4 Days: Vegas and Southwest Parks
4 Days: Vegas and Southwest Parks
Four days is where this trip stops being one park and becomes a real loop: Zion and Bryce Canyon, linked by an 85-mile drive, both worth their own overnight. One Strip night bookends the two-park stretch on either side. Only chasing Zion alone? Drop to 3 days . Want Antelope Canyon added too? Move up to 5 days , or read the full Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon and Zion guide .
Book these before you go
- A rental car in Las Vegas , the entire loop depends on it
- A Springdale hotel at Zion’s gate
- A Bryce Canyon City hotel close enough for a sunrise start on the rim
Day 1: Arrival and one lap of the Strip
Land at Harry Reid International, not McCarran, retired since 2021, and expect rideshare pickup inside the parking garage with a flat $4.50 surcharge either way. Check into a Center Strip hotel and register the resort fee immediately, roughly $55 a night pretax, mandatory. Walk one stretch of the Strip, catch the free Bellagio Fountains, and get to bed early, tomorrow’s drive is long.
Day 2: Zion National Park, hike, overnight in Springdale
About 160 miles up I-15, 2.5 to 3 hours from the Strip. Entry is $35 per vehicle for seven days, plus a new $100 non-U.S.-resident surcharge as of January 1, 2026, worth budgeting for if it applies to you. The free shuttle needs no reservation and runs March 7 through November 28, 2026, first bus at 7am. Hike the Riverside Walk or Emerald Pools in the afternoon, both manageable without the Angels Landing permit lottery, then overnight in Springdale right at the gate.
Day 3: Zion to Bryce Canyon, sunset on the hoodoos
A short morning trail before checkout, then the 85-mile, roughly 2-hour drive east on Highway 9 and 89/12 to Bryce Canyon, its own separate $35 vehicle entry (and the same new non-resident surcharge). Bryce’s hoodoos read best in late afternoon light, so time your arrival for a sunset stop at Sunset Point or Bryce Point before checking into a hotel in Bryce Canyon City.
Day 4: Bryce sunrise, then the drive back to Vegas
Bryce’s hoodoos are arguably better at sunrise than sunset, so get to Sunrise Point or the Navajo Loop trailhead before the day-trippers arrive. Then it’s the long haul back to the Strip, roughly 270 to 280 miles, 4.5 to 5 hours direct, so plan fuel and food stops rather than pushing straight through. You’ll land back in Vegas with enough evening left for a real dinner before your flight.
Do Zion and Bryce actually work as one trip, or should you pick just one?
They work well together specifically because they’re only 85 miles apart, a 2-hour link rather than a full driving day. Zion gives you canyon-floor scale and accessible hiking; Bryce gives you the hoodoo amphitheater and thinner crowds. Skipping one to “do the other properly” isn’t necessary at this distance, take both.
At a glance
| Day | Distance / drive time | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Airport to Strip, 10-20 min | Strip walk, Bellagio Fountains, early night |
| 2 | Strip to Zion, 160 mi / 2.5-3 hrs | Riverside Walk or Emerald Pools, overnight Springdale |
| 3 | Zion to Bryce, 85 mi / ~2 hrs | Morning trail, drive east, sunset at Bryce Point |
| 4 | Bryce to Strip, 270-280 mi / 4.5-5 hrs | Sunrise on the hoodoos, long drive back, dinner in Vegas |
Gas up in Bryce Canyon City before day 4, not along the way back, the stretch between Bryce and the Vegas exurbs runs longer between stations than it looks on a map.