Not every trip to Arches has to include sweaty climbs and three-mile uphill slogs on slickrock. Maybe you’re traveling with kids, older family members, or you just want to see the highlights without feeling like you joined a CrossFit class which is why these stops to make in Arches National Park if you can’t hike are perfect.. The good news? Arches has plenty of jaw-dropping views that require little more than stepping out of your car—or at most, a very short stroll.
Here are the best stops in Arches if you can’t (or don’t want to) hike. While you're exploring these easy stops, you might also like my list of the Top 5 Epic Views Around Moab—they’re perfect for non-hikers too.
Distance from Car: 1–2 minutes
Difficulty: Easy, paved
Best Time: Morning for glowing canyon walls
This viewpoint gives you the dramatic “sandstone skyscrapers” effect of Park Avenue without hiking into the canyon. The trail does go down if you’re up for it, but the overlook itself is spectacular and accessible.
Distance from Car: Less than 5 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Best Time: Early morning
These massive formations stand like stone government buildings. You don’t have to trek far—just pull over and walk a short distance to take in the view.
Trail Length: 0.3 miles (paved loop, optional)
Difficulty: Easy
Best Time: Sunrise or golden hour
Balanced Rock looks like it shouldn’t exist, and yet there it is—a giant boulder perched precariously on a pedestal. You can walk the short paved loop if you’d like, but honestly, the view from the parking lot is already incredible.
Distance from Car: Steps from the lot
Difficulty: Easy, uneven ground if you wander further
Best Time: Midday
This isn’t a formal trail, but a pullout where you can wander a few feet for a great panorama of sandstone formations. It feels wild and open without requiring effort.
Lower Viewpoint: 0.2 miles, short but uphill
Upper Viewpoint: 0.5 miles, more difficult
The full Delicate Arch hike is strenuous, but the viewpoints are perfect alternatives. From the lower viewpoint, you’ll see the arch in the distance. If you can manage the short climb to the upper viewpoint, you’ll get a much better angle without committing to the full three-mile trek.
Distance from Car: Immediate, right at the pullout
Difficulty: Easy
Best Time: Sunrise or sunset for glowing rock formations
This pullout overlooks Fiery Furnace and the sweeping red rock valley. It’s one of those “don’t skip it” roadside stops.
Trail Length: 0.3 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy (soft sand, shaded)
Best Time: Morning for full shade
This is one of the few arches that feels like a secret hideaway. The trail is short and leads through a sandy slot to a shaded arch. Even though it’s a short walk, it’s very doable—and the cool sand and shade make it a great stop in summer.
Trail Length: 0.4 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy
Best Time: Anytime
An easy stroll (or even just a view from the road) takes you to Skyline Arch, a massive window perched high in a sandstone wall.
Trail Length: 1 mile round trip if you do all three (North Window, South Window, Turret Arch), but you can see plenty right from the lot
Difficulty: Easy
Best Time: Late afternoon into sunset
This area is packed with arches. Even if you don’t do the full loop, you can walk just a few minutes from the parking lot to see North Window and Turret Arch. The formations are huge and impressive without requiring a serious hike. This area offers some of the best stops to make in Arches National Park if you can’t hike.
Trail Length: 0.5 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy
Best Time: Anytime
One of my personal favorites. The short, flat path leads to two enormous arches joined at one end. Even if you don’t hike all the way up, the view from the lot is spectacular. If you're building a longer itinerary, check out my Spend a Weekend in Moab: The Perfect 3-Day Itinerary for a mix of easy walks and scenic overlooks.
Finish your trip at the visitor center—it’s air-conditioned, has exhibits, and plenty of souvenirs. You can explore interpretive displays, watch the short introductory film, check out the topographic map, or talk to rangers about the park’s geology and wildlife. It’s also a great place to cool off before heading back into Moab, and it’s one of the top stops to make in Arches National Park if you can’t hike.
Arches doesn’t have to mean miles of hiking. With overlooks, short strolls, and easy loops, you can see most of the park’s highlights with minimal effort. From the drama of Park Avenue to the grandeur of Double Arch, you’ll still get the “wow factor” without breaking a sweat.
Whether you’re traveling with family, need a rest day, or just want a more relaxed visit, these stops prove that Arches is just as rewarding even if you keep the hikes short and sweet. These truly are the top stops to make in Arches National Park if you can’t hike. If you want even more inspiration for planning your trip, my Arches National Park: A Complete Guide to Moab’s Most Iconic Landscapes breaks down all the must-see spots.
Yes, it’s only July. Start planning anyway. Fall books faster than people expect, and a few of these destinations are worth getting ahead of. Here are five places worth putting on your radar right now.
Ireland: Cooler temps, moody skies, dramatic coastline fall was made for it. Tourist crowds drop, the green stays, and the whole country feels a little more like itself.
Great Smoky Mountains, TN/NC: Fall foliage in the Smokies is the real thing. The color peaks mid-October and the views from the ridgelines are hard to argue with. It’s also one of the most visited national parks in the country, so going on a weekday makes a real difference.
New York City: Fall is NYC at its best comfortable temps, the energy of the city shifting into a new season, and every neighborhood doing something worth showing up for. It’s also just a great walking city when it’s not brutally hot.
Japan: Fall foliage season is as good as spring cherry blossoms and somehow less talked about. The colors are dramatic, the temples and gardens are stunning, and it’s worth planning around peak dates by region.
Mystic, Connecticut: Small, walkable, genuinely charming Mystic in fall feels like exactly what a New England autumn is supposed to look like. Easy to pair with a broader New England road trip if you want to extend it.
Full guides linked in bio 🍂
There are two kinds of travelers: people who plan a trip and then figure out where to eat, and people who book a restaurant and then build the rest of the itinerary around it.I am the second kind. I will not apologize for this.
The reservation gets locked in first. The hotel search happens within the same 24 hours. The flights get compared around the restaurant’s hours of operation. The rest of the trip exists to fill the days before and after the table I actually came for.
If this sounds unhinged, I completely understand. It has also resulted in some of the best meals of my life, so I’m going to keep doing it.
Drop a 🍽️ if you plan your trips around food too.
Let’s talk about when to actually book that Dubai trip you’ve been pinning for two years. I get asked this constantly, so here’s the honest breakdown: October through April is your window. Anything outside that and you’re basically touring in a sauna!
October and November give you warm days and cooler nights, which is basically the sweet spot for wandering around without melting. December through February is peak season: gorgeous weather. March and April are the quiet insider pick, right before summer heat shows up and ruins everyone’s plans.
Saving this for later? That’s what it’s here for. Full breakdown linked in bio.
If you’re chasing energy, beaches, nightlife, and nonstop luxury, Dubai takes the crown. If you’re craving culture, iconic architecture, and meaningful landmarks at a slower pace, Abu Dhabi shines.🤍
My advice? Base yourself in Dubai and do Abu Dhabi as a day trip! The perfect balance of excitement and culture in the UAE.
Want the full breakdown? Check out my Dubai and Abu Dhabi guide for tips, itineraries, and must-sees!
I do not like seafood. 🐟 So when I booked a tasting menu at a restaurant built around aquarium walls at Atlantis The Palm, I was nervous.
Ossiano sits underwater fish gliding past the whole meal, moody lighting, the kind of room that makes you lower your voice without meaning to. It’s not cheap, and it’s not trying to be. You’re paying for the entire experience.
Here’s the honest part: they have a vegetarian tasting menu, and I assumed it would be an afterthought. It ended up in my top five meals of all time. Course after course, the same care and precision as the seafood-forward menu everyone comes for. They even swapped in a steak for the main and it still felt cohesive with everything around it.
By course four you’re full. They bring out three more breads anyway. I ate all of it. No regrets.
Small detail that stuck with me my dress was black, so they swapped my napkin from white to black without me asking. That’s the kind of thing that tells you everything about a place.
Full breakdown of the menu, the vegetarian option, and what to expect linked in bio.
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