Glendale
We stayed in Glendale to be in between Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park, but holy moly, this little corner of Utah has a lot to offer too! There are several fun hikes in the area, the cutest town of Kanab just 30 minutes away and amazing landscapes.
Our Favorite Outdoor Activities Near Glendale with Kids:
Zion National Park - obviously this is a no-brainer and an iconic stop when you are in southern Utah. Zion lives up to the hype in its beauty and absolutely breathtaking landscapes, but dang, it is CROWDED (and we were even there in mid April on weekdays)! At some points on the most popular trails, it felt like people were just pushing right past us and honestly that is just not our favorite kind of hiking. Also, if you want to secure a parking spot, get there EARLY, like absolutely no later than 8:30am because the parking lot at the visitor center is completely full by then. You can also park in Springdale and ride the Zion bus system into the park if you can’t find a parking spot. Nonetheless, Zion is still one of Utah’s big 5 that you’ve just gotta check off your bucket list! And the updside is that they have a great bus route system in place to make it easy to see as much as possible! First we recommend stopping at the visitor center to get a bus and hiking map (as they have some closures right now and since the bus route times change seasonally). Don’t forget to pick up Junior Ranger books to earn a badge! Here are our favorite hikes in Zion with the kids:
Take the bus from Zion Canyon Visitor Center to stop #9 (Temple of Sinawava) and hike the easy 2.2 mile out and back Riverside Walk. This trail winds around the Virgin River until it ends at a view of the Narrows. Easy and scenic trail.
Take the bus from Zion Canyon Visitor Center to stop #6 (The Grotto) and hike the Kayenta Trail with access to the Lower, MIddle & Upper Emerald Pools. This is a moderately strenuous hike, with some rock scrambling required if you want to visit the Upper Emerald Pool. This hike via the Kayenta Trail is nearly 4 miles roundtrip. In our opinion, this was a beautiful trail but it also has some steep drop offs in certain areas (and it was pretty crowded), so watch your kiddos closely!
Bryce Canyon National Park - OH MY GOODNESS this national park is STUNNING. We expected Zion to be beautiful, but pictures of Bryce Canyon National Park just don’t do it justice! It is absolutely SPECTACULAR and we all liked Bryce better than Zion (there, we said it!). Bryce Canyon also has a very helpful and easy to navigate bus route system that makes visiting all of the iconic viewpoints of the park super easy. Here are our favorite hikes in Bryce Canyon with kids:
Queen’s Garden/Navajo Combination Loop - this moderately strenuous trail is 2.9 miles roundtrip and is one of our favorite trails that we have ever done at any national park. It is recommend to descend Queen’s Garden at Sunrise Point and ascend the Navajo Loop to Sunset Point (which is what we did), and it was such an enjoyable trail. Although the end is challenging with steep switchbacks to the top, every step is worth the view.
Mossy Cave Trail - this easy 0.8 mile out and back hike takes you to a neat mossy cave (but you can’t climb in the cave since its a fragile environment) and a fun waterfall. Our kids really loved this fun and easy hike!
Bristlecone Loop Trail - this easy 1 mile hike strolls through the forest at the highest elevation in the park - there was even still snow in several parts on our hike in early May (making it an easy favorite for these Texas kids!).
It is also worth hopping off of the bus at Bryce Point and Inspiration Point for incredible views.
We also had several favorite hikes near Glendale, so you don’t have to be in a national park to explore some really amazing parts of Utah! Here were a few of our favorites near Glendale:
Belly of the Dragon - this super easy 0.5 mile out and back hike is so fun for kids because you walk through an entire cave (aka the belly of the dragon)! Our 5-year-old loved it. It’s an easy and unique hike for the whole family.
Sand Caves/Moqui Caves - this was voted by our 5-year-old as his favorite hike! It is so fun to go up to the sand caves and see out the canyon to the road below. And the fact that once you reach the caves, it’s all sand to play in inside, makes it an easy kid favorite. There is a little bit of rock scrambling towards the end of the hike right as you reach the caves, so make sure that you are wearing shoes with a good grip – the sand can make the rocks pretty slippery!
Red Hollow Slot Canyon - this is a fun hike approx. 1 mile out and back through a dry creek bed to a really cool slot canyon. Our 5-year-old thought it was so neat to walk and then climb through the slot canyon at the end. Definitely a fun and doable hike for kids. Pack water! Even though this is a short hike, it is mostly hiking through sand which is always a little tougher and it’s not very shaded, so water is a must.
Jacob Hamblin Park - this is an amazing park right in the middle of Kanab, Utah. Not only does it have a beautiful, scenic backdrop, but there is a wonderful playground, picnic tables, BBQ pits, a splash pad and skate park. The playground is even covered for hot days. This is one of our favorite city parks that we have ever been to - our kids didn’t want to leave (seriously, there were tears)!
Favorite Food Spot: Brown Box Bakeshop in Kanab. This is a gourmet grilled cheese and tomato soup-based lunch spot with delicious homemade cookies and even better homemade ice cream. What’s not to love?
Brewery Spotlight: Zion Canyon Brew Pub – this brew pub is a 5-minute walk from the Zion Canyon Visitor Center and boasts great views of the iconic Zion skyline while you enjoy a beer on the patio. We stopped for a snack and a beer after a day of hiking and their charcuterie board was a fam fav of our whole crew! It’s more of a restaurant style, so nowhere for the kids to run around, but after a day of hiking Zion, they will most likely be pooped out anyway and be ready for a hearty snack.
Where we stayed: Bauer’s Canyon Ranch RV Park – this is a small, family-owned and ran campground that was a nice location with full hook-ups. This campground is located exactly 1 hour from each Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks. They also have spots for tent camping, laundry facility and bath/shower facilities. Overall, we felt like this was a relaxing campground that was reasonably priced with a great location to the nearby area attractions. The spots are quite close together and the Wifi isn’t great, so if those things are important to you, this might not be the campground for you.