Painted Canyons of the West

Trek across the Southwest as you take in the sienna-colored canyons, towering spires and desert landscapes found in Utah’s five national parks. Your journey begins in the mile-high city of Denver – an urban gateway to America’s natural beauty.
Hotel Name: Sheraton Denver Downtown

The Rocky Mountains are your traveling companions on the drive to Grand Junction. Look out at the natural scenery as you pass by Glenwood Canyon, a product of the Colorado River, carved more than 3 million years ago. Dine together at a family-owned vineyard and enjoy a wine tasting in the midst of Colorado wine country.

Breakfast Included
Dinner Included
Hotel Name: Doubletree Hotel

Admittance: Colorado National Monument
Located on desert land on the Colorado Plateau, the Colorado National Monument hosts a variety of wildlife, including red-tailed hawks, golden eagles, ravens, desert bighorn sheep and coyotes. The area was first explored by John Otto in the early 20th century, when many residents believed the canyons to be inaccessible to humans. The park was then established on May 24, 1911. Today, many come to hike, horseback ride, bicycle and take scenic drives through the park.

Set out to explore the Colorado National Monument this morning along Rim Rock Drive. Make your way to Utah on the Upper Colorado Byway, known by the locals as “River Road.” As the iconic Fisher Towers loom over breathtaking mesas, make your way to Moab, Utah’s outdoor adventure center.

Breakfast Included
Dinner Included
Hotel Name: Element Moab Hotel

Visit Area: Moab
Spend two nights in the picturesque desert town of Moab, Utah, a popular base camp for those seeking to explore both Arches and Canyonlands national parks. You’ll have ample time to do some exploring of the city and the national parks yourself.

Journey through the otherworldly oases of two national parks. Hike* along red rock features as you make your way through Arches National Park. Continue to Canyonlands National Park, resting in the heart of the Colorado Plateau, and discover a world of mesas and canyons. Close by, at the Island in the Sky, look out over a landscape of ethereal valleys and dreamy horizons. Today’s park pilgrimage ends atop the sheer sandstone cliffs of Dead Horse Point State Park.

Breakfast Included

Admittance: Arches National Park
Located along the Colorado River, Arches National Park contains over 2,000 natural sandstone arches. One of the most famous attractions in the park is Delicate Arch, which is known worldwide. The national park lies atop an underground salt bed, which is the main cause of the formation of the arches. Humans occupied the region from the last ice age 10,000 years ago up until about 700 years ago. Today, visitors come not only for the view but to hike and rock climb as well.

Travel through the dramatic Utah desert on Scenic Byway 24. Visit Capitol Reef National Park, named for the curved white walls that resemble the U.S. Capitol building. On the Million Dollar Road, take in views of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, where layers of warm reds and oranges melt into smooth sided peaks. Spend the night in Bryce, your jumping-off point to Bryce Canyon National Park.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Hotel Name: Best Western Plus Bryce Canyon Grand Hotel

Admittance: Canyonlands National Park
The Canyonlands National Park preserves a colorful landscape eroded into canyons, mesas and buttes by the Colorado River. The park is divided into four districts: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, the Maze and the rivers themselves. The park was first established in 1964 and is now visited by over 450,000 people in a year. Canyonlands is a popular recreational destination. The trails are welcome to hikers, mountain bikers, backpackers and four-wheelers, and the rivers are welcome to rafters and kayakers.

Spend the day in Bryce Canyon National Park and see the famous hoodoos – vibrant rock formations likened to fairy chimneys. Perhaps you’ll start your morning with a hike,* getting up-close and personal with the graceful geology. Take in the sprawling vistas as you walk along Sunset Point, leading into Sunrise Point Rim Trail. As the day draws to a close, settle into Springdale, a small town perched just outside of Zion National Park.

Breakfast Included
Hotel Name: Holiday Inn Express

Admittance: Dead Horse Point State Park
Stand atop the sheer sandstone cliffs of Dead Horse Point State Park, and take in awe-inspiring views of the Colorado River and Canyonlands National Park. Legend says the point was used as a corral for wild mustangs that roamed the mesa top.

There are few places on earth that match the beauty of the red and white sandstone cliffs of Zion. Make the most of an entire day exploring this rock-ridden paradise. On Zion’s open-air tram, wind along the Virgin River through the 2,400-foot deep, half-mile wide Zion Canyon. Choose how you spend the afternoon because it’s your choice! Hike* independently -OR- visit Zion’s Human History Museum.

Breakfast Included

Drive By: Utah's Scenic Byway 24
Take in some of Utah's most beautiful landscapes as you travel along Scenic Byway 24. The longest Scenic Route in Utah, this highway runs through Dixie National Forest and Capitol Reef National Park and along the eastern edge of San Rafael Reef and Goblin Valley State Park.

Age-old nature is replaced with captivating energy, vibrant lights, and endless excitement in Las Vegas. Toast with your travel companions at a farewell lunch. Then, the evening is yours – spend your time along the neon-lit strip however you please.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Hotel Name: Paris Hotel

Admittance: Capitol Reef National Park
Travel to Capitol Reef National Park, filled with colorful sandstone geological formations, and named in part for the white Navajo Sandstone formations that resemble the U.S. Capitol building.

Say goodbye to Las Vegas and the painted canyons of the west as you depart for home.

Drive By: Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
Catch a glimpse of the stunning Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, one of the most remote places in the US and the last piece of wilderness in the lower 48 states to be mapped.