Arches National Park hiking trails are some of the best hikes for families for two great reasons. First, the entire park is covered in these incredible natural stone arches and unique rock formations. Your kids will become convinced you accidentally drove to Mars!
Second, Arches National Park hikes cover a wide spectrum from easy-peasy, 15-minute walks to three-hour challenging treks. It’s a great park for families of all ages, skill levels, and varying abilities.
It doesn’t matter whether your kid is a curious two-year-old with little legs or a sports-mad 15-year-old. One or more of the 2,000 red sandstone natural arches, towers, fins, and hoodoos can be seen from any of the top Arches National Park hiking trails.
This guide lists all the best hiking trails in Arches National Park for families from the easiest to the most challenging. You’ll also get first-hand recommendations from the rangers at the Ranger Station in Moab, the nearest town to Arches in Southeast Utah!
Table of Contents
Best Arches National Park Hiking Trails for Younger Kids
1. Arches Visitor Center Nature Trail
- Distance: 150 ft roundtrip trail (approx. 10 minutes)
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Location: Visitor Center
Incredibly simple, convenient and informative…there’s truly no reason NOT to try this trail! Located right behind the visitor center, it’s a great place to stretch your legs after you’ve first arrived at the park.
After you’ve arrived at Arches, used the bathrooms and talked to a ranger in the visitor center with any questions you may have about your visit, hit the nature trail! There are signs pointing out local flora and fauna, and you can complete the entire thing in just a few minutes.
2. Balanced Rock Trail
- Distance: 0.3-mile loop trail (approx. 15-30 minutes)
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Location: Balanced Rock Trailhead
This trail is a do-not miss. It’s possible to see Balanced Rock from Arches Scenic Drive, but there’s also a very short and easy trail so you and your kids can see whether the rock is actually balancing!
Elevation change is only 35 ft and there is a public bathroom just up Willow Springs Trail nearby.
3. Sand Dune Arch Trail
- Distance: 0.4-mile out and back trail (approx. 15-30 minutes)
- Difficulty: Easy
- Location: Sand Dune Arch Trailhead
Two rangers are the Moab Ranger Station recommend Sand Dune Arch Trail as one of the best Arches National Park hiking trails for families. It’s a short hike along a soft, red sandy trail and you can continue from this trail along the Broken Arch Trail if your kids find this short hike too easy.
It has a 0 ft elevation gain, a spacious parking area, and a public bathroom at the trailhead too. Since the hike is at ground level, it’s mostly shaded by the surrounding landscape so it’s ideal for hot summer days.
4. Skyline Arch Trail
- Distance: 0.4-mile out and back trail (approx. 10-20 minutes)
- Difficulty: Easy
- Location: Skyline Arch Trailhead
There’s very limited parking for the Skyline Arch Trail just off the main road, but it’s only a short and very easy hike. Elevation change is only 28 ft so it’s a great hike for families with young kids.
5. Double Arch Trail
- Distance: 0.6-mile out and back trail (approx. 15-30 minutes)
- Difficulty: Easy
- Location: Double Arch Trailhead (Windows Section)
Ranger Robbie at Moab Ranger Station said, “The Windows Section has lots of great easy hikes for the kids.” Another ranger agreed that “Anything in The Windows” is an ideal trail for kids!
And personally, I couldn’t agree more with Ranger Robbie! This trail is a family favorite. It’s just long enough, and has so much incredible, natural eye-candy that the kids stay completely enthralled as you hike closer and closer to these huge arches.
So, let’s start with Double Arch Trail in The Windows. It’s one of the most popular hikes in Arches with two unique arches side by side for the perfect family photo opportunity.
It only has a 30 ft elevation change and the first part of the path may be accessible to wheelchairs and strollers with assistance. Public bathrooms are at the trailhead with a spacious parking lot.
6. Courthouse Wash Panel Trail
- Distance: 0.8-mile out and back trail (approx. 30-60 minutes)
- Difficulty: Easy
- Location: Courthouse Wash Trail Parking
Just outside of the park entrance, the Courthouse Wash Panel Trail is one of the top Arches National Park hiking trails for kids. It ends at an ancient cave painting near the Colorado River. This historical hike has a 60 ft elevation gain and the first part of the trail is paved offering easy access for wheelchair users.
7. Windows Loop and Turret Arch Trail
- Distance: 1-mile loop trail (approx. 30-60 minutes)
- Difficulty: Easy
- Location: The Windows Section Parking Lot
Two of the most impressive arches in the park are North Window and South Window which you can see on the Windows Trail. This loop has a 99 ft elevation change and around 300 ft of the first part of the main trail is accessible.
Taking a short detour from the Primitive Trail (part of the Windows Loop) to the Turret Arch trail is a great way to turn this into a longer hike. You’ll get a great view of not one, not two, but three picturesque arches. There’s a large parking area and there’s a public bathroom too.
During the busy seasons, there are lots of ranger-led hikes through the Windows Section that you don’t have to book in advance and they’re all free. Just ask at the Visitor Center!
8. Pine Tree Arch and Tunnel Arch Trail
- Distance: 1-mile out and back trail (approx. 30 minutes)
- Difficulty: Easy
- Location: Devil’s Garden Trailhead
Some of the best trails for kids start at Devil’s Garden Trailhead. Take the first right off Devil’s Garden Trail and follow signs to Pine Tree Arch Trail, a great option for kids. You can also make a short detour to see Turret Arch from this trail which is one of the thickest sandstone fins in the park.
Although both of these Arches National Park hiking trails cover a short distance, the total elevation change is 197 ft. It’s a little bit steeper than some of the other trails, but well paved and the parking area at Devil’s Garden Trailhead is one of the most spacious.
9. Broken Arch Trail
- Distance: 1.2-mile loop trail (approx. 30-60 minutes)
- Difficulty: Easy
- Location: Broken Arch Trailhead
Broken Arch Trail may only have an elevation change is only 59 ft, the path is unpaved and often traverses sandstone slabs. It’s still an easy hike and a great place to hike with kids aged 5+.
You can see the red rocks of the Broken Arch and Tapestry Arch on this trail and it is also connected to Sand Dune Trail if you decide to keep hiking. Broken Arch Trailhead is super close to Devil’s Garden Campground and all the amenities there.
10. Landscape Arch Trail
- Distance: 1.8-mile out and back trail (approx. 30-60 minutes)
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Location: Devil’s Garden Trailhead
Like Pine Tree Arch Trail, Landscape Arch starts on Devil’s Garden Trail but you can follow the signs to just visit Landscape Arch. With an elevation change of only 40 ft, it’s a little bit easier and far shorter! The best way for kids to see the Landscape Arch, Partition Arch, and Navajo Arch is via this trail.
Park at Devil’s Garden Trailhead where there are lots of parking spaces and a public bathroom. This trailhead can get busy during peak seasons, so the best time to hike this trail is as early as possible.
Best Arches National Park Hiking Trails for Older Kids
11. Park Avenue Trail
- Distance: 1.8-mile out and back trail (approx. 1 hour)
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Location: Park Avenue Trailhead/Courthouse Towers Trailhead
AKA perhaps my family’s favorite trail in dare I say ANY national park?! I may go out on a limb and make that claim, because we all LOVE this hike!
One of the best things about the Arches National Park hiking trails is that many are accessible from the main road.
The Park Avenue Trail is super close to the Visitor Center (it will actually be the first parking lot/turnout you come to after the visitor center as you enter the park) and gives you panoramic views of the Courthouse Towers and the Tower of Babel.
It’s a much steeper hike than the other Arches National Park hiking trails on this list so far, with an elevation change of 322 ft. But almost all of that elevation occurs right at the very start of the trail.
It’s just a stair-step kind of trail down into the valley, and from that point on, it’s fairly flat and doesn’t feel like a dangerous trail to me at all…no steep cliffs or drop-offs, etc.
It starts and ends at the Park Avenue and Courthouse Towers trailheads depending on where you park. You could also turn this into a round trip by walking back via the road rather than the trail…but you won’t want to.
This walk is so gorgeous, I’ll bet you’ll want to go back the way you came. Plus, there’s lots of car traffic in Arches, depending on the time of year you go and it’s safer to just turn around and go back through the valley!
12. Fiery Furnace Trail
- Distance: 2-mile loop trail (approx. 2.5 hours)
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Location: Fiery Furnace Viewpoint
Fiery Furnace Trail is the only trail that you need either a guide or a permit to hike. It’s very easy to get lost in these narrow canyons!
If that sounds a little scary, that’s exactly why there are guided hikes for the Fiery Furnace Trail. Ranger-led hikes allow you to relax and safely enjoy one of the most unique Arches National Park hiking trails with your kids.
You can only book a ranger-led hike during the summer months which allows kids aged 5+. Expect up to 14 people total to join you on these hikes which cost $16 per person (100% WORTH it!) on top of the Arches entrance fee. There’s a public bathroom at the Fiery Furnace Viewpoint and parking lot.
When we were there in 2020, rangers weren’t leading tours because of the pandemic, so we didn’t have the opportunity to try this trail. But there is a parking area with a beautiful lookout over this area so you can still see it from afar, even if you choose not to hike the trail.
13. Tower Arch Trail
- Distance: 2.6-mile out and back trail (approx. 2-3 hours)
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Location: Klondike Bluffs Trailhead
One of the more remote Arches National Park hiking trails, the Tower Arch Trail is mostly over sandstone slabs and sandy dunes. With a 290 ft elevation change and not much shade, definitely don’t bring your young kids on this trail! But it’s challenging rather than dangerous because there aren’t any steep drop-offs.
No parking is available at the Tower Arch Trailhead. Instead, drive to the Klondike Bluffs Trailhead which also connects to the Tower Arch Trail. You’ll also be able to see Parallel Arch from this trail.
14. Delicate Arch Trail
- Distance: 3-mile out and back trail (approx. 2-3 hours)
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Location: Wolfe Ranch Parking Lot
One ranger at the Moab Ranger Station commented, “Kids very often do the Delicate Arch Trail but it’s a more strenuous hike.” Ranger Robbie added, “Delicate Arch is tougher for kids.”
There’s no denying that Delicate Arch Trail is one of the most popular Arches National Park hiking trails, if not the most popular. Images of this lonely arch are iconic. Your kids will love seeing the Delicate Arch, but you will need to use your judgment as to whether or not your kids can handle the trail.
Its elevation change is 538 ft and the path is unpaved and a little rocky. There’s a large parking area for this trail as well as public bathrooms at the trailhead.
Even though my kids were “older” kids when we last went to Arches, to me, this trail is not honestly worth the hype. Sure, the delicate arch is beautiful, but the way up and back is honestly not to me one of the most remarkable areas of the park.
It’s wildly popular because everyone has seen that arch in photos, but to me, there are so many trails that will give your family WAY more “bang for the buck”.
That said, there are some pretty cool “pit stops” on this trail, even if you don’t want to go all the way to the end.
There’s an old homestead, called Wolfe Ranch that dates back to the end of the 19th century. You’ll also pass some pretty awesome Ute rock art on the trail as well, which our kids really enjoyed.
Arches National Park Hiking Trails That Aren’t Ideal for (Most) Kids
These are two popular Arches National Park hiking trails and you might be wondering whether or not they’re suitable for kids. If you’re traveling with older teenagers who climb like mountain goats, they might love these challenging, long hikes!
While the hikes are too strenuous for most families, here is some more information so you can make a decision to suit your family’s abilities:
- Double O Arch Trail: This 4-mile out-and-back trail starts from Devil’s Garden Trailhead and ends at the Double O Arch. It takes around three hours and the elevation is 275 ft, but that’s not the difficult part. This difficult hike has uneven surfaces and narrow ledges with steep drop-offs.
- Devil’s Garden Loop Trail: Many trails begin on the Devil’s Garden Trail because it is a fairly easy trail at the start. But the entire loop trail is 8 miles, passes Dark Angel, and can take five hours to circuit. There are narrow ledges, uneven surfaces, rock scrambling, and steep drop-offs. There are also very few trail markers!
Tips for Families on Arches National Park Hiking Trails
- Check Weather Conditions: It’s always good practice to check in at the visitor center at the park entrance to check the weather forecast and visibility. Park Rangers are experts on the current conditions at their national parks so they will ensure you have a safe and fun hike.
- Bring Plenty of Water: Ranger Robbie says, “If hiking in the summer, always bring 2 liters of water per person” but to “always stay hydrated regardless of season.”
- Take Part in the Junior Ranger Program: Pick up a free activity booklet from the Arches visitor center for kids of all ages and abilities. Once completed, your kids will receive a badge and recite the Junior Ranger pledge with a real Park Ranger. It might be a memorable experience for them!
- Check Out Ranger-Led Programs: From April – September, there are lots of fun activities like patio talks at the Visitor Center, evening events at Devils Garden Campground Amphitheater, and more.
- Wear Layers: With a High Desert climate, Arches National Park can be warm during the day but cold during the early morning and late afternoon. Wear layers you can take off and put in a backpack while enjoying the Arches National Park hiking trails.
- Visit Other National Parks in Utah: Did you know Utah has five national parks? If you have time, visit Canyonlands National Park (super close to Arches), Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, or Capitol Reef National Park for a fun family national parks road trip!
Looking for more information about Arches NP, or family hiking recommendations in more amazing US national parks? Be sure to check out these articles, too:
- 15 Best Canyonlands National Park Hikes for Families
- Best Hikes in Zion National Park, Utah (For Families)
- North Cascades National Park: 8 Family Friendly Hikes
- 8 Best Easy Hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park
- Voyageurs National Park Hiking: 10 Best Family Trails
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park: 8 TOP Easy Hikes
- Closest Airport to Arches National Park: 10 Best Options
- Arches National Park Wildlife: 25 Desert Animals to Spot
- Best Time to Visit Arches National Park: Month by Month
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