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    Best Friends Visitor Center

    5.0 (13 reviews)
    Closed 8:00 am - 5:00 pm

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    Helen F.

    This is a beautiful, spacious visitor center (not to be confused with the actual sanctuary). You can learn about Best Friends, sign up for tours, learn about their mission, buy some merch, and get a free photo. One some days, there are also adoptable kitties that you can pet. I stopped in a couple of times as this is located right next door to the best coffee in Kanab and each time, the staff was super friendly and helpful.

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    8 months ago

    What a tour, what a cafe, what a view and what a vibe. It is a happy place with happy people. Must see if you are visiting zion, bryce np.

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    1 year ago

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    8 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    9 years ago

    If you can spare some time to go out to the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary - it's well worth your attention. We did not visit this Center.

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    9 years ago

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    Review Highlights - Best Friends Visitor Center

    If you can spare some time to go out to the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary - it's well worth your attention.

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    Zion National Park Visitor Center - He is a fine looking man  :D

    Zion National Park Visitor Center

    4.4(84 reviews)
    28.0 mi

    The Zion Canyon Visitor Center was an amazing first stop and made the rest of our visit much…read moreeasier! We stopped during the fourth of July weekend at Zion from Las Vegas! It is located just inside Zion National Park's South Entrance at Springdale, Utah. This is the main visitor center for Zion Canyon so it is the most convenient location for getting maps, checking trail conditions, asking questions, and figuring out the shuttle system. The rangers were helpful, and the outdoor exhibits were useful for planning the day! The visitor center is right next to Zion Canyon Shuttle Stop 1, which is the starting point for the shuttle into the canyon. During shuttle season, private vehicles generally cannot travel along Zion Canyon Scenic Drive, so this is where most visitors begin their trip to places like Zion Lodge, The Grotto, Weeping Rock, and the Temple of Sinawava. The shuttle is free after entering the park, and no separate ticket or reservation is needed. Shuttles leave this stop seasonally, but operating times change throughout the year so be sure to check the schedule before your visit. There is a large parking lot, but it can fill quickly especially during summer, weekends, and holidays! Luckily we got in early around 6:30 A.M and found a spot open. Parking inside the park is free after paying the park entrance fee and is available on a first come, first served basis. When the lot is full, the best backup plan is to park in Springdale and take the free town shuttle to the entrance. The center also has restrooms, drinking water and bottle filling stations, picnic tables. There is a park store with maps, books, souvenirs, and gifts, plus a Wilderness Desk for questions and permits related to backpacking and canyoneering. The park itself is open 24 hours a day, but the buildings have set operating hours. The current posted hours are 8:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. for the Information Desk, 8:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m. for the Zion Park Store, and 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. for the Wilderness Desk. These hours can change seasonally, so double check before arriving! The Watchman Trail and the paved Pa'rus Trail are also accessible from this general area. I highly recommend stopping here before doing anything else in Zion!

    I love the design of the visitor center and its surroundings. The spacious bathrooms are in a…read moreseparate building so when things get busy, the queues aren't blocking access to other amenities. There are more information panels outdoors than indoors, which takes advantage of the large plaza space so that there's not a crowd indoors. There's an abundance of information about the hikes, ecology, and history of the area. There's even information about the construction of the eco-friendly visitor center! Indoors, there's the park shop and the information counter. The gift shop has a lot of books, plushies/kids activities, stickers, and other sundries. The rangers at the information desk were quick and efficient. They have to be given the sheer volume of visitors they have to help out! They were quite polite as well.

    Photos
    Zion National Park Visitor Center - Wilderness information desk

    Wilderness information desk

    Zion National Park Visitor Center
    Zion National Park Visitor Center - Zion NP Visitor Center

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    Zion NP Visitor Center

    Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center

    Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center

    4.4(16 reviews)
    45.6 mi

    This visitor center has all of the things that make a visitor center great: a large parking lot,…read morebathrooms, exhibits, helpful people, and a gift shop. It's also quite large, perfect for the hordes of guests during the busy season. The layout is literally perfect. As you enter, you see the washrooms marked to your left. It's perfectly out of the way if people have to queue, and doesn't disrupt the flow of the other parts of the building. Straight ahead is the NPS ranger desk, which has excellent sight lines from the entrance. You're not going to be confused where to ask for help! The rangers were super helpful with my night sky viewing questions. There is a large gift shop to the right, and then to the left are the exhibits. The gift shop has an extended selection of things to buy, probably due to its large size. It has the usual offerings of NPS items plus clothing, etc. The exhibits focus a lot on the geology of the area (which makes sense, people visit for the hoodoos!), but also on the ecosystem and the native Americans who live here. Great information.

    Bryce Canyon national park is another great national park in Southern UT…read more The visitor center is large, has restrooms, and plenty of souvenirs. There was a food truck setting up in the parking lot, I think selling coffee and donuts. The rangers were friendly and helpful answering questions about road closures and offering suggestions. A great national park to check out if you are in the area. Check out my photos.

    Photos
    Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center - Zion's Lions

    Zion's Lions

    Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center - Displays at Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center

    Displays at Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center

    Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center

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    Big Water Visitor Center - Exhibit

    Big Water Visitor Center

    4.9(7 reviews)
    47.6 mi

    Very, very limited hours due to budget cuts by the current administration unfortunately. This…read morevisitor center focuses on the early geologic and paleontological discoveries in the region. I didn't know, but apparently there are fourteen new dinosaur species that were discovered in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Super impressive especially given how unwelcoming the weather can be. There are both indoor and outdoor exhibits about paleontology and geology. There are also bathrooms and picnic areas, although it was pretty hot when I visited and no one was using them. Very informative! It's worth a stop if you're in the area.

    We stopped here on our way to Page, AZ from St. George, UT. We initially did not know that it was…read morethere and turned around to visit after we saw the signs as we passed by. We learned this visitor center is one of four visitor centers in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and is operated by the Bureau of Land Management. The visitor center has a lot of information about the monument especially regarding the dinosaurs who once lived in the area and the fossils that have been found in the area. They also have a small book store and gift shop. Overall, it is worth the stop. We didn't plan on doing any trails while in the area as it was a cold afternoon in January but the woman working seemed to be very knowledgeable and was giving another couple recommendations.

    Photos
    Big Water Visitor Center - Sign for the center

    Sign for the center

    Big Water Visitor Center - Visitor center

    Visitor center

    Big Water Visitor Center - Exterior

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    Exterior

    Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument - Willis Creek Narrows

    Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument

    4.8(32 reviews)
    51.0 mi

    The Toadstool Hoodoos are cool rock formations formed by differential erosion. They look like…read moremushrooms, as the harder rock caps and protects the softer rock underneath. The hike is an easy 1.5 miles. The views at the end are worth it, and you can get close to the rock formations as you like (although don't topple the rocks!). It's suitable for families with small children. If you don't mind driving on an unpaved road (I did it in a 2WD sedan), check out House Rock Valley Road for unparalleled views of the landscape with swirling sandstone, painted hills, and other cool rock formations. Check out the Wire Pass Trail for amazing slot canyons, although check the weather. If there's any chance for rain, do not enter the slot canyons since the formations channel water and form deadly floods in the canyon. The visitor center in Kanab is huge, with lots of good pamphlets and displays about the geology and archaeology of the area.

    This feels like a review in progress because the area is so large - but was pleasantly surprised by…read morehow much more I want to explore this region. We did Willis Creek Narrows and Lower Calf Creek Falls - both incredible. Now adding to the wish list for return trips. The drive along US 12 is just spectacular. Definitely recommend a high clearance vehicle with 4WD to access some of the more remote locations. Be prepared to adventure and bring what you need as this is not a manicured national park, but more a haven for those looking for an off-grid escape.

    Photos
    Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument - Visitor center

    Visitor center

    Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument - Visitor center

    Visitor center

    Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument

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    Bryce Canyon National Park - Breathtaking view!

    Bryce Canyon National Park

    4.8(754 reviews)
    48.0 mi

    Bryce National Park is beyond beautiful…read more The park has many walking trails along the rim as well as down in the canyon trails. Summer time can be a bit hot, average around 90* F. Bring plenty of fluids and be sure to have some healthy food before embarking on the trails Parking is very limited before 12pm. Utah is an hour ahead of NV and AZ. Be sure to pay attention. Park Rangers are available at all times. EMT are also on stand by. Take care and safety first. Stay 20ft back from the edge, no safety railings. Definitely worth every mile driven. The park is spectacular

    What's not to love about touring around to visit national parks? Nothing! That's what…read more In 2020 I did a lot of road-tripping. I drove more than 8000 miles between August and October. One of the many places on my list to see was Bryce Canyon National Park. I wanted to see the red rock canyons and formations. The skies were blue. The temps were hot but thankfully the soft breeze cooled it down a little. There were groups of people taking the canyon trails down into the valley. We weren't feeling that adventurous and we had our American Akita with us so it was a no go. The views were exceptional. The rock formations were really cool. We drove in and out of several areas of the park to check out the park and red rock from different angles. It was pretty cool. The visitor center was informative too. Highly recommend!

    Photos
    Bryce Canyon National Park - My son and I

    My son and I

    Bryce Canyon National Park - Hiking x February!! Ciao

    Hiking x February!! Ciao

    Bryce Canyon National Park - Though dry, green bushes still grow and the occasional yellow flower.

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    Though dry, green bushes still grow and the occasional yellow flower.

    The Wave at Coyote Buttes - Not crowded but some people hog this area for hours

    The Wave at Coyote Buttes

    4.8(31 reviews)
    51.5 mi

    After years of trying to apply for a permit, our group finally got picked! Highly recommend hiking…read moreat least once. I wouldn't do it again though, mainly because of how hard it was to get a permit. We visited in April and the weather was fantastic. It was actually freezing in the morning but as the sun rose, it warmed up to the point where we would sweat a little when hiking. I can't even imagine doing this in the summer but if you win the lottery then, make sure everyone brings plenty of water. To get to the trailhead, I'd recommend having a high-clearance vehicle, especially if it just recently rained. The road off of the freeway becomes unpaved and there are some ditches that can be flooded. Download an offline map of the trail and area for when you lose service. It gets spotty but you'll find reception every now and then. At the beginning, there are a couple of vault toilets. The trail itself is difficult to follow without an offline map. There's only a handful of signs pointing in a general direction. And until the Wave, we were pretty much the only people around. Considering only about 60 people are approved each day, it wasn't surprising, and honestly, kind of nice to be alone in nature. The Wave was everything we hoped for. We had clear, blue skies and that contrast with the red and orange rocks was beautiful. It looked exactly like the Windows background! There was even a pond further up with a ton of tadpoles. Besides the Wave, there's other neat waypoints to stop by but because we were tired, we didn't try for many of them. The only one we went out of our way for was the dinosaur tracks but it was anti-climatic. They just looked like larger chicken feet prints. Despite this hike being only about 6 miles round trip, it took pretty much the entire day. We stopped a lot to take pictures but also the landscape was difficult to hike. Lots of sand to walk through and lots of weird inclines to walk across, which kept our feet, knees, and legs at weird angles. There might have been easier pathways but as I said earlier, there's no clear indications of a trail. There was also a BLM worker at the Wave asking for the permit holders. If you hike without one and get caught, you'll get slapped with some steep fines. Drones are also not allowed!

    My friend won the online lottery for the permit 4 months in advance but after talking to the…read moreranger, it seems that there's a good chance you can win the daily lottery since a lot of people cancel every day. It's easier if you have less people (like two people). Anyways, the orientation the day before was useful for weather and road conditions. The hike wasn't too bad, can be a bit steep in some parts but for the most part, not too much incline. It's moderate for the novice hiker but easy for an experienced hiker. For experienced hikers, probably can get to the Wave in 1 to 1.5 hours. For the inexperienced, it might take 2.5 to 3 hours. Either way, if you're planning to spend a lot of time at the Wave (some people take 2-3 hours for their extensive Instagram photoshoots haha), definitely go there early and spend all day there. I would definitely come back if I win the lottery!

    Photos
    The Wave at Coyote Buttes
    The Wave at Coyote Buttes
    The Wave at Coyote Buttes

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    Best Friends Visitor Center - visitorcenters - Updated August 2026

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