Travel to American parks: Arizona and Utah 1

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The itinerary we made on this travel to American parks was circular. We left Las Vegas, continuing on to the Grand Canyon N.P. (via Hoover Dam), Meteor Crater, Petrified Forest N.P., Canyon de Chelly, Monument Valley, Mexican Hat, Goosenecks of San Juan River, Natural Bridges N.P., Newspaper Rock, Canyonlands N.P. (The Needles), Arches N.P., Dead Horse Point, Canyonlands N.P. (Island in the Sky), Capitol Reef N.P., Bryce Canyon N.P., Grosvenor Arch, Kodachrome Basin, Red Canyon, Zion N.P., Las Vegas.

The minimum time to make this travel to the American parks and to see these natural beauties is 10-15 days (we did it in just 9 nights, but I recommend at least 2 more nights. See 13 days itinerary). Our stops for the night were the following: Las Vegas (1 night), Grand Canyon Village (1 night, but if you have time I recommend staying 2 nights or more), Holbrook (1 night), Kayenta (1 night, but if you have time I recommend staying 1 night in Chinle for a more detailed visit to the Canyon de Chelly), Moab (2 nights, but 3 nights or more would be better, there are really many things to see!), Bryce Canyon (2 nights, if you have time I recommend 1 night or more in Zion), Las Vegas (1 night).

Travel to American parks: 1st day: Las Vegas

May 1

After a long flight with a stopover and a flight change in Los Angeles we arrive late in Las Vegas.

Night: Flamingo Hotel & Casino

Travel to the American parks: 2nd day: Las Vegas-Grand Canyon National Park

May 2

We got up at 7 this morning, we had breakfast in our hotel with tea, croissants, jam, butter and orange juice.

We left at 9, we crossed Las Vegas in the direction of the Hoover Dam, where we stopped for a few minutes and where we changed the time on our watches, in fact there is an hour of difference between Nevada and Arizona. The dam acts as a border between these two states. We enter Arizona. Along the road that led us to the Grand Canyon we were able to observe, from afar, the snow-filled mountains, which in contrast to the aridity of the landscape that has accompanied us so far had a certain effect. According to our roadmap, these mountains, which are called Humpreys Peak and which reach almost 4,000 meters, we will cross these mountains tomorrow.

We stop for a typical American meal at Mc Donald’s in Williams. After a small mistake on the road: we did not turn at the crossroads for the Grand Canyon. We arrive around 2 pm at our hotel. The distance traveled from Las Vegas is approximately 300 miles. After having been assigned the room booked on the internet before leaving and having left our luggage in the hotel, we start exploring the Grand Canyon National Park.

Grand Canyon National Park

The entrance to the National Park was very nice: in fact two nice girls, dressed in trousers and a characteristic hat of the park, welcomed us and issued us a ticket valid for a week at a cost of $ 10. The entrance to this wonderful park is characterized by Douglas pine trees that have a long stem and other tree species. But suddenly what do I see popping up? But the Grand Canyon! It was an amazing sight: also because you see it popping up without warning.

We make various stops at practically all the vantage points we meet on the way. Watching all this good things means being enchanted for a moment in front of an enchanted landscape. The sun that illuminates it reveals the different colors of the rocks and even if you are unimaginative it will not be difficult to imagine castles, palaces, pyramids.

After seeing the Grand Canyon of the Pacific (the Waimea Canyon in the island of Kauai, Hawaii) I thought I had seen the most beautiful canyon in the world. But instead I was wrong: yes because these two canyons are two very different and beautiful things to see. Another beautiful canyon is the Fish River Canyon located in Namibia.

The Grand Canyon offers a truly magical atmosphere, especially when a light mist is the setting. Well you won’t believe it but in this park we have traveled about 60 miles. The air up here is beautiful and fresh, we are over 2,000 meters high.

Night: Canyon Plaza Resort Grand Canyon Village South Rim

FROM THE GRAND CANYON TO THE STONE FOREST AND THE MONUMENT VALLEY —->

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