More of this Feature • Part 1: Introduction • Part 2: Getting to Zion • Part 3: Lodging & Dining • Part 5: Saving Money, Tips • Part 6: Hiking Zion

Zion Resources • Zion Essentials • Zion Photos • Zion Maps • Zion Travel Planner • Walking Zion

If You Go to Zion • Zion National Park • Zion Lodge • Zion Field Institute • Canyon Trail Rides • The World Outdoors

You will get a copy of the park newspaper, the Zion Map & Guide, when you pass through the park entry gate. It's an invaluable resource that includes announcements about activities and information about any unexpected closures. It also has a schedule of the ranger-led talks and hikes that are always a good way to enhance a national park experience.

The Visitor Center has a gift shop full of books, calendars, and other souvenirs and reference materials. The exhibits outside and the rangers inside will help you plan your visit, suggesting things to see and do that match your interests. While you're at the Visitor Center, explore the outside display to learn about the center's clever energy-saving design.

Half-Day Itinerary

You can sample Zion in a half day using these suggestions:

• Zion Canyon Scenic Drive - Ride the Zion Canyon Shuttle for a taste of the canyon. It's a 90-minute round trip if you don't stop. The bus drivers have different personalities, but all will make an effort to help you understand the sights along the way.
• Weeping Rock Trail - This easy, 0.5-mile paved path leads to a spot where springs drip from overhead, and you will find hanging gardens of wildflowers in spring and summer. It's a gentle walk of about a half hour, with a 90-foot elevation gain, but is too steep for wheelchairs.
• Court of the Patriarchs - A 100-yard, 15-minute walk from the shuttle stop leads to a view of The Sentinel and the Three Patriarchs.
• Zion - Mt. Carmel Highway - Drive the ten-mile road that connects the park's east and west entrances. It's a steep drive full of switchbacks that includes a mile-long tunnel, an engineering achievement almost as fascinating as Mother Nature's wonders around it. On the east side, it passes famous Checkerboard Mesa and slickrock domes.

Longer Stay

• Instead of riding the Canyon Shuttle, take the two-hour, narrated Ride with a Ranger tour. Space is limited, and you need to get free tickets at the Visitor Center in advance.
• Take a longer hike (or two).
• Stop at the Zion Human History Museum for a look at how humans have interacted with Zion. Their 22-minute orientation film is a much better introduction to the area than the pricier (and historically inaccurate) IMAX film in town.
• Check the Zion Map & Guide you get when you arrive for ranger-led hikes, talks and programs.
• The Zion Canyon Field Institute offers classes about Zion's plants, animals, geology and history, as well as photo trips.
• Try a horseback riding trip with Canyon Trail Rides, March through October