Bryce Canyon National Park Guide
Getting there is just as beautiful as being in the park. Nine miles outside of Bryce Canyon on Scenic Byway 12 is Red Canyon. It should be added to your “must see” list, and simply driving through could be good enough. This is where you get to drive under the very cool arches. Don’t miss out by driving in or out in the dark.
Your Visit
Time of year should be considered while planning your trip. April through October are the best months to visit, with decent weather. July and August are peak summer months with high visitation as well as peak heat. In the winter months, Bryce Canyon gets snow and is susceptible to road closures.
The elevation of the park directly affects the weather and the drastic temperature changes. The elevation in the park varies from 6,620 feet to 9, 105 feet, creating a big jump in what you’re going to feel. Packing layers and being prepared to possibly be cold even though the daily high could be 70-80 degrees.
The park is miraculously easy to get around in. All of the stops are quite close together, at least in comparison to other National Parks. The shuttle can take you directly to all of the viewpoints and trailheads that you could want to visit. No matter how much time you have to spend in the park there is an itinerary that will work for you. If you move quickly and efficiently you can see the major sites in one day. I would definitely suggest at least two days to take your time and enjoy your experience.
Food is difficult to find in the park, I would highly recommend packing in your food for your trip if you’re not planning to go back to the closest town every day. The closest town does have all of your major amenities to stock up.
There are two campgrounds in the park, Sunset Campground and North Campground. Depending on the time of year you visit you need to note that the bathrooms with the showers may be closed (happened to us). These campgrounds are quite nice, but the sites are very small.
To Do
Hike
Outside of seeing all of the viewpoints and natural beauty at Bryce, hiking is the biggest thing to do in the area. All of the hikes are extremely beautiful and fun. Check out my other blog post to see the best hikes.
Horseback Trail Rides
The National Park offers trail rides through Canyon Trail Rides starting at $75 for 2 hours, April through October. There are other private companies that offer the trail rides as well. This would be an amazing way to hit the trail if you are unable to hike, or would just like a change of pace.
Visit the Viewpoints
The viewpoints are 10/10 here, and each one shows a different perspective of the canyon. On our visit we stopped at each one and had no regrets. Our top three favorites were Inspiration Point, Sunrise Point and Natural Bridge.
I would suggest taking the shuttle between Inspiration Point, Sunset Point, Sunrise Point and Fairyland Point. These parking areas can get really congested and difficult to navigate. Sunrise and Sunset Point are very easy to walk between on the Rim Trail.
Bryce Point
This is among the most popular viewpoints to stop at and for good reason. The view of the entire canyon is stunning.
Paria Overlook
This overlook looks over a different point of view of the hoodoos and is up there next to Farview point with good views.
Farview and Piracy Point
Farview is another one of the top stops at Bryce Canyon. It gives views of the trees on the forest floor below, a stark difference from the reds of the canyon.
Natural Bridge Overlook
This is a must stop overlook. A couple steps from your car you can see the Natural Bridge, which is mildly down slope from the parking lot.
Black Birch and Ponderosa Canyon Overlook
These two overlooks are very close together and have similar views. Ponderosa Canyon Overlook has a couple of trailheads that leave from the parking area and may be busier during peak times.
Yovimpa and Rainbow Point
These two viewpoints are at a higher elevation in the park where you can get a good look at the depth of the canyons. They are also located quite close together if you wanted to choose only one of them.
Night Sky Viewing
Bryce Canyon also belongs to the International Dark Sky Parks. Seeing the stars at night over the canyon is an amazing experience and a great night time photography spot. Sunrise and Sunset Point are both magical spots to watch the stars come out. Even if you’re not in the park, get outside at night and take a peek.
Our Experience
We drove to Bryce Canyon from the Grand Canyon, which was a heck of a drive. It was getting late in the day by the time we reached Red Canyon and I wish we had spent more time taking photos of the arches. We headed straight for the campground, and got our site at North Campground. We got settled as fast as we could and headed to the Queen’s Garden and Navajo Loop. We took the shuttle to Sunset Point and started there. It was an absolutely amazing hike.
Instead of taking the shuttle back to the campground we walked the multi-use path, which was a great walk with surprisingly little foot traffic on it. We grabbed the camper van and ventured out to go see Yovimpa Point and the points along the way. The sun was beginning to set so we metered our time at each stop. There was virtually no one else on the road and it was amazing to see all of the stops with no other people around. On our way back to the campground we made a stop at the Prairie Dog Town to see them doing their evening rounds. Right next to the Prairie Dog field we spotted some Pronghorn Antelope just hanging out, which was so cool.
We left Bryce Canyon at 5am the next morning, onto our adventure at Zion National Park. The campgrounds are well placed so you don’t have to drive through the entire park to get in or out of the campgrounds. In hindsight I wish we had one full day at Bryce Canyon but we were still able to see pretty much everything from our 12 hour sprint.
