Zion Lodge question

I stayed in the lodge/hotel and the room was about the size of an average hotel room. It did have a porch/balcony. I spent so little time in the room and so much time on the trails that it personally wouldn’t matter to me.

We just went in the end of March. We stayed at the Best Western Plus right out side of the entrance and it was perfect. We barely were in the room in all honestly. We were up and out at 6 and didn't get back until dusk.

The beds were not in too bad of shape and they offered a full breakfast bar to go in the mornings. (they were up and ready when we were)

They also had laundry machines that were very handy. (we were there for 5 days and packed as light as possible). It was also walking distance from most of the food/bar spots.

ETA:
you have a smaller porch to set wet clothes out if you go on the Narrows hike/get in the hot tub pool.
Biggest thing for me was the hot tub. Came in clutch those cold nights. Overall it was a decent place for a cheap price and had some amazing views of the park from the pool in the evenings.


ETA x2:

IF YOU HAVE DATES AND NOT GOTTEN YOUR SHUTTLE TICKETS I WOULD SERIOUSLY LOOK INTO THAT. They are pretty strict on times. (we went with another couple and unfortunately had different times) Since they are only 1$ it would be advantageous to keep trying until you get your preferred time. If you plan on doing angels, I would suggest do it as early as possible. It is much easier to accomplish when there aren't umpteen people around you.

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. We stayed at the Best Western Plus right out side of the entrance

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This. Stayed at a Holiday Inn just outside the park and it was perfect. Convenient to the few shops/restaurants/grocery stores in Springdale and only a mile to the park.

I get that others may like to stay outside of the park in cheaper accommodations, closer to food and shops. If at all possible I stay in whichever park I happen to be visiting. I do this for the access to the park, not the amenities. When I stayed at Zion lodge I walked to and was at angels landing trailhead before daylight and spent an hour alone at scouts landing before the first hiker arrived. Being able to spend time alone with that view before the throngs of people arrived is worth whatever it costs to stay at the lodge.

You’ll be fine leaving luggage in your vehicle while in Bryce. It’s probably happened before where vehicles were broken into and luggage stolen, but I doubt inside a National park it happens much. I had luggage/gear/ice chests in the back of my truck unsecured for many short hikes in Zion, Bryce, Capitol reef, arches, and Canyonlands without any issues.

As far as Zion goes, 3 full days would be plenty for the average person. You could definitely spend more time there, but 3 days is plenty for the highlights.

And I’m sure you know this, but Bryce is kind of out of the way from Zion to kanab. Maybe spend a night up near Bryce to see it? Definitely hike down in the hoodoos.

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I walked to and was at angels landing trailhead before daylight and spent an hour alone at scouts landing before the first hiker arrived

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This IMO is the only advantage of staying in the parks lodges. We rode the 7am bus in everyday and there were few people on our way up during the hike; on the way down a different story...at that point the 'Last 500 feet' of angels can become a little more difficult. Not because of the terrain but because of the mass amounts of people fighting you to go up when you are on the way down.

Yea, sketchy but with longer arms it was easier for me to navigate around them ( I would just hold on and let them pass on the inside. Especially since we were there early, the way down it started to get really busy. We had to tell people to stop because we were coming down. People are really opposed to letting you by when they are trying to go up. If you get too worried just ride on your bum the whole way down. There was an elderly women that did that the whole way almost. Made it down in record time.

The Walter Wiggles is the worst part of the hike (you'll know when you see them). We powered through them going up, the key is like driving through mud, don't stop...because once you do you're stuck.