Summertime is coming and that means travel. Do you love visiting National Parks? Here are 10 Tips for Visiting Zion National Park with Kids.
10 Tips for Visiting Zion National Park with Kids
Zion National Park has to be one of my personal favorite places to visit and the best part for families is that it is a great place to take kids. After spending many days there, I’ve decided to put together my list of 10 tips for visiting Zion National Park with kids.
1-Ask About Easy and Paved hikes: There are many great hikes that are considered low impact or are short and can be great for little legs and those of us who need to push strollers. Our three favorites are River Walk, (which is fully paved so you can take strollers the entire way), Emerald Pools (Paved for a short while up to a waterfall so you can take your stroller that far) and Weeping Rock (Great because it is paved and short but know that it is a little steep.) If you are bringing a stroller try to keep it small. We typically bring our umbrella stroller. During the busy season of the year they do not allow personal vehicles into the park and you have to ride the shuttle to the different locations. It is a big pain to get a stroller on and off the shuttle, especially if there are a lot of people riding the shuttle with you. The smaller the better. If you are planning ahead you can download the Zion Park Hiking Guide, which will give you a better description of the hikes, or the Visitor’s Center can give you that information when you arrive.
2-Junior Ranger Program: I didn’t know about the Junior Ranger program at the National Parks until my friend told me about it. All of the National Parks have a program for kids where they can complete some tasks, attend a Ranger-led activity and receive a fun gold badge. Each park has different requirements but at Zion National Park, my kids were given a fun work book that they worked on while we rode the shuttle to our hiking spots. Each National Park has a different gold badge, so we are working on collecting as many as we can from different National parks. We have along way to go!
My boys working on their Junior Ranger Program on the shuttle
3-Wear good shoes: This one should be obvious but I always see so many people and kids wearing flip-flops or other non-hiking sandals. In fact, I have seen people actually going barefoot and carrying their shoes on the way back down the trails because their feet couldn’t take the torture any longer. Zion National Park is a place for hiking and if you don’t want to be miserable, make sure you and your kids are wearing shoes that are designed for walking long periods of time, even if you aren’t planning on a strenuous hike. Trust me on this one.
4-Take plenty of water, sunscreen and a hat: You will want to bring in plenty of water for yourself and your kids to take on the hikes. Most of the trail heads have bathrooms and places to fill up water bottles so make sure to fill up frequently if you are running low. Also, sunscreen is a must. Yes, Zion National Park is in the mountains but it is hot during the summer months and even if you aren’t going in the summer, the elevation makes it really easy to burn. Bring plenty of sunscreen and even a hat to keep the sun off your kids faces and ask the rangers for the best time of day to hike certain trails. If you can plan it right you can get on a trail that is shady most of the time.
Baby LOVED the shuttle ride! He wouldn’t even sit on a lap.
5-Bring Extra Clothes or Swimsuits: One of my favorite things about going to Zion National Park with kids is the little pools and waterfalls that can be found throughout the park at different times of the year. If you take the River Walk trail, it actually goes right along the river and if the water level is low, it is really fun for the kids to play in. There are also little frogs all over that are fun to catch. My boys have a great time and I always bring a change of clothes because without fail one of my boys will fall in the water in the first 2 minutes of being there. But that’s just part of the fun. You can even bring swimsuits and let them enjoy the water even more. 
6-Take a Picnic: There are a lot of restaurants in Springdale, UT just outside of Zion but it is more fun and less expensive to just bring in a picnic lunch. There are picnic tables everywhere and my boys had fun chasing lizards and checking out the squirrels. We also saw a 4-point buck in the area. And I pretty much just love being out in nature so it’s way better than eating lunch at a fast food place.
7-Ice Cream!: The Zion Lodge, which is located just inside the park, has a little deli where they serve food and ice cream. We always stop in there for an ice cream cone to cool off after our hikes. There is a huge lawn out front that you can relax on and enjoy just sitting and taking in all of the beautiful mountains around you.
Yum!
8-Zion-Mt Carmel Tunnel: If you have time, make sure to drive through the tunnel that is located just outside the entrance to the park. It is over a mile long! It makes me a little claustrophobic, but it is one of the best things to do with kids in Zion National Park. They love it!
9-Zion Canyon Theater: If you have extra time to kill and money to burn, check out the Zion Canyon Theater. It has a HUGE screen and they show the movie Canyon of the Gods, which is a history of the park, in 3-D. Really cool! We also watched a Dinosaur movie there the last time we went and the movies change seasonally. They also have showings of new releases in the evening. It’s a great way to relax after a long day of hiking and your kids will love it, but it is a little pricey so just be prepared.
10-Check the Weather: The weather in Southern Utah can change in a matter of seconds. You can have nice sunny skies and then a down pour of rain. If you see dark clouds moving in and you are out on a trail, it might be a good idea to either head back down or find some shelter. The storms are normally pretty short but can be intense and cause flash flooding. I actually LOVE a good desert rain storm but it wouldn’t be so fun if you are stranded out in the middle of it.
I hope these tips are helpful in planning a trip to Zion National Park with kids. We absolutely love it there! I have great memories of traveling there as a kid with my family and now we’ve taken our boys several different times and can’t wait to go back.
What tips do you have for visiting Zion National Park with Kids?
For other travel related posts, check out:
10 Tips for Planning the Ultimate Legoland Adventure
Tips for Visiting Universal Orlando with Kids
10 Awesome Things for Boys at Disneyland
You have no clue as to how much I needed this post! We want to go to Zion’s this Fall, so I’m stoked for your ideas!
Perfect timing for this post! We have been talking about making a trip to Zion and now I already know what to do when we get there. THanks!
Kara, what a great, simple, realistic list! Well done! These are great tips. Pinned!
Great tips!! I’m always shocked be people on big outings like Disney or National Parks without appropriate footwear!
Yes it is crazy to me! Comfort before fashion. 😉
It looks like such a fun day! How nice that you are so close to Zion. My hubby is sitting here while I’m reading this and is totally jealous because he remembers going to Zion as a kid and loving it! We will have to take the C’s out there someday! Thanks so much for the tips!
~Abby =)
It really is one of my most favorite places on earth. Hope you can make it out someday.
Great tips! It looks like a lot of fun. The idea, as a parent, of having to lug all the kids and the stuff gets me all stressed out…but when I saw the picture of your boys in the creek I flashed back to my childhood and remembered how much fun I had doing the very same thing. I really need to remember that and get my kids out in the creek (and nature in general) more often 🙂
I know, it is a lot of work but my boys always love it. Even my oldest who never shows much emotion came up and gave me a big hug and old me thanks for taking him. Totally worth it!
Great tips! I love hiking around in Zion! My last trip there we hiked to Angels Peak.
**Thank you** for this lovely post, which I found via Pinterest. We’re planning a trip to that part of the world for spring break (2015) and our eight year-old is in a wheelchair, so always trying to find things in which he can participate, too (so we’re not all divide-to-conquer, as of course we shall again and have at every single national park / monument thus far visited …). Right up our alley — thank you!
I’m so glad that this was helpful. I really love the Riverwalk hike and I think it would be perfect with a wheelchair. There are a few hills but definitely the easiest of the ones we’ve been on. The lower Emerald pools *might* be okay too. They were re-doing the trail the last time we were there and repairing some of the rough spots so you might want to check that one out as well. You can only go so far with a stroller/wheelchair but it goes to a nice little waterfall and then others could go on up to the upper falls. Good luck with your vacation plans! We love it there!
My family and I are going to Zion (day visit) next week and this article really helped! thanks for sharing your tips 🙂
I’m so glad I could help. Have a great visit!
This was so helpful! We are contemplating a family trip with our 1 year old next month. Any other tips for Zion with a 1 year old? Thank you!
Just don’t leave the diapers in the car! lol! I learned that the hard way at the Grand Canyon. We took the train in and I left the diapers in my car. We couldn’t find ANY in the park. It was a nightmare. Just remember that you will be far from your car since you have to take the shuttles, so bring all of the essentials with you. And then stick to the paved trails if you are bringing a stroller. If you have a carrier you may be able to do others, but even just the River Walk wore us out with my kids. It takes a lot longer than you expect when you have kids with you. And just take your time and enjoy being there. It is really beautiful! My boys love watching the squirrels or looking for bugs. We just take it easy when we go. 🙂 Have a great trip!
Great advice; I really appreciate it! I have been thinking of taking my family out to Zion National Park this summer, so it is nice to hear all of these tips! It is so nice that there are some easy and paved hikes out there, so that it is possible to take your children! I think that it might be a good idea to go on some walks with your stroller outside your hotel, and then leave the stroller behind when you get into the park. That way, you don’t have to worry about hauling it everywhere!
Yes, if you bring a stroller, I definitely recommend a small umbrella stroller that can be folded easily. You get off of the shuttle quite a bit! We love it at Zion. I hope you can make the trip with your family.
We are planning a trip in July when my daughter will be q week shy of being 9 and my son 4 1/2 years old. I always hear about the narrows. Would that be an ok hike for them even if we don’t get too far into the water part of it? I am looking forward to the beauty of it but maybe it’s still too advanced? Is the second hike you mentioned by the creek just as fun for kids with views? Thank you for any advice you may give.
You would actually have to check with the park and see if they even allow kids that young into the narrows. You have to have a permit to hike it. But the River walk trail that ends at the river is actually the beginning of the Narrows trail. I love that hike because the kids can play in the water and it is a paved trail so really easy for kids. I also really like the Emerald pools hike with kids because it takes you behind a waterfall which is fun. It is paved part of the way and then it gets a little more difficult but I wouldn’t say it is too challenging for a child your son’s age. You could always just turn around if it gets too difficult. If you decide to hike Emerald pools, take a right at the first fork in the road. It is all one big loop but if you go right you get to the waterfall quickly and then you could decide if you want to keep going. Another fun one is the Weeping Rock trail. It is short, but a bit steep. It takes you up to a big rock that hangs over the trail. My boys love to take pictures as if they are holding it up.
Zion is one of my favorite places on earth but it does get exhausting for kids after awhile. If you are staying for a few days, I would probably just plan one hike/day or at least plan breaks in between. Hope you have a great vacation!