Iconic National Parks of America

Iconic National Parks of America

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15 Days From

$4675

Iconic National Parks of America

15 Days Starting in Salt lake and ending in United Kingdom

Visiting: Salt Lake City, Arches National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Durango, Grand Junction, Fort Collins, Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Rapid City, Custer State Park, Crazy Horse Memorial, Deadwood, Devils Tower, Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, Cody, Yellowstone National Park, West Yellowstone

Tour operator:

Riviera Travel

Tour code:

WU

Guide Type:

Fully Guided

Age range:

18-99

Special diets catered:

Vegetarians

Tour operated in:
English
From:
$4675 (USD) including Flights from the UK

This tour is no longer available, please see similar tours below or send an enquiry

Tour Overview

The magnificent Old West conjures up images of cowboys and Indians, lawmen and outlaws, as well as courageous frontiersmen, forging ever westward in search of freedom, independence and greener pastures. No other period has influenced American culture and defined its history as greatly as the Western frontier. Its legendary figures - Wyatt Earp, Calamity Jane, Wild Bill Hickock - are now commemorated in film and fiction.

Highlights

  • A wonderful tour visiting no less than seven National Parks, Monuments and State Parks spread across Utah, Colorado, South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana, including two days in magnificent Yellowstone

  • Experience the unique landscapes and geology of Yellowstone, the world’s first National Park, with its geysers, hot springs, waterfalls and herds of bison, elk and grizzly bears

  • Visit that iconic symbol of the USA – Mount Rushmore, with its colossal heads of four the USA’s greatest Presidents set in the Black Hills of South Dakota

  • Drive through classic cowboy country in Wyoming and learn about its famous historical figures such as Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Buffalo Bill

  • See the site of Custer’s famous ‘Last Stand’ on the Little Bighorn battlefield

  • Explore some of the remarkable, but lesser-known sights such as the Devil’s Tower and Mesa Verde

  • Travel on the historic Durango &

  • Gaze in awe at the incredible variety of sandstone arches, spires, balanced rocks and monoliths sculpted by nature in Arches National Park

  • Silverton steam railway amongst the spectacular scenery of the Colorado Rockies

  • Return direct scheduled flights and transfers

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Itinerary

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Day 1

Location: Salt Lake City

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: No Meals

You should arrive at the airport for your direct flight to Salt Lake City, arriving later on the same day.

Day 2

Location: Salt Lake City

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

An orientation tour of Salt Lake City will give you a fascinating insight into its unique history and culture. It dates back to 1847 with the arrival of the Church of the Latter-day Saints (the Mormons), the first settlers in the valley, who travelled far in their search for an isolated area where they could practise their religion. Our journey then commences on a long but fascinating drive that takes us south-east, travelling over the Wasatch Plateau into the remote Price and Green river basins. 

Day 3

Location: Arches National Park

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

This morning, when the light is at its best, we’ll visit one of our tour’s highlights, Arches National Park. Boasting the world’s largest concentration of natural sandstone arches within a relatively small area, there are around two thousand colossal sandstone arches, soaring spires, monoliths and balanced rock formations, making the landscape utterly unique and a photographer’s paradise.



This Mars-like topography, with its changing colours of oranges and deep reds, is sure to leave an indelible mark on the memory. Spend the afternoon at leisure – your options include a boat trip on the Colorado River or a 4x4 offroad tour.

Day 4

Location: Mesa Verde National Park

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

Leaving Moab, we soon cross into Colorado and arrive at Mesa Verde National Park, the only one exclusively devoted to Native American archaeological remains. Marvel at the past dwellings of the Anasazi, an Ancestral Puebloan people who inhabited the area between AD 600 to AD 1300. Their intriguing mud-brick buildings are some of the best preserved in the country, thanks to the dry desert climate and the stunning cliffside location under massive folds of rock – a truly extraordinary sight.

Day 5

Location: Durango

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

We enjoy a real highlight this morning, as we take a ride on the Durango & Silverton Railroad,

one of the USA’s best-loved heritage railways. Running on narrow-gauge tracks originally laid in the 1880s, the locomotives used today date from the 1920s and are completely coalfired and steam-driven. As the railway slowly gains height, the scenery becomes ever more rugged, with the muted greys and pinks of the jagged peaks contrasting beautifully with the dense forests in the deep valleys below.



Our wonderful vintage train follows the Animas River Valley through the San Juan National Forest, until it reaches the charming ex-mining community of Silverton. We re-board our coach headed for the small town of Montrose.

 

Day 6

Location: Grand Junction, Fort Collins

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

Today we continue our journey to northern Colorado to the historic town of Fort Collins, stopping en route for lunch (not included) in the town area of Vail in Eagle County, located in the White River National Forest.

Day 7

Location: Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Rapid City

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

After breakfast we leave Fort Collins and head north to South Dakota, where we will visit Mount Rushmore. The faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln look down over the Black Hills from stony heights to inspire and remind us that even the impossible is possible. You’ll be fascinated by the story of the one man who designed and sculpted this incredible monument and the ingenious techniques used in its construction, all set in the glorious natural beauty of mountains, forests and emerald meadows.



We arrive at Rapid City, the capital of South Dakota. Our hotel tonight is located within walking distance to the downtown area, which is easy to explore on foot. 

 



 

Day 8

Location: Custer State Park, Crazy Horse Memorial

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

Today we drive through scenic Custer State Park, home to abundant wildlife, including bighorn sheep, antelope, elk, coyote, prairie dogs, and ‘begging burros’, wild donkeys with a reputation for approaching passing vehicles to ‘ask’ for food. We’ll also visit the Crazy Horse Memorial, still in the process of being sculpted from the mountain cliffs – on a truly vast scale, it will be 172 metres high and 195 metres long when completed.

Day 9

Location: Deadwood, Devils Tower

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

Heading east, we pass through legendary Deadwood, the historic gold rush town and a National Historic Landmark, with its wonderfully restored Main Street. Settled by illegal gold rushers in the 1870s, it attracted gunslingers, gamblers and outlaws, including Wild Bill Hickok, who was gunned down here during a poker game. One of the town’s most famous citizens, Calamity Jane, was immortalised in the film of the same name by Doris Day in the song, Deadwood Stage.



Crossing back into the wide-open spaces of Wyoming, we’ll visit the remarkable Devils Tower National Monument. The remains of an ancient volcano rising mystically above the surrounding area, it has been a spiritual icon for many of the Plains tribes and is also instantly recognisable as the aliens’ landing ground in Steven Spielberg’s film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. 

 

Day 10

Location: Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

Today we cross into the vast grassy hills of Montana, site of the US Cavalry’s greatest defeat at the hands of Native American tribes. Commanded by the flamboyant Lt Col Custer, the famed US 7th Cavalry suffered huge losses against the combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes, led by several major war leaders including Crazy Horse. Our local guide will take us through the dramatic events that led up to Custer’s Last Stand. We stay the night in Cody. In the evening, you may wish to experience the Cody Nite Rodeo, which runs on a nightly basis from June till August.

Day 11

Location: Cody, Yellowstone National Park

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

The town of Cody is named after ‘Buffalo Bill’ Cody, US soldier, bison hunter, showman and one of the most colourful figures of the Old West. His career began at age 11 when he worked on the wagon trains, then at 15 he was the youngest rider on the Pony Express. He was also a Union soldier in the Civil War, a famed fighter against the Indians and most notably, the founder of the Wild West Show that ran for 30 years. He was probably the world’s first international showman, dining with heads of state, including Queen Victoria. After a visit to he Buffalo Bill Center of the West, we cross into Yellowstone National Park over the 8,500-foot-high Sylvan Pass.

 

Day 12

Location: Yellowstone National Park

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

Wilderness is the theme of the day as we head into the park, the USA’s first and finest nature

reserve. The breathtaking scenery is incredibly special – see the stunning Lower Falls, twice the height of Niagara; the awe-inspiring Yellowstone Grand Canyon; wonderful bubbling mud pools, steaming rivers and hot springs, including the most famous geyser of all, Old Faithful. There are opportunities to catch sight of the park’s strikingly diverse wildlife, such as herds of bison and elk, or if you’re lucky, grizzly bears.

Day 13

Location: West Yellowstone, Salt Lake City

Accommodation: Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast

Today we continue the journey south through some fascinating landscapes. We take a stop at the city of Idaho Falls, surrounded by the Snake River, as we head back to Salt Lake City. Here we visit Temple Square, forty years in its construction and the Beehive house, one of the two official residences of the first Church leader, Brigham Young.

 

Day 14

Location: Salt Lake City

Meals Included: Breakfast

After a leisurely morning we take an early afternoon transfer to the airport for our overnight flight home.

What's Included

  • The price of this holiday is per person based on two people sharing a twin room and includes: Scheduled direct flights to Salt Lake City All transfers Thirteen nights' accommodation in three-star hotels Daily breakfast All tours as mentioned Visits to Arches, Mesa Verde;& Yellowstone National Parks, Mt Rushmore, Devils Tower, guided tour of the Little Bighorn Battlefield, city tour of Salt Lake City, Durango & Silverton railway Porterage of one item of luggage per person The services of a Riviera tour managerPlease note: adverse weather conditions may result in some road closures in Yellowstone in early or late season.

  • Accommodation

    Thirteen nights' accommodation in three-star hotels

  • All transfers

  • Meals

    Daily breakfast

  • Visits to Arches, Mesa Verde & Yellowstone National Parks, Mt Rushmore, Devils Tower, guided tour of the Little Bighorn Battlefield, city tour of Salt Lake City, Durango & Silverton railway

  • Porterage of one item of luggage per person

  • All tours as mentioned

What's Not Included

Check out our Q&As

  • Are airport transfers included in this tour?

    Yes

  • Are all entrance fees included in the price?

    Yes

  • Are all the relevant entry visa’s included in the price of the tour?

    Yes

  • Are flights included in this tour?

    Yes

  • Are children permitted to take part in the tour?

    No

  • Are the local guides on the tour English speaking?

    Yes

  • How long has the tour company been trading?

    For almost 40 years

  • I have reduced mobility; can I still travel?

    We want to ensure you make the correct choice before you book your holiday with us. If you have any concerns regarding the suitability of the holiday due to reduced mobility we would encourage you to contact us to discuss these concerns

  • Do I require travel insurance?

    It is a condition of booking that you carry suitable travel insurance.

  • What is my luggage allowance?

    You will receive details of your luggage allowance with your final travel documents, which are sent approximately 10 days prior to your date of departure.

Reviews of this Operator

David Clarke (Google Reviewer)  

This review is for the...

08-Aug-2023

This review is for the italian Lake Como trip Aug 1-8 Wow what a trip. Riviera from start to finish were excellent the booking and help line answering questions were very good and clear. The travel booklet you get is laid out that it is simple to read and follow with step by step info from booking in to flights to meeting the guides. Our guide Matt Purse was just the best guide and real credit to Riviera with his knowledge and straight forward approach to running the trips. Matt kept us informed and told us all the sort of info you want to know without going over the top....This chap should teach other reps ..thank you so much. The coaches they use are all clean and well equipped with usb chargers and have aircon. The places chosen to visit were well researched even down to where coaches park or drop you off. The Bernina Express was the highlight for our family and matts photo tip was welcomed. The only down point was the hotel,a little dated and evening meal in main restuarant was a bit of a let down. I think we were lucky with our room on level 7 and with balcony as the walls are very thin and noise travels. We would book again with riviera

Barbara Shillaker (Google Reviewer)  

I have been on three...

11-Jan-2024

I have been on three trips with Riviera Travel so far, with two more booked during 2024. Highly recommended. Excellent tour guides. Great program of visits. Great hotels used.

Valerie Pascoe  

We would go again in a heartbeat

22-Jan-2022

Oh my goodness, what a relief it was to actually get away! Full marks to all at Riviera for keeping us up to date before our trip and for the help so cheerfully and patiently given with the extra admin that Covid brought our way. We felt totally safe with the measures taken on board, thank you very much for this. Without exception, Staff were fantastic and our every need was attended to. The additional Covid testing ran smoothly, organised by our Riviera Reps. The guided tours were most interesting: the guides very knowledgeable and more importantly, interesting to listen to. We loved this trip and would do it again in a heartbeat. Thank you again Riviera, you were FAB!

Chris Wilson (Google Reviewer)  

Second escorted tour with this...

25-Jul-2022

Second escorted tour with this company. Did 5 days in Iceland tour. Everything went smoothly, excellent tour guide, Per. Extremely knowledgeable and interesting guy. Very friendly too. Highly recommend. Just let down by the room given at the hotel, but I guess the travel company doesn't have control over this.

Kathryn Jurin, GB  

Riviera South Africa tour - awesome

21-May-2021

Riviera have amazing holidays and tours to choose from. The one we chose was South Africa and wow! It turned out to be our best trip ever - incredible memories we will never forget. We’ve been all over the world which was because of all our experiences, this one was awesome. The organisation of the holiday, the guide and the travel was e cells that. The choice of hotels, meals, restaurants, trips was absolutely fantastic - very good quality and character - nothing bland or boring! The Riviera guide was permanently with us along with a South Africa guide and they were both extremely friendly, professional, informative and you could ask any questions you want! I would massively recommend this holiday/trip and when you’ve experienced it, you realise how reasonable the price is. We reflect on this trip a lot and thank you Riviera for giving us such a wonderful experience.

Trustpilot
Barry, GB  

Rhine Christmas markets cruise

09-Dec-2019

Just completed a 5 day trip on the Rhine. Our first river cruise and a tester for future cruises. The boat was well appointed and the cabin and public areas were spotlessly clean. The staff were attentive and contributed to the very relaxed atmosphere on the boat. The quality of the food surpassed that which we have experiened on sea cruises in recent years. I have written little because it was a faultless experience. We have booked a further cruise (in France) on the basis of our experience.

Trustpilot
Nigel Stewart (Google Reviewer)  

Cruise ship William Wordsworth: A...

15-Apr-2024

Cruise ship William Wordsworth: A cruise ship of excellence, very well appointed, comfortable & indulgent. We departed Budapest and cruised the Blue Danube heading to Vienna. The top deck offers sun loungers, a heated pool, golf and a place to just sit & relax. The cabins have everything you could want for but above all incredible comfortable. The staff are professional, courteous, and attentive and do everything to make your stay a pure pleasure. This is an experience you will remember for many years.

Christine Hardy (Google Reviewer)  

Although most people seem to...

10-Mar-2024

Although most people seem to book and pay for their holidays online, because we live close by we prefer to make a personal visit. In my opinion if they are offering this as an option they should be better equipped to accommodate visits in person. We have not been on our river cruise yet, so can't comment on that yet.

Rob Steele (Google Reviewer)  

My 3rd Riviera trip within...

16-Feb-2024

My 3rd Riviera trip within a year and I wasn't disappointed 😁 This time it was https://www.rivieratravel.co.uk/escorted-tours/southern-india-coastal-route-solo-travellers This trip, although not cheap, it really offers exceptional value for money as you see a lot of Tamil Nadu and Kerela, stay in fantastic hotels, excellent breakfasts every day as well as some lunches and dinners also included. George Bareham, our "Tour Manager" was brilliant, very professional, but also friendly and diligent. Satheeshan, our local guide was helpful and picked me up antibiotics when I got ill, he was a nice chap, if (for my taste) went on a bit and used 20 words when 1 would suffice. Mr Sweeny, our coach driver was fantastic,really professional and an exceptionally good driver. His assistant, Murgon wad a delight, always smiling and attentive. This is a full on trip, early morning starts and quite a packed itinerary, but still leaving time to laze around some brilliant hotel swimming pools. Only a couple of suggestions to improve the holiday. More shopping time in Cochin and change carriers from Etihad who, unfortunately aren't the excellent airline they used to be. But, will I use Riviera Travel again - Yes 😁

Barbara Parkes (Google Reviewer)  

Presently in Croatia staying at...

22-Sep-2023

Presently in Croatia staying at Arauana Hotel, supposedly a 4 star property, but wouldn't give it any star rating. Rooms are small and dirty. Wallpaper blistering. Meals served in a shed like lean-to. Food like warm, greasy and always self service. Second holiday with Riviera this year and neither at standard advertised. Have travelled with them previously and everything was fine, but standards have really dropped. Have booked a holiday with them next year and now dreading it. Certainly don't provide the standard advertised. We have never stayed in such a hovel and have visited youngsters in back packers accommodation which was far better than this supposedly 4 star accommodation. There are no indoor bars or lounges only a shed as a so called restaurant. Absolutely disgusting. Won't be boking with them again

Dates & Availability

Instant Booking Available

Monday - Monday

Apr 28, 2025 - May 12, 2025
$4675 (USD)

Including UK Flights

Instant Booking Available

Monday - Monday

May 12, 2025 - May 26, 2025
$4801 (USD)

Including UK Flights

Instant Booking Available

Monday - Monday

Jun 16, 2025 - Jun 30, 2025
$4801 (USD)

Including UK Flights

Instant Booking Available

Monday - Monday

Sep 15, 2025 - Sep 29, 2025
$4801 (USD)

Including UK Flights

Book with Confidence

  • Low Deposit

    Riviera Travel requires a minimum deposit of 500 GBP per person or the full booking value, whichever is less, with the final balance not due until 75 days before departure.

  • Cancellation Policy

    We don't charge a cancellation fee, here is a summary of riviera travel charges.

    Up to 75 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of deposit.

    At 74 days before tour starts: Forfeit 50% of booking price.

    At 60 days before tour starts: Forfeit 70% of booking price.

    At 30 days before tour starts: Forfeit 90% of booking price.

    At 14 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of booking price.