Arches National Park has long had a popularity problem, especially at two of its most famous sights.
At the Windows, a sight known for its high concentration of arches, a one-mile trail leads visitors to North Window, South Window, Turret Arch, and Double Arch; at 112 feet above the desert floor, Double Arch is the tallest arch in the park.
Farther along Arches Scenic Drive (a roughly 36-mile round-trip route through the park), the well-known Delicate Arch stands 52 feet high at the edge of a sandstone bowl, reached via a three-mile round-trip hike and instantly recognizable as one of the defining images of Utah.
These are among the landmark rock formations that draw many travelers to Arches—and they are also among the sites where finding a parking spot can be particularly difficult.
Now, local officials are testing a new way to reach them. Grand County, which includes the city of Moab and nearby Arches National Park, has launched the Moab-Arches Shuttle, a free shuttle pilot program connecting downtown Moab with the park, including service to the Windows and Delicate Arch trailheads.
“Everyone should see Arches National Park at least once in their life. The challenge is finding ways to make that possible while protecting the experience that makes the park so extraordinary,” Michael Soleta, director of the Moab Office of Tourism, told Afar. “The shuttle gives visitors another way to reach two of the park’s busiest destinations, skip the entrance line, and help reduce congestion along the way.”
Just in time for the fall travel season when temperatures are more moderate, the optional service kicked off on September 1 and will run through October 31, 2026, before returning from March 1 through June 30, 2027. Developed in partnership with the National Park Service and other agencies, the pilot is designed to test whether giving travelers an alternative to driving can ease bottlenecks at some of Arches’ busiest areas without restricting when visitors can enter the park. More than 1.5 million people visited in 2025, and the NPS warns that during the busy season, from March through October, parking can become extremely limited throughout the park; in summer, some trailhead lots can fill by 8 a.m.
For travelers, the pilot offers something Arches hasn’t previously had on this scale: the option to leave the car in Moab and still reach two of the park’s marquee destinations.
How the new Moab-Arches shuttle works
Driving the 36-mile Arches Scenic Drive is a popular way to visit the park, but the challenge is finding parking along the way.
Photo by KK/Unsplash
The pilot Moab-Arches Shuttle combines two shuttle routes that connect at the Arches Visitor Center.
The first runs between Moab and the Arches Visitor Center in the park, picking up passengers at four locations around town: the Transit Hub, Moab Rock Shop, the Moab Information Center, and the Maverik gas station.
From the Arches Visitor Center, a second shuttle travels farther into the park, stopping at the Windows and the Delicate Arch trailheads. Visitors who still want to drive into Arches can also park at the visitor center and use only the in-park portion of the service.
Notably, this isn’t yet a park-wide transportation system like the ones at Zion National Park or Denali National Park. It serves only the visitor center, Windows, and Delicate Arch rather than carrying passengers along the entire park road.
Travelers headed to Devils Garden, Landscape Arch, Fiery Furnace, or other parts of Arches will still need another way to get there.
What travelers need to know
The shuttle is free, and no advance shuttle reservation is required. Riders do, however, still need to pay the regular Arches National Park entrance fee or have a valid Federal Lands Pass. According to Moab tourism officials, passes to the national park should be purchased in advance online or at the Moab Information Center and will be checked by the shuttle driver.
Service begins daily at 8 a.m., with buses arriving roughly every 15 to 30 minutes.
One important consideration for travelers planning an afternoon hike is that the final shuttle leaves the Delicate Arch trailhead at 4:05 p.m. The last bus from the Arches Visitor Center back toward Moab departs at 5:10 p.m., so hikers should build enough time into their day to get back to the stop.
The pilot comes after years of attempts to manage the crush of visitors at Arches, where parking and traffic have become persistent issues during the busiest months. Most recently, the NPS experimented with a timed-entry reservation system aimed at spreading visitation more evenly throughout the day, though it was ultimately dropped in 2026.
Getting to Arches National Park and where to stay
If you want to sleep under the stars without roughing it, check into Ulum Moab.
Courtesy of Ulum Moab
The city of Moab, just outside Arches National Park, is an easy and convenient base for visiting the park—especially with the new shuttle service from Moab. The closest major airport is in Salt Lake City, about 230 miles northwest of Moab.
In a recent Afar story about how to choose between Zion National Park and Arches, writer Francesca Krempa highlighted that Moab offers a wide range of luxury outdoor-adventure-focused hotels and lodges. Options include Ulum Moab, an upscale glamping retreat brand from the team behind Under Canvas. Sorrel River Ranch Resort and Spa is a luxury all-inclusive property along the Colorado River. For something closer to Arches, good choices are Red Cliffs Lodge Moab, a Tribute Portfolio hotel that is part of the Marriott universe (perfect for Bonvoy members), and—for the Hilton Honors loyalists—Hoodoo Moab, a Curio Collection by Hilton hotel, in downtown.
You could also combine a visit to Arches National Park with an epic road trip to see all of Utah’s “mighty five” national parks—Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce, Zion, and Capitol Reef.
