Las Vegas to Sedona by RV: Zion, Bryce & the Grand Canyon
Fun stop on the Queen’s Garden Trail
As a graduation gift before I head off to college this fall, my mom and I took a national parks road trip through Utah and Arizona, starting in Las Vegas and ending in Sedona.
We rented a Winnebago Solis PX from Blacksford and used it to see everything from the Narrows in Zion to the depths of the Grand Canyon.
Viva Las Vegas!
Our road trip started in Las Vegas, where we spent three nights in a hotel before picking up the RV. I can’t strike it big in the casinos since I’m not 21, but there was plenty for me to do, whether it was walking the casino floor without gambling or shopping the stores and boutiques.
My favorite thing in Vegas was the Michael Jackson Cirque du Soleil show we saw on our second night. The music was excellent (duh), but the performers were insane and left my jaw on the floor every number. The NHL Stanley Cup Final was also going on while we were in town, and as a born and raised North Carolina girl, it was so much fun watching the Hurricanes beat the Knights in Game 4.
Renting the Solis PX and Staying in Hotels
After our three nights in Las Vegas, we headed to Blacksford’s office for an easy pickup of our Solis PX. We were greeted at the office, walked through an orientation on how everything worked, and we were on the road soon after.
The Solis was bigger than I pictured, but it had far more storage than I expected. We fit everything from our luggage to our snacks, with room to spare.
The Winnebago Solis PX was the perfect road trip RV
We actually stayed in hotels the whole trip, not the RV. We used the Solis for the driving, and it changed the trip. Having our own vehicle meant we could stop wherever we wanted and stay as long as we wanted, instead of working around a shuttle or a tour schedule. The drive from Zion to Bryce was one of my favorite stretches of the whole trip, and in Zion it was so nice to drive into Springdale at the end of the day for a real dinner.
Our Favorite National Parks App
One thing that made the driving better: we used a national parks app called GuideAlong for all the parks and for Sedona. It’s like having a private tour guide riding along in the RV. It runs on GPS instead of cell signal, so even when we lost service deep in a park it knew exactly where we were and started telling us the history and geology of what we were passing, along with the best places to stop and some good stories.
We spent about $45 on three guides: Bryce and Zion, the Grand Canyon (which covered part of historic Route 66), and Sedona (which included the drive down from Flagstaff).
Why We Loved the Solis
The most-used feature on board the Solis PX was the fridge. Grabbing a cold drink or fresh fruit on a long drive made the trip feel like traveling with a little home attached. We also used the bathroom a few times on the road, which is a good thing to have on a long day between rest stops.
Parking was less of a challenge than we’d worried about. At 21 feet, the Solis drives more like an SUV than a bus, and we never had trouble finding a spot at the parks.
We picked up in Las Vegas and dropped off in Phoenix instead of looping back, which let us hit the Utah parks and the Arizona ones without doubling back or racing a clock to return the van where we started.
Was it worth it? I’d say yes, though I should admit I wasn’t the one doing the driving.
Arriving in Zion National Park
The ride to Zion National Park was easy, only a little over two hours, and we reached Virgin, a small town outside the park, by midafternoon. On the way, we stopped at a scenic overlook near La Verkin, Utah. The view was nice, but it was a bumpy detour, not for the faint of stomach.
La Verkin Overlook into Zion National Park
We spent our first night in Springdale, Utah, where we had a really good dinner at Switchback Grille. Springdale was adorable, and beyond the food, Switchback had an extensive mocktail menu I’m still dreaming about.
Hiking The Narrows
On our second day we woke up early to beat the heat and made it into the park. We’d gone to Zion Adventure Company the day before to rent boots, neoprene socks, and a walking stick for the Narrows. We put our gear on and walked in through the pedestrian entrance.
Once inside Zion, we caught the free shuttle to the Temple of Sinawava and started down the Riverside Walk to the Narrows. The Riverside Walk is only about a mile, and it was honestly one of my favorite parts of the day. We started around 9 a.m. and the weather was perfect, so I even left my jacket behind for the whole hike. If you’re in Zion in summer, start early. The afternoon heat is brutal.
Hiking The Narrows in Zion with my mom
From the Riverside Walk we reached the Narrows and started our trek through the rocky water. The water temperature was nice, and as the day heated up it felt even more refreshing. The water reaches its deepest point pretty early in the hike, and after that it rarely gets above the knee. The Narrows were unlike any hike I’ve ever done, and definitely a must in Zion.
I’d go back to the park just to hike them again, but I’d have been miserable without the rented boots and stick.
You’ll definitely want to rent a hiking stick for The Narrows
We were in the Narrows for about two and a half hours before taking the shuttle to Zion Lodge for a quick lunch. The lodge was cute, with a nice gift shop, and the views from the Red Rock Grill’s patio were Pinterest-worthy.
By the time we finished, the sun was right overhead and the heat was building, so we did just one more hike, the Lower Emerald Pool. The trail was easy, and because of poor planning on my part I did it all in flip flops, though I wouldn’t do it that way again. I’m not sure I’d call the pool "emerald," but it was still a pretty hike, and the waterfall mist felt nice.
The next morning we headed out toward Bryce, stopping in the park to hike the Canyon Overlook Trail, a quick but fun hike through the rocks that ends with a nice view of the canyon below. It made a good final stop before we left Zion.
Bryce Canyon: The Wolf (a Hoodoo) of Wall Street
It’s a little less than two hours from Zion to Bryce, so we arrived around midafternoon. We drove the scenic route up to Rainbow Point, which sits at 9,115 feet, then came back down toward the Bryce Amphitheater, stopping at a couple of viewpoints along the way. My favorite was Natural Bridge and its rocky archway. We had dinner at the historic Bryce Canyon Lodge, which had a charming dining room and a tasty flourless chocolate cake.
The next day brought a storm and a long rain shower, apparently uncommon here but very cool to see. The rain stopped around midafternoon, so we headed out for our hike.
We went down the Navajo Loop and cut over to Queen’s Garden, and oh my lord was this hike beautiful. I’d recommend hiking down Wall Street on the Navajo Loop. It’s a steep set of switchbacks dropping into the canyon, and according to the more experienced hikers we ran into, it’s much easier to go down Wall Street than up the other side of the loop.
On the aptly named trail, the walls of the canyon feel like skyscrapers on either side, and it was so much fun to see the view from down inside the canyon after looking at it from above the day before.
Wall Street formation on the Navajo Loop Trail in Bryce Canyon
Continuing past Wall Street, we hiked toward Queen’s Garden, a collection of hoodoos (tall, thin pillars of rock and mineral that, with some imagination, look like people or animals) around the Queen Victoria hoodoo. It takes a lot of imagination to see the Queen in the rock, but the British couple next to us was very clear about which hoodoo was Victoria.
We climbed back up to Sunrise Point, and the views coming out of the canyon were insane. Every moment of that hike was picture-worthy, one of my favorites of the trip, if not my favorite.
Another highlight of Bryce is the stargazing. The storm gave us a cloudy sky on our second night, but we caught a clear, starry one when we first arrived. Something I didn’t know: you can even see satellites on a clear night, and OMG there are so many.
We were lucky enough to be in Bryce during its annual astronomy festival, though the clouds made it hard to fully take in. You can do it all in Bryce: walk down Wall Street during the day and stare up at the stars and satellites at night.
Antelope Canyon and the Grand Canyon
After two days in Bryce we left Utah and headed toward the Grand Canyon. The British hikers we met in Bryce suggested stopping at Horseshoe Bend in Page, and it was worth it. The overlook is a short walk from the parking lot, so the detour didn’t take long.
Horseshoe Bend near Page, Arizona
Also on the way, we booked a tour of Lower Antelope Canyon, and it was easily one of my favorite moments of the whole trip. To see the canyon, you have to book through one of two companies. We went with Ken’s Tours, and they were great.
The tour itself isn’t long, but Ken’s Tours has a café and gift shop for before or after. Our guide was knowledgeable, and the photos we got inside the canyon are some of my favorites from the trip. I wouldn’t skip Antelope Canyon.
Inside Lower Antelope Canyon
After both detours, we finally made it to the Grand Canyon, right as a storm was rolling in. We went out to the Desert View Watchtower and had to pull on sweats and put our hair up to fight the wind. I never thought I’d be freezing at the Grand Canyon in June, but there we were.
Despite the weather, the canyon is unbelievable. We only spent a day there, but looking out at it I struggled to comprehend the size. It looks like it never ends, and just walking along the rim, I couldn’t get over the scale of it.
End of the Journey in Sedona
Sedona’s Tlaquepaque Arts and Shopping Village
Our trip ended in Sedona, where we took in the red rock scenery and met a lot of kind, friendly people. My favorite part of Sedona was the Tlaquepaque Arts and Shopping Village, the cutest little shopping center, filled with restaurants, boutiques, and art galleries. For a pick-me-up while shopping, grab a coffee at the Secret Garden Cafe which had one of the best iced lattes of the trip.
After three days in Sedona hiking and exploring downtown, we wrapped up the trip in Phoenix, where we returned the Solis. Between Zion, Bryce, the Grand Canyon, Antelope Canyon, and Sedona, it was a lot to fit into one trip, and I’m already working on talking my mom into our next Blacksford vacation.
