Wheelchair Accessibility at Arches National Park

Wheelchair accessibility at Arches National Park is okay but not great. If you're planning a trip to Arches with a wheelchair user, this guide will tell you all you need to know to plan your trip and what you can expect.

Wheelchair Accessibility at Arches National Park:

We have a daughter who is a wheelchair user, and because of her diagnosis we qualify for a free lifetime National Park Pass. When we plan our National Park trips we tend to plan them as more of a quick in and out adventure that will last 1-2 hours because in general, there isn't much to do for wheelchair users.

When we went to Arches back in 2021 there were two hikes being advertised as "wheelchair accessible" those were The Windows Trail, and The Double Arch Trail. They have since updated their website with accessible information on all of their trails and do a good job of describing the accessibility of each of the available hikes.

I would not have considered either of those hikes to be accessible, and in general I would say Arches is probably one of the more limiting parks we've been to when it comes to accessibility.

Accessible Hiking Trails:

The most accessible hiking trail is going to be the Double Arch Trail. This trail is a pretty smooth path almost all the way to the double arch. However, once you get to where the arches are, it gets very sandy. If you don't have an adaptive stroller and are using a regular wheelchair, I would assume you will not be able to get to where the double arch is. At this point we had to take our daughter out of her adaptive stroller and carry her up to the double arch, which I realize is not an option for many people.

ALL of the other trails in Arches National Park have stone steps on the trail to some degree, which you again can confirm on their website. When we went they advertised The Windows as accessible and it was all stone stairs the entire way.

Because our daughter was 7 when we went we could overcome some of these barriers by carrying her but it is rather impractical.

Ways for Wheelchair Users to Experience Arches National Park:

Although hiking is a very limited option for wheelchair users in this park, there are some things that are still available to see and do. All of the visitor centers are ADA approved, which means you can go in and visit these with ease. There is also a road that goes through the entire park with a lot of scenic views, and you can see some arches from the road. So you can drive through the park and see a lot from the car and the available lookout points, but if you want to be outside, submersed in nature, this is not one of the better parks to visit.

Overall Feelings on Wheelchair Accessibility at Arches National Park:

Overall, I'm glad we went and saw Arches, and that we got to see the main thing there that everyone goes to see, however, it really isn't a very accessible park and I don't think I would go out of my way to go there again, especially if we were bringing Kinsley. I think there are a lot of other National Parks that have a lot more outdoor options for wheelchair users.

Wheelchair Accessibility at Arches National Park