Arches National Park is in eastern Utah right outside Moab. It is close to get to from the other Utah National Parks, only 30 minutes from Canyonlands National Park, 2 hours from Capitol Reef National Park, and 5 hours from Zion National Park. There is only 1 entrance into Arches National Park and one main road that drives by all the awesome viewpoints and campgrounds. If you don’t feel like hiking in Arches National Park, you’ll be able to enjoy a ton of arches and other great scenery from the road. There is some amazing scenery in Utah and we’re sharing our favorite Arches National Park hikes with you! We also share some tips for camping in Arches National Park as well as the best time to visit the park.
The Best Hikes in Arches National Park
Delicate Arch
Distance: 3 miles
Difficulty: difficult (due to lack of shade and steep cliffs)
The delicate arch hike is one of the most popular hikes in Arches National Park. The arch is one of the most widely recognized symbol of Utah. The hike is a 3 mile round trip hike that takes you close to the delicate arch. The delicate arch is the largest free-standing arch in Arches National Park, at 64 feet high. Because this is one of the most famous arches, expect the trailhead and arch to be very busy.
There is an additional delicate arch viewpoint that is .5 miles roundtrip, but you don’t get as great of view of the arch. We unfortunately ran out of time for the full hike, and only did the half-mile viewpoint, and we need to make sure to do the full hike right up to the arch next time.
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Balanced Rock
Distance: .3 miles
Difficulty: easy
Balanced rock isn’t really a hike, its more of a short loop walk to see the balanced rock up close. It’s one of the first attractions you will see after entering the park entrance, right before you go to the windows section. You can also see the balanced rock from the road if you don’t feel like pulling over.
Landscape Arch
Distance: 1.6 miles
Difficulty: easy
Landscape arch may be one of the world’s largest spanning arch, which spans more than a football field in length. To reach the landscape arch, you’ll want to park at the Devil’s Garden trailhead. Landscape arch hike is a relatively flat hike, with available side hikes to Tunnel and Pine tree arches along the way. When you get to Landscape arch, you have the option of continuing on Devils Garden loop for more intense hike. This is one of the best easy hikes in Arches National Park.
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Devils Garden Loop
Distance: 7.2 miles
Difficulty: strenuous
Devils Garden Loop includes landscape arch, Tunnel arch, pine tree arch, and double O. If you want to continue on after you reach landscape arch, and are ready for some more strenuous hiking, continue along devil’s garden loop. You’ll experience more arches, as well as some heights along the way. This is a primitive trail so make sure you have some good hiking shoes with traction and lots of water.
Double Arch
Distance: .5 miles
Difficulty: easy
The hike to the double arch is relatively flat and easy. When you get closer to the arch you’ll have some rocks to traverse. The double arch is the joining of 2 arches together. Make sure when you are under the arch, you look up to appreciate the double arch. Since this is such a easy hike, expect lots of people and kids to be here.
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The Windows
Distance: 1 mile
Difficulty: easy
At the Windows section, you can see the North Window, South Window, and the Turret Arch all in a one-mile loop. The north and south window are right next to each other. When you are hiking up to Turret arch, make sure to turn around to see the windows. This is a great spot to come for sunrise in the park.
Broken Arch
Distance: 2 miles
Difficulty: easy
Broken Arch hike gets skipped often, but it’s a relatively easy hike, and you can even play under the arch. The trail has some sand dunes and slick rock.
Fiery Furnace
Distance: varies
Difficulty: advanced (requires ranger or permit)
The Fiery furnace hike is a series of sandstone canyons that has a challenging terrain. To enter the fiery furnace you must accompany a ranger-guided hike or get a day-use permit at the visitors center. There is not really a trail, it’s must of a collection of slots and boulders that you must navigate through.
Arches National Park trail map
We’ve added a map of all the hikes in Arches National Park. All the hikes are labeled, so hopefully this is helpful when planning your Arches National Park hiking.
Camping in Arches National Park
If you’re interested in camping in Arches National Park there is only one campground in Arches National Park, at Devils Garden Campground. You can reserve campgrounds from March 1-October 31. Between November 1-February, campgrounds are first-come, first-served. Since it’s the only campground in the park, it will fill up fast. There are only 50 campsites available, which are $25/night.
If you can’t find any sites available at Devils Garden Campground, there are plenty of BLM campsites around Moab. We camped for 3 days at some BLM land right outside of Moab, that was absolutely beautiful!
Best time to visit Arches National Park
The best time to visit Arches National Park is either April and May, or September and October. While there is no bad time to visit Arches National Park, there are definitely some better options.
The summer (June-August) can be super hot and also super busy. If this is the only time you can come, be prepared for lots of crowds, and bring lots of water.
The fall (September-November) has slightly cooler days, but still dry, and generally less people. Since it is more mild in the wall and because Utah offers such great weather, it can still be busy.
The winter (December-February) can be very chilly, potentially even snow, but that generally means less crowds. Be aware that roads and trails may be closed due to weather.
The spring (March-May) offers great weather, not as hot as summer. Because of the great weather, be prepared for crowds. **Also be aware of National Park week in April.
What was your favorite Arches National Park hike? Have you done any or all of these hiking trails?
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Nice hiking trails, never thought it would be so many arches to visit, it sounds like a new way of making tourism.