Utah Family Road Trip Itinerary on points and miles
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Is Utah on your bucket list? Utah has so many beautiful National and State parks and road-tripping is the perfect way to see it all! Here is a list of places you can’t miss while road-tripping throughout Utah and, like always, I will show you how we afforded this trip as a family of five and how you can too.
Utah Road Trip (winter)
What to see
Zion National Park
A trip to Utah isn’t complete without visiting Zion National Park. You can visit in any season, but the weather in spring and fall is perfect for hiking and exploring.
Must-do Activities
There are several kid-friendly hikes that should be added to your bucket list. The 2-mile round-trip Riverside Walk Trail is a paved trail that leads to the beginning of the narrows. The scenic views along the trail are so impressive that you could hike this one trail and see enough scenic views for your entire trip. Towards the end of the trail, is where the narrows begin and you can go as little or as far as you like.
Just a warning, you will most likely get wet and should wear proper attire. Although the water was chilly, it was refreshing after the hike.
After eating lunch outside the Zion Lodge, you can head across the street to hike the kid-friendly lower Emerald pools trail. However, it is a little more difficult than the Riverside Walk. The 1.4-mile round-trip hike is more than just a nature walk but still very doable for children. At the end of the hike, you will see a couple of small waterfalls and an emerald-colored pool.
Recommended time spent here: 1-2 days
Pro-Tip: Bring a lunch so that you won’t have to pay for pricey food in the park. Enjoy a picnic outside of the Zion Lodge.
2. Salt Lake City
Don’t miss seeing Salt Lake City while visiting Utah. At Christmas time, Temple Square is lit up with lights and is a beautiful sight to see. The Mormon temple located here has a very impressive architecture.
Must-do Activities:
Across from Temple Square is the outdoor mall. Even if you are not interested in shopping, it is worth a visit. As well as having world-class shopping in dining, there are fountains with a musical water show and a small creek flowing down the mall. The design of the mall is beautiful and mostly outdoors made with a retractable ceiling.
Recommended time spent here: 1-2 days
Pro-Tip: You can stay in the city as your home base and take day trips to nearby destinations, such as midway and solitude mountain.
3. Park City
Park City is our favorite city in Utah. Main street is picture-perfect and there are many activities here year-round.
Must-do Activities:
Utah Olympic Park is close by and held the 2002 Winter Olympics. The Olympic Park offers many summer activities including, Alpine Slide, Extreme Tubing, Extreme Zip Line, Freestyle Zip Line, Summer Bobsled, and the Discovery Course.
Park City also offers activities such as horseback riding, hiking, & mountain biking. Check out Woodward Park City for world class year-round activities such as winter tubing, indoor sports action, mountain biking, and skiing.
Recommended time spent here: 1-2 days
Pro-Tip: Although you can drive here from Salt Lake City, it’s worth it to stay in Park City near Main Street to fully experience it.
4. Midway & Solitude Mountain
If you’re visiting in the winter, do not miss the Midway Ice Castles. I hate to admit this, but my Utah road trip was based around seeing the Ice Castles. Unfortunately for us, they did not open during our trip. However, Ice Castles are in six different cities across the US, so find one near you!
Their website states that “The castles include breathtaking LED-lit sculptures, frozen thrones, ice-carved tunnels, slides, fountains and much more”. Other winter activities here include Soldier Hollow Nordic Center, which offers winter tubing and kids snowmobiling.
Must-do Activities:
Midway also has several other attractions including, Homestead crater mineral dome, golfing at the Chalet at Wasatch mountain, and Castle Springs hike. Castle Springs hike is an easy nature walk and perfect for family picnics.
For more mountain adventures, head to Solitude Mountain. In the winter, this is a perfect destination for sledding with the whole family.
Recommended time spent here: 1-2 days
Pro-Tip: If you’re visiting Solitude Mountain in the summer, be sure to catch a movie under the stars. Admission is free.
5. Moab & Arches National Park
Arches national park has many great hikes for the family. Spring and fall would be the ideal seasons for visiting. Summer can be very hot, so go early in the morning or later at night.
We visiting in the winter and although chilly, we loved seeing the park covered in snow. Some of the trails were snow-covered, but if you are dressed properly it can be very enjoyable.
Must-do Activities:
Some of the best and kid-friendly hikes are Pine Tree Arch (pictured above), Balanced Rock, The Windows, & Turret Arch.
Moab also offers several other kid-friendly including River rafting and Off-Road adventures!
Recommended time spent here: 1 day
Pro Tip: Drive a portion of the scenic loop if you are trying to see a lot of sights in a little bit of time.
Where to Stay with Kids
Related blog post: How to book an (almost) free vacation with miles and points.
Zion National Park
We stayed at Hyatt Place St. George, which is a category one hotel. (5,000 points per night) However, St. George is not the best location for exploring Zion. There are many hotels in Springdale that are bookable with points and miles.
Here are some great hotel options to book with points or cash in Springdale:
SpringHill Suites- 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
Fairfield Inn & Suites-35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
Springdale Holiday Inn Express- 25,000 IHG points
Hampton Inn & Suites, Springdale by Hilton- 43,000 Hilton points
Cliffrose Springdale, Curio Collection by Hilton- 80,000 Hilton points
Points listed per night and vary throughout the year based on the date of stay and availability.
Find the Best credit card offers here to help you stay for nearly free at these hotels.
Budget Option
Camping is also a great budget-friendly option in Zion. We recently camped at the Watchman Campground and it was one of our favorite camping experiences. The view is gorgeous and the campground is clean and well-maintained! Of course, you can’t beat the location which is right across from the Zion visitor center and shuttle. South Campground is right next to Watchman and another great choice.
Mid-to High-end Accommodations
A less budget friendly accommodations but a very unique spot to stay in Zion would be these tiny homes, called Tiny Home Oasis.
Photo courtesy of Zion’s Tiny Oasis
Of course, if you want to stay right in the park, Zion Lodge is going to be a great choice. Cable Mountain Lodge is another great choice just across from the campgrounds and in the shopping pavilion.
Salt Lake City
While in Salt Lake City we stayed four nights at the Staybridge Suites and used it as our base to explore. Since IHG gives you the 4th night for free when you book with points, try to stay four nights when you can, to take advantage of that benefit. Another thing to keep in mind is that Marriott Bonvoy gives you the fifth night free when booking with points.
Here are some great hotel options to book with points or cash in Salt Lake City:
Staybridge Suites West Valley City- 20,000 IHG points
Hyatt Place Salt Lake City Lehi- 5,000 Hyatt points
Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek- 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
Springhill Suites Salt Lake City Sugar House- 15,000 Marriot Bonvoy points
The Peery Salt Lake City Downtown, Tapestry Collection by Hilton- 50,000 points
Points listed per night and vary throughout the year based on the date of stay and availability.
Find the Best credit card offers here to help you stay for nearly free at these hotels.
Park City
We use our Hyatt annual free night certificate at the Hyatt Place Park City on New Year’s Eve. The cost of this hotel was around $600 per night for holiday stays. Our annual free night cost us $95, so this was a great use of our “free” night!
Here are some great hotel options to book with points or cash in Park City:
Hyatt Place Park City- Category 4- 15,000 or use Annual free night certificate.
Hyatt Place Park City Hot Tub View
Hyatt Centric Park City- 30,000 Hyatt points
Hotel Park City, Autograph Collection- 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points or use free annual certificate!
St Regis Deer Valley- 70,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
Park City Holiday Inn Express- 24,000 IHG points
Waldorf Astoria Park City- 90,000 Hilton points
Points listed per night and vary throughout the year based on the date of stay and availability.
Moab
We stayed at the Hyatt Place Moab for one night on our way back to Arizona. It was a great location for exploring Arches National park and at only 8,000 Hyatt points, it is a great deal!
Here are some great hotel options to book with points or cash in Moab:
Hyatt Place Moab - Category 2 hotel- 8,000 Hyatt points
Holiday Inn Express Moab- 38,000 IHG points
SpringHill Suites Moab-50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
Hoodoo Moab, Curio Collection by Hilton- 70,000 Hilton Points
Points listed per night and vary throughout the year based on the date of stay and availability.
How to get there
Horseshoe Bend, Paige, Arizona
Our family started our journey from Phoenix. If you are starting from Phoenix you can start your adventures with a stop in Paige, Arizona at Horseshoe Bend.
Monument Valley
Leaving Moab and driving back to Arizona you are going to pass Monument Valley. It’s a great stop for the trip home.
If Utah isn’t within driving distance, you will mostly start your road trip by flying into Salt Lake City. For a budget-friendly flight, Allegiant Airlines flies into Provo, and Southwest Airlines flies into Salt Lake City.
As always, remember you can book flights and hotels for free with miles and points. We booked all of our Utah hotels with points and therefore paid only for gas and food on our road trip!
Here are some credit card links that will get you miles and points for travel:
Chase Sapphire Card- Apply Here
Marriott Bonvoy Amex- Apply Here
Southwest Airlines- Apply Here
IHG credit card- Apply Here
Find the Best credit card offers here to help you stay for nearly free at these hotels.
Be sure to follow along on Instagram, as that is my most active social platform. I have a saved highlight for our Utah trip. Go check it out!
