LA Road Trip: 6 Days to Zion and Bryce
Six days is the 5 day Zion loop with one more national park bolted on: Bryce Canyon, a short 85-mile, roughly 2-hour drive past Zion. Same spine again, Death Valley, Vegas, Grand Canyon West Rim, Zion, just extended one more stop before the long drive home.
Book these before you go
- Reserve a rental car ; this loop covers close to 1,300 miles.
- Check Las Vegas hotel rates for 2 nights there.
- Book a Grand Canyon West Rim tour ahead if you want the Skywalk.
- Reserve lodging near Zion or Bryce early; both fill up fast in spring and fall, the best months for either park.
Day 1: LA to Death Valley
260 to 270 miles, 4.5 to 5 hours to Furnace Creek, the longest single leg of the trip. Check current conditions on nps.gov before you go, particularly April through October when highs routinely clear 120F. Entry is $30 a vehicle for 7 days, cashless payment only.
Day 2: Death Valley to Las Vegas
2 to 2.5 hours via Pahrump on NV-160. Check into Vegas and spend the evening on the Strip.
Day 3: Vegas to the Grand Canyon West Rim and Back
125 miles and 2 to 2.5 hours each way on US-93 past the Hoover Dam. General admission is $67, the Skywalk add-on brings it to roughly $99 to $113 with taxes. Leave early, return to Vegas by evening.
Day 4: Vegas to Zion National Park
160 miles, 2.5 to 3 hours on I-15. Check into Springdale and spend the afternoon on Zion’s shuttle-only main canyon road.
Day 5: Zion to Bryce Canyon
A short hop, 85 miles and roughly 2 hours on UT-9 and US-89. Bryce’s hoodoos look nothing like Zion’s canyon walls, which is the entire point of adding this day. Entry is $35 a vehicle for 7 days, card only, no cash accepted anywhere at the gate.
Day 6: Bryce Canyon to LA
The long one: back through Zion and Vegas or a more direct southern route, roughly 7.5 to 8 hours total depending which way you go. Leave by mid-morning at the latest and treat this as a driving day, not a sightseeing one.
| Day | Focus | Drive Time |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | LA to Death Valley | 4.5-5h |
| Day 2 | Death Valley to Las Vegas | 2-2.5h |
| Day 3 | Vegas to Grand Canyon West Rim, round trip | 2-2.5h each way |
| Day 4 | Vegas to Zion National Park | 2.5-3h |
| Day 5 | Zion to Bryce Canyon | ~2h |
| Day 6 | Bryce Canyon to LA | ~7.5-8h |
Do Zion and Bryce Both Charge the Non-Resident Surcharge?
Yes. Both parks added a $100 per-person surcharge for non-US residents aged 16 and over starting January 2026, on top of each park’s own $35 vehicle entrance fee. Visiting both in one trip means paying the surcharge twice, unless you hold the $250 non-resident annual pass, which covers it at every surcharge park for the holder plus 3 additional adults.
Is Day 6’s Drive Too Long to Do in One Go?
It is long, not undoable. Splitting it by staying a night in Las Vegas on the way back turns one grinding 7.5 to 8 hour day into 2 easier ones; see the 7 day itinerary , which does exactly that.
Prefer a shorter version? See the 5 day or 4 day itineraries. For all 7 road trips out of LA, including Route 66 and Sequoia, see the guide .