Spirit of the Desert: The National Parks of the Southwest 2025
Overview
Highlights
- Stunning landscapes so arresting that they'll live forever in your mind's eye… impossible red rock arches opening before you like grand entryways
- offering a sense of endless possibility… canyons and immense cliffs
- seemingly carved by a giant to form an island in the sky… fanciful hoodoos come alive while gods and legends linger everywhere… how the human spirit is cheered and fortified by the spirit of the desert.On the ground or by air
- explore Arches
- Canyonlands
- Capitol Reef
- Bryce Canyon
- Zion and Grand Canyon national parks. Fly over the remote reaches of Capitol Reef and see the Grand Canyon from the air en route to Las Vegas. Spend two nights on the Grand Canyon's North Rim for a fresh
- 'new' perspective of the park
- enjoyed by fewer than 10% of park visitors. Enjoy independent sunrise and sunset spirit-of-the-moment experiences in the national parks… and gain insights through filmed vignettes by Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan
What's this trip about?
Details
Travel Themes
Destinations
Attractions
Activities
Trip includes
- TAUCK EXCLUSIVE – Filmed vignettes by Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan share their own personal stories and tell the stories of those who shaped the creation & preservation of the six national parks On the ground or by air, explore Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Bryce Canyon, Zion and Grand Canyon national parks – more than any other Tauck trip Two Flightseeing Adventures! Fly over the extraordinary remote reaches of the Capitol Reef National Park and see the Grand Canyon from the air en route to Las Vegas
Itinerary
A tour this morning of Arches National Park provides many unexpected sights. You won't believe your eyes as you travel through the park – there are more than 2,000 natural sandstone arches here, the world's largest concentration. Yo...
Join your Tauck Director for a different type of exploring – a scenic float trip along the Colorado River* where rock towers, colors and light reflect upon the water like mirror images. Depart for the fun little town of Moab, then o...
Enjoy some free time this morning – you might want to rise early and catch a beautiful sunrise, or explore the Film Museum at the Lodge. For the past 70 years, many of the most famous western movies were filmed in and around Moab – ...
You may want to rise early this morning to catch the shocking array of colors illuminated by the first rays of light throughout the park. More of a series of horseshoe "amphitheatres" than a canyon, morning walks reveal millions of ...
"I was so impressed by the red cliffs and wilderness surroundings of Zion Canyon that I determined we should... have it made a national park." The words of conservationist Horace Albright set the stage for the expansion of national ...
A film vignette by Dayton Duncan tells the story of Grand Canyon National Park, and how it exemplified the struggle that often occurred when creating a new national park. Leave Zion, and en route to Grand Canyon National Park get a ...
The North Rim is special at sunrise – well worth viewing (but remember, it comes pretty early)! Naturalist John Muir remarked: "The dawn, as in all the pure, dry desert country is ineffably beautiful; and when the first level sunbea...
Today is your final day to view a spectacular sunrise, this time from the North Rim of the canyon. The last of our vignettes features reflections by Ken Burns about our own private memories of the national parks – these memories are...
MEALS : B
PORTOFCALL : Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
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Dates & Availability
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The total tour cost includes the tour price (regular or promotional) and the compulsory local payment. The promotional price is subject to change. Check directly with the operator for the latest price offer. The tour operator requires you to pay only the tour price to purchase your travel. The compulsory local payment will be paid when you join the trip. All prices are based on double, twin or triple share occupancy. Solo passengers will be accommodated in a double, twin or triple room according to availability with a passenger(s) of the same gender. Single supplement only needs to be paid if the passenger does not want to share and requests their own room. Discounts can only be applied at the time of booking and cannot be added at a later date, regardless of any changes made to the original booking.
Prices may vary due to local taxes and trip seasonality. Click "Request Info" to inquire directly with the tour operator for the final trip price.
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Tour Operator
It's easy to see the world's sights. To stand in long lines, push through the crowds, and generally have the same standard-issue vacation as everyone else. But that's not good enough for us, and it's not good enough for you. We believe that travel should be easy. It should be fun. It should be worth your time and the price you paid. It should re-energize and transform. And above all else, it should be beyond the ordinary. Because how you see the world matters.
In 1882, Herman Tauck arrived in New York City from Germany in search of the American dream. His determination and values were passed on to his son, Arthur Tauck, who would realize that dream. With ingenuity and an innovative spirit, Arthur started Tauck Motor Tours, a travel company that would give birth to a new industry. The first tour, through the back roads of New England, was created by this 27-year-old in 1925. It embodied the same successful formula used by Tauck today: do the right thing. Craft a life-enriching travel experience; provide it at a single all-inclusive price; ensure there is great value for money; and rely on recommendations of satisfied customers to build a following and grow the business.
Two elements that did change over the next 90+ years – and three generations of Taucks – were the scope of destinations served and the variety of modes of travel used. Today Tauck delivers life-enriching travel experiences to every corner of the globe, incorporating small cruise ships, premium riverboats, trains, helicopters and more. What started as a New England motor coach tour company has truly evolved into an extraordinary global travel company. The fourth generation of Taucks is now involved in the company. While remarkable in any business, this seamless continuity across generations speaks to shared vision and values.
Throughout its history, the concept of “family” at Tauck has gone far beyond those sharing the surname to include hundreds of valued employees, and hundreds of thousands of loyal guests. The story of Tauck is the story of a unique American family company celebrating a passion for travel – a story that will continue to inspire generations to come.
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