Torrey, Utah / Where to stay
Lodging and camping
Where to Stay Near Capitol Reef National Park
There is no hotel inside the park, so every bed is in a small town outside it, and a good share of those towns close down for the winter. Here is every named property, which ones stay open, and how the one campground in the park actually books.
The short version
Stay in Torrey unless you have a reason not to
Torrey sits about 11 miles west of the visitor center and holds roughly nineteen commercial lodging businesses, which is more than the rest of Wayne County put together. It has the restaurants, the fuel, the outfitters and the only real choice of bed. For a first visit, that is the answer.
The reasons to go elsewhere are specific. Caineville, 19 miles east, puts you closer to the Cathedral Valley road and nothing else. Bicknell at 18 miles west and Loa at 28 are cheaper and quieter with far less to eat. Teasdale, five miles southwest of Torrey and higher up, is where the two most characterful lodges are and where there is no gas station and no grocery store. Hanksville, 37 miles east, is a long way out and makes sense only if you are heading to Lake Powell or the Henry Mountains next.
Mileages here are the Park Service's own, measured from the visitor center. Everything else on this page names actual properties, because a lodging page that will not tell you what the places are called is not helping you.
Working out the whole trip rather than just the bed? The planning hub covers fees, permits, drive times and timing, and getting to Torrey has the approach from every direction.
The thing that ruins winter trips
Half of Torrey closes, and the dates are not obvious
The Park Service puts it plainly: many local businesses are closed during the winter off season, as well as on Sundays year round. What nobody publishes is which ones and when, so here it is, taken from each property's own website in September 2026, with Luxe Den rechecked in October.
| Property | Town | Season as they publish it | Winter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Sands Hotel and Spa | Torrey | Year round | Open |
| Broken Spur Inn and Steakhouse | Torrey | February to November | Closed Dec and Jan |
| Torrey Schoolhouse Bed and Breakfast | Torrey | April 1 to October 31 | Closed |
| The Rimrock Inn | Torrey | Closes the last weekend of October, reopens the third weekend of March. The patio runs later, to Thanksgiving, and returns for Presidents Day weekend | Closed |
| Skyridge Inn Bed and Breakfast | Torrey | Prime season stated as May 1 to October 31. Winter opening not stated | Ask |
| Luxe Den | Teasdale | Open and taking bookings: two Mongolian yurts, one geodesic dome and five en suite rooms in The Lodge, all shown in photographs taken on site. The property says the glamping season runs through the winter. The glass walled domes in its renders are a separate build planned for the 2027 season. Unit by unit detail | Open |
| Aquarius Inn and Motel | Bicknell | Open year round. The indoor pool runs early April to October | Open |
What this means in practice
A November or February visit is entirely doable, and it is the best time here for solitude and for snow on red rock. It just needs one phone call rather than one booking site, because the property you found may not be taking guests and the restaurant attached to it almost certainly is not.
The Sunday problem
Businesses closing on Sundays year round is the Park Service's own warning, and it catches people out for food and fuel more than for beds. Fill the tank on Saturday and do not plan a Sunday night restaurant meal without ringing ahead. More in the Torrey restaurant guide.
Named, not described
Every lodging option in Torrey
Grouped by what they actually are, with the detail that decides between them. Nobody pays to be here and nothing is ranked.
| Property | Type | What sets it apart | Size, where published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Sands Hotel and Spa | Hotel | The only full spa for a long way, plus an indoor pool, a restaurant and a star deck. Two miles from the park, open all year, two pet rooms per wing | 64 rooms |
| Capitol Reef Resort | Resort | 58 acres with rooms, cabins, teepees and Conestoga wagons, heated pool and hot tub, dining on site. The wagons have no television, which is the point | Not published |
| Skyview Hotel | Hotel and glamping domes | Built around Torrey's dark sky designation, with a rooftop stargazing terrace, skylight domes, four EV chargers and breakfast delivered to the room | Not published |
| Cougar Ridge Resort | Resort | The upper end. Grand Lodge and villas, pool, spa and massage, and the place weddings happen. About ten minutes out of town | Not published |
| Broken Spur Inn and Steakhouse | Inn and wagons | Steakhouse on site, hot breakfast, indoor pool, playground and a Level 2 EV charger. Five minutes from the entrance. Shut in December and January | Not published |
| The Rimrock Inn | Motel and cabins | Two places to eat on site, one fine dining and one casual with live music, and the most pet friendly on this list at $30 a night for up to two. Their own disc golf course is permanently closed and they now point players to the free 18 hole course at Torrey Pines | Not published |
| The Noor Hotel | Hotel | Restaurant and a gas station on the same site, which is more useful here than it sounds. Pet friendly, smoke free, accessible and adjoining rooms | Not published |
| Austin's Chuckwagon Lodge | Motel, suites and cabins | General store, bakery and deli on site, so it doubles as the place you buy trail food. Pool and spa | Not published |
| Days Inn by Wyndham | Chain hotel | The predictable option, with an indoor pool, guest laundry, large vehicle parking and a 24 hour desk. Useful if you are arriving late | Not published |
| Motel Torrey | Motel | Renovated rooms, private baths, no frills. The simplest bed in town | Not published |
| Torrey Schoolhouse Bed and Breakfast | Bed and breakfast | A 1914 schoolhouse with a hot organic breakfast at 8.30, vegetarian, vegan and gluten free by arrangement. Guests aged 12 and up, no pets. One ground floor room is wheelchair accessible | 9 rooms |
| Skyridge Inn Bed and Breakfast | Bed and breakfast | Sixty acres three minutes from the entrance, hot breakfast, private decks and a hot tub. Two outfitters run out of the same address, which makes booking a tour easy | 6 rooms |
| Casitas at Capitol Reef | Casitas and tiny homes | Kitchenettes and full kitchens with self check in, so it suits longer stays and families who want to cook. One ADA studio | About 12 units |
| Cowboy Homestead Cabins | Cabins | One and two bedroom pine cabins on 150 acres of an original pioneer homestead, with kitchenettes and outdoor barbecues. Very dark at night | Not published |
| Torrey Trading Post and Cabins | Cabins | Furnished cabins attached to a gift and souvenir shop on Main Street, so you are in the village rather than out on the highway | Not published |
| Thousand Lakes RV Park | RV park, cabins and tent sites | 22 acres at 6,800 feet with a pool, laundry, dump station, propane and a barbecue restaurant. Jeep rentals on the same site, which matters if you want Cathedral Valley | Not published |
| Wonderland RV Park | RV park and cabins | The only property in town publishing its rates. RV sites $56 to $62, tent and car camping $40, cabins $59 to $84. Full hookups, fenced dog run, propane fire pits since wood fires are not allowed | 35 RV sites |
| Sand Creek RV Park and Campground | RV park, tent sites and cabins | Pull through full hookup sites, shaded tent sites, rustic and deluxe cabins, and a community pavilion. Dogs and cats both welcome | Not published |
Detail on individual properties, including which ones suit families and which have kitchens, lives on the Torrey hotels page and cabins and glamping near Capitol Reef. If Torrey is full, the base town comparison covers the alternatives in order of how much you give up.
Sleeping in the park
Fruita, the two free campgrounds, and the forest
Fruita is the reason people plan six months out. It has 71 sites in an orchard beside the Fremont River, and the Park Service runs it on a full reservation system, so there is no turning up and hoping.
| Campground | Sites | Fee | Water and facilities | How you get a site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fruita, in the park | 71, of which 65 are reservable | $25 a night, half for Senior and Access pass holders | Potable water, flush toilets, dump station. No showers and no hookups | Reserved on recreation.gov, with the window opening six months ahead |
| Fruita group site | One site, up to 40 people | $125 a night | Two covered pavilions, tent pads, restrooms, grills and fire pits | Mid April to mid October, booked up to 12 months ahead, closed Tuesday and Wednesday nights |
| Cathedral Valley, in the park | 6 | Free | Pit toilet. No water at all | First come first served, about 36 miles out on roads that usually need high clearance |
| Cedar Mesa, in the park | 5 | Free | Pit toilet. No water at all | First come first served, 23 miles south of Highway 24 on the Notom Bullfrog Road |
| Singletree, national forest | 33 | Fee campground | Water, flush toilets, at 8,200 feet | 22 miles from the visitor center, up on Boulder Mountain |
| Sunglow, national forest | 9 | Fee campground | Water, flush toilets, at 7,200 feet | 18 miles, above Bicknell |
Free dispersed camping, and the rules
There is plenty, on Bureau of Land Management ground in the Grand Staircase Escalante to the south and around the Henry Mountains to the east. The rules are simple and they matter: camp within 150 feet of a designated route, use existing spur roads rather than making new ones, use existing fire rings, and check the current fire restrictions before you strike a match.
Two things about Fruita people get wrong
There are no hookups and no showers, so a large RV is doing this on its own tanks. And the dump station is free with a campsite reservation but $5 without, which is worth knowing if you are staying elsewhere.
Full detail and the alternatives when Fruita is full are on the Capitol Reef camping guide. Booking is through the recreation.gov listing.
One thing we will not tell you
Nobody knows how many rooms Torrey has
You will find pages asserting a total room count for Torrey and warning that it sells out months ahead. We went looking for the source. There is not one. Not the town, not Wayne County tourism, not the Park Service.
What can be checked is thin. Red Sands publishes 64 rooms and is the only property in town publishing a figure above twenty. Torrey Schoolhouse publishes 9, Skyridge 6, Casitas about 12, Wonderland 35 RV sites. Every other property, including the largest resorts, publishes nothing. A town total is not derivable from that, so we are not going to invent one.
The constraint that is real and documented is different, and more useful: the campground inside the park is 71 sites on a full reservation system with a six month window, several Torrey properties shut for part of the winter, and October is the month everyone wants. Book that month early because of demand you can observe, not because of a number somebody made up.
If you want a primary figure, Torrey Town Hall is on 435 425 3600 and the Wayne County Office of Tourism on 435 425 3365. If either publishes one, we will put it here and say where it came from.
Straight answers
Lodging questions
Is there a hotel inside Capitol Reef National Park?
No. Unlike Zion or Bryce there is no park lodge here. The only accommodation inside the boundary is camping, at Fruita and at two free primitive campgrounds out in the backcountry districts. Every other bed is in a town outside the park.
Should I stay in Torrey or somewhere else?
Torrey for a first visit. It is about 11 miles from the visitor center and has the restaurants, the fuel, the outfitters and roughly nineteen lodging businesses. Caineville is closer to the Cathedral Valley road, Bicknell and Loa are cheaper and quieter, Teasdale has the two most characterful lodges and no shops, and Hanksville is a long way east.
How far ahead should I book Fruita Campground?
The reservation window opens six months ahead and the campground runs on a full reservation system, so there is no first come first served option to fall back on. For spring and autumn dates, treat the day the window opens as the day you book.
Does anything in Torrey stay open in winter?
Yes, but call first. Red Sands publishes year round opening. The Torrey Schoolhouse closes from November through March, the Rimrock Inn closes from late October to the third weekend of March, and Broken Spur is shut in December and January. The Park Service also warns that many local businesses close on Sundays year round.
Is there free camping near Capitol Reef?
Yes. Two free primitive campgrounds inside the park at Cathedral Valley and Cedar Mesa, six and five sites, no water and pit toilets only. Beyond that there is dispersed camping on BLM ground in the Grand Staircase Escalante to the south and the Henry Mountains to the east, where you camp within 150 feet of a designated route and use existing fire rings.
Are there hookups or showers at Fruita Campground?
No to both. Fruita has potable water, flush toilets and a dump station, but no individual water, sewer or electric and no showers. The dump station is free if you have a campsite reservation and $5 if you do not.
Which properties take pets?
The Rimrock Inn is the clearest, at $30 a night for up to two pets. Red Sands keeps two designated pet rooms in each wing, The Noor lists pet rooms, and both Wonderland and Sand Creek RV parks take pets, though Wonderland does not allow them in its cabins. Torrey Schoolhouse takes none. Confirm at booking, because these policies change.
Campground figures come from the National Park Service Fruita Campground page and the recreation.gov listing. Distances are the Park Service's own from the visitor center. Property details and seasons come from each business's own website, checked September 2026.
Next step
Pick the bed, then fill the days
Lodging is the tighter constraint here, so it is worth settling first. Once the dates are fixed, the rest of the trip falls into place around them.
New to the area entirely? Start with the Torrey town guide, or read who writes this site.