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Epic Southern Utah Adventure
About Grand Canyon Guru's Custom Tours
This itinerary was designed by our destination experts to inspire your canyon country adventure. Here at Grand Canyon Guru, we’ve never designed the same trip twice because we handcraft every itinerary to create a once in a lifetime adventure. We love the wild canyons of the American Southwest and want to share that with every client we work with by offering the highest quality lodging, unique tours, exclusive access, the best local guides, and professional support for every tour we design. Most people only get the chance to do a trip like this once in a lifetime, so our trips focus on the best experience possible for the time and money you’re investing, rather than the least expensive. We will take care of all the details so you all you need to do is show up and enjoy your trip.
Tour Overview
- 12-Days w/Lodging, Transportation and Tours
- Las Vegas to Las Vegas
- Zion, Cedar Breaks, Bryce, Grand Staircase, Capitol Reef
- Hiking, Slot Canyon Tour, Mule Ride, UTV Tour, Jeep Tour
- Customized Itinerary and professional support
- From $3,795 per person based on double occupancy
Tour Highlights
- Touch down in Las Vegas, NV to start your journey into Utah, exploring the quiet side of Zion’s Kolob Canyons before settling into your comfortable hotel.
- Head up to the high country of Cedar Break National Monument and view the unique red rock amphitheater of hoodoos on your way to Bryce Canyon for the night.
- Head into Bryce Canyon on a horseback adventure as your guide take you right into the middle of the park’s iconic hoodoos rock formations.
- Explore Kodachrome State Park where you will enjoy both gorgeous views and fun trails in a quieter setting.
- Set out into Grand Staircase-Escalante on an off-road adventure to explore the twists and turns of a secluded slot canyon.
- Cool off at a desert waterfall with a fun hike to Calf Creek Falls.
- Let your guide take the wheel on a full day 4x4 adventure that showcase the entire area, from Grand Staircase all the way to Capitol Reef National Park.
- Enjoy a day of traveling on your own to Zion stopping at any of the countless overlooks, trailheads, mom and pop restaurants, and quirky tourist attractions along the way.
- Explore beautiful Zion Canyon on the park’s free shuttle and hike as much or as little as you like. Feeling hot? Set out on a hike through Zion’s Narrows and wade through the Virgin River into a scenic slot canyon for a refreshing adventure.
- Get away from it all on a guided UTV trip through red rock country to a private access slot canyon that offers both adventure and photo ops.
- Head back to Las Vegas for a night of fun in the City of Lights where you can choose to dine, game, shop, or enjoy a show from one of your favorite artists. Stay at an iconic resort casino, right in the heart of the Strip.
- Catch your return flight from the Las Vegas Airport, only minutes from your hotel.
Tour Itinerary Details
Day 1: Las Vegas to Zion National Park
Las Vegas offers a convenient starting point for your epic Utah adventure where you will soon be on the road and driving north to the quiet side of Zion National Park. You will have time to explore the lesser known Kolob Canyons of Zion which offer great short hikes and incredible views. Your hotel for the night is close by and you’ll enjoy the comfortable accommodations after a long day of travel.
Day 2: Zion to Bryce Canyon via Cedar Breaks
Grab a complimentary breakfast at your hotel before you drive uphill to the highest elevation visitor center at any national park service site. At Cedar Breaks, also known as “Mini Bryce Canyon,” you’ll enjoy the unusual mix of subalpine beauty and a spectacular red rock amphitheater filled with hoodoos rock formations. If you can time it just right in the summer you’ll have an unforgettable opportunity to see an incredible display of subalpine wildflowers too. Your drive to Bryce offers nonstop beautiful views along the way, including a drive right through the heart of iconic Red Rock Canyon. Check into your hotel and enjoy the quirky charms of Bryce Canyon City for the night.
Day 3: Bryce Canyon Horseback Adventure
You can’t go to Bryce Canyon without exploring the colorful hoodoos, and you will have the best seat of the house on a guided horseback adventure. Set off at the top of Bryce Canyon which offers sweeping views of the rock formations both in the park and beyond. You’ll then head down into the base of the canyon where your horse will weave between some of the park’s most famous rock formations before taking you all the way back up to the rim. You then have the rest of the day to explore Bryce whether you want to embark on a scenic drive or do some hiking. Return to your Bryce Canyon City hotel for a relaxing evening.
Day 4: Bryce Canyon to Escalante, via Kodachrome Basin
Today promises to get you more off the beaten path and into some of the most beautiful views in red rock country. You’ll set off from your Bryce Canyon lodging and head over to lesser visited Kodachrome Basin State Park. Named after Kodak’s iconic film due to its undeniably photogenic landscapes, Kodachrome is a great place to explore the area trails on foot. Make sure to stop at the charming visitor center where you can relax in a shady hammock and grab a cold drink, snack, or souvenir. Next, you’ll head into Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument on scenic byway 12, taking you to the boutique lodge that will be your basecamp for two nights.
Day 5: Escalante Slot Canyon
The Grand Staircase is known for its rugged terrain which includes numerous slot canyons, some of which have yet to be fully explored. Today, you will set out on a guided adventure into the Staircase that takes you to a particularly beautiful slot canyon that you can explore in depth on foot. You’ll love every twist and turn of the scenic slot that offers endless photo ops unlike anything else. Enjoy lunch in the backcountry before heading back to your Escalante boutique hotel.
Day 6: Calf Creek Falls
Today offers a change of pace and lets you cool off in the refreshing waters of Calf Creek Falls. You’ll leave Escalante and drive deeper into Grand Staircase with beautiful sweeping views and numerous overlooks along the way. Once at the trailhead, you’ll set off on an enjoyable hike through the desert that ends at Lower Calf Creek Falls. Here you can swim in the pool right under the waterfall and enjoy the surprisingly brisk chill of the water. There are options to continue hiking if you’re up for more adventure or you can opt to just sit in the cool shade of the trees and have lunch. Once you are back in the car, you’ll really enjoy the rest of the scenic drive through the Staircase to your charming bed and breakfast in the cute town of Boulder that will be your basecamp for two days.
Day 7: Grand Staircase 4x4 Adventure
It’s simply impossible to see all the backcountry in Grand Staircase but today’s tour your best option for seeing the most highlights in one day. Your guide will do the driving while you drive across the Waterpocket Fold, a geologic wrinkle in Earth’s crust that includes both Grand Staircase-Escalante and Capitol Reef National Park. Learn about the indigenous history of the area, look at prehistoric fossils, explore one or more slot canyons, and hold on tight for 4x4 adventure up to some unforgettable overlooks. You’ll enjoy every minute of this scenic adventure that ends back at your cozy B&B.
Day 8: Boulder to Zion
You’ll certainly make the most of your return trip across the Staircase since there are state parks, trailheads, and slot canyons you have yet to explore. Anasazi State Park and Escalante Petrified Forest State Park showcase two very different stories of why this area is intriguing, and you will want to make a stop at the Kiva Coffeehouse for a refreshing mid-day pick me up along the way. Grab a quick lunch at any of the cute towns on your journey to the east side of Zion where you will check into your resort that serves as a scenic and comfortable homebase for the next three nights.
Day 9: Zion National Park
There’s nothing like a day spent in Zion National Park and you’ll start your day off entering from the park’s east side. You’ll enjoy epic views, drive through a long rock tunnel, and end at the base of Zion Canyon. The park’s free shuttle buses leave frequently to take park visitors to the most famous stops in the canyon including the Weeping Wall and Emerald Pools. Zion Lodge sits right in the heart of the canyon and is a memorable place to grab lunch with a view. Take the shuttle all the way to the end of the line so you can view, and maybe even hike into, the Zion Narrows. Here, the Virgin River flows through a broad and incredibly beautiful slot canyon and visitors can wade through the waters upstream as far as they like. It’s a great way to cool off before you head back to your car and make your way to your resort for another night of good food and great views.
Day 10: Zion UTV and Slot Canyon Adventure
Wake up at your resort and eat a hearty breakfast befor today’s UTV adventure. An area expert will meet you to take you on a 4x4 UTV adventure into the backcountry of Zion. Along the way, you’ll learn about the indigenous people of Zion and about the geologic history that makes this area unlike any other. Your UTV journey ends at the start of a private access slot canyon that you will explore on foot for as far as you like. You’ll climb impressive boulders, squeeze through the slots, and take stunning photos in the canyon. Return to your resort for one last night among Zion’s beautiful red rocks.
Day 11: Zion to Las Vegas
Today takes you from the backcountry of Zion to the bustling City of Lights for one last night of city-based adventure. You’ll pass through the national park one last time and enjoy more scenic southwestern landscapes before you arrive in the city. There are lot of great options for scenic stops and delicious food along the way. When you arrive in Vegas, you’ll check into your glamorous hotel and casino, located right in the heart of the Strip. From there, the world is your oyster whether you’d like to dine, game, shop, or catch a show in this city known for over-the-top fun.
Day 12: Return Home from Las Vegas
The Las Vegas Airport is only minutes from your hotel so you can decide whether to sleep in or enjoy a decadent breakfast before you catch your return flight home.
Included in your Custom Wild Canyon’s Tour
Self-Drive Tours Include
- Custom designed itinerary and guide
- Professional booking and support
- 11-nights lodging listed on your itinerary
- All tours listed on your itinerary
- Rental car for 12-days
Private Tours Include All Self-Dive Tour Inclusions PLUS
- Airport pick-up and drop-off
- Private transportation in a modern, spacious touring vehicle for 12-days
- Services of a professional tour guide for 12-days
- Private hikes and tours with your guide
- All park entrance fees
Not Included in your Custom Wild Canyon’s Tour
- Gratuity for your tour guides
- Airline Flights
- Additional experiences, services and meals not included in the trip cost will require an additional fee paid directly by the client during the trip.
- TRAVEL INSURANCE IS NOT INCLUDED, BUT HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
