Setting behind red rock formations, a golden sun casts long shadows across the sandy desert floor. Towering monoliths and huge arches are lit up in all hues of yellow, orange, gold and red, while the brightest stars begin to appear in the sky above.
A raven flies in front of the full moon that shines overhead. You grab your camera and take some of the best travel photos you’ve ever taken.
How could you not? This is Arches National Park, home to the world’s densest concentration of natural rock arches and one of the most photogenic national parks in America.
The park encompasses more than 2,000 catalogued rock arches. They range in size from three feet (90 centimeters), which is the minimum required length of an arch, to almost three hundred feet (90 meters).
Best Things to See And Do In Arches National Park, Utah
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The easternmost of the five Utah national parks, Arches National Park is an extremely accessible park, located just five miles from the adventure-focused town of Moab in southeastern Utah.
Spectacular Canyonlands National Park is right next door as well.
Begin your visit by stopping at the Arches visitor center to pick up a map and park newspaper, before exploring the park on its only road—the Arches Scenic Drive.
Meandering its way for 19 miles through a desert landscape filled with rock spires and arches, fins and cliffs, and boulders and monoliths, it takes you past essentially all the best things to see in Arches National Park. Or at least, it brings you within striking distance of them.
11 Top Arches National Park Attractions
Some attractions require you to do some of the Arches National Park hikes, while others lie just on the side of the road. This is without a doubt one of the most scenic roads in the national parks of the USA.
The beauty of this iconic national park, besides literally its stunning beauty, is that it’s possible to check off all the best things to do in Arches National Park in one day.
It’s not the largest of parks and the Scenic Drive allows you to get to many places effortlessly.
However, I recommend that you allow plenty of time to do a few of the wonderful hikes in Arches National Park, some of which are truly spectacular.
I’ve listed my favorite sights in Arches National Park below. Hopefully, this list will inspire you to visit this easternmost of the Utah national parks. If you do, let it serve as a checklist of things to see in Arches National Park.
1. Delicate Arch
Arguably the most famous natural arch in America, Delicate Arch stands almost impossibly free atop a plateau, framing the La Sal Mountains perfectly. It’s the park’s main attraction.
In fact, it may be the most well-known place in all of Utah. It’s depicted on the state’s license plates and in virtually all tourist brochures. You can see Delicate Arch from two viewpoints, both a short hike from a spacious parking lot.
These viewpoints, however, are nothing compared to seeing this magnificent arch from up close. A 3-mile (5-kilometer) round-trip hike takes you there.
Note, though, that this is a pretty challenging and exposed hike. You should take plenty of water with you, as well as a hat and sunscreen.
2. The Windows
Offering the most value for the least effort anywhere in Arches National Park, The Windows area features three major arches.
From the parking lot, it’s only half a mile (800 meters), a gentle and easy climb, to Turret Arch and the enormous North and South Windows.
You’re free to explore these arches, climb in them and wander around them as you please.
There are plenty of great photo ops in this area, especially with its beautiful backdrop of the La Sal Mountains. In my opinion, it’s the best sunset spot in Arches National Park.
3. Double Arch
Just across the road from The Windows lies Double Arch, one of the most famous arches and highlights in Arches National Park.
Consisting of two separate arches that share one leg, it was created by water that seeped into the rock from atop the sandstone formation, eroding it from the inside.
The trail to Double Arch is only a quarter-mile (400 meters) long, starting at the Windows parking lot. You can climb into the arches for great views of The Windows.
It’s one of my favorite sights in Arches National Park because of both the sheer enormity of Double Arch and the amazing views from inside the arch.
4. Landscape Arch
Stretching out for about 290 feet (88 meters), the golden-colored Landscape Arch is the world’s longest natural arch. It beats Kolob Arch in Zion National Park by a mere three feet (one meter).
If you’re making a list of what to do in Arches National Park in one day, this should be one of your focal points.
A sliver of rock that’s so thin and long it seems ready to come crashing down at any moment, it’s a more than impressive arch. You can get there on a 1.6-mile (2.6-kilometer) round-trip hike.
The trailhead lies at the very end of the Scenic Drive. Make sure to get there early in the morning, as it gets pretty busy toward midday.
Note that because of occasional rock falls, you’re not allowed near it. You can only see and photograph Landscape Arch from a viewpoint.
5. Devils Garden
Devils Garden lies at the very end of the Scenic Drive, 19 miles (30 kilometers) from the visitor center. It’s the location of the Devils Garden Campground, the park’s only campground and the starting point of several hiking trails.
The Devils Garden Trail is a loop trail that combines a few other, shorter trails. More than 8 miles (13 kilometers) long, it’s the longest hiking trail in Arches National Park.
Taking you through a remote desert landscape dotted with arches, it’s also definitely the greatest trail in the park, one of the greatest day hikes in the national park system.
The trail loops past no fewer than seven natural arches—Landscape Arch, Tunnel Arch, Pine Tree Arch, Partition Arch, Navajo Arch, Double O Arch and Private Arch.
As I said above, this area gets busier and hotter as the day goes on. I suggest that you start this fantastic hike as early in the morning as you can.
It is also a good idea to plan a trip to this part of the country in spring, which is by far the most comfortable time of year weather-wise.
In fact, Arches is one of the greatest U.S. national parks to visit in spring.
6. Park Avenue
Often skipped by people who can’t wait to see the arches, Park Avenue is one of the first major Arches National Park attractions you come across when driving on the Scenic Drive. Make sure to stop there.
It’s a totally overwhelming place, showing that Arches National Park is about more than just hundreds of natural arches.
On the Park Avenue Trail, you will find yourself walking along towering red-rock cliffs and fins.
A 1-mile (1.6-kilometer) one-way trail, it passes by many of the park’s greatest monoliths, bearing epic names such as the Tower of Babel, the Three Gossips, Queen Nefertiti and the Organ.
While you can see those formations from the road, it’s quite a different experience to walk past them. Hiking is the only way to fully appreciate their immense scale.
7. Courthouse Towers
A collection of massive rock pillars and columns, Courthouse Towers lies across the road at the end of the one-way Park Avenue Trail.
While you’re obviously encouraged to hike through Park Avenue to get there, you can also easily reach this imposing formation by car. It lies just besides the Scenic Drive and there’s a small parking lot.
This is, incidentally, also where Park Avenue hikers who don’t want to retrace their steps can be picked up.
8. Garden of Eden
One of my favorite sights in Arches National Park is the Garden of Eden Viewpoint.
A short trail off the road toward The Windows leads to a breathtaking view of the cliffs, boulders, arches and pinnacles of that area. This is one of my favorite views in America’s national parks.
This is all backed by the spectacular, snow-capped La Sal Mountains. It’s at its most beautiful early in the morning and late in the evening, just after sunrise or just before sunset.
9. Balanced Rock
One of the most striking places in Arches National Park is Balanced Rock. This impressive rock formation is clearly visible from the Scenic Drive, towering 128 feet (39 meters) above the desert floor.
You can also get closer to the formation on a short and easy loop trail.
Although it may appear to challenge gravity from atop its rocky pedestal, Balanced Rock isn’t really balanced. The huge boulder at the top, which is a large as three school buses, is firmly attached to the rock below.
This doesn’t mean, however, that it’ll be there forever. Erosion is a powerful and on-going force in Arches National Park and will eventually wear down this formation, causing it to topple over.
10. Petrified Dunes
This is another viewpoint on the Scenic Drive that’s worth stopping at.
Let me first note, though, that the name of this area isn’t correct. “Petrified” means that something that was once alive has been turned into stone. A great example of this is the petrified wood in Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona.
So, technically it’s impossible for sand dunes to become petrified. Fossilized Dunes would’ve been a better name.
Anyways, the hundreds of ancient sand dunes scattered across a vast desert landscape are still a beautiful sight. Once again, the La Sal Mountains form a magnificent background.
Tip: for the tallest sand dunes in North America, visit Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado!
11. Native American Petroglyphs
There are a few sites in Arches National Park where you can see Native American rock art or petroglyphs. The most accessible one is just off the Delicate Arch Trail near the historic Wolfe Ranch.
Petroglyphs, art created by carving into a rock face, can be seen all across the Colorado Plateau, the former home region of the ancestral Puebloans.
Several other national parks also have petroglyphs. These include Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado, Capitol Reef National Park in Utah and Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona.
Easy and Accessible
I appreciated many things about this particular park. In addition to these amazing attractions in Arches National Park, I liked how accessible everything is, how downright phenomenal the sunsets are, and how it’s impossible to take bad photos.
I also enjoyed the vibe in nearby Moab. Arguably America’s single greatest national parks gateway town, this vibrant and happening town is the perfect base for a visit to both Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park. The capital of Utah, Salt Lake City is less than fours north.
Other National Parks to Explore
- Death Valley National Park Attractions
- Crater Lake National Park Attractions
- Petrified Forest National Park Attractions
- Canyonlands National Park Attractions
- Acadia National Park Attractions
- Joshua Tree National Park Attractions
- Mesa Verde National Park Attractions
- Shenandoah National Park Attractions
- Capitol Reef National Park Attractions
- Cuyahoga Valley National Park Attractions
- Theodore Roosevelt National Park Attractions
- Olympic National Park Attractions
- Mount Rainier National Park Attractions
- Dry Tortugas National Park Attractions