Hannah | September 2026
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Zion National Park had been very high on Dylan’s bucket list his whole life. Throughout the six years of our relationship, Dylan occasionally talked about the park and our inevitable trip there one day, preparing me for stunning landscapes, mountains, rivers and, of course, The Narrows. I expected it was going to be beautiful. I expected Bryce Canyon was going to be unlike anywhere we had ever been. What I did not expect was that before we made it to either of them, Dylan and I would find ourselves crouched behind a table in a Dallas airport while hundreds of people ran for safety.
Dylan and I visited Utah in July 2022 to see our good friend Erinn-and following our recent engagement, to ask her to be my bridesmaid! We planned a seven-day road trip from Salt Lake City to Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park before returning to Salt Lake City for our flight home.
And despite one of the scariest and most chaotic travel days we’ve ever experienced, the trip that followed became one of my favorites.
If you’re planning a trip to Zion and Bryce Canyon from Salt Lake City, here’s exactly how we spent our seven days — including what I would do again and what I would do differently.
At a Glance
July 25 — Fly from Washington, D.C. → Salt Lake City (eventually, full story below)
July 26 — Salt Lake City
July 27 — Salt Lake City → Zion National Park
July 28 — Zion National Park
July 29 — Zion National Park → Bryce Canyon National Park
July 30 — Bryce Canyon National Park → Salt Lake City
July 31 — Fly home
Day 1: The Travel Day from Hell
Our plan was simple: fly from Washington, D.C. to Salt Lake City with a short layover at Dallas Love Field and arrive in Utah around 3:00 p.m. That is not what happened.
Dylan and I had about an hour and a half before our next flight, which felt like the perfect amount of time to grab some food before boarding our flight to SLC. We made it about 50 steps out of the gate when we saw people running.
At first, it was just a few people. Then it was a lot of people.
We had no idea what was happening. People started rushing and knocking over tables and chairs. I grabbed Dylan and pulled him into one of the airport restaurants with me. We went as far inside as we could and crouched behind a table while a crowd of people rushed in behind us. The restaurant lowered the barrier at the entrance, and we waited there without really knowing what was happening outside.
We later learned that there had been a shooting inside Dallas Love Field, outside of security. A woman fired several shots into the ceiling before firing toward a responding Dallas police officer, who shot and wounded her. You can read Dallas Love Field’s account of the incident here.
Eventually, the entire airport was evacuated. And somehow, that was only the beginning of our travel day.
Because people had run through security checkpoints during the panic, everyone had to leave the secure area of the airport and go through security again before operations could resume. It was chaos.
Thousands of people were trying to get back through security at the same time, all flights were canceled, and Dylan and I had no idea if we were getting to Salt Lake City that night—or if we were about to spend the night in Dallas. For obvious reasons, we wanted to leave Dallas as soon as possible.
Once we finally made it back through security, we headed straight for the Southwest customer service desk and somehow ended up only a few people back in line. At that point, we had one request: We don’t care how you get us there. Just get us to Salt Lake City tonight.
And they did…eventually.
What was originally supposed to be a simple one-stop trip turned into what felt like a tour of every airport in America. We took two additional flights after Dallas before finally landing in Salt Lake City in the middle of the night.
Our luggage, however, did not.
Day 2: A Slow Day in Salt Lake City
By the time we arrived, it was around 3:20 in the morning.
Our original plan had been to stay with our friend Erinn, who lived in Salt Lake City at the time. But considering we were already arriving roughly 12 hours later than planned, we didn’t want to call her in the middle of the night and ask her to wake up and let us in. We decided to find a hotel. Easy enough, right?
Nope.
Because it was technically already the next day, booking a room for the night we were currently trying to sleep in became surprisingly complicated. We took a Lyft to a nearby hotel only to walk inside and learn that every room was booked. Mind you, it’s now about 4 a.m. We walked just next-door to try the next hotel.
Also booked.
Thankfully, before sending two exhausted people wandering around Salt Lake City with nothing but their backpacks at 4 in the morning, the hotel staff started calling around for us.
Eventually, somewhere around 4:30 a.m., we got into a hotel room.
We had been traveling all day. We were still wearing the same clothes we’d left Washington, D.C. in. Our checked bags were somewhere between Dallas and Denver. We hadn’t slept, we’d barely eaten and we were beyond ready to catch some z’s.
The following morning we woke up around 10:00 a.m., checked out of the hotel and grabbed an Uber to our friend Erinn’s place. She was renting the basement of a house in Salt Lake City at the time and lived there with her dog, Winni.
Our original plan for this day had been pretty loose, which ended up being one of the best decisions we made when planning the trip. After everything that happened the day before, none of us felt the need to cram a bunch of sightseeing into the day. We walked to a nearby coffee shop for brunch.
Afterward, we walked back to Erinn’s and spent the afternoon relaxing. It was hot, we were exhausted, and we were still waiting for our luggage. Slowing down was what we really needed.
Our Luggage Finally Made It to Utah
At some point that afternoon, we finally got the call we had been waiting for: our luggage made it to Salt Lake City! Erinn was gracious enough to lend us her car, I went and grabbed our bags (and complimentary flight vouchers) and we drove to pick up and bring back takeout.
When I’m planning a trip, my instinct is to squeeze as much as possible into every single day. But having an intentionally easy day at the beginning of this trip saved us. We didn’t plan it as a recovery day, but after everything that happened getting to Utah, that’s exactly what it became.
Day 3: SLC to Zion National Park
After approximately 36 hours of travel chaos and recovery, our national park trip was finally starting.
We woke up with butterflies in our bellies the morning of the 27th knowing we were heading to Zion National Park! Dylan and I loaded the car for the trip while Erinn wrapped up her workday and we jumped in and made our way!
The drive from Salt Lake City to Zion National Park takes about four and a half hours. Because we left later in the day, we arrived around sunset. We planned to watch the sunset from an overlook, but rain changed those plans. Instead, we explored the roads that remained open to private vehicles before heading to Hotel De Novo Springdale.
We made it to the park entrance around 8 p.m. and this was our first look at Zion. There are some national parks that are beautiful when you get out of the car and start hiking. Zion is beautiful before you even make it to the trailhead.
The massive red cliffs surrounding the road made everything feel other-worldly. For a few moments it felt like we could be on Mars. I remember staring out the window as we drove through the park trying to take it all in. Even now, looking back at the photos from this trip, I can’t believe how beautiful it was.
We walked around, explored a little and let ourselves enjoy finally being there. Afterward, we headed to our hotel just outside the park.
Our Hotel Near Zion National Park
The hotel has changed names since we visited in 2022. It’s now known as Hotel De Novo Springdale and I would stay there again in a heartbeat!
The hotel is approximately three miles from Zion’s south entrance and has a pool, hot tub and unbelievable views of the surrounding cliffs. After spending hours exploring the park, coming back to the pool was perfect. Even in Utah’s July heat, the hot tub was a necessity after a long day of hiking.
That first night, we kept things simple. We ate dinner at the restaurant attached to the hotel, went back to our room and got ready for bed. Our alarms were set for 5:00 a.m. God bless Erinn and Dylan for agreeing to travel with me.
Day 4: Hiking The Watchman Trail & The Narrows in Zion
Our early alarm went off, and thankfully my travel companions were ready to go with me! Knowing this is one of the most popular parks in the US and we traveled during peak season, we wanted to make the most of the trip.
We visited during Zion’s shuttle season, when private vehicles aren’t allowed on Zion Canyon Scenic Drive past Canyon Junction. The free Zion Canyon shuttle is how most visitors access the trailheads throughout the canyon. Parking at the Visitor Center can fill early, especially during the busy summer months, so we wanted to get there as early as possible. We were up early and to the trail by 6:15 a.m. Our first hike of the day was The Watchman Trail. And…WOW!
The Watchman Trail is considered a moderate hike and is 3.3 miles round-trip. The trailhead is right by the Zion Canyon Visitor Center, making it an easy hike to access without taking the shuttle. It’s open year-round and doesn’t require a reservation.
This was one of those mornings that made the alarm worth it. We started early enough that for most of the hike, it felt like we had the trail to ourselves. It wasn’t until we were making our way back down that we really started seeing other hikers.
The views were incredible, the morning was cool, peaceful and it was such a good way to start our first full day in Zion.
Once we finished around 8 a.m., we walked just outside of the park to grab some breakfast and coffee while we figured out what we wanted to do next.
And that’s when our plans changed.
We Almost Missed Hiking The Narrows
Earlier that morning, we had seen on the nps.gov website that The Narrows was closed, so we had basically taken it off the table for the day. Then, while we were grabbing breakfast, we overheard someone say it had reopened.
Once we walked back into the park-our America the Beautiful Pass covered all three of us-we confirmed with a ranger that the Narrows had reopened. Because conditions could force it to close again at a moment’s notice, we hopped on the next shuttle and took in the stunning views along the way.
The one thing we should have done: rented the proper gear. We didn’t rent the special boots. We didn’t have one of the walking sticks. And because we were so excited that the trail had reopened, we basically decided: eh we’ll be fine!
It was also much harder to walk through than I expected. You’re hiking through the Virgin River, and the depth of the water varies as you go. I slipped more times than I would like to admit, nearly lost my water bottle and at one point went down hard enough to bang my knee.
Meanwhile, I was watching people walking with their rented boots and walking sticks thinking…Oh. That’s why everyone has those.
If I hiked The Narrows again, I would rent the proper gear beforehand. We made it through without it, but this is one of those situations where Past Han was a little too confident for Future Han’s liking. Even with all of the falling, this ended up being one of my favorite experiences of the entire trip. We didn’t hike to any specific destination, so when we felt like we hiked far enough in, we just turned back around.
On our way back, we noticed a lot more people hiking in. We enjoyed a smile to ourselves knowing we had the privilege of a little more “private” experience with a smaller crowd. Once we hiked back through the water and emerged from The Narrows covered in mud, we were VERY ready to eat lunch. We grabbed lunch inside of Zion and then headed back to the hotel.
We spent the afternoon swimming in the hotel pool, sitting in the hot tub and staring up at the cliffs surrounding us. The hotel wasn’t particularly crowded, and after starting our day before sunrise and hiking two very different Zion trails, doing nothing for a few hours felt incredible.
It was one of those afternoons that reminded me that not every minute of a national park trip needs to be spent hiking. Sometimes sitting in a hot tub looking at the mountains counts as an activity!
We grabbed dinner from the attached restaurant again and called it an early night.
Day 5: Zion National Park: Emerald Pools Trail + Drive to Bryce Canyon National Park
The next morning, we had time for one more Zion hike before continuing our road trip.
We chose the Emerald Pools Trail and hiked past the Lower and Middle Pools before continuing to the Upper Emerald Pool.
This was a completely different experience from our hikes the day before. After the huge views along The Watchman and literally walking through a river in The Narrows, Emerald Pools gave us one last chance to experience another side of Zion before leaving.
After nearly losing my sunglasses several times in The Narrows, we stopped at the Zion Lodge and I bought a pair of Croakies. Honestly, one of the best purchases ever. They survived almost four years—until Oella ripped them off my sunglasses in 2026 and broke them. I couldn’t find the exact pair online, so I replaced them with this adjustable sunglasses strap from Amazon. I like some things about the new ones better, but I still miss my Zion pair!
We rode the shuttle back to the Visitor Center, and our driver’s narration was the cherry on top of the day. He pointed out structures as we passed them and shared facts about the park. We tipped him because we felt he went above and beyond to make the experience extra fun for visitors. Packed and ready to go, we drove to Bryce Canyon National Park.
Our First Look at Bryce Canyon
It’s only about a two-hour drive from Zion National Park to Bryce Canyon National Park. We checked into The Lodge at Bryce Canyon, which put us right inside the park.
Shortly after we arrived, Erinn needed to take a phone call, so Dylan and I decided to go for a little walk while we waited for her. We were out for what felt like a casual walk around and then suddenly…there was Bryce Canyon.
I don’t know how else to describe that first view other than that both of us were speechless.
The amphitheater stretched out below us, filled with hoodoos and red rock formations. Bryce Canyon was definitely unlike anything either of us had ever seen.
A summer storm was rolling through, so Dylan, Erinn and I walked over to eat a late lunch at the Bryce Canyon Lodge Cafe. Rain started blowing sideways through an open window, and we had to run over and close it before the floor was soaked. Just as quickly as it came, the storm went and cleared up for the remainder of the evening.
As the evening approached, we walked back to watch the sunset over the canyon. Erinn went to check out a spot on her own and Dylan and I walked to a nearby bench. To this day it’s one of my top national park trip memories. I stood next to Dylan, looking out over the surreal landscape as the sun went down. Sometimes the simple moments end up being the thing you remember most.
We eventually left the canyon and met back up with Erinn. We headed to our room and settled in for the night. The next morning, we were going down into the canyon.
Day 6: Hiking Among the Hoodoos at Bryce Canyon
The next morning, we woke up ready to hike. We ate breakfast at the Bryce Canyon Lodge Cafeteria and walked over to the trailhead.
We combined the Queen’s Garden and Navajo Loop trails into a 2.9-mile loop. The route typically takes two to three hours and descends 625 feet into the amphitheater before climbing back into the rim. It took us from looking down at Bryce’s hoodoos to actually walking among them and then up the iconic zigzagging trail carved into the rocks.
Looking across the amphitheater from above is spectacular. But being down inside it and realizing how large these formations actually are is a completely different experience.
We walked between hoodoos, through the incredible orange landscape and eventually made our way back up to the rim.
One Last Stop: Mossy Cave Trail
After the hike, it was time to check out and start making our way back toward Salt Lake City. Before leaving the Bryce Canyon area, we had one more adventure in us: Mossy Cave Trail. The trail is part of Bryce Canyon National Park, but its trailhead sits along Highway 12 outside the park’s main entrance, which made it an easy final stop on our drive back toward Salt Lake City.
This was a short, 0.8-mile round-trip walk where we got to see a different part of the landscape, including water—which somehow felt particularly weird after spending the morning surrounded by giant orange hoodoos. NPS now warns that it becomes extremely crowded between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.
We walked out toward the waterfall and pool, snapped a few photos and made our way back to the car. From there, we made the drive back to Salt Lake City and spent our final night at Erinn’s.
Day 7: Flying Home
The next morning, Erinn drove us to the Salt Lake City airport for our flight home. After the absolute nightmare that had started this trip…thankfully, nothing eventful happened.
I will say that walking into another airport after what happened in Dallas was a little harder for me than I expected. That experience scared me, and some of that anxiety was still very much there when it was time to fly home. That said, I’m also really proud of Dylan and me for continuing the trip and not letting it ruin our experience. Just handling what life throws at us, together!
We went from crouching behind a table in an airport on Day 1 to hiking through Zion’s Virgin River, watching the sunset over Bryce Canyon and having one of our favorite national park trips together.
Not exactly the itinerary I had planned, but definitely one I’ll never forget. The biggest thank you in the world to our best friend, “yes” woman, bridesmaid and travel buddy, Erinn for joining us on this trip and hosting us on either end!
What I Would Do Differently
- Book a direct flight from Washington D.C., to Salt Lake City. After our traumatic layover, we now fly direct whenever we can afford to.
- Rent the proper gear for The Narrows from one of the outfitters near the park.
What I Would Do The Same
- Keep the first day in SLC as a buffer.
- Start our Zion hikes early.
- Stay at the Hotel De Novo Springdale while visiting Zion National Park.
- Stay inside Bryce Canyon National Park at The Lodge at Bryce Canyon.
- Check current trail, shuttle and weather conditions before making plans.
I cannot recommend Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park highly enough! We hope this guide makes planning your own Utah road trip a little easier. Explore more of our National Park trips here!
Han & Dyl Trip Rating:
Overall: 10/10
Crowds: 7/10 – busy
Scenery 10/10
Would we go back? 10000/10