Arches National Park in Utah

Utah is famous for its amazing landscapes full of interesting rock formations. One place to see them is Arches National Park, located in the eastern part of the state near Moab. As you can already guess from the name, it is famous for its rock arches, but the impressive number of them (more than 2,000!) and their size make it a place that is definitely worth visiting when traveling in Utah.

It may surprise you, but it is the most visited national park in the US by us! We’ve been here three times and will probably return again, as there are still a few places left to discover. Do we visit it so often because it is the most beautiful national park in the US? No, there are prettier ones in our opinion, but its location, accessibility, rock formations and trails make us eager to return here every time.

Not only does the park offer fabulous views, but there are also many hiking trails for both beginners and the more advanced, there are even designated trails for wheelchair users.

Our first trip in Arches National Park was limited to driving through the park, walking the shortest trails and admiring the rock formations from vantage points. The second time our goal was to approach the famous Delicate Arch, and the next time we reached the spectacular Landscape Arch. Of course, each time we didn’t miss stopping at the viewpoints ;)

The origins of Arches National Park

The origins of a national park in the area can be traced to the creation of Arches National Monument in 1929. Arches National Park was established in 1971 to protect the rock formations located here.

The windows, arches and rock bridges found here are both formed by the weathering of sandstone. This process began many millions of years ago and is still ongoing. The park is changing all the time: some formations are collapsing, such as Wall Arch, which collapsed in 2008, because protection of the site cannot fully stop natural processes. Because of these changes, the trails and accessibility of the park are also changing. For example, Landscape Arch used to be more accessible, you could walk under it and even climb on it, but after the recent rock break, it can only be admired from a safe distance, from below.

Today, Arches National Park is very popular and is visited by about 1.5 million tourists a year. Due to the increasing number of visitors, some restrictions have been placed on the park’s availability….

Entrance and seat reservation

To enter Arches National Park from April to October, from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., reservations for entry at a specific time are required. Reservations can be made in advance at Recreation.gov. However, if you do not manage to find a free slot for a particular day, nothing is lost. The day before, around 7:00 pm, another pool of entrances is added, which can be reserved (looking a few days in a row in April/May managed to find places just this way, but to be sure, it is better to do it ahead of time and have peace of mind). There is a fee to reserve a seat and it costs $2.

Access to the park is possible only from one side, from Kanab, from Road 191. Just beyond the entrance is the park’s only Visitor Center, which is immediately worth a stop.

The Visitor Center in America’s national parks serves several functions. On the one hand, there are stations where Rangers (i.e., rangers/employees of the national park) offer advice and support, suggest where to go, what trail to take and give maps, and on the other hand, there is an educational exhibition about the park, how the rock formations were created and what inhabitants you can meet on the trails. The Visitor Center also features a gift store and the opportunity to pick up a Junior Ranger Activity Book for kids (we highly recommend it, our kids love it!).

What to see in Arches National Park?

The park is famous for its large number of natural rock arches: there are more than 2,000 here, and the most famous and recognizable of these is Delicate Arch. The windows and rock arches can be viewed from numerous hiking trails and viewpoints: some are short and easily accessible, and some are more difficult and definitely longer.

After visiting the Visitor Center, take the only road through the park, which climbs up until you enter a plateau. The road is Main Park Road, which is used to reach the various viewpoints and parking lots from which the walking trails begin. In fact, these points cannot be missed. These are always prepared either small bays or larger parking lots.

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When planning your stay, you can either simply stop at each successive viewpoint or choose one or two longer trails and drive straight to them. It’s best to head out on the trail in the morning, as it can be hot at noon. In addition, there may be a problem finding parking spaces. Being in Arches recently, we had trouble finding free spaces in some of the parking lots, even though we were in the period when reservations are required, so theoretically the number of cars should not be somehow outstandingly surplus.

The first viewpoint on the route is the Park Avenue Viewpoint, and the Park Avenue trail begins from here. It is a one-way trail about 1 mile (1.6 km) long, leading through a canyon surrounded by interesting formations. At the end of the trail, either someone has to pick up the car or you have to return the same way.

Driving along Main Park Road, one passes such vantage points as La Sal Mountains Viewpoint (overlooking the La Sal mountain range), and Petrified Dunes Viewpoint (offering an expansive view of the petrified dunes).

Further on, the road leads to a very short and straight trail that encircles Balanced Rock (it is handicap accessible).

A piece past the parking lot is worth leaving to the right to reach Windows Section. In this part, you can already see the rock windows from the parking lot, but it is best to walk a bit along the designated trails, for example, to the North Window, South Window or Turret Arch.

The most recognizable arch in the park, the Delicate Arch, is not located on the main road. As with the Windows Section, it is necessary to drive a few kilometers away in an easterly direction. This arch can be viewed from below, or you can take the longer route and walk up almost to the arch itself.

How to get to Delicate Arch?

There are as many as three places from which to view the arch. The Lower Delicate Arch Viewpoint is right next to the parking lot, less than 100 meters to reach and the path is wheelchair accessible. Unfortunately, in our opinion, the arc from this point is not that impressive, and at first it is even hard to see. Once one sees it, one wonders first of all how it is possible that this arch survived on this rock! Add that it is located at an altitude of 1,474 meters.

From the parking lot, the trail to Upper Delicate Arch Viewpoint begins – it is less than a kilometer in both directions and leads uphill to stand at least a little higher and a little closer to Delicate Arch.

However, it must be said that the arch looks best from above, although the approach to the arch itself takes a decidedly longer and more difficult trail. The beginning of this trail is in a different place: you need to park at Wolfe Ranch, from where the route for almost 5 kilometers in two directions.

This trail is marked as difficult, during which 146 meters of altitude are climbed. At first it doesn’t seem so at all – the route follows footbridges, a flat path. By far the most difficult section is the ascent on smooth rock, and here in fact at times it is advisable even to climb on all fours, and during the descent it is easy to slip, and without decent shoes with good traction it is better not to go here. Fact, we have seen people walking in ordinary sneakers, but we definitely do not recommend ;)

Another difficulty is the lack of shade, and temperatures can be high. We stopped in the shade of the larger shrubs, but the heat gave us a hard time. On the route, of course, you need to take a great deal of water and caps, hats.

However, apart from these aspects, the trail is not that difficult in our opinion. Let the best proof of this be the fact that the four-year-old overcame it without much trouble (climbing on all fours and sliding on the bottom was entertaining ;) ).

After overcoming the greatest difference in height, beautiful rock formations appear to the eyes, which some people find more stunning than the arch itself. From here, you still have to walk along a narrow path along the rock and around the bend the Delicate Arch appears to your eyes.

Getting to the arch itself is difficult and we didn’t risk it, especially with children, but even from here it looked phenomenal! Especially when other people stood under him and only then could you see his true greatness.

Devils Garden

Another place to stop for a while is Devils Garden – this is where the end of the road is, topped by a loop road and a sizable parking lot, which we saw filled to the brim.

Being the first time we only went for a short walk, but being the last time it was Devils Garden that was our destination. The entire trail is over 12.5 kilometers long (a loop) and is marked as difficult. However, you don’t have to do the whole trail – you can walk a piece to see the so-called “trail”. fins, or high, narrow vertical rocks, which here look extremely phenomenal!

There is also an easy trail leading to Landscape Arch, considered one of the largest rock arches, considering the free-standing ones. The trail is 3 km long in both directions and will be a good choice, for example, if you are traveling with children.

Pssst, that’s the bow on the cover of our book about the USA (but in Polish ;))!

Further on you can reach Double O Arch or Double Arch but the route is already more challenging.

Arches National Park for children

Is Arches National Park a good choice if traveling with children? In our opinion, any national park in the U.S. is always a good choice, although it is known that with children we will not always see and get everywhere we would like to ;)

Let’s start with the visit to the Visitor Center itself – already here children will be able to see an interesting exhibition about the park, nail down stamps, but most of all it’s worth picking up the special Junior Ranger Activity Book mentioned earlier. These are thin activity books for children that encourage them to observe nature, look for animals and plants, and learn about geology. Thanks to these books, our children can, among other things. distinguish between windows and rock arches, and know how they have formed over the years.

After completing all tasks, you have to meet the ranger again, show the completed tasks and take a special oath. Children will then get special badges that they can pin to their clothes, for example.

What we like about this park is that there are plenty of easy and short trails that even smaller children will walk. Very simple and short is around Balanced Rock. A little longer and more difficult, but cool for kids are those in The Windows Section, also in Devils Garden you can walk a piece.

When you are traveling with young children and plan to go on a longer trail, it is a good idea to get a carrier.

What should you know before visiting Arches National Park?

Keep in mind that this is quite a popular park, and during the period from April to October, reservations for entry at a specific time are necessary. We have already written about how to book and how to get there, but it should be mentioned that even with a reservation it is worth being half an hour or even an hour early.

The first time we arrived 15 minutes ahead of time and just happened to be out of line, but we were not allowed in – we had to back out and politely wait for a specific time. Another time we were again 15 minutes early, but the queue of cars in front of us was for more than half an hour of standing, so that’s how long we had to wait before entering. Watching the current traffic on Google Maps can be helpful.

If you can’t hunt down a date, it’s possible to enter the park without reservations even in high season, before 7 o’clock.

Practical information – preparing for your visit

Price list

In addition to the entry reservation fee ($2), you must also pay a fee to enter the park. You pay at the entrance, both cash and credit card are accepted.

Prices:

• Passenger car – $30 (regardless of the number of people in the car)
• motorcycle – $25
• Cyclists, people entering without vehicles – $15 (children under 15 free)

This is a national park so the America the Beautiful Annual Pass (cost per year $80) is accepted. This is a card that allows any number of entries to all parks managed by the NPS. Its purchase pays off if you plan to visit at least three such places.

Moving around the park

The only possible option is to drive your own vehicle. There is no so called “”in the world” here. shuttle buses that take visitors to specific points.

It’s most convenient to drive a passenger car, but a campervan also has no major problems, only the challenge may be finding a parking space.

Where to stay overnight in the Arches area?

The closest and most convenient accommodation at Arches National Park is the town of Moab (it takes about 10 minutes to drive from the town center to the park entrance). There is a large selection of hotels and motels here, however, we recommend booking accommodation in advance, especially if you are traveling in high season.

There is only one Devils Garden Campground within the park itself. From November to February it operates on a first-come, first-served basis, and from March to October you must book seats in advance (they are spreading like fresh buns!).

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Below are some accommodations in Moab with good reviews:

• Comfort Suites Moab
  Address: 400 North Main Street, Moab, UT 84532
  Prices: from $185/740 zloty for a max four-bed room (breakfast included)
  Link: https://r4b.link/booking-comfort-suites-moab
• Apache Motel
  Address: 166 South 400 East, Moab, UT 84532
  Prices: from $217/£873 for a max 4-bed room (breakfast included)
  Link: https://r4b.link/booking-apache-moab
• Hoodoo Moab, Curio Collection by Hilton
  Address: 111 N. 100 W., Moab, UT 84532
  Prices: from $220/£885 for a double room
  Link: https://r4b.link/bookinghoodoo-moab
• La Quinta by Wyndham Moab
  Address: 815 South Main Street, Moab, UT 84532
  Prices: from $107/£431 for a double room (breakfast included)
  Link: https://r4b.link/booking-laquinta-inn-moab
• Big Horn Lodge
  Address: 550 South Main Street, Moab, UT 84532
  Prices: from $104/£419 for a max 4-bed room
  Link: https://r4b.link/booking-moab-550
• The Virginian Inn Moab Downtown
  Address: 70 E 200 S, Moab, 84532-2634
  Prices: from $73/£294 for a double room
  Link: https://r4b.link/booking-virginian
• Expedition Lodge
  Address: 168 North Main Street, Moab, UT 84532
  Prices: from $92/£370 for a max 4-bed room (breakfast included)
  Link: https://r4b.link/booking-xpedition-odge
• My Place Hotel-Moab
  Address: 1520 North Main, Moab, UT 84532
  Prices: from $159/£640 for a max 4-bed room
  Link: https://r4b.link/booking-my-place-moab

Our opinion – is it worth visiting Arches?

When traveling in the American West, not everyone gets as far as Moab. Many people commute to the Grand Canyon and return, however, because it is a longer trip (the drive itself takes 5.5 hours). However, if you have the opportunity to do so, it’s worth extending your trip and looking into this national park as well.

Impressive rock formations, beautiful arches and windows, hiking trails both easy and more difficult make it a place worth visiting.

Photo Gallery

Below you can see all our photos from Arches National Park.