20 Best Things to do in Page Arizona: First Time Visitor Guide
I’m going to show the best things to do in Page Arizona and 20 activities on the list below are great for just that goal, whether you’re planning to visit it for only one day or much longer.
I can promise you that by checking out the places on this list, you’re not just going to get the most out of that visit, but also one of the most amazing experiences in the entire south west. I’ve been to Page AZ several times and continue to come back because of how convenient it is to stay here for the multitude of amazing (mostly outdoor) activities you can explore.
Best things to do in Page AZ:
- See Glen Canyon Dam overlook.
- Visit Horseshoe Bend (from the top).
- Explore Lake Powell.
- Do “The Chains” hike.
- Explore Hanging Gardens.
- Do the Grand Canyon Raft Ride.
- Explore “The New Wave” hike.
- Check out the Wahweap Overlook.
- Drive on the Cottonwood Canyon Road.
- Do the Toadstool Hoodoos hike.
- Explore Marble Canyon.
- Do the Cathedral Wash Trail (Marble Canyon).
- Do the Spencer Trail (Lee’s Ferry, Marble Canyon).
- Do a boat tour underneath Horseshoe Bend.
- Explore Antelope Canyon (or similar ones nearby).
- Explore the Catstair hike.
- Check out Lone Rock Beach.
- Check out Skylight Arch.
- See Grand View Overlook.
- Explore Page AZ itself.
Hotel info:
See Glen Canyon Overlook:
- Location: Literally in Page AZ (easy to find).
- What is it? A very beautiful overlook of the Glen Canyon dam and area overall.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: This activity should be one of the first things you do in Page AZ. You will drive up to the parking lot to this overlook, walk down a few steps which turn into a short rocky hike (very easy to walk on) and that will lead you to a scenic spot to look at Glen Canyon. This is a great spot to take photos of it.
Visit Horseshoe Bend:
- Location: Horseshoe Bend trail, which is about 15 minutes near Page AZ.
- What is it? A short hike to a very famous and scenic overlook.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: Horsehoe Bend is one of the most advertised locations to see in Page Arizona and honestly if you look up places to see in Arizona, it also comes up there. I personally am not the biggest fan of visiting this place because there is a $10 per car fee to get in, but the overlook is worth seeing once. Now I did specifically say that you should explore the upper area first and this is because there are ways to explore this area from the bottom, on boat which I will cover too and it’s an entirely separate (and better) activity.
See Lake Powell (by boat or kayak):
- Location: Any area on water above the Glen Canyon Dam.
- What is it? A giant and beautiful lake right above Page AZ which you can explore many ways, but one of the best options is by boat.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: Before you do this activity, it’s important to know that below the Glen Canyon Dam is the Colorado River and above it, Lake Powell so for this activity we’re focusing on the latter one. What you’re going to want to do here is visit the Antelope Point Marina (10 minutes from Page).
From that Marina, you can rent boats, kayaks and even take boat tours through Lake Powell and see amazing areas from it. This is a great day time activity. You may also be able to reach a trail to a famous arch in Utah called the Rainbow Bridge National Monument from there. Just as well I recently talked about the topic of Lake Mead vs Lake Powell and I have to say that Lake Powell is much better to visit overall.
Do the “Chains” hike:
- Location: North of the Glen Canyon Dam (5 minutes from it).
- What is it? A scenic area behind the Glen Canyon dam which gets you close to the waters of Lake Powell.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: The “Chains” is not really a hike, but more of a scenic spot behind the Glen Canyon dam where you can sunbathe, do a little bit of swimming and hike around the rocks within the canyon area behind the dam. It’s very scenic there too and it’s a great place to relax if you’re not looking to do much hiking near Page.
Hanging Gardens:
- Location: In Page AZ, specifically the Hanging Gardens trailhead (close to the Glen Canyon Dam).
- What is it? A very scenic hike near inside Page AZ that takes you to beautiful overlooks of the Glen Canyon Dam, balanced rocks and other types of rock formations and more.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: Alongside the Glen Canyon overlook “hike” I mentioned earlier, this is another awesome hike that can be found very close to it (5 minutes away). You will basically walk along the Glen Canyon dam area whilst seeing beautiful views, canyons and more. I would recommend doing this hike when it isn’t that hot (early morning on warmer seasons is good or winter time hiking would be best).
Grand Canyon Raft Ride:
- Location: Right by Glen Canyon dam in Page AZ.
- What is it? A popular tourist attraction where you can take a raft around the Colorado River (and get close to the Glen Canyon Dam).
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: To do this, you would need to start at the Glen Canyon dam and go down to the base of it which would put you on the Colorado River. There you will be able to take a boat ride around the lake. This is a very fun activity if you enjoy boating and this is pretty much the best place to get close up views of the Glen Canyon dam.
New Wave hike:
- Location: 5 minutes outside of Page AZ.
- What is it? A hiking spot which looks a little bit like the Wave hike.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: The “New Wave” is a short trail hike right outside of Page. You will take Highway 89 westward and look for the New Wave trailhead (it’s very close to the city). Then you will park your car and walk a few 100 feet before reaching the New Wave area. The hike there is very short, but the rock formations are very cool and it’s a nice Wave hike alternative (the original Wave being a very popular hike that’s even further west of this one).
See the Wahweap Overlook:
- Location: Also outside of Page (5 minutes from Glen Canyon dam).
- What is it? Just a very beautiful overlook of Lake Powell and a great place to stop at if you’re coming into Page from the west or leaving it (and also heading west).
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: This is a great and short road trip stop. It’s just a very scenic overlook of the area (off Highway 89). There’s a few attractions nearby, but this is a worthwhile (short) stop to make near Page to get more out of your visit there.
Drive on Cottonwood Canyon road:
- Location: About 40 minutes west of Page.
- What is it? An off road drive (better for AWD vehicles) that takes you past several amazing hiking trails.
- Family friendly? Somewhat.
Details: Cottonwood Canyon road is really awesome for many reasons and here are a few:
- The drive itself is really nice.
- Great for finding amazing camping areas near Page.
- It gets you access to amazing hikes like Yellow Rock, Lower Hackberry Trail (looks like the Narrows) and more.
Toadstool Hoodoos hike:
- Location: 45 minutes west of Page, right off road 89.
- What is it? A very cool hike that takes you through a wash and into amazing rock formations that are a mix of red and white colors.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: I did this hike on my last trip through Page AZ and I honestly didn’t think that I would enjoy it so much. I have a whole guide on the Toadstool Hoodoos trail here if you plan on going. The hike is mostly very easy to navigate, but just in case use Alltrails or other similar apps to be sure you’re heading on the right trail. Once you’re done you will just walk back (south) to the parking area (about a 3 mile hike overall).
Marble Canyon:
- Location: 45 minutes south of Page AZ.
- What is it? An incredible mountain range with scenic drives, boating, hiking and much more.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: When I originally visited Page AZ, I was intending on finding Marble Canyon and I loved this place so much I keep coming back there. Marble Canyon has a very beautiful mountain range with red, pink and white colors mixed in, a very beautiful scenic drive called the Honey Moon Trail and much more. If you are visiting Page, I highly recommend going to this area. This is also where the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument area starts.
Cathedral Wash hike:
- Location: It’s inside Marble Canyon (50 minutes from Page).
- What is it? One of the best hikes near Page AZ in my opinion.
- Family friendly? Somewhat.
Details: This is one of the best hikes in Arizona based on the trails I’ve done so far. It is a 3 mile hike into a beautiful canyon that changes it’s scenery ever half mile or so. It’s basically a slot canyon hike and it takes you to the Colorado River. See details on Cathedral Wash here. I say it’s somewhat family friendly because there are areas of this hike where you have to scramble and climb down certain parts so if you have little kids with you, this is not a hike that I’d recommend. I’d instead just explore Marble Canyon instead.
Explore the Spencer Trail hike:
- Location: Also in Marble Canyon, but in the Lee’s Ferry area of it.
- What is it? Another amazing hike in the same region as Cathedral Wash.
- Family friendly? No.
Details: The Spencer Trail is a difficult but very fun hike in Marble Canyon that gives you amazing views of Lee’s Ferry, the Colorado River and when you reach the summit of it, a great view of Page AZ as well. This hike is only about 4 miles but because of the high elevation, it’s why I am not suggesting it for families. If you enjoy hiking, then yes this is a great trail to check out. Another option B is to do a river trail by Spencer Trail and that is family friendly.
Tour Horseshoe Bend by boat:
- Location: At Lee’s Ferry (same Marble Canyon area as where you’d start the Spencer trail).
- What is it? You can rent boats and take them up the Colorado River, all the way to Horseshoe Bend.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: Earlier I said I wasn’t a fan of visiting Horseshoe Bend from the top but this is a completely different story. You can actually rent boats outside of Marble Canyon (places like Kayak the Colorado) and other places right inside Page AZ, take them to Marble Canyon and you will find a boat disembarking area right by the same Spencer Trailhead. You can then take the boat (or kayak) up the Colorado River or down. If you go up, you will reach Horseshoe Bend quickly and it’s an even better way to explore this area in my opinion.
Explore Antelope Canyon:
- Location: There are several Antelope Canyon areas inside and near Page.
- What is it? A very scenic slot canyon tour.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: Antelope Canyon is actually a big reason why Page AZ is so popular. There’s an official Antelope Canyon tour area and also several Antelope Canyon alternatives not far from the official one. In order to explore this attraction, you have to go to a tour gathering area, pay about $60-$130 per person, and then you will be taken to the area and get to explore it then (you cannot visit these areas on your own).
Do the Catstair Canyon hike:
- Location: 45 minutes west from Page AZ.
- What is it? A very short hike through a canyon to an area where there are old cars piled on one another.
- Family friendly? Somewhat.
Details: When I did this trail, I had to use Alltrails because Google maps didn’t take me to the right spot. To do this hike, you will need to find a pull off highway 89 (Use Alltrails for this). That pull off will take you through a rocky road to a small parking lot. From there you will begin the trail and its only about half a mile to get to the cars area. I would NOT go further down the trail than this because it requires ropes and canyon hiking skills.
Lone Rock Beach:
- Location: About 20 minutes near Page (use highway 89 to get there).
- What is it? A beautiful beach area with a giant rock mountain in the water (called Lone Rock).
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: As you drive on highway 89, you will easily see Lone Rock in the distance. There is a drive off 89 that you will have to take to get to the beach. From there you can elect to kayak to the Lone Rock itself or just enjoy the beach area. It’s overall a very beautiful spot near Page to check out.
Skylight Arch:
- Location: 20 minutes from Page.
- What is it? A short hike to a beautiful natural arch.
- Family friendly? Somewhat.
Details: This is another very good hike around Page AZ that you may want to check out. You will first have to drive to Skylight Arch trailhead, then walk north to reach it. The hike is only about 1 mile to reach the arch. If you enjoy arches, I recommend 2 posts to further help you find many more:
- This post on famous arches in Utah (Skylight Arch is officially in Utah).
- Explore Arches National Park (it has many of them).
Grand View Overlook:
- Location: Right inside Page AZ.
- What is it? Another awesome overlook.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: Out of all the overlooks inside and near Page, this is probably the best one. You will see Lone Rock, Page itself and much more from it. I would say this is worth coming to around sunset time, so when you’re done exploring the other spots on this list, to finish up the day, go to this overlook and as long as there aren’t clouds, you will likely see an amazing sunset there.
Explore Page AZ:
- Location: Anything inside Page.
- What is it? It’s just an exploration of the city.
- Family friendly? Yes.
Details: I’ve listed many things so far that you can find inside Page, but this last activity is just exploring more of the area, the museums there, the restaurants and whatever other attractions and sights I didn’t mention so far. This is a pretty big area so depending on what kinds of things you like to see in a city, you can find them on Google maps, see where inside Page they are and explore them that way. I personally like the outdoor activities you can do in Page which is why I am focused on that for this list.
Best hikes:
- Cathedral Wash (moderate).
- Spencer Trail (hard).
- Hanging Gardens (easy).
- Skylight Arch (moderate).
- Toadstool Hoodoos (easy).
- The Chains hike (easy).
- Yellow Rock (easy).
- Cottonwood Narrows (moderate).
Nearb places to see:
- I would recommend Kanab in Utah. This is another awesome city like Page with many hikes and similar attractions to check out!
- White Pocket. This is a great hike about 2 hours from Page. It requires a 4×4 to see.
- Wire Pass Trail. This is one of the Antelope Canyon alternatives I recommend seeing.
- Monument Valley. This is about 3 hours from Page AZ.
- Grand Canyon National Park. You will need to drive about 2 hours south to get to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.
- The Mighty 5 National Parks. I would explore these if you are heading west from Page and don’t plan to go back to the city. The Mighty 5 are the national parks in Utah.
- Canyon de Chelly. This is a few hours south east of Page and is basically another version of the Grand Canyon (but better in my opinion).
