Hiking with Kids in Arches National Park
When in Moab, Utah, you must visit one of our favorite National Parks: Arches. The views are jaw-dropping and the rock formations are gravity-defying! You may want to see it all but here are the best trails for hiking with kids in Arches National Park!
Hiking with Kids in Arches: Tips for Visiting the Park
Before considering which hikes to take with your kids in Arches National Park, you will want to read these important tips for visiting the park!
Arches National Park can fill up fast! There is limited capacity and you will be turned away and asked to return later if the park is full. We suggest going early in the morning to guarantee entry and to beat the heat and crowds.
Bring plenty of water and sun protection! Moab is the desert and there are no amenities within the park. You will want to have ample water and food to keep everyone hydrated and happy!
For other things to do while you’re in Moab, check out my kid-friendly Moab recommendations here.
Make sure to stop at the Visitor Center to take part in the Junior Ranger program and pick up any souvenirs! You’ll want to remember this trip! (By the way, you can still get Junior Ranger badges and booklets in 2020, but you’ll get it all at once and skip out on the swearing in ceremony.)
Hiking with Kids in Arches: Sand Dune Arch Area
One of the great things about Arches National Park is that there are several different areas where you can access multiple trails and arches from a single parking lot. This is so nice with children so that you don’t have to get everyone in and out of the car more times than absolutely necessary! The first such area is the Sand Dune Arch Trailhead.
Sand Dune Arch
I’m going to start with the best hoping to convince you that taking your kids hiking in Arches National Park is definitely going to be a great experience!
Sand Dunes Arch is incredible. It feels like a secret world hidden between huge shards of red rock with the softest sand in the world!
This hike is short and easy to get to at 0.3 miles. The hike starts in desert plant life at the trailhead and heads toward a rock formation. Once at the formation you can either head left for Broken Arch (shared next) or squeeze into the rock formation in search of Sand Dune Arch!
Once inside, take your shoes off, if you dare! The sand is so soft and cool from the shade (we went early in the morning during the summer heat).
After a few minutes walking in the sand, you’ll find the arch. It’s picturesque and the sand all around is so fun to play in. Take a few minutes (or hours) to play here! Your kids will love it!
Once you’re done, head back out the way you came (there is a dead end shortly after the arch). I recommend then heading to Broken Arch.
Broken Arch
Broken Arch was a great trail to combine with Sand Dune Arch from the same trailhead. This was also one of our kids’ favorite hikes because they could easily climb up to and through the arch!
The distance is a little deceiving when heading toward the rock formations because once you get there, you have to hike along and around the formation before getting to the arch. This is the longest hike I recommend here, and my kids did it after having already done two hikes that day and didn’t complain.
Once at the arch, climb up and through and make sure to look up! You’ll see the cracks that give the arch its name!
The trail is a loop that goes through the arch to some campgrounds and then back through the formation. The entire loop is 2 miles, but you can also just turn around at the arch and hike back the way you came.
For tips on hiking with kids, check out my gear list!
Hiking with Kids in Arches: Delicate Arch
Delicate Arch is the most popular arches in the park and you will recognize it from postcards, art and even the Utah license plate. Because it’s so popular, there are two options to hike and see this arch. I’ll tell you about each one and what we recommend doing.
Delicate Arch Hike
There is a trail that allows you to hike all the way to Delicate Arch. This is a very popular hike, and when we got to the parking lot before 6:30 a.m. it was already full. You may have to come back and check for parking a few times before you get a spot.
This hike is also one of the longest in the park at 3 miles long. It’s a bit steep and there are steep drop offs when you get to the arch, which would be concerning for kids who like to wander.
If we had an extra day in the park, we probably would have tried to do this hike, however we opted to conserve energy and use our time to visit more arches.
However, if you have older kids who can handle this hike at a better pace than our four-year-old you don’t want to miss it!
Delicate Arch Viewing Point Trail
Instead of spending several hours hiking to the arch, we chose the half-mile hike to the viewing point. This is a steep but short hike to a lookout where you can view the arch from across a canyon. It’s definitely not as great as getting up close, but it’s a sacrifice we were willing to make to keep it a happier trip for the smallest of legs!
Hiking with Kids in Arches: The Windows Area
This is another place where you can access multiple trailheads and arches from the same parking lot! I suggest parking at the Windows lot and heading down to Double Arch first and finishing off with the Windows loop.
Double Arch
Double Arch was my personal favorite hike and is definitely a kid-friendly trail to take in Arches!
The Double Arch trail is half a mile and is a mix of paved trail, gravel and sand. My kids loved this trail because we saw several animals including a rattlesnake!! It was coiled up sleeping under a bush because it was still early in the morning and chilly, but do be on the lookout for rattlers throughout the park.
Have a baby in tow? Check out my tips for hiking with a baby!
The arches are like two rainbows that are joined on one end. They are expansive and and it makes for such a gorgeous site. I loved (and my kids did too!) that you can see the arches the entire time as you hike. It makes it fun and rewarding when you get there.
The Windows
After hiking Double Arch, head over to The Windows! This is a really fun area to visit. There are two “windows” that are small arches built into a wall of rock. There are also several other formations in the area to see, including the Turret Arch. The sun rises behind the windows so it’s a fun place to visit early in the morning if you want to see that!
This hike is about a mile depending on how you go. Make sure to hike around the first window to the second because the view from there is incredible. Then you can either head over to Turret Arch or just appreciate it from the Windows loop trail. It’s not far.
This hike has some elevation gain and was a little challenging for my kids who were very tired by the time we did this one, but overall it’s very manageable!
Hiking with Kids in Arches: Balanced Rock
The last trail we recommend for kids is Balanced Rock! This is truly incredible and gravity-defying. My kids loved it and couldn’t believe that it hadn’t fallen over.
You can actually see a great view of Balanced Rock from the car while driving, but we definitely suggest parking and getting out for a longer view, or even taking the short 0.3 mile loop trail around Balanced Rock. Eventually, the rock will fall off and you want to have any regrets!
