Arches National Park Visitor Center

The Arches National Park Visitor Center is the essential starting point for any family visiting one of the most spectacular landscapes on the planet. Located at the park entrance 5 miles north of Moab, it's where you pay your entry fee, pick up maps, talk to rangers, and — critically for families with kids — grab the Junior Ranger activity booklet that transforms the entire park visit into an engaging, kid-directed learning experience.

The Junior Ranger program at Arches is exceptional. The booklet gives kids age-appropriate activities to complete at various formations and overlooks throughout the park: observing rock layers, identifying erosion patterns, counting arches, and writing about what they see. Completing the booklet and returning to the visitor center for an official Junior Ranger badge from a ranger is a highlight that kids talk about for years.

It's the best $0 investment you can make before entering the park.

The visitor center also has restrooms, water refill stations, and a genuinely good bookshop stocked with field guides, geology books, and kid-friendly natural history resources. Arches National Park has no food service and limited potable water once you're inside — the visitor center is your last reliable opportunity to fill up and stock up.

Rangers at the desk can provide invaluable guidance for families: which trails are appropriate for your kids' ages, current road conditions, which overlooks have the best light at different times of day, and whether any formations are temporarily closed. This kind of real-time local knowledge is worth the 10-minute conversation.

Timed entry reservations are required during peak season (roughly April through October). Check NPS.gov before your trip — arriving without a reservation during peak season can mean waiting in line for hours or being turned away.