Tour company for Zion Bryce etc?

[Anonymous]

Anyone done one of these guided Zion Bryce Antelope Canyon type trips and have a company you liked?

I keep finding either really polished luxury tours or the total camping backpacker version and I’m looking for something more in the middle for me and my tweens.

Basically clean hotels, organized itinerary, not wildly expensive, not trying to do some over the top luxury thing.

I know I could rent a car and do it myself but I do like the idea of not having to plan every single detail. Any recs?

[Anonymous]

All the guided tours we saw there were full of old people. I think your teens will feel really out of place on one.

We did it ourselves at mid range hotels and driving ourselves. It was a lot of planning but ChatGPT is incredibly helpful for this type of trip. Start there.

[Anonymous]

I think you're off better renting a car and traveling on your own time rather than shuffled through with a bunch of strangers. My teens would have hated that but YMMV

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think you're off better renting a car and traveling on your own time rather than shuffled through with a bunch of strangers. My teens would have hated that but YMMV

NP---I'd be interested in something more group like for my teens. They've always loved kids clubs and usually gravitate to finding kids their own ages at whatever resort we're at. In my dream scenario---bus transportation is coordinated throughout the trip, there are multiple adventures (hikes, kayaking, rappelling, etc) that people choose from each day. There are specific kid/teen activities where they get to hand without parents and during this time the adults are hanging out with each other.

[Anonymous]

Never done or needed a tour for Zion or Bryce. You can do fine in your own. We did do a tour for Antelope Canyon as it is required. The slot canyon is on Navajo land. Pick any of those available tours as they’re all the same. Some try for a time slot that will be good to see the “sunbeam” that is possible but that is no guarantee. The tours are on a schedule and you can’t control a passing cloud.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Never done or needed a tour for Zion or Bryce. You can do fine in your own. We did do a tour for Antelope Canyon as it is required. The slot canyon is on Navajo land. Pick any of those available tours as they’re all the same. Some try for a time slot that will be good to see the “sunbeam” that is possible but that is no guarantee. The tours are on a schedule and you can’t control a passing cloud.

Meant to add a tip for Zion, I’m pretty much most Springdale lodging have shuttles or access to busses to get into park. We try and stay at Cable Mountain lodge as it is *right* at the park entrance. You can’t control just walk in. It’s really helpful if you’re hiking narrows too as the outfitter is also right there.

[Anonymous]

Auto-complete was not my friend. You can read through the lines. 🙂

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never done or needed a tour for Zion or Bryce. You can do fine in your own. We did do a tour for Antelope Canyon as it is required. The slot canyon is on Navajo land. Pick any of those available tours as they’re all the same. Some try for a time slot that will be good to see the “sunbeam” that is possible but that is no guarantee. The tours are on a schedule and you can’t control a passing cloud.

Meant to add a tip for Zion, I’m pretty much most Springdale lodging have shuttles or access to busses to get into park. We try and stay at Cable Mountain lodge as it is *right* at the park entrance. You can’t control just walk in. It’s really helpful if you’re hiking narrows too as the outfitter is also right there.

Cable Mountain is a great hotel, and most Springdale hotels are close enough to the entrance, but Cable Mountain is the closest. If you like to cycle, our favorite thing was to rent bikes, ride through the canyon to the Narrows early in the morning before the buses arrived, hike a bit, and ride back for breakfast. Also, several companies offer rappelling, which is fun for kids. Slot canyons are great. Bryce is beautiful but not as exciting as Zion, so you could make that shorter, like 1.5 days is plenty.

If you really want to do a tour and you don't want to be with old people, I've heard Backroads does a nice job.