Zion National Park Lodging

When visiting Zion National Park you should spend your time enjoying the scenery instead of worrying about lodging.

• So we came on vacation with our neighbor Bob and his family. Two families in Zion National Park for a week, it sounded great. Our first day there Bob and his family are already in the park hiking Upper Emerald Pools while we were still struggling through lodging choices. Bob booked online with the Best Western Abbey Inn. I thought I could just walk into one of the many motels and get a room.

At dinner, Bob treated us to a digital slide show of his happy family at Angels Landing, Weeping Rock, The Great White Throne—it was like they owned Zion National Park. They even gave us some copies of their pictures that they had printed next door to the Abbey Inn. Our motel is next door to the dumpster in the alley. We have some great pictures of raccoons. Lodging is quite possibly the most important decision while traveling. I get that now.

The next morning we met up with Bob and family at the Zion National Park visitor center. They were all happy and full of energy . . . somehow I knew it was related to Bob’s lodging savvy. Yep. It turns out that the Abbey Inn provides a free breakfast…a real food of breakfast, eggs, bacon, waffles – the works. I still had my plastic-wrapped pastry thing – my continental breakfast – in my pocket, saving it for later. Both families want to come again next year. I am going to book my room with Abbey Inn St George the minute we get home.