There are hundreds of miles of unpaved roads in Canyonlands, providing access to various campsites, trailheads, and viewpoints in the park's backcountry.
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With 20 miles (32.2 km) of paved roads, this district unlocks some of the most breathtaking vistas in Canyon Country. From these elevated viewpoints, visitors can often see over 100 miles (161 km) in any direction, revealing panoramic scenes that stretch across thousands of square miles of canyon country.
There are hundreds of miles of unpaved roads in Canyonlands, providing access to various campsites, trailheads, and viewpoints in the park's backcountry. Most roads require high-clearance, low range four-wheel-drive. These roads range in difficulty from intermediate to extremely technical.
If you have two days to spare, take one day to explore Island in the Sky and the other for the Needles District. Much of Canyonlands is only suitable for 4x4 vehicles. These four-wheel-drive roads start at an intermediate difficulty and range to extremely technical.
The Needles, though not as easy to access, also offers an incredible scenic drive that can be done in a day. Continuing 6.5 miles drive past the visitor center and ending at Big Spring Canyon Overlook, this stunning driver has several pullouts to short hiking trails, viewpoints and picnic areas.
As Needles Highway is only 14 miles long, you can most certainly drive all of it in less than an hour. With that said, due to its one-way tunnels, tight turns, and slow driving sightseers it can be a bit slow going. To avoid max traffic congestion, drive Needles Highway in the Spring or Fall.
The time it takes to drive through the Island in the Sky in Canyonlands will depend on how many stops you take. There's a Scenic Drive that runs from one end of the mesa to the other, about 25 miles, so you can drive to the end and all the way back in a little over two hours.
There are 3 different park entrances for Canyonlands National Park. These entrances must be accessed separately, as they do not connect inside the park. Let's explore the routes for visiting from the gateway city of Moab. For those coming from the north of Moab, US 191 to UT 313 will bring you to Island in the Sky.
The distance from Canyonlands to Arches is only 27 miles, around 30 minutes of a drive. That is why it is so easy to combine both national parks in one day.
The only fully-paved road in Arches is Scenic Drive, a 25-mile, out-and-back road that passes the majority of the park's viewpoints and trailheads. If you're tight on time or don't enjoy hiking, you could drive the park—stopping 10 minutes at each viewpoint—in about three hours.
The best times to see most wildlife are early and late in the day, especially in the summer, when the midday sun drives all Canyonlands residents to search for shade.
Half a Day: In addition to enjoying the scenic drive, hikers can explore the Slickrock Trail or walk to the edge of Chesler Park for a closer look at The Needles. Visitors with four-wheel-drive vehicles might consider driving to the Colorado River Overlook. Spend some time at the visitor center learning about the area.
Reservations. Timed entry reservations are not required to enter the park. You can make reservations for day-use, overnight, and river permits and for group campsites at The Needles.
You can still visit the short (and gorgeous) hikes in Canyonlands if you don't have time or don't want to do a more difficult/longer day hike. We preferred Canyonlands due to the longer trails and much fewer people. But if you're looking for shorter trails and lots of arches, Arches might be your better bet.
If you only want to see a few highlights in each park, then yes, one day in Arches and Canyonlands is enough time. For a better experience, add one more day to your itinerary, so you can spend one full day in Arches and one full day in Canyonlands.
Over 330,000 acres are filled with arches, buttes, mesas, canyons, hiking trails, dirt roads, campgrounds, and overlooks. It would take days, weeks even, to fully explore all that Canyonlands has to offer. However, if you only have one day in Canyonlands, you have just enough time to visit the highlights.