How To Road Trip To Bryce National Park On Points

 

Road tripping to the National Parks is probably the best way to travel right now. It's outdoors and easy to socially distance. And pretty easy to do on points and miles. This past week since my daughter is on remote school and I work from home, we took a road trip to Zion and Bryce National Parks. 

You might recall that we did a huge family National Park trip last summer to Glacier, Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. And all we could say was wow. So I was pretty excited to set off on this road trip plus I've been itching to travel. 

Bryce and Zion National Parks are about a 2-hour drive apart. Depending on where you are coming from could determine which one you do first. But if you can, I highly recommend visiting Bryce first. The hoodoos in Bryce are spectacular and different, BUT Zion is stunning. 

There is a small town, Bryce Canyon City, just outside of the gate to Bryce National Park. There are about a dozen hotels, a campground, and a dozen restaurants. The FREE park shuttle stops several times on the main drag and runs from 7am-8pm. We left our car in the hotel parking lot and just hopped the shuttle. 

We stayed at the Best Western Plus Bryce Canyon Grand Hotel for two nights (one night with a promotion award certificate and one night with 20,000 Best Western points). There is another Best Western hotel called Ruby's Inn across the street which is advertised as historic and cozy. The rest of the hotels in town are independent so you may be able to book with Chase Ultimate Reward points through the travel portal (the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card has an 80,000 point bonus offer right now) or you can pay for them with your Capital One credit card or Bank of America Travel Card and erase the purchase. 

The hotel included a hot buffet breakfast. Due to Covid, there is staff serving the customers in the line. The wifi is good enough for remote school and work and there is a lot of FREE parking. 

Inside the park, I recommend checking out the view from Bryce point, then hopping the shuttle to Sunrise point. From there, you can walk the Rim Trail to Sunset Point (.5 mile) and walk down the Queens Garden Trail into the hoodoos. Remember you will have to walk back up! 

The Bryce National Canyon Lodge may be worth checking out as well. 

There are bikes to rent right outside the gate and the Visitor Center has a super informative museum.

If you plan to visit both parks, you may want to buy an annual National Parks pass for $80. It's good for 13 months if you plan it right since it's good for the month you buy it plus a year. Even if you ride the shuttle into the park, you still need to show your pass or pay your entry. 

If you decide to apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card which is offering the highest bonus we have ever seen at 80,000 Ultimate Reward points, consider applying through my referral link. 

While in Bryce Canyon City, definitely check out Bryce Canyon Pines for homemade soup and pie. YUM!