Zion National Park to Antelope Canyon: Route, Drive Time and Booking the Tour
About 120 miles from the Zion Canyon Visitor Center to Page, Arizona, about 2 hours 30 minutes on a normal drive, via US-89 through Kanab and Big Water. Antelope Canyon itself sits on Navajo Nation land outside Page and is open only through a guided tour with a Navajo-authorized operator; you cannot walk in on your own. Book the tour before you leave Zion, since the popular time slots (especially for Upper Antelope, where the light beams show) sell out days ahead in summer.
The Route: Zion to Page
Leave Zion through the east entrance and the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel (limited to vehicles under 11 feet 4 inches tall and 7 feet 10 inches wide) and pick up US-89 south at Mount Carmel Junction. From there it runs through Kanab, Big Water and across the Glen Canyon Dam bridge into Page. The whole drive is about 120 miles and takes about 2 hours 30 minutes without stops, longer if you pull off for the overlooks along the way, which are worth it. Horseshoe Bend, a short walk from a parking area just south of Page, is the obvious add-on and needs no tour booking.
Antelope Canyon Is Guided-Tour Only
Both Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon are on Navajo Nation land, and access is exclusively through guided tours run by Navajo-owned operators, in part because flash flooding can fill the slot canyon fast with no warning. There is no self-guided entry and no walk-up ticket booth you can show up to. Upper Antelope Canyon is the one with the visible light beams, shot from a flat sandy floor; Lower Antelope Canyon involves ladders and stairs through a narrower, longer slot and tends to have shorter lines. Photography tours run longer and cost more than general tours; book the general tour unless you specifically want tripod time.
The Time Zone Trap
Arizona does not observe daylight saving time. The Navajo Nation, however, does observe it on its Arizona, Utah and New Mexico land, which includes the land Antelope Canyon sits on. In practice: for most of the year Page and the reservation run on the same clock as Zion, but for a stretch in spring and fall the town of Page can be an hour off from the tour operator's clock. Confirm your tour time in writing with the operator and treat any confusion as a reason to arrive early, not late; tours do not wait.
Making It a Two-Day Trip
- Day 1: Zion. A full day in the canyon, the Narrows or Angels Landing depending on permits, overnight in Springdale.
- Day 2: Drive to Page, tour, Horseshoe Bend. Leave Springdale by 7 a.m. for a mid-morning tour slot. Afternoon at Horseshoe Bend, then either overnight in Page or continue toward the Grand Canyon or Lake Powell.
If the Grand Canyon is also on the list, Page sits roughly between Zion and the South Rim, so this makes a natural middle stop rather than a detour. See our Zion to Grand Canyon guide for that leg.
Have Us Plan the Whole Loop
Tell us your dates and we will build the Zion, Antelope Canyon and Grand Canyon loop with tour timing worked in. Planning is free, and we earn only if you book through us.
Keep planning with One Day in Zion National Park and The Zion Shuttle System Explained.
Zion National Park to Antelope Canyon: Route, Drive Time and Booking the Tour FAQs
About 120 miles from the Zion Canyon Visitor Center to Page, Arizona, and about 2 hours 30 minutes of driving via US-89 through Kanab, without stops.
No. Antelope Canyon is on Navajo Nation land, and both Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon are open only through guided tours run by Navajo-authorized operators. There is no self-guided or walk-up entry.
Upper Antelope Canyon has the well-known light beams and a flat, easier walk. Lower Antelope Canyon involves ladders and stairs, costs less on most tours, and usually has shorter waits.
Not comfortably. The drive alone is about 2 hours 30 minutes each way, and Antelope Canyon tours run on a fixed schedule, so most people give it a separate day rather than a same-day round trip.
Usually yes, but not always. Arizona does not observe daylight saving time, while the Navajo Nation land that Antelope Canyon sits on does. Confirm your tour operator's clock directly rather than assuming.
Yes. The worked day-by-day plan is Las Vegas to Zion National Park: A 3-Day Road Trip Itinerary (3 Days), with the permits, the stays and the drive times already sorted. Tell us your dates and we will put it together for you and confirm what is genuinely open on those days. Asking is free: no card, no deposit, and nothing is held until you say yes.
