Can you drive a car through Canyonlands National Park?

No problem! The Island in the Sky District offers the wonderful opportunities for sightseeing by car and is the most accessible. The 34-mile round-trip scenic drive features awe-inspiring overlooks, from a 1,000 feet above, of the valleys below and the other districts of the park.



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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.

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The Needles district of Canyonlands National Park has about 10 miles of paved roads.

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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.

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You can explore Canyonlands on foot, horseback, mountain bike, and four-wheel drive. Many of these activities require a permit.

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Island in the Sky is the most visited and accessible district, offering expansive views from many overlooks along the paved scenic drive. You can park and view a variety of scenic wonders from the vista points without hiking. The most popular site in the park is Mesa Arch.

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Timed entry reservations are not required to enter Canyonlands National Park.

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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.

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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.

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Vehicles must stay on established roads within Arches National Park. Some park roads are unpaved and require high-clearance 4X4 vehicles. These routes lead into parts of the park where there are few visitors and extraordinary scenery.

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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.

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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.

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Four-wheel-drive vehicles, motorbikes, and bicycles are allowed in The Maze. Your vehicle must have high-clearance, four-wheel drive (low range) in The Maze. ATVs, UTVs, and OHVs are prohibited. We do not recommend trailers due to the severity of the road and the likelihood of damage to trailers and park resources.

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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.

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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.

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ISLAND IN THE SKY, CANYONLANDS: The Island in the Sky district is the most popular area of Canyonlands to visit.

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If you're looking for wide-open scenery, Bryce has some but Canyonlands is probably the better bet. The views from Dead Horse Point State Park, right next to Canyonlands, are unbelievable. my personal favorite is canyonlands thats based on the hiking selections. for the driveby bryce and arches you can see a lot.

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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.

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The best time to visit, especially for hikers, is in the spring or fall, when daytime temperatures are usually from 60° to 80°F (16°-27°C) and nights are cool.

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Individual Entrance to Canyonlands: $15 (Good for 7 Days). Typically used for bicyclists, hikers, and pedestrians. Youth 15 and under are admitted free.

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Does Canyonlands get crowded? With over half a million visitors per year, it's less crowded in Canyonlands National Park than in the major parks. Most visitors come here in April/May and September/October. During these peak months, the popular spots might be busy.

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