If you're heading to Zion and want something that feels straight out of a Western movie, Grafton…read moreGhost Town is 100% worth the quick detour. We stopped here not expecting much, and it ended up being one of the most unique spots of the trip. This place dates back to the 1860s and was settled by pioneers trying to farm along the Virgin River. Between floods, isolation, and tough conditions, the town was eventually abandoned--but what's left behind is seriously cool. Unlike a lot of ghost towns, Grafton actually has several well-preserved buildings, including an old schoolhouse, homes, and even a cemetery. Walking through it feels quiet... almost too quiet. It's the kind of place where you can actually picture what life was like back then. And the setting? Unreal. You've got massive red rock cliffs from Zion in the background, which makes it feel way more cinematic than your average historical stop. It's no surprise this place has been used in movies. There's no entry fee, no crowds (usually), and no over-the-top tourist setup--just raw history and insane scenery. If you're already visiting Zion, skipping Grafton would honestly be a mistake. It's quick, eerie, beautiful, and totally unforgettable. Follow us for more hidden gems on our socials @reessroots

I remember going to Grafton with my family when I was a child, so when I had the opportunity to go…read moreback and visit as an adult, I was excited to see how it changed. It's much cleaner and well-maintained than I remembered. I think the LDS church owns the property now and is doing some renovations on the buildings. You can walk through most of the buildings as well as the grounds around them. It's a neat stop and worth taking the time to be in the space and energy of some of Utah's history.

Very peaceful, secluded find. Previous review really says it all. Space is very well taken care of…read moreproving the residents love providing this space in their beautiful red cliffs niche just outside of St. George. Worth the drive and time to reflect.

I just love thissss!! Beautiful desert rose labyrinth built by local residents in Kayenta. Shout…read moreout to my nephew for discovering this work of art in Southern Utah! Just 7 miles west of St. George. After an excellent lunch at Xetava Gardens Cafe, we walked across the street to explore the desert arboretum, which included this fabulous labyrinth. Open to the public 7 days a week. To me, it was a therapeutic visit! A pretty awesome space to sit and meditate. There were benches that were placed along the path as well as some interesting art sculptures to admire. Take your time to stroll inside the labyrinth to find its center. Great time to gather your most important thoughts and prayers. May peace be with you!

This is a really random find but it's neat! Just 3-4 mins down the road from thunderbird restaurant…read moreand the main junction going towards/away from Zion's east entrance is this little cave formation. There's tons of parking in the gravel lot outside of it. The actual cave part is short, you can walk through it in like 5 mins. The path continues for a while outside; it's mainly sand and seems fairly flat but I didn't go far before turning back. Not the inside of the cave part does get VERY dark for a short distance; I was trying to use only light from the entrance exit and I almost ate dirt a couple times in the middle so use your flashlight. Overall, this spot isn't far off the path if you're road tripping around to national parks (which I was), but I wouldn't go out of your way if it's far/way off whatever path you're taking.

It's a quick thrill right off hwy 89. Worth stopping and doing if you're going through the area…read more It's free. Served as a manmade drainage tunnel under hwy so not natural but fun. Entrance 50 steps away from parking but have to get down a short concrete wall to go in. Bring a flashlight or use your cellphone light as it's dark in the center and isn't a wide walking area. About 40 yards through to other side. White dust particles in the air in here so wear a mask if you're sensitive.

This is a beautiful town for hikes and rural adventures. It has a brewer , bar, restaurants,…read moregrocery store, several hotels, Bed & breakfasts, guided tours etc. It's know as the south Zion area and is growing rapidly.

Even though I was born here, I have to work in St. George to make a living here and to also…read moresurvive. I don't recommend it for businesses just yet It hasn't grown big enough just yet but when this town improves I'll rate this better.

I finally made my way to Utah, yall! Whoo; Checked another state off my list! My homegirl and I had…read morea lovely weekend hanging out in Utah and hiking any available trail we seen along the way. On the way to Kanab, we did hit some nasty weather but thank goodness we made it to the hotel safe and sound. We found ourselves with only 1 night in the quiet city in Kanab but we truly enjoyed every minute we spent here. If you only have a couple of hours or days in Kanab, below is a small list of to-dos when you are in the City. First and foremost, I want to brag a lil' 'bout the amazing hotel we stayed it! Only have one night? Welp, I encourage you to treat yourself to the Comfort Suites--Please make sure you get the King Suite and life lavish for a night! :: Smiles:: During our short time here, we realized that Kanab is a quiet city that offers an abundance of things to do around the area. It's a central location to many different locations and activities. VISIT A NATIONAL PARK: Within the proximity of Kanab, there were 3 national parks along the way. Most of them took less than 80 minutes. Make sure you check out one of the following when in the area: Bryce Canyon National Park (1 hr and 30 min); Zion National Park (40 min); Grand Canyon North Rim (90 minutes) VISIT A STATE PARK: Yup! You heard me right! We drove about 30 minutes to check out Coral Pink Sand Dunes. A 3,700 acres park that can be seen from many different entrances. The park is pretty quiet and perfect for the 'Gram! Imagine everything from ATV riding, hiking and just playing around in the Pink sand. This park is truly the definition of unique in every way. TRAVEL IN FEBRUARY: Yes, Kanab is extremely popular in February! Experience the lovely weather to the Balloons and Tunes Festival that includes several activities including a street fair. BAR LIFE: Juniper Ridge Restaurant and Saloon for delicious drinks and live music! DINNER: Sego Restaurant Peekaboo Canyon Wood Fired Kitchen Escobar's Mexican Restaurant (Mexican Food) Iron Horse Restaurant and Saloon (Steakhouse) The only thing I wish I would have done is to stay longer in Kanab to really take in all the beauty! Make sure to book for more than one night as there is a lot to do in this little quiet City! Don't sleep on Kanab, yall, it has a little bit of everything for everyone!

When I was on the road during 4th of July I caught the community celebration here and it's one of…read moremy more memorable ones. The setting is in a park surrounded by the famous red rock cliffs of southern Utah. The fireworks show blazing in the skies and lighting up the nearby cliffs made for an amazing sight

On the way to Goblin State Park and Arches National park so had to make a quick stop at the…read morebeautiful smooth city of Beaver. I love beaver. Nice little town. Clean, they trim their bushes and it smelled great.

Nieces people! Great food choices!…read more Love loaded burger, Beaver Taco, The Drive In, Kan Kun, Maria's, and the Timberline!

I think the nearby Best Friends Animal Society bought the land since the parking lot for this hike…read moreshares a food truck of theirs. Also, the way up to the cliffs crosses some bare sandstone and there are cute paw prints to help guide you up. Cute! I went later in the day so it was not crowded with maybe a handful of other groups there. The first part of the hike is fairly level on the sandy ground, but the second part is on a inclined sandstone cliff. There's multiple ways to go up. Once you make it to the caves, enjoy the view! These caves are man made, from when there was a sand mining industry in the area. Since the walls are soft, some people have unfortunately carved graffiti into the walls. Bring shoes with traction and a flashlight (phone flashlight is fine since the caves aren't deep). No washrooms are available, so plan accordingly.

A really cool and challenging hike. From the parking lot the trail is kind of defined and you…read morefollow the pathway. It forks out in a couple of places and then comes back together to take you to the mountain side. Getting up the mountain is the challenging part. There is no defined path to get up to the Sand Caves. The mountain is sandy and sloped in some parts about 30 degrees. Definitely wear some good grippy shoes or hiking boots. Once inside the caves it was very sandy. The openings look out over the freeway and they have amazing views. Going further into the cave it gets pitch black and I had to use my cell phone flashlight to explore. It also gets a lot colder the deeper you go in. Now getting down the mountain was another challenge in itself. Luckily i found a path were it looked like water had drained down the side of the mountain. I was able to pistol sit and slide myself all the way down the mountain side. The caves are a definite to see, challenging at parts and not to be missed.

We had so much fun in Cedar city. we enjoyed staying close to the downtown where everything was…read moreaccessible through walking. We felt safe, no matter what time we were walking. It had that small town vibe. Everyone was friendly and it was extremely clean.

I stopped in town for a quick overnight trip from Colorado back to California. I stayed at the Best…read moreWestern Plus. There weren't many restaurants open on a Sunday at 6pm which was disappointing. It's also a liquor free town on Sunday, as the state sponsored wine & liquor stop is closed on Sundays. I usually like to have a nightly glass or two of wine to help relax me before bed, so that was a bit of a bummer. I didn't get to experience much of town as it was heavily snowing and winter so much of the city appeared to be closed, including gas stations! I did see lots of hotels/motels. There are two grocery stores, and a Sizzler along the Main Street. Watch your speed as it is only 30 miles I think through town. Noticed lots of college age kids at the grocery store. This is probably a better town to visit when the weather is nicer as there appears to be lots to do nearby.

I was talking recently with some folks that work in the tourism industry-specifically Utah- and…read morethey mentioned that Kanab is likely the next up-and-coming destination. So many people come to Utah to visit Moab, but if you drive a bit further south (ok, a lot further south), you'll find a less crowded, equally beautiful outdoor mecca. This place is great! Kanab City itself is a fairly small town with some quaint eateries and local shops. There are several that boast "Native American" gifts, but I am always hesitant about the authenticity of such items, especially when it's white people running the shop. I'd love recommendations of places I could support that are actually run by and benefit indigenous people. Hit me with your favorites. One thing of note, Kanab is a small town that still has some small town ways. One specific example of this is that there are very few restaurants that are open on Sundays-and the ones that are open get crowded quickly. Prepare accordingly. I love the beautiful red rocks and darling main street area in Kanab and am excited to come back and continue my exploration.

Came here for the Balloon & Tunes Festival which I highly recommend. We live in Las Vegas and it…read morewas a 3.5 hour drive, and we were able to do it over work one night. Hotels aren't too expensive either which makes this worthwhile to go to. We also stayed for the Lantern Festival which I really enjoyed as well. Keep in mind that if you stay in the city of Kanab, you will still need to drive to the balloon site which is nearby. Or it's a one mile walk which you could do, but a car would be easier. I was fortunate I was able to go on a balloon ride but that was just sheer luck. Don't go expecting to ride in one. Although it is very easy to crew for a balloon if you need to. They are always happy to have the help. The Balloon part was awesome, but the festival during the day was just okay, which is why I'm taking off a star. There are some performers which was nice, but the food vendors were lacking. I was hoping to see more local businesses have stands and have it be a "taste of Kanab" type thing, but it was mostly just fair food. I wouldn't plan to spend too much time at the actual festival. The Lantern part is really cool, but that's not until the night time. I recommend killing a few hours and going to see nature-y stuff in the area. We did a hike, a scenic drive, and made a stop at the Best Friend's sanctuary to hang out with all the cats (and try not adopt one).

I lived in a log home in the state of Utah 2 years part time and 3 years full time. I enjoyed…read moreliving just north of Zion National park getting to see the awe-inspiring red rocks daily. I taught high school in Cedar City, in the Iron Country school systems. And although, I would joke that it was a hobby since my salary from Las Vegas was cut-shredded actually to the very low Utah pay scale. However, the school system itself was top notch. They really did a good job of making sure each student had an all around education so they would be productive after leaving school. We had a view on our porch of the back side of Zion-Kolob Canyon area which gave us a beautiful view of two red rock cliffs, which we called the sisters. They gave different beautiful colors depending on the time of day. We did leave Utah, not because we didn't enjoy our time there but we needed to try something new-like wanderers tend to do. I would definitely move back to Utah. In fact, we tried to see what was going on at our former house as we drove by on the freeway!