This first-timer’s guide to Zion National Park will help you make the most of your time there. This guide will help you stay safe and comfortable and most importantly, have the best time!
Get to know the shuttle
During the high season (typically March-November), the majority of Zion Canyon is only accessible by the park’s shuttle. Parking is either in the neighboring town of Springdale, just inside the park boundaries at the visitor’s center, or along the main road.
Park officials made this decision once the amount of cars outnumbered the amount of parking spaces within the park. Less cars in the park helps preserve the peace and tranquility.
Any guide to Zion will emphasize the park shuttle, which makes several stops throughout Springdale. You must disembark at the park entrance, pay the entrance fee, and hop on the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive.
This route stops at 9 popular spots in Zion, where you can access the best hikes and sights throughout the park. Whether you park in Springdale or just inside the park entrance, make sure you have everything you need from your car when you venture into the park.
The full Zion shuttle ride can be long and crowded, so you don’t want to forget anything. You can read more about the Zion Shuttle here.
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Places to stay
As you would expect with a national park, Zion has campgrounds with some killer scenery. However, they get full, full, full in the summer, so plan far ahead if you would like to camp!
There is also little respite from the heat in the campgrounds, but there is a lodge within the park that offers accommodations, dining, and air conditioning. Even if you’re not staying at the lodge it’s nice to pop in just to get out of the heat for a minute.
Just outside of the park boundaries, Springdale has a bounty of hotels. In high season the prices can skyrocket, making affordability difficult.
Hurricane (pronounced hurra-cunn) Utah is only a half-hour west of the park, and has several new hotels built within the last few years to accommodate the masses traveling to Zion. This is a great option if the prices in Springdale are out of your budget.
If staying in Hurricane, make sure to get your morning cuppa Joe at River Rock Roasting Co, and your steak fix at The Stage Coach Grille.
The Narrows
The Narrows is one of the most popular hikes in Zion. It winds through the narrowest part of Zion Canyon, which the Virgin River sliced over thousands of years.
You hike through water the whole time, and water levels and temperatures vary throughout the year. When I went in late June, the water was only ankle to knee-deep, and the water was a bearable temperature.
In winter and late spring, the water can be chest-high or higher. I saw people hike through the water in just their regular hiking shoes and socks. In order to be more comfortable, I would highly recommend water shoes.
I hiked in regular water shoes and it was just fine, but many people who needed them went to various outfitters in Springdale (such as Zion Adventures) to rent them. I also highly recommend using at least one walking stick or hiking pole, as it helps to steady you amongst the slippery, uneven riverbed.
We arrived at the Zion Visitor’s Center to try to get on the first canyon shuttle of the day, but we were met with a huge crowd of people all with the same idea. It ended up taking us an hour and a half to get on a bus!
If you want to get on the first canyon shuttle of the day, make sure you’re there very, very early.
Prepare for the elements
I want this guide to Zion National Park to be useful year-round! The different seasons bring different challenges in Zion.
The summer brings brutal heat which lasts into the fall, the winter makes trails icy, and spring brings high water levels. It’s very important to be prepared for all of these scenarios.
Any one of them can be deadly if not taken seriously. Summer temperatures can get upwards of 110 F (43 C) and there is little shade in the canyon for respite.
There can also be thunderstorms, which may bring dangerous flash floods. If you’re caught somewhere like the Narrows, it can be a life-threatening situation.
In spring, snow melt makes the Virgin River’s water level very high, and the water very cold.
Winter storms can make hiking trails icy and treacherous.
It is imperative to make sure you’re well-prepared for the weather for each season; sunscreen and tons of water in the summer, dry suits for water hiking in spring, and krampons for hiking on ice in the winter.
Take a hike
No guide to Zion National Park can be complete without mentioning the amazing hiking. Zion is spectacular from the shuttle bus, you definitely need to see it from one of the many hiking trails.
The trails vary in difficulty, from a paved, level walk along the river, to a straight-up hike that climbs up almost 1,500 feet.
Some of these hikes even have sheer drops on either side!
You can walk along the entirety of Zion Canyon on the paved and flat Riverside Walk, trek through the Virgin River between 1,000-foot canyon walls that are sometimes only 30 feet apart, or zigzag up the canyon wall to the very high and very impressive Angel’s Landing viewpoint.
There is something for everyone, so be sure not to miss checking out the nooks and crannies of Zion Canyon.
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