Bryce Canyon in One Day
Begin your day at the visitor center just past the park entrance. Pick up the latest park guide and Junior Ranger booklets for the kids, and watch the 24-minute overview film. Sign up for a ranger-led hike or talk—these are always tremendously fun and informative for adults as well as families.
Try to beat the crowds by driving early to the park’s south end for your first full look into the canyon at Rainbow Point. From here, a short, rolling hike along the Bristlecone Loop trail takes you through a forest of these gnarled namesake pines and rewards you with spectacular views. You can see east into Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument and west across the Paunsaugunt Plateau, and on clear days, the view extends south as far as the Grand Canyon.
Start working your way back to Bryce Point, allowing two to three hours for the drive and stops at some of the key viewpoints, such as Agua Canyon, Natural Bridge, and Paria View. This timing will enable you to spend the latter half of the day at the Bryce Amphitheater at the heart of the park. Begin your explorations with lunch at the Lodge at Bryce Canyon, or pick up snacks at the park’s General Store.
Enjoy a relaxing hike along the Rim Trail, then drop down into the canyon on one of the park’s signature short hikes. The easiest route is the Queen’s Garden Trail at Sunrise Point. If you’re a little more ambitious, take the steep switchbacks of the Navajo Loop to Wall Street. Remember that almost all Bryce hikes feature a sharp descent into the canyon at the outset, which unfortunately means a rigorous climb to exit. This part of the plateau lies around 8,000 feet, so be prepared for the thin air and risk of sunburn.
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End your day with dinner at the Lodge at Bryce Canyon. Try to time sunset to be at an overlook: Inspiration Point, Sunset Point, and Bryce Point all offer memorable vistas. If you can’t have dinner at the lodge (which is first-come, first-served), Bryce Canyon Pines Restaurant and i.d.k. Barbecue are good, reasonably priced options within a 20-minute drive of the park.
Bryce Canyon in Three Days
Staying inside the park at the Lodge at Bryce Canyon (reserve at least four months in advance if possible) or in a nearby town will help you maximize your time exploring Bryce’s attractions over three days.
On your first morning, try to get to the visitor center when it opens (at 8 am) to get oriented and choose one of the ranger-led talks or hikes available that day. Then head to Bryce Amphitheater to begin a combination hike from Sunrise Point along the connected Queen’s Garden and Navajo Loop trails. You can see Queen Victoria, Thor’s Hammer, and Wall Street, three of the park’s icons. Relax and recover from this moderate hike with a picnic lunch or a meal at the Lodge and Bryce Canyon and then take the 18-mile scenic drive, stopping to see Agua Canyon, Natural Bridge, and Bryce Point. Wherever you are on the plateau, keep your eyes open for deer, prairie dogs, and dozens of bird species. Have dinner, on the patio if it’s not too cool outside, at Valhalla Pizzeria, next to the Lodge at Bryce Canyon. Get to sleep early, in anticipation of rising very early the following day.
On Day 2, get to Sunrise Point at least a half-hour before dawn breaks so that you can watch the event for which this dramatic promontory on the amphitheater rim is named. Then descend into the canyon for a half-day hike. The Peekaboo Loop (three to four hours) takes you to see The Wall of Windows; the Fairyland Loop (four to five hours) takes you to the Tower Bridge and the China Wall; the Agua Canyon Connecting Trail (four to five hours; but check before you go, as this trail was closed for renovations as of this writing) gives you a taste of the famed Under-the-Rim Trail and a view of Natural Bridge from below. End your day with dinner at the Lodge at Bryce Canyon—be prepared for a possible wait, as seating is first-come, first-served. If the wait is too long, head to one of the key overlooks to watch the sunset—Inspiration Point, Sunset Point, or Bryce Point—and either try again for a table at the lodge or have dinner in one of the restaurants outside the park.
On your final day, savor the perspectives from Fairyland Point or Bryce Point, then return to scenic Highway 12. If you’re headed west—toward Zion or Cedar Breaks, for example—spend an hour or two exploring Red Canyon (10 miles west of the junction with Highway 63) in Dixie National Forest; the 1.7-mile round-trip Bird’s Eye Trail is a kid-friendly hike from the informative visitor center. Save room for a slice of homemade pie at Bryce Canyon Pines Restaurant. If you’re headed east—toward Grand Staircase–Escalante or Capitol Reef—hike the underrated Mossy Cave Trail (within Bryce Canyon National Park but accessible only from Highway 12), a short, 0.8-mile round-trip that showcases Bryce’s floral diversity and a small waterfall. Have dinner in Tropic at the upscale Stone Hearth Grille or the casual i.d.k. Barbecue.