Also known as the Grand Circle Road of National Parks, the Grand Circle is a giant loop encompassing some of the most amazing parts of the United States Southwest.
Inside and skirting the edge of the loop, you’ll find ten national parks, plus national monuments, historical sites, and other landmarks.
If you start your Grand Circle road trip in Durango, Colorado, enjoy a superb meal in a relaxing setting at Seasons of Durango. This inviting restaurant features an open-style exhibition kitchen, which focuses on crafting dishes with precision and care. They use locally sourced, solid oak to fuel the grill and rotisserie.
Let’s see what’s along and inside the circle.
Where Is the Grand Circle?
The Grand Circle is in the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States. If you think of the Grand Circle as a perfect circle, some national parks lie outside the circle. But if you picture it as a jagged loop that goes through portions of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona, with one national park in Nevada, you will find 10 national parks.
Learn more about why the circle is a jagged oval by reading about the fascinating geology of the Four Corners.
- Grand Circle: Northwest Section
- Grand Circle: Northeast Section
- Grand Circle: Southeast Section
- Grand Circle: Southwest Section
Rather than lay out a point-to-point trip around the loop, we’ll describe the parks and sites along the way or inside the circle. If you decide to travel the entire loop in one trip, it will take some time because, however you draw it, the length of the loop is about 1,500 miles!
If you divide the Grand Circle into four sections, you can visit the national parks in each part. Always check with the park service for current weather conditions before you go to any national park. The directions included here assume you’ll fly into the area and drive to the various destinations. In general, due to the locations of these parks, summers can be scorching, and winters are very cold.
Read our article about weather in the Four Corners region for a more complete overview of weather in this part of the Southwest to help plan your trip.
Northwest Section
This area of the Grand Circle includes Utah’s five national parks, plus one just over the state line in Nevada.
1. Great Basin National Park
This off-the-beaten-path park is in a remote area of east-central Nevada. The closest full-service airport is in Salt Lake City, Utah, 234 miles away. From there you can rent a car and head off to the park. The National Park Service recommends not relying on navigation apps in this area. Get a detailed paper map or request information from the National Park Service before your trip.
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If it’s so remote, you might ask, why go there? Because going here is a chance to get away from it all. Inside Grand Basin National Park, you’ll find caves, dozens of miles of hiking trails, pristine mountain streams, and ancient bristlecone pines. In addition to hiking and exploring, while you’re there, you can enjoy stargazing, fishing, birding, and camping.
2. Arches National Park
True to its name, Arches National Park has more than 2,000 natural stone arches. Other interesting features include tall pinnacles, rock fins, and giant balanced rocks. Near Moab, this park is more accessible than some others described here.
That also makes it one of the most crowded, so plan ahead and be sure to get your timed entry ticket in advance. This is a great place to see impressive natural structures, learn about Ancestral Puebloans, and enjoy sunsets and dark night skies.
3. Canyonlands National Park
Buttes and canyons carved by the Colorado River over thousands of years make Canyonlands National Park a popular destination for visitors. Take a paved scenic drive to view many of the formations. The park is divided into four sections, each offering a different experience. You can even take flatwater excursions on the Colorado and Green Rivers and whitewater trips in Cataract Canyon. The Green River features shady and green sections, in contrast to the desert above.
4. Capitol Reef National Park
Located in south-central Utah, this park is home to an unusual formation called the Waterpocket Fold, a fold in the earth’s crust. In this instance, the term reef refers to the rocky barrier formed by the fold. While most of the park is an arid desert, its geologically interesting features, like canyons, cliffs, towers, domes, and arches, attract visitors.
The park has three campgrounds, and visitors can enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking, wildlife viewing, horseback riding, and rock climbing. During harvest season, you can even pick fruit from trees the Latter Day Saints pioneers planted long ago.
5. Bryce Canyon National Park
If you’re looking for hoodoos, Bryce Canyon National Park is the place to go. Bryce Canyon isn’t a single canyon; it is a collection of basins, also called amphitheaters, that formed along the edge of an elevated plateau.
To see these stunning views, hop on the shuttle bus that takes visitors to each of the four lookout points. In addition to viewing the spectacular geologic features, take in some hiking, biking, camping, or even horseback riding while you’re there.
6. Zion National Park
This park is located in the southwest corner of Utah. Hikers will enjoy the many trails that range from short walks to more strenuous hikes. The Pa’rus trail and the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive are accessible to bicycles.
More adventurous visitors can try their skills at canyoneering — an activity that combines route finding, rappelling, swimming, and hiking — or climbing sandstone cliffs. Be sure to take your binoculars on the hiking trails: Zion National Park is home to 291 species of birds!
The park has three campgrounds but plan well ahead as they fill up quickly. Zion National Park is also home to the famous Angel’s Landing trail, considered one of the most challenging hikes in America.
Northeast Section
Durango, Colorado, is located in this section of the Grand Circle. Why not spend a day or so here to enjoy the area and top it off with a delicious meal at Seasons of Durango In addition to locally sourced oak for their grill and terrific food, service is attentive and personal, providing guests with a relaxing, enjoyable atmosphere and an unrushed dining experience.
7. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
You’ll find this park not too far from Gunnison, or Grand Junction, Colorado. Unlike the red rock formations found in parts of Utah, the geology of this canyon was formed from uplifts and volcanoes. Eons later, the Gunnison River eroded the volcanic rock and created this deep, narrow canyon.
While you’re there, check out the scenic drives, view wildlife, hike, and fish. Stargazing and fishing are also on the list of things to do here.
8. Mesa Verde National Park
Easily accessible from Farmington, New Mexico, and Cortez and Durango, Colorado, Mesa Verde National Park is in the southwest corner of Colorado. Instead of the geologic features in many national parks, the view here is of manmade dwellings left behind by Ancestral Puebloans.
It can be mind-boggling to imagine living in a home that required climbing up to harvest crops and down to collect water. Although the structures were abandoned long ago, they’re fascinating to visit.
Southeast Section
While there are no national parks in this section, you will find the following national monuments and a historical park:
Aztec Ruins National Monument:
The great houses at Aztec were built during the decline of Chaco culture, using marine sandstone, mortar, and adobe, similar to Chacoan construction methods. Timber for roofing — such as cottonwood, piñon, juniper, and fir — was carried from miles away without horses or wheels.
Tree ring analysis shows most of the pueblo was constructed between 1110 and 1115 CE, with expansions continuing until the late 1200s. By then, the community included large and small pueblos, great kivas, earthworks, and roads.
Bandelier National Monument:
Covering over 33,000 acres, Bandelier National Monument is located near Los Alamos, New Mexico. The monument preserves cliff dwellings and petroglyphs created by the Ancestral Puebloans, offering a glimpse into a civilization that thrived more than 800 years ago. Visitors can explore rugged canyons, scenic hiking trails, and the ruins of Tyuonyi, a large pueblo once home to a thriving community.
El Malpais National Monument:
The Spaniards named the expansive lava flows El Malpais (ehl MAHL-pie-EES), “the badlands.” A visit here offers the bonus of exploring El Morro Inscription Rock, located about 40 miles west along New Mexico Highway 53.
El Morro National Monument captivates visitors with its ancient inscriptions and stunning views of the New Mexico terrain, making it a compelling destination for those intrigued by the region’s past.
Chaco Culture National Historical Park:
Scattered across thousands of square miles are the remnants of up to 75 settlements that once formed a thriving agricultural community of more than 5,000 people.
The people living in these communities cultivated corn, beans, and squash. Chaco was at the heart of this expansive region, serving as a mighty empire’s spiritual and administrative hub, home to its leaders and the Sunwatcher.
Southwest Section
Two very popular national parks that are part of the Grand Circle are located in this section, both in Arizona.
9. Grand Canyon National Park
Grand Canyon National Park gets millions of visitors annually. If you’ve ever been, it’s easy to see why it’s so popular. The South Rim gets more visitors due to easier access from nearby cities like Flagstaff and Williams, plus there are more visitor services on the South Rim.
The list of things to do reads like a list of adventures of a lifetime. The views from the rim are worth the trip itself, but the adventurous will want to consider taking a guided river trip down the Colorado River which formed these canyons over millions of years. Another exciting activity is a mule ride down to the river.
Other fun but not quite so adventurous activities include hiking, sightseeing, and attending ranger demonstrations and informational talks. In addition to being a national park, the Grand Canyon is like a small city with several restaurants, hotels, and lodges within the park. There are several campgrounds and an RV park inside the park. However, if you hope to stay in lodging inside the park, plan far in advance.
The Grand Canyon also offers shuttle service to some of the most popular locations in the park. At each stop, you can get out, explore the area, and gaze down into different canyon sections. While you’re at this iconic destination, don’t forget to look for elk, mule deer, and California condors.
This national park is significant to Native communities in the Southwest. It borders the lands of three federally recognized tribes, and 11 tribes in total have historical ties to the region now designated as Grand Canyon National Park.
10. Petrified Forest National Park
Located near the edge of the Colorado Plateau in southeastern Arizona, this is another popular park in the Four Corners region. One of the great things about Petrified Forest National Park is that visitors can drive through in about an hour if they’re short of time. As you drive through the Painted Desert, stop along the way to look at petrified trees.
If you have more time, take a hike, listen to a ranger presentation, and check out the paleo lab to see Triassic fossils. The only overnight accommodation is for those who want to backpack into the designated Petrified Forest National Wilderness Area, so for most visitors, the Petrified Forest National Park will be a day trip. Despite the lack of lodging, it’s worth the trip to see the sites of this national park.
Beyond National Parks: Other Exciting Grand Circle Stops
If you visit the Four Corners region in the spring, you might enjoy visiting Monument Valley, Antelope Canyon, Horseshoe Bend, and Canyon de Chelly. Antelope Canyon, a slot canyon, requires that you sign up for a guided tour to view these dramatically colored swirling canyon walls.
Horseshoe Bend is near Antelope Canyon. This spectacular bend in the Colorado River is a must-see stop on your Grand Circle road trip.
The best way to tour Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park is to go on a guided tour. This ensures that you’ll see interesting areas like Mystery Valley and Hunts Mesa, which are sections of Monument Valley that are off-limits on a self-guided tour.
A great place to begin or end your Grand Circle road trip is Durango, Colorado. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and Mesa Verde National Park are in this section of the Grand Circle.
While you’re in Durango, be sure to enjoy a fabulous dinner at Seasons of Durango. In addition to the outstanding food, Seasons of Durango prides itself on providing excellent service with their knowledgeable and friendly team. Their attentive and personal service ensures you enjoy a relaxed, unhurried dining experience. Contact the restaurant ahead of time to reserve your table.
Conclusion
The Grand Circle region offers an extraordinary opportunity to explore some of the most iconic national parks in the Four Corners area. Whether you’re hiking the Navajo Loop Trail in Bryce Canyon or trekking the Bright Angel Trail in Grand Canyon National Park, each park offers a unique landscape and a chance to connect with nature on a grand scale.
If you are planning an extended trip, investing in a National Parks Pass is a smart choice, allowing access to multiple parks for one annual fee. This can significantly reduce entrance fees, making it easier to visit more locations without breaking your budget.
You can start your journey anywhere along the circle, but if you start in Las Vegas, Nevada, you’ll be close to Zion National Park and other Grand Circle highlights, making it a convenient launching point. From there, the region’s well-marked trails, scenic drives, and visitor centers provide endless opportunities for adventure and discovery.
Or, start near Durango, Colorado, and treat yourself to a delicious, locally sourced meal at Seasons of Durango.
As you explore these parks, be sure to plan ahead, pack appropriately, and respect the environment to ensure these natural wonders remain pristine for generations to come. The Grand Circle’s breathtaking vistas and diverse outdoor activities make it a must-visit destination for nature enthusiasts and travelers alike.
