What it is

A 240-acre ranch with 59 guest rooms set on the Colorado River with activities galore, from horseback riding to hot air balloon rides.

What it isn't

All go-go-go. The ranch also has a top-notch spa for unplugging in style, including an apres-hike foot scrub and massage that ends with your tootsies swaddled in warm towels. Bliss.

What we think

John Wayne-types wouldn’t recognize Sorrel River Ranch, and that’s a good thing. Luxury is paramount here, something you’ll notice the moment you step into your cabin. Each one is as big as the Utah sky is wide (starting at a whopping 560 square feet), with claw-foot jetted tubs, Bvlgari bath toiletries and furniture hewn of knotty trees. The farm-to-table restaurants here are also primed for any hard-to-please urbanite, with dishes like Utah charcuterie and fromage platters and white wine poached tiger shrimp, but we love that each cabin has a kitchenette, microwave and mini fridge if you feel like hunkering down—and you will, after a delicious day in the saddle.

You're here because

It’s Family Friendly with capital F’s: there’s a petting zoo complete with pot-bellied pigs and mini horses, plus babysitting and a S’mores Concierge. Yes, you read that right.

The Moment

You’ve never been much for dinner under the stars, honestly. But you’ve never done it in Utah, where seemingly permanently dry air means flitting insects aren’t a worry. Tonight at your table in the resort’s own garden, you’re not sure what you love more—the buttermilk biscuits with whipped molasses butter, the dijon crusted rack of lamb with garden herbs and fried farm carrots, or the pound cake dusted with chantilly whipped cream and lemon glace? You’d better have another bite of each, just to be sure.

Restaurants & Bars

River Grill - Modern American cuisine

Epic Bar and Lounge

Location

From your perch on the Colorado River some 20 miles northwest of Moab, you’ll have some jaw-dropping neighbors, including Shrimp Rock and Updraft Arch. Arches National Park is just across the river.