A single photograph did it: covered wagons parked against blood-red cliffs, looking more like a Western film set than a working hotel. It turns out the wagons are real, they're bookable, and they sit a mile from the entrance to one of Utah's quietest national parks - one so overshadowed by its more famous neighbors that it's sometimes called the "middle child" of the state's park system, despite being an International Dark Sky Park with rock formations that shift color depending on the hour.
Location
Capitol Reef National Park
Capitol Reef Resort sits on 23.5 hectares (58 acres) in Torrey, Utah, about 1.6 km (1 mile) from the entrance to Capitol Reef National Park and roughly 12.9 km (8 miles) from its visitor center. Torrey is a small town about 4.8 km (3 miles) away, with a handful of coffee shops and restaurants - not much more than that, which is rather the point out here.
The resort also sits on Utah's Scenic Byway 12, a 196 km (122 mile) road that winds through nine historic pioneer towns between Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef, and it's within driving range of Utah's other four major parks: Zion and Bryce Canyon to the southwest, Arches and Canyonlands to the northeast. The Grand Canyon is also a few hours away by car, if you fancy stretching the trip further.
The Land Of The Sleeping Rainbow
The Main Lodge
Capitol Reef takes its name from two separate observations made by early visitors. The Waterpocket Fold, a nearly 160 km (100 mile) wrinkle in the earth's crust that runs through the park, was seen by settlers as an impassable barrier to travel - much like a coral reef is to a ship. Meanwhile, the white sandstone domes scattered through the landscape reminded the same settlers of the U.S. Capitol building, with one formation along Highway 24 still named Capitol Dome.
The Navajo have their own name for the area: the Land of the Sleeping Rainbow, a nod to the layered bands of color running through the rock, from greenish sedimentary stripes to the blue-toned earth of Cathedral Valley further north. Long before any of these names existed, the land was used by Archaic-era hunter-gatherers, and later by ancestral Puebloan communities, whose petroglyphs and pictographs are still visible on rock panels within the park.
Accommodation
The resort splits its lodging into two distinct categories: standard hotel-style rooms and suites in the main building, and standalone cabins, teepees, and Conestoga wagons scattered around the property, several of which look directly onto the Red Rock Cliffs. The resort has 98 guestrooms and suites and 22 cabins in various configurations, sleeping up to six people.
The teepees and wagons are seasonal, generally available from mid-May through mid-October, and both come with a private bathroom a short walk from the tent itself, accessed by key card. Every cabin, teepee, and wagon has a veranda, porch, or patio of some kind - a fire pit is usually close by, and s'mores kits are sold in the gift shop if you want the full effect.
Superior Double Queen Cabin
Superior Double Queen Cabin
At 40 square meters (430 sq ft), this cabin sleeps up to four across two queen beds and comes with a spa bathroom with a rain shower - a step up from the standard guestrooms. There's a private porch with Adirondack chairs looking out at the cliffs, along with a beverage cooler and a flat-screen TV with surround sound.
Superior King Cabin
Superior King Cabin
Also 40 square meters (430 sq ft) and sleeping up to four people, this version swaps one of the queen beds for a king bed plus a queen sofa sleeper, useful if you're traveling with a child or don't need two separate beds.
It shares the same spa bathroom, rain shower, and covered porch with Adirondack chairs as its double-queen counterpart.
Two Bedroom Cabin
Two Bedroom Cabin
This is the largest of the standard cabins at 43 square meters (460 sq ft), with two separate bedrooms each holding a queen bed, a living room with a queen sofa sleeper, and a full kitchen - useful if you're the type who likes making your own coffee rather than relying on the in-room Keurig.
It sleeps up to six and comes with one and a half bathrooms and a 28 square meter (300 sq ft) porch with a table and gas grill, overlooking the cliffs.
Teepee
Teepee
The teepees are 23 square meters (250 sq ft), water-resistant, and freestanding, each with a king bed, a flat-screen TV, and a sitting area. They sleep up to two adults and one child.
Like the wagons, they're fitted with a portable cooling unit and a space heater rather than full air conditioning, since the canvas construction means indoor temperatures follow the weather outside to some degree - something worth bearing in mind if you're visiting during a particularly hot or cold stretch. A private bathroom sits just outside.
Conestoga Wagon
Conestoga Wagon
Modeled on 19th-century wagon designs, these are the resort's most distinctive accommodation: water-resistant, sleeping up to six across a king bed and twin bunk beds, and fitted with the same portable cooling and heating setup as the teepees.
There's no TV inside, in keeping with the old-frontier feel, though there is a private bathroom a short walk away and a fire pit right outside.
Pool & Hot Tub
The resort has an outdoor hot tub, available year-round, and a seasonal outdoor pool that typically runs from early or mid-April through early or mid-October, weather dependent.
Both sit with a view of the surrounding Red Rock Cliffs, with poolside lounge chairs nearby if you'd rather watch than swim.
Adventures
Beyond the hotel grounds, the resort runs three main outdoor activities: llama hikes, horseback trail rides, and Jeep safaris, all led by guides who cover the geology, biology, and history of the surrounding landscape as you go.
Horseback rides head past the Red Bluff, the Wingate Tunnel, and the Petrified Forest, while Jeep safaris follow backcountry routes like the Burr Trail and the Waterpocket Fold, or head north into Cathedral Valley to see the Temple of the Sun and Temple of the Moon.
Llama Trekking
The llama treks are among the more unusual activities on offer, and they range from a one-hour day hike to multi-day overnight treks. On the shorter trips, the llamas carry the gear and food while you walk with only a light day pack, and guests get access to the western escarpment of the Water Pocket Fold, including areas like the headwaters of Sulphur Creek, Red Bluff Canyon, and the Amphitheater below Cooks Mesa - spots that see very few visitors.
The overnight treks go further, following stretches of the Great Western Trail and camping beside spring-fed mountain lakes, with routes that climb to peaks around 3,350 meters (11,000 feet) and pass two waterfalls along the way, with guides preparing meals over a campfire each night. Both the short hikes and overnight treks run from mid-March through late October.
8JC8+2X Torrey, Utah, USA
