your vehicle on Zion Canyon Scenic Drive to the Emerald Pool parking lot.

This turned out to be one of our favorite things we did during our entire trip! It was fantastic. The views were splendid, the horses mild mannered and seemed well cared for, and the wrangler staff was friendly and fun. Two thumbs WAY up for this experience.

Consider Reserving an eBike Ahead of Time

This looked incredibly fun! People were riding eBikes all over town, and even into the park as there was no car traffic on Zion Canyon Scenic Drive.

There are multiple outfitters in the town of Springdale who offer rentals, with hundreds of bikes. Yet every single place was completely booked with reservations. There were no bikes available any day of our visit. Also an issue that I was previously unaware of: although tall, our 10 year old was too small for an adult eBike and would not have been allowed to rent one. I think the minimum age is 12.

Tears were shed. I felt bad… he was so excited to try it.

Camping Near Zion in Springdale

We were unable to score an in-park campground reservation for Zion National Park, so ended up at an RV park in the border town of Springdale. I was excited that we’d maybe enjoy this tourist town, with so many shops and restaurants to choose from. I was wrong.

So. Many. People.

And soooo incredibly hot. You pretty much had to walk everywhere, due to lack of parking spaces. And it was 100 degrees each day of our trip. Not ideal for exploring on foot safely or comfortably. We did eat out one evening and it was enjoyable, albeit expensive and a 2 1/2 hour experience if you factor in waiting for a table.

Although I appreciated having a place to park our camper so close to Zion, I did not appreciate spending $100 a night to be crammed in like a sardine.  Plus a tiny, crappy swimming pool. There was about 10 feet of (non-green, graveled) space between us and the RV next to us. “Camping” like this makes me cranky – lol.

If you are debating about staying here, my only positive thing I have to say is the location was perfect. It’s about as close to the park entrance as you can get.

One last tidbit – the Virgin River which borders this campgroud (and winds through Zion National Park) is currently toxic from an algae bloom, which prevents you or your dogs from safely enjoying the water. Yep. Put that in the “con” column for Zion.

Unbearable Heat and Crowds

You’d think hey, it’s nature – surely people spread out in the outdoors areas? You’d be wrong, when it comes to Zion.

Some of the shuttle stops were closed this summer (due to construction, and possible COVID), which probably exacerbated the problem. So people were even more concentrated in the few areas where the shuttle bus stops. But this is what most of the trails looked like, as people trudged up and back to the popular sites.

That’s a hard pass for me.

If we visit Zion again, we will avoid summer. The 100 degree temperatures were just too much to be able to spend much time outdoors enjoying the park.

 

Bryce Canyon National Park – Know Before You Go

Ahhh… now on to BRYCE! I saved the best for last in this post. Yes, Bryce Canyon National Park was our clear favorite over Zion National Park.

If you’re like me, you may have never been to Bryce Canyon National Park but have seen the pictures. And thought, “Oh. Those hoodoos look kindof neat. Doesn’t seem like that big of an area, or much to explore, but yeah… I’d spend a day there.”

So although I wanted us to visit Bryce, I didn’t think we’d need that much time there. I booked 2 nights in Bryce, 3 in Zion. We were soooo sad to leave Bryce after only 2 nights!

The hoodoos are fascinating, beautiful, and easily accessible.

But what I didn’t realize is the entire area is also surrounded by an amazing ponderosa pine forest! My favorite! It was such a gorgeous contrast, and frankly a nice break in the scenery from all our arid, red rock terrain here in the West/Southwest.

Ruby’s Inn Campground

 

Our campground was thus in a pine forest, and blissfully cool even in June. This is my next recommendation, and it’s two thumbs way up for Ruby’s Inn Campground at Bryce Canyon City. Great facilities, a wonderful relaxing pool area, and there’s a bus stop for the (free) Bryce Canyon park shuttle right at the edge of the campground.

We walked everywhere while in Bryce Canyon City. It’s very small, and there are limited food options. Having a camper and our own kitchen came in handy.

ATV Rides and Tourist Shops

Although small, there are still some fun extra activities outside the park to entertain you. We enjoyed the Ruby’s Inn old west  strip mall with a rock shop, delicious and reasonably priced ice cream place, and some kitschy but fun areas for the kids.

We rented an ATV for a 1 hour ride that was scenic and exciting, although crazy dusty. I’m not a huge fan of motorized outdoor sports, but this was still an amusing thing for us to try out as a family.

Low Crowds & Awesome Hiking

There were much lower crowds in Bryce Canyon than in Zion. It was just much more enjoyable! Even though the town of Bryce Canyon City is much smaller and has fewer amenities than Springdale… it was worth it, and we found it more relaxing.

The shuttle stops and vantage points in Bryce National Park are all along the top of the canyon rim.  So even if you have to threaten your lazy, tired, crabby children (I overheard another set of parents we passed on the trail doing exactly that, and it made me chuckle)… make your kids hike down into the hoodoos! It is a totally different experience than just viewing them from above, and was well worth the effort.

 

Star Gazing at Dark Ranger Observatory

And last, but not least… especially if you’re traveling with a teen or fan of astronomy. My daughter’s favorite thing from our entire trip was our late night evening spent at Dark Ranger Telescope Tours.

The area surrounding Bryce Canyon is one of the darkest areas in the US, making for some amazing deep space star gazing! Turns out light pollution is kindof a big deal… who knew? The Dark Ranger Observatory is just a short 15 minute drive from town.

Here the dark rangers will have multiple high powered telescopes set up for you to use, through which you’ll get to see stars, planets, and even other galaxys. It’s mind blowing, in a good way, and a very unusual and memorable thing to experience.

Put this on your must-do list if you head to Bryce Canyon National Park!

Don’t Miss Your National Parks 4th Grade Free Pass!

We were so happy my 4th grade son hooked us up at the National Parks this year!

Please tell your friends and help spread the word about the Every Kid Outdoors program by the National Park Foundation. This is an AMAZING opportunity, and offers 4th graders and their family a free National Parks pass. It’s good for the entire family to enter any national park, and lasts through August of the year they complete 4th grade.

 

My son was so proud every time he handed over his pass to get his family in for free. It was pretty cool.

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