St. George Dinosaurs - Ancient Odysseys
From $3,899 / person
ModerateUp to six miles a day on maintained trails, with some real climbs.Is this trip right for you? ›
This trip by season
We run this one in autumn. Here is what that week is like.
Autumn
September to November
Mild days, warm light
Warm afternoons, cool nights and low light on red rock. Comfortable walking weather from the canyon floors to the rim.
1 autumn departure ›
Day by day
The whole trip at a glance
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Las Vegas Day 1
Arrive in Las Vegas - St. George
Your Southwest adventure begins in Las Vegas, Nevada, where you’ll meet your friendly Southwest Adventure Tours tour director at the Las Vegas Airport. After getting acquainted with your fellow travelers, board our comfortable touring vehicle and depart the city for an unforgettable journey through the Mojave Desert.
As we travel north, enjoy sweeping desert landscapes and a scenic rest stop along the way before crossing into Utah. The changing terrain sets the tone for the incredible natural beauty ahead. By late afternoon, we arrive in St. George, Utah, where you’ll check in for a relaxing three-night stay.
After a day of travel, unwind and settle in before joining the group for a welcome dinner, the perfect opportunity to get to know your fellow adventurers and kick off the tour experience.
Important Arrival Note: Please plan to arrive at Las Vegas Airport no later than 1:00 PM to ensure a smooth group departure.
OvernightAutograph Collection
St George Day 2
St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site
Today’s adventure takes you to the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm, one of the most important fossil sites in the region. This unique museum preserves thousands of real dinosaur footprints exactly where they were discovered, offering a rare hands-on look into prehistoric life in Southern Utah.
Upon arrival, begin with a guided tour of the on-site laboratory, where you’ll learn how paleontologists prepare, study, and preserve fossils. Next, enter the active quarry for an orientation that includes training and a safety briefing before your excavation begins.
Then it’s time to get hands-on. Spend the next several hours digging in the quarry alongside a professional paleontologist, uncovering fossils at the original discovery site. Expect to get a little dirty as you kneel, sit, and work carefully in the excavation area — the effort is real, but the experience is incredibly rewarding.
After a break for lunch, return to the quarry for additional digging in the afternoon. The day wraps up with clean-up, bagging specimens, and reviewing your take-home fossils, all under the guidance of the paleontologist.
Important Physical Notes: Participants should be comfortable kneeling and sitting for extended periods. This is an active, hands-on experience, and getting dirty is part of the fun.
Following a fascinating day at the dig site, return to your hotel in St. George with the evening free to relax, dine, or explore the town at your own pace.
OvernightAutograph CollectionMealsBreakfast, Lunch
St George Day 3
Dinosaur Discovery Site - Snow Canyon
This morning, return to the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site for another exciting day of hands-on fossil exploration. You’ll spend additional time working in the active quarry alongside a professional paleontologist, continuing your dinosaur dig experience and building on what you learned the previous day. This extended time in the quarry is the perfect way to fully round out your real dinosaur excavation experience.
After an included lunch, depart for the Warner Valley Dinosaur Track Site, where you’ll explore preserved dinosaur footprints left behind millions of years ago. Walk among the tracks and gain a deeper appreciation for the ancient creatures that once roamed this region.
To cap off the day, head to stunning Snow Canyon State Park, known for its striking red and white sandstone cliffs, lava flows, and scenic desert landscapes. Enjoy time to explore and hike, taking in the natural beauty of one of Southern Utah’s most underrated state parks.
After an incredible day filled with fossils, footprints, and scenery, return to your hotel. The evening is free on your own to relax, dine, or continue exploring St. George at your leisure.
OvernightAutograph CollectionMealsBreakfast, Lunch
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Bryce Canyon National Park Day 4
Bryce Canyon National Park - Dark Sky Adventure
This morning, depart St. George for a scenic drive to Bryce Canyon National Park, one of the most visually striking landscapes in the American Southwest. Spend the day touring and hiking among Bryce Canyon’s famous hoodoos, where vibrant colors and otherworldly rock formations spark the imagination of visitors of all ages.
Long before it became a national park, the Paiute Indians described Bryce Canyon as “red rocks standing like men in a bowl-shaped canyon.” Later, pioneer Ebenezer Bryce, for whom the park is named, famously remarked that it was “a hell of a place to lose a cow.” Today, this unforgettable landscape continues to inspire awe and curiosity.
Enjoy lunch on your own inside or near the park, then continue exploring in the afternoon with opportunities for moderate hiking along scenic viewpoints and trails.
Later in the day, check into your hotel just outside Bryce Canyon National Park, with time to relax and take in the fresh mountain air. This evening, join the group for a memorable night of western-style food and entertainment at Ebenezer’s Barn & Grill, a local favorite that captures the spirit of the Old West.
As night falls, cap off the day with an unforgettable Stargazing Experience led by local astronomers. Bryce Canyon is a designated International Dark Sky Park, making it one of the best places for stargazing in the United States. Using a high-powered telescope, explore planets, galaxies, star clusters, nebulae, and other breathtaking celestial sights as you marvel at the vastness of our universe.
OvernightBest Western Plus - Bryce Canyon Grand HotelMealsBreakfast
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Zion National Park Day 5
Zion National Park - Las Vegas
This morning, depart Bryce Canyon for a scenic drive to Zion National Park, Utah’s oldest and most iconic national park. As you enter the park, experience towering sandstone formations rising over 2,000 feet, dramatic canyon walls, and the historic Zion–Mount Carmel Tunnel carved directly through the rock.
Spend time exploring Zion Canyon, a lush, green oasis where the Virgin River winds through the canyon floor beneath massive red rock cliffs. The striking contrast between flowing water and towering stone makes Zion one of the most breathtaking landscapes in the Southwest. It’s easy to understand why the local Paiute Indians believed Zion was a sacred place where spirits dwelled and would not enter after dark.
An included lunch allows you to relax and refuel while enjoying the scenery. Afterward, continue taking in the park’s highlights before departing Zion in the afternoon.
Travel across the desert with a scenic rest stop along the way, then arrive this evening in the “Entertainment Capital of the World,” Las Vegas, for your final night. After checking into your hotel, say goodbye to your local tour director. The evening is free to explore everything Las Vegas has to offer, from world-class dining and shows to iconic nightlife and attractions.
OvernightDoubleTree by Hilton Las Vegas AirportMealsBreakfast, Lunch
Las Vegas Day 6
Journey Home
Breakfast is included at your hotel. Transfer to the Las Vegas Airport by the hotel shuttle, for your departure flight home.
MealsBreakfast
Oct 23 - 28, 2026
This unforgettable adventure blends hands-on discovery with some of the Southwest’s most iconic landscapes. Your journey begins in Las Vegas, where you’ll meet your Southwest Adventure Tours director and travel across the Mojave Desert into southern Utah for a three-night stay in St. George.
The heart of the experience takes place at the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site, where you’ll go beyond the museum and into the quarry itself. Working alongside a professional paleontologist, you’ll receive training and safety instruction before digging for real dinosaur fossils at the original site of discovery. Spend hours uncovering, cleaning, and bagging specimens—getting hands-on, getting dirty, and contributing to meaningful scientific research. Additional time in the quarry deepens the experience, paired with visits to nearby dinosaur track sites that reveal ancient stories preserved in stone.
Beyond the dig, the journey explores Utah’s dramatic scenery. Hike and explore the lava flows and sandstone cliffs of Snow Canyon State Park, then continue north to the otherworldly hoodoos of Bryce Canyon National Park. Enjoy scenic viewpoints, optional moderate hikes, classic western dining, and an unforgettable stargazing experience under Bryce Canyon’s famously dark skies, guided by local astronomers.
The adventure concludes with a scenic drive through Zion National Park, where towering red cliffs, lush canyon floors, and the Virgin River create one of the most awe-inspiring landscapes in the country. After exploring Zion, return to Las Vegas for your final evening, bringing an extraordinary journey of science, scenery, and discovery to a close.
Is this trip right for you?
ModerateLevel 2 of 4
- Maintained trails with uneven footing, steps and sustained climbs. Up to six miles across a full day, usually in two or three separate walks.
- Full days out, often above 6,000ft, and canyon country runs over 100°F from June to August. Shade is not guaranteed.
- Not suitable for a wheelchair, a walker or anyone who cannot manage stairs without a rail. Comfortable if you walk regularly.
- Your guide may change or drop a stop for weather, road closures or time. What is walked on the day is their call.
Anything specific — a knee, a hip, a height worry, a wheelchair — is worth one phone call to 800-970-5864. We would rather move you to a different trip than have you on the wrong one.
Tour details
In the price11
- Services of a Southwest Adventure Tours tour director
- Comfortable transportation
- 5 nights hotel accommodations
- 5 breakfasts, 3 lunches, 2 dinners
- 1.5 day paleontological dig experience at St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site
- Snow Canyon State Park
- Bryce Canyon National Park
- Dark Skies experience at Bryce Canyon
- Zion National Park
- Gratuities for included activities
- Gratuities for included meals
Not in the price6
- Items of a personal nature (alcohol, room service, etc.)
- Meals (other than listed in the itinerary)
- Hotel baggage handling
- Gratuities for the Southwest Adventure Tours tour director
- **A minimum of 6 paying passengers is required for this tour to operate**
- **Hotels listed in this proposal have not been booked, hotels will be those listed or similar based on what is available at the time of booking**
More from Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park
Ask about a date
From $3,899 per person, double occupancy, 2026
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Departures
One date on this trip has sold out as of Sep 24, 2026. Call us on 800-970-5864 about a date marked sold out — we keep a waiting list, and cancellations do happen.
Tap a date to book it.
Autumn: Mild days and cool nights. Bring layers.
Autumn 2026
0 of 1 open
from $3,899
Dates without a price of their own are from $3,899. The rate for the date you choose is confirmed when you book.
Pricing
2026 season
- Double occupancy
- $3,899
- Single occupancy
- $4,549
- Triple occupancy
- $3,719
- Quad occupancy
- $3,625
Per person unless stated. Rates are those published by Southwest Adventure Tours and are confirmed at booking.
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We build tours to order — the same guides and the same itineraries, rearranged around your group and your dates.
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