How many different ways can you say “SPECTACULAR?” Utah is one of those places where you will use up all of those synonyms. Utah is a place unlike many others: National Parks, National Monuments, National Recreation areas, mountains and wide open spaces! This springtime tour will take you to one of America’s most wonderful destinations and to get there on this special “road trip” we will travel through Kansas and Colorado, stopping at some great historical, cultural and geologically spectacular areas. Wild West, Canyons, Hoodoos, Buttes and Mesas are all waiting for you to witness their splendor!
Day 1 – Home to York, NE
Our roadtrip west begins today! Get to know your traveling companions and enjoy the scenery as we motor down the highway. Tonight a relaxing stay in York, NE is planned.
Included Meals: Dinner
Hotel: Holiday Inn Express
Day 2 – York to Dodge City, KS
Today we “hit the trail” literally as part of the day we travel near the Santa Fe Trail of days gone by. Imagine the wagons heading west and the cowboys herding their cattle in this area. Just a piece down the trail we’ll make a stop at Fort Larned National Historic Site. Fort Larned was known as “Home of the Guardians of the Santa Fe Trail.” Many of the sandstone buildings still stand at this site and we’ll enjoy a walk among them, reliving history. A little further down the trail we come to Dodge City, Kansas! Sorry to say that Matt Dillon is not the US Marshall here, but don’t worry the local authorities have things under control! A Trolley tour around town will introduce us to this “Wild West” stop and then after we check into our hotel, we head down to the Long Branch Saloon for dinner and a variety show with dancers, singing bartenders and more!
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Hampton Inn
Day 3 – Dodge City to Canon City, CO
A great breakfast this morning will get us ready for the day. First, we stop back at the Boot Hill Museum to learn some more about Dodge City and its past. Then we board the motorcoach and head west towards Colorado. We will be following the Arkansas River and the Santa Fe Route for much of the day.
Included Meals: Breakfast
Hotel: Hampton Inn
Day 4 – Canon City to Durango, CO
Our first stop this morning is at Royal Gorge Bridge and Park where we will have the opportunity to take a gondola ride 2,400 feet across the gorge and 1,000 feet above the Arkansas River below! This will give us spectacular views of the gorge and the area (if we keep our eyes open!) Once on the far side of the gorge you will experience walking back across the spectacular Royal Gorge Bridge, which is one of the world’s highest bridges! There is plenty more to see and do at this stop and plenty of pictures to take so make sure your batteries are charged! We’ll board the motorcoach after lunch and travel to Durango. This drive is amazing! We travel along the Sangre De Cristo Mountains and then up and over Wolf Creek Pass at an elevation of over 10,000 ft! Chances are pretty good we’ll still see snow on the mountains…let’s just hope it’s not on the roadways! We’ll settle into the hotel tonight for a comfortable rest after a great day.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Doubletree
Day 5 – Durango to Kayenta, AZ
Enjoy breakfast this morning before we take a short drive to the first of our National Park visits. Today we enjoy the sites and history of Mesa Verde National Park, a World Heritage Site! We’ll experience the culture of the Ancestral Puebloan people in this area, which includes over 600 cliff dwellings. From museums to great views of these sensational cliff dwellings, we will learn the history and be awed by the ingenuity of the Puebloan cliff dwellers who lived here hundreds of years ago. We’ll take time for lunch in the park before we begin our journey towards Kayenta, AZ for the night and a great included dinner with your fellow travelers before you relax for the evening.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Hampton Inn
Day 6 – Kayenta to Page, AZ
This morning we take a short drive to Monument Valley. We’ll board special vehicles for our driving tour into Monument Valley where we will view some of the most iconic rock formations in the country. The valley boasts sandstone masterpieces that tower at heights of 400 to 1000 feet above the desert floor. Not only will you enjoy the great rock formations, but also the surrounding miles of mesas and buttes, shrubs, trees and windblown sand! You’ll recognize these formations from movies and commercials you’ve seen on TV. As we journey through the valley we’ll learn about the Navajo people who live here and the special love they have for this sacred place. We’ll enjoy a Navajo Taco lunch before we depart the area and travel towards Page, AZ. As we travel into Page and we begin to see the waters of Lake Powell, we will stop at Antelope Canyon. This sandstone canyon carved by flood waters is a sculptured masterpiece and we will even walk in the midst of it! Our cameras will be clicking but make sure you just stop and take it all in! Tonight we check into Lake Powell Resort on the banks of the second largest man-made lake in the country, Lake Powell.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Hotel: Lake Powell Resort
Day 7 – Page to Bryce, UT
After a plentiful breakfast this morning, complete with a panoramic view of Lake Powell, we will board our motorcoach and travel to our next destination, Zion National Park. On our way we travel the southern border of The Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. This is the largest National Monument in the country, covering over 1.9 million acres! From the road you will view some of the Grand Staircase of cliffs and terraces. Not far down the road we travel into Utah’s first National Park, Zion. Here we will have the joy of gazing up at massive sandstone cliffs of cream, pink and red that soar into a brilliant blue sky. If you choose you can hike up a slot canyon or follow a trail to beautiful emerald pools. Time will be given to enjoy the park as we ride the park tram that departs at many stops to enjoy the views. Lunch will be served in Zion Lodge before we depart the park and travel to our next stop, Ruby’s Inn, just outside Bryce Canyon National Park. We will check in for a two night stay. Have dinner on your own at this fine resort complex.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Hotel: Ruby’s Inn (2 Nights)
Day 8 – Bryce Canyon National Park
Enjoy a hearty breakfast today, preparing us for an adventure into the picturesque Bryce Canyon National Park. First stop is the Visitor Center to learn a bit about the park through displays and a fine movie presentation. We then drive to the southern and highest point of the park, Rainbow Point where we make our first of many stops to enjoy the views of this park, which are like no other park in the country! The Giant Hoodoos (pillars of rock left standing from the forces of erosion) are unforgettable and while we will take lots of pictures, they just won’t do it justice! One has to experience this park to fully grasp the beauty of it. We arrive back at the Inn early this afternoon for a late lunch and then the rest of the day is free for you to enjoy and rest. Or if you choose, how about a hike down into the canyon surrounded by hoodoos? A hearty included dinner tonight will put the finishing touches on this great day!
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Day 9 – Bryce Canyon to Moab, Utah
We depart this morning on a travel day. This, however, is not an ordinary travel day – we will be traveling some of the most scenic roads in all of Utah, if not the United States! We’ll drive past towering mesas and deep canyons and pass through Capitol Reef National Park before we get to the heart of “slickrock” country. Then it’s up and over a mountain pass while traveling through Dixie National Forest. We’ll take some time and stop for pictures, a short hike and some lunch along the way before we arrive at Moab. Our drive is not yet complete as we’ll turn the coach along the banks of the Colorado River for our last few miles traveling through the red sandstone cliffs on our way to Red Cliffs Lodge for a two night stay.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Hotel: Red Cliffs Lodge (2 Nights)
Day 10 – Arches National Park
Rise this morning and listen to the creek or river just outside your door before you have breakfast at the lodge. Take in the beautiful sunrise as you enjoy your pancakes, eggs, sausage or oatmeal this morning. We’ll travel along the river back to Moab and take the short drive to the “Islands in the Sky” section of Canyonlands National Park. Here we will experience vistas that allow us to look out over vast canyons created by rivers over thousands and thousands of years. Take some pictures or just sit on a rock and enjoy the views that this day holds in store for you! After our time in the park, we will travel back to Moab for a late lunch (on own) and a chance to look around and check out the local shops! Then we’re back at the ranch later this afternoon to enjoy the amenities of this great lodge before another great dinner is served.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Day 11 – Moab to Price, UT
We know you are not going to want to leave this wonderful place but after breakfast this morning we board our coach for a short drive to our first stop, Arches National Park. After visiting the visitor center to gather some information about the park, we travel up and into the park. First stop will be, “Balanced Rock.” It’s one of those natural sites that makes one wonder how that rock stays up there! We’ll then travel on to stops where we can view some of the Arches and Windows that make this park famous. We depart the park and travel to Green River for lunch and then it’s down the road to Price for a visit to the Prehistoric Museum. With displays about paleontology and archeology, the past of this area will be revealed to us. One of the main attractions is the large collection of dinosaur skeletons!
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Holiday Inn Express
Day 12 – Price to Rock Springs, WY
This morning we drive through the mining town of Helper, UT. While the town is not what it was during its “boom” days, we will get a feel for the past as we drive through on our way to Provo for lunch. Then we board the historic Heber Valley Railroad train for a scenic ride. The train travels along the banks of the beautiful Provo River and the shore of Deer Creek Reservoir, complete with sweeping vistas of mountains in the distance. We make our way out of Utah and into Wyoming where we will overnight in Rock Springs.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Hampton Inn
Day 13 – Rock Springs to Rapid City, SD
Following breakfast we board our motorcoach for a travel day. Not just any travel day however, as we will be motoring down scenic roads with mountain vistas, antelope on the prairies, and great company in the motorcoach! Our destination tonight is Rapid City where a farewell dinner is served after checking into our hotel.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Comfort Inn & Suites
Day 14 – Rapid City to Home
Today we’ll travel across the plains of South Dakota and across the “Wide Missouri” on our way towards home. With lunch along the way, we continue to make our way into Minnesota. It’s been a great tour with spectacular scenery and awesome traveling companions!
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Motorcoach Per Person Pricing Information
Motorcoach Travel Protection Per Person
Travel Bucks
Deposit Due
Passport Needed
Tour Pace
Price Includes
28 Meals, Hotels & Activities as stated in brochure, Luxury Motorcoach
Tour Map
Tour Highlights
6 National Parks:
Mesa Verde
Zion
Bryce Canyon
Capitol Reef
Arches
Canyonlands
Grand Staircase – Escalante National Monument
Antelope Canyon Tour
Monument Valley Tour
Historic Railroad Train Ride
Royal Gorge Park
Dodge City Old West Highlights