Arches is one of our favorite national parks for hiking because the trails are fun, picturesque and lead to truly unique red rock formations. Plus, the park is small so ticking off the top hikes in one day feels achievable, which is a big deal when you hate missing out on things! And another big positive is that the trails are mostly easy, with just one or two harder hikes that are perfect for adventure.
In this guide we show you 10 trails to consider adding to your Arches National Park hiking itinerary, based on our experiences.
Our Experience
It was the very end of our three month West Coast road trip (on Mark’s birthday!) in November 2019 when we finally arrived into Arches. Earlier that morning we’d watched sunrise at Mesa Arch in Canyonlands, before heading over to Arches ready to hike. After a cold start to the day, we ended up having perfect weather conditions so we made the most of it by exploring the park until well after the sun had set.
From experience, we’d say the three hikes you shouldn’t miss in Arches are The Windows (easy), Delicate Arch (moderate) and Devils Garden Trail (hard). If you only have one day in the park, they’re the trails you should plan your itinerary around. Some of the others are still worth doing, but only if you have more time. Read more about us.
What You Need To Know
Just before we get into the trails, we want to quickly explain the most important things you need to know about hiking in Arches:
- It costs $30/vehicle to enter Arches National Park
- Entry fees cover driver and all passengers for 7 consecutive days
- You can use an America the Beautiful Pass for free entry
- You must obtain a timed entry permit to the park (April-October)
- Stay on top of local weather reports and plan accordingly
- Check Moab’s sunrise and sunset times if you plan watch either
- The only hike requiring special permit is Fiery Furnace
- Most of the easy hikes we cover are more like walks than trails
- Delicate Arch is very popular but it’s harder than expected
- The Windows, Delicate Arch and Devils Garden are our favorites
- You can hike those three trails in one long but awesome day
Important: If you read any other guides about hiking in Arches, you’ll likely see several variations of Devils Garden Trail listed as individual hikes. For instance, Landscape Arch Trail or Double O Arch Trail. But they’re actually part of Devils Garden Loop Trail, so we’ll cover them all as one hike with multiple options at the end.
Trailheads Map
Click or touch the map below to activate. Zoom in and out, move around the map and you’ll see icons at the trailheads for each hike we cover below. You can also click on the “view larger map” icon in the top right to expand the map, which is much easier to see.
Map key:
- Red – Trailhead locations
Okay, let’s get into the hikes! We’re listing the top Arches trails in order of difficulty from easy to hard, so stick around until the end if you’re looking for the more adventurous routes.
1. Balanced Rock Trail
Balanced Rock Trail is a very easy 0.3-mile roundtrip loop around one of the park’s most iconic formations, which is essentially a massive boulder sitting on top of a tall but much narrower pillar. We thought it was worth the 10 minutes it took us to circle around Balanced Rock. But you can also see the formation and the La Sal Mountains in the background right from the parking area if you’re in a rush.
2. Double Arch Trail
Double Arch Trail is a super flat and easy 0.5-mile roundtrip out and back hike to the park’s highest concentration of natural arches. We highly recommend you make the effort to get up close and personal with the impressive Double Arch and Cove of Coves formations, simply because they’re so unique. This hike has so much bang for your buck and we’d definitely do again.
3. The Windows Loop Trail
The Windows Loop Trail is an easy 1-mile hike leading to gigantic formations called North Window Arch, South Window Arch and Turret Arch. This was one of our favorite hikes in the park because the massive arches were perfect for perspective photos and it was a piece of cake to reach them all. There’s an optional primitive loop you can tag on if you have more time, but it’s not essential.
4. Skyline Arch Trail
Skyline Arch Trail is another very easy and flat 0.4-mile roundtrip out and back hike in Arches. The trail cuts through short desert vegetation to a tall red rock formation with a window-like arch cut out near the top. We wouldn’t say it’s a must-do hike, but it’s usually a bit quieter and you can (carefully!) climb into the arch.
5. Park Avenue Trail
Park Avenue Trail is a 1.8-mile roundtrip out and back hike with 300 ft elevation gain not far from the entrance to Arches National Park. It cuts through a narrow canyon with tall and rugged formations to either side, and it’s the only hike like this in the park so it’s worth doing if you have time. Here’s a trick: do it one way by having someone drive to the opposite side and pick the hikers up at the end.
6. Sand Dune Arch + Broken Arch Trail
Sand Dune Arch and Broken Arch can be hiked individually from different trailheads, but it makes more sense to combine them from one trailhead. We think the moderately difficult Sand Dune Arch is probably the most underrated hike in Arches because it’s short, fun and scenic (despite being very sandy!). Broken Arch is very photogenic and it’s usually quieter than other areas in the park.
7. Upper Delicate Arch Viewpoint Trail
It’s important to note this hike is completely separate to the trail leading to Delicate Arch (which we cover next). Upper Delicate Arch Viewpoint Trail is a 0.5-mile roundtrip out and back hike leading to a distant view of the back side of Delicate Arch. It’s uphill for 170 ft to reach the viewpoint, which is great if you have a telephoto lens but not essential otherwise. Only do this one if you have plenty of time.
8. Delicate Arch Trail
Delicate Arch Trail is by far the most popular hike in Arches National Park. We hiked to Delicate Arch for sunset and it was a truly magnificent experience, so we highly recommend you do the same. But the 3-mile roundtrip hike with 480 ft elevation gain was harder than we expected. It’s steep, uneven and follows slick rock faces so make sure you wear robust shoes with good tread. Do not miss this one!
9. Fiery Furnace Trail
The Fiery Furnace is a challenging maze-like hiking route through slots, ledges, irregular formations and sand. You can only enter the Fiery Furnace by applying one week in advance for a $16 permit to do it with a ranger or $10 for a self guided permit. We were traveling on a loose itinerary so we couldn’t apply but we’ll definitely do this next time we visit Arches.
10. Devils Garden Trail
Devils Garden Trail is a challenging 7.9-mile loop hike with long primitive sections, some pathfinding elements and spur trails leading to 7 amazing arches and one tall spire. In our opinion this is the best hike in Arches. If you’re looking for adventure, it’s the trail you must do. But there are several options to make it easy or hard, so let’s take a look at how you can hike it:
- Easy – Landscape Arch (1.9-miles roundtrip)
- Moderate – Double O Arch (4.1-miles roundtrip)
- Hard – Full loop with all spur trails (7.9-miles roundtrip)
If you’re a beginner or don’t have much time available, hike to Landscape Arch only. The trail becomes primitive and more difficult after Landscape Arch, but it’s not too hard getting to Double O Arch if you’re a regular hiker. Completing the full loop with all spur trails after Double O Arch back to the trailhead is the hardest and most primitive part of the hike, so only do it if you’re capable.
Hiking Itinerary
Do you already have your itinerary planned? If not, here’s how we would spend a full day in the park if it were our first visit:
- Start with Park Avenue at first light
- Take a quick walk around Balanced Rock
- Hike around The Windows and Double Arch
- Walk to Sand Dune Arch (and maybe Broken Arch)
- Hike the full Devils Garden Loop
- Walk to Skyline Arch (if it’s not close to sunset)
- Hike up to Delicate Arch in time for sunset
This is an action packed but totally achievable one day hiking itinerary for Arches. In fact, it’s the exact route we’ll take next time we visit the park! If you want to slow things down you can cut Balanced Rock, Broken Arch and Skyline Arch.
The Morgan Conclusion
We had so much fun hiking in Arches because the trails are mostly short, easy and incredibly scenic. Even the more challenging trails like Delicate Arch and especially Devils Garden don’t feel hard because of the distracting adventure elements. And we loved being able to tick off the top hikes on our wishlist (The Windows, Delicate Arch and Devils Garden) easily in one day.
Naturally for a park as popular as Arches, the major downside is overcrowding at trailhead parking lots and on the trails. We visited in November and the park was surprisingly quiet. Try to avoid weekends, holidays and summer months when the park is busiest. Trust us, it will make a massive difference to your overall experience.
More From Utah
- Arches and Canyonlands day trip
- Delicate Arch sunset hike
- The top trails in Zion
- Zion and Bryce Canyon itinerary
- Our favorite Utah road trip routes
- Unmissable hikes in Utah
- Must visit places in Utah
Want more Utah content? Head over to our Utah Travel Guides to explore the mighty five national parks and beyond.
We hope our Arches National Park hiking guide helps with planning your visit to Utah!
Please let us know if you have any questions in the comments below.
Happy Travels,
Mark and Kristen
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Mark and Kristen Morgan are travel, hiking and photography experts. Over the last 6 years traveling full time, they have explored more than 40 countries and 30 US states.
Where Are Those Morgans has been featured in USA Today, Gestalten, Get Your Guide, CityPASS and Condé Nast Traveler along with various other publications. Read more about us.