Delicate Arch Trail in Arches National Park with Kids

The Delicate Arch Trail is the most popular hike in Arches National Park for good reason. The hike to Delicate Arch is scenic and enjoyable, and the up-close views of this highly photogenic arch are pretty incredible.

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The Delicate Arch Trail starts near a historic cabin, then climbs steadily with great views over the valley. The views of the valley below are quite nice the whole way up and (in April) it actually looks quite green due to natural grasses and shrubs.

About halfway up, the Delicate Arch hike transitions to a wide patch of gently sloped slickrock, which is fun for the kids to walk on. As you near the top, you start walking through amazing corridors of large rocks, with medium-sized bushes all around. There are all kinds of tempting rocks to climb and trails to follow for the kids, so watch them close.

Before you head out, read our best tips for hiking with kids and see what we actually pack in our guide to hiking gear for kids.

The final leg of this hike is a bit scary, but manageable if you are careful. The final 200 yards of the Delicate Arch Trail clings to the side of the cliff-face as it gently winds around a corner. There are no handrails and as you climb further up the drop below gets greater and greater.

I don’t have a sense for how far it dropped as I didn’t look, but it was really far down. Hold onto your kids closely through this section.

Soon enough the scary section ends and you turn to corner to see the world-famous Delicate Arch up-close. There is a large viewing area with natural rock formations to sit on, take pictures and simply enjoy the view.

Many people continue onwards to get even closer to the Arch, but the wind was blowing extremely hard and we felt it wasn’t safe to take the kids any closer without taking undue risks.

Delicate Arch Hike Stats

How Long is the Delicate Arch Trail?

The round trip distance of this popular Arches National Park hike is 3 miles / 4.8 km.

How Steep is the Delicate Arch Hike?

This hike has a steady, but moderate incline the entire way. There are no really hard parts to this hike, just a steady effort the entire way up. The official elevation gain for this hike is 480 feet / 146 m, but our GPS clocked in at 610 feet / 186m. The difference between the two is the distance we chased our kids around the trail.

How Difficult is the Delicate Arch Trail?

The trail to the Delicate Arch is no easy stroll along a riverside, nor is it a grueling sludge to the top of a mountain, so this trail is firmly in the moderate difficulty range. Anyone in reasonable shape ought to be able to do it no problem. Our 3 & 5 year old kids easily did the entire hike themselves.

How Long Does the Delicate Arch Hike Take?

This hike took us 2 hours and 19 minutes to hike to Delicate Arch with kids, which is bang-on to our usual family hiking pace. Without kids, we’d be able to hike this trail in less than an hour.

How to Get to Delicate Arch

The first few minutes of the drive into Arches National Park are epic, winding uphill through towering rock walls. After an incredible 20 minutes of driving we arrived at the massive Delicate Arch parking lot to find it around 25% full.

For comparison purposes, when we got back to the parking lot at 10:30am, it was completely full with lots of cars circling the lot waiting for someone to leave.

Reservations may be needed to visit Arches National Park (timed entry tickets are obtained on Recreation.gov, not at the entrance).

Delicate Arch Trail Highlights

The obvious highlight of this hike is the up-close view of Delicate Arch. This is the most popular hike in Arches National Park for a reason, it’s a spectacular and highly Instagramable sight.

The steadily increasing elevation gain, coupled with minimal tree cover result in really nice views of the valley below. It’s surprisingly green, with lots of shrubs and grasses.

Despite being in a desert environment, when we did the hike in April there were lots of beautiful wildflowers.

There is a historical cabin at the very beginning of the hike, followed shortly by a side trail to see some petroglyphs.

Hiking Delicate Arch with Kids

There are bathrooms at the Delicate Arch trailhead. Make sure everyone goes before they start as this is a very popular hike, with very few places to hide to go potty on the trail.

You can find a spot if you try really hard, but it may be tough to find a quick place to go in an emergency. On a related note, we advise parents to moderate their caffeine intake before this hike.

There are no water bottle filling stations on this hike. If you need to fill your water bladders before starting, the Arches National Park Visitor Center has a water station.

This is a true mountain hiking trail made of dirt and rocks. You can get by with hiking shoes, but we’d recommend hiking boots due to the uneven slickrock. Don’t even think about wearing flip-flops on this hike.

There isn’t much tree cover on the Delicate Arch hike, so be prepared for full sun exposure for the duration of the hike. Bring lots of water and sunscreen; the sign at the trailhead recommends at least half a gallon (2 L) of water per person on the hike. Hydration packs or water bladders are a great way to easily carry large quantities of water.

This trail is not stroller accessible, but tons of parents we saw with small kids used a backpack carrier to get them to the top.

No dogs are allowed on Delicate Arch Trail.

Keep your eyes open for wildlife. We saw a cute bunny hiding under a bush, lots of lizards and a stinkbug (a large beetle which will spray you with a noxious fluid if you bother it).

The beginning of the trail is lined with medium sized, decorative rocks on either side of the trail. It’s virtually impossible to keep kids off these rocks, which will slow everyone down.

Where to Stop for Lunch or a Break

The best place to stop for lunch is at the top of the hike. Once you reach the end, there is a large area with lots of rocks to sit on and enjoy views of Delicate Arch.

If the crowds are too dense, or the wind is blowing too hard (as was the case when we visited), you can find some great areas to stop on the slickrock not too far from the top – just before you start the scary part of the hike.

Delicate Arch Safety Tips

The sun can get intense in southern Utah, so bring more water than you think you will need.

Near the end of the hike, a 200 yard section of the trail clings to the rock face and drops off severely to the other side. There’s plenty of room for two-way traffic, but the drop is potentially life-threatening, so please keep your kids close and be careful.

Personal note: I’m very afraid of drop-offs, but the trail was wide enough and I was able to do this short section without freaking out.

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