Arches National Park

Arches is a compact National Park located near Moab, Utah. There are over 2000 sandstone arch formations located within the park boundaries, and even more outside the park!

Most famous for the incredible hike to Delicate Arch, Arches National Park is home to lots of other short, fun hikes and otherworldly scenery as well.

Arches used to have lots of overcrowding problems, but a timed entry system that was implemented in 2024 has largely solved that issue. You will still want to plan your time wisely here to make the most of your trip, but finding parking is much easier now!

Best Things to Do in Arches

HIKE TO DELICATE ARCH: Hiking to Delicate Arch is the most iconic thing to do in Arches National Park. This short but steep hike takes you right up to the arch where you can get a photo standing under it!

THE WINDOWS & TURRET ARCH: The Windows Loop is a short, easy trail to two arches that look like windows in a house. The Turret Arch Trail spurs off this loop as well. This is a great place to watch the sunrise and the scenery through The Windows is otherworldly.

DOUBLE ARCH: Double Arch is comprised of 2 arches that connect on one side and was formed by downward water erosion. Visiting here requires a short walk down the trail that takes you right up to the arch.

DEVIL’S GARDEN TRAIL: The Devil’s Garden Trail is consistently ranked as the top hike in Arches National Park. You will see 7 total arches on this trail, hike on a steep fin, use your route finding skills on the primitive portion of the trail, and admire sweeping views of the area on the 7.8-mile trail.

FIERY FURNACE: The Fiery Furnace is a maze of sandstone fins that turn a reddish hue at sunset. You will need a permit to hike inside the furnace, but you can visit the overlook without one.

SAND DUNE & BROKEN ARCH: Sand Dune and Broken Arch can be visited by a short trail that connects both arches. Sand Dune Arch is tucked

STARGAZING: Arches National Park became an International Dark Sky Park in 2019. Panorama Point and The Windows make great stargazing locations. Rangers occasionally lead stargazing programs here as well.

LANDSCAPE ARCH: Landscape Arch is the longest arch in North America, spanning 306 feet. You can see it from the Devil’s Garden Trail, about 1 mile in.

PARK AVENUE: Park Avenue is a unique valley full of stunning rock formations near the entrance gate to the park. You can also see the Courthouse Towers and the La Sal Mountain Range from here. There is an overlook and a short hiking trail that leads you through the valley as well.

KLONDIKE BLUFFS & TOWER ARCH: The Klondike Bluffs section of the park is a seldom-visited, remote area. It requires driving 7.5 miles on a dirt road to get here. You can also hike to Tower Arch in this area of the park.

SKYLINE ARCH: Skyline Arch is a short, easy trail that is quick to visit. You can see it from the road, so you don’t even need to get out of your car!

When to Visit

The best time to visit Arches National Park is in the spring or fall. Temperatures in the Moab area are brutally hot in the summer, plus the parks will be swarmed with people once the kids are out of school.

October is another busy time to visit since you get all the fall breakers, but the weather is perfect. However with the timed entry system, crowds in the park were much lower than I expected, so I wouldn’t worry too much about this. If you really want to avoid the crowds, try visiting the last week of October or early November instead. 

Visiting Arches in the winter can also be a magical time to visit, especially if you get lucky with a dusting of snow. Large amounts of snow are rare, so it’s unlikely that park roads would become impassable. Going in the winter means shorter days and colder temperatures, but also much lower crowds.

How Many Days Do You Need?

Since Arches is such a compact park, you can see a lot of it in just one day. However, if you want to see the highlights and do the iconic hike to Delicate Arch in one day, prepare for a long day with a lot of walking and hiking (roughly 10 miles). 

If you’d like to see the main highlights, do a longer hike, visit the remote Klondike Bluffs section of the park, and/or explore the Fiery Furnace, I recommend spending 2-3 days in Arches National Park.

How to Get There

Arches National Park is located just 10 minutes north of Moab, Utah. The entrance gate to the park is located right off of US Highway 191 that goes through town.

The most convenient airport to fly into and rent a car is Salt Lake City. We found the SLC airport to be incredibly easy to navigate, clean, and quick to get through. Arches National Park and Moab is a 3.5-hour drive from Salt Lake City.

Moab does have its own airport, but there are only direct flights from Denver, Salt Lake City, and Phoenix. If you’re coming from one of these cities, it’s definitely worth looking into flying directly to Moab, otherwise the prices and layover times likely won’t make sense. 

Flying into Grand Junction, Colorado could be another good alternative (it is 2 hours from Moab), but the airport is small and there aren’t a ton of direct flights here either. 

Where to Stay

The best place to stay when visiting Arches National Park is in Moab, which is just 10 minutes south of the entrance gate to the park. There are no lodging or restaurants located within the park boundaries.

Moab is an outdoor lover’s hub and has tons of restaurants, chain hotels, adventure companies, and more. You won’t have any trouble finding a hotel or food in this town.

Moab is also a convenient location for visiting Canyonlands National Park, so you can settle in one place for multiple days.