Every Wish That We Put Into Motion.... (comments welcome!)

[Herding_Cats]

You know, usually I think "wow, she's got a lot to do" what with all the kids' activities and refereeing and training... and then you randomly throw in CANNING. Really, you need something more to do?

I know. It’s terrible. I also got a half bushel of peaches and they’re sooooo good I’ll probably end up getting another this week to slice, sugar, and freeze (since we don't have a pressure canner)

 

[Herding_Cats]

Ugh. Spring Break flight planning is kicking my butt. This is largely me just voicing my frustration, but if you have any suggestions I'm totally open to them.

Where: Zion National Park and surrounding areas (Bryce for a day, possibly pop down to AZ for Antelope Slot Canyon)
When: last few days of March, first week of April
How many days: 7-9
Number of people: 6 (this includes DS2's girlfriend, and I'd like to book her ticket as refundable in currently-unlikely event that they break up before this trip)
Departure Options: TVC (Traverse City) GRR (Grand Rapids) DTW (Detroit) and we are also looking at Chicago (And I have looked at South Bend, Flint, and Midland-Bay City)
Arrival Options: SGU (St George) is preferred, but LAS (Las Vegas) is also an option
Preferred Carriers: United and Southwest because I can book on miles, but I can also book American and Delta through the Chase Portal to use points. Almost any carrier is an option for the right price. We are open to splitting the carriers and flying one way on points and the other way on cash.
"No"s: red-eye flights, connections shorter than 45min

The big issues: cost and flight duration coupled with driving to/from airports.

As an example: if we fly out of TVC >> SGU we have the least amount of driving. However, these flights are all around 10hrs with 2 stops at the price that's in our budget. The flip side is that I can fly everyone on SW from Chicago to Vegas with the points we currently have, so almost $0 out of pocket. But it's a 5hr drive (plus a hotel) to Chicago, a 4.5hr flight, and then a 3.5hr drive to our destination; we aren't really saving any time AND are prevailing on DH to drive us home and he can't/won't sleep on the plane. No matter what we do, we are going to spend an entire day at the beginning and the end traveling, and I'm tasked with trying to figure out what makes the most sense with connecting flights and everything. And I've looked at enough numbers that everything has run together at this point.

DH was startled last night when I started explaining that Tuesday-to-Tuesday was the cheapest way to travel, and I would honestly like to have another day or 2 so we can see most of the things we want to see and still be able to have rest days. DH just wants to book at least one direction, and couldn't keep up with my mental gymnastics about deciding if that should be the departure flight or the return flight based on the current pricing for the opposite leg of the trip. There has also been the "Well have you booked the rental house? That needs to get done before someone else books it!" NO. I can't book a house when I don't even have travel dates!

If I can figure out a way to make Vegas "part of the trip" for a day that might open up a lot of options for flights. But also add a lot of cost with 2 hotel rooms, meals, and potentially some sort of activity. I have 0 interest in the Vegas strip area. It's just.....a lot.

 

[The Expert]

Fly into SLC! It's actually a shorter drive than Las Vegas (I've done it many times) and entirely on I-15 with 80mph speed limits. You'll have lots more flight options (Delta hub but also SWA has a good schedule there) and probably cheaper rental cars than at SGU too.

And I know I gave this advice when you were first thinking about this trip, but I'll repeat it. Stay in or around Kanab, Utah. It's a great town with lots of good food and AirBnBs, and it's centrally located to a ton of attractions and national parks. SLC to Kanab is about 4.5 hours if you don't go via Zion, but then you can just pop right back up 89 to Hwy 12 to the quieter entrance when you want to do the park.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Fly into SLC! It's actually a shorter drive than Las Vegas (I've done it many times) and entirely on I-15 with 80mph speed limits. You'll have lots more flight options (Delta hub but also SWA has a good schedule there) and probably cheaper rental cars than at SGU too.

And I know I gave this advice when you were first thinking about this trip, but I'll repeat it. Stay in or around Kanab, Utah. It's a great town with lots of good food and AirBnBs, and it's centrally located to a ton of attractions and national parks. SLC to Kanab is about 4.5 hours if you don't go via Zion, but then you can just pop right back up 89 to Hwy 12 to the quieter entrance when you want to do the park.

Yes. Our plan is Kanab (THANK YOU for putting it on my radar when I talked about this the first time!) I've been really trying to make St George work because it's only around a 90min drive to Kabab, but the flight time are generally horrible. If I wanted to pay 2-3x our budget for this, then I can make it work easily. But coughing up $800+/person for flights makes me wanna puke.


ETA:
Is there stuff to do/stop and see between SLC and Kanab? I know that between Vegas the Kanab there's like....Valley of the Sun and maybe 1 or 2 other stops we could make. A quick look at flights already shows significantly nicer flight patterns to SLC than St George or Vegas.

 

[The Expert]

ETA:
Is there stuff to do/stop and see between SLC and Kanab? I know that between Vegas the Kanab there's like....Valley of the Sun and maybe 1 or 2 other stops we could make. A quick look at flights already shows significantly nicer flight patterns to SLC than St George or Vegas.

Yes! You go from the Wasatch mountains down to red rock desert and there's a lot to stop and see. In Salt Lake itself, not far from the airport is the state capital and also Temple Square (though it may be under construction). There's City Creek Canyon just below the capital building that's a really pretty walk. If you want to just get on the road, there's still a bunch of options:

Around Provo / Utah Valley​

• Thanksgiving Point (Lehi) – if you want an early stop (about 30-45 min south of SLC). Huge gardens, a dinosaur museum, and kid-friendly attractions.
• Bridal Veil Falls (Provo Canyon) – very quick pull-off with a paved path to a tall, scenic waterfall. Easy leg-stretch for all ages.

Central Utah (Beaver area)​

• Territorial Statehouse (Fillmore) – Utah’s first capital building, now a small museum. Quicker visit but has some history and a nice lawn.
• Cove Fort (near Beaver) – a historic pioneer fort right off I-15. Volunteers give short tours, and kids can wander around the old blacksmith shop, wagons, and fort walls.
• Beaver Creamery (Beaver) – a classic stop for cheese curds and ice cream; fun break before turning onto Hwy 20.

Highway 20 (short, mountainous connector road)​

• It’s a pretty canyon drive with good views. Not many official stops, but worth pointing out wildlife if they see deer or eagles.

Highway 89 Corridor​

• Panguitch – a historic small town with a cute main street, red brick pioneer houses, and a few diners. Good food break.
• Red Canyon (between Panguitch & Hwy 12 junction) – dramatic red rock spires and short hikes. Even a 10-minute stop is worth it; you drive through little rock tunnels that feel like a “preview” of Bryce Canyon.
• Scenic pullouts near Hatch / Sevier River – gentle river scenery, good picnic options.

Around Kanab

• Moqui Cave (just north of Kanab) – quirky little roadside cave museum.
• Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park (15–20 min from Kanab) – kids love climbing/rolling in the dunes.
• Kanab Visitor Center – good spot to get local tips, especially if you’re interested in hikes like Toadstool Hoodoos or Wire Pass.
• Best Friends Animal Sanctuary – Of courseI had to include this! The largest no-kill animal sanctuary in the U.S. (just 5 miles north of Kanab).
  • Free tours and volunteer opportunities with dogs, cats, bunnies, horses, pigs, goats, and birds.
  • A peaceful pet cemetery called Angel’s Rest with wind chimes and tributes.
  • Visitor Center fun, family-friendly animal activities (and often adoptable pets).

It's a little further out of the way, but you could also stop at Bryce Canyon on your way down, drive the loop road and jump out for overlook photos. If not, I'd leave time to do it on the way back up to SLC if you end up flying in and out there.

 

[michigandergirl]

We did a similar trip in 2021, about 10 days. Here's what we did:

Flew GRR to PHX (Southwest Air), then drove to Sedona (stopped at Montezuma Castle NM on the way).

Sedona (2 nights, VRBO condo)
-hiking
-Pink Jeep Tour
-Slide Rock State Park

Williams, AZ (2 nights, hotel)
-Grand Canyon (hiked a portion of South Kaibab Trail)
-Bearizona (zoo)

On the drive to Kanab, we stopped a couple of times to stretch our legs:
-Horseshoe Bend
-The dam in Page (I can't recall the name)
-The Toadstool hike

Kanab, UT (4 nights, VRBO house)
-hiking
-Bryce Canyon (we hiked and did horseback riding)
-Coral Pink Sand Dunes
-Moqui Caves
-Best Friends (we had this on our list but unfortunately ran out of time).
-ATV tour to Peekaboo slot canyon - highly recommend!!! My kids called this "the BEST DAY EVER"

**From Kanab, the drive into Zion NP east entrance is spectacular! Do the Canyon Overlook Trail before tunnel.

Springdale, UT (2 nights, hotel)
ZION NP
-The Narrows - so amazing!!!
-The Watchman Trail and Emerald Pools Trail
My oldest son and I had planned to do the Angel's Landing hike (this was before the reservation system), but on the day we planned to do it, the chain section was closed for maintenance. I honestly couldn't decide if I was disappointed or relieved by that!

-I also ran the Vacation Races Zion Trail 13.1, which was so cool.

If hadn't run that race, we would have skipped staying the 2 nights in Springdale and stayed in Kanab, but I needed to be closer to the start/finish in Apple Valley.

Flew home LAS to GRR nonstop (Allegiant Air).

I wanted to stop at Valley of Fire SP on the way to Vegas, but my family was cranky and I was overruled.

Let me know if you want more specifics.