Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park is a mesmerizing natural wonderland known for its striking landscape of vibrant coral-colored sand dunes and red rock mountains surrounding them.

Spanning over 3,700 acres this park offers visitors a unique experience to explore one of the world’s few pink sand dunes!

If you plan on visiting any of the southern Utah National Parks this would make an awesome place to add to your itinerary as it’s only an hour from Zion National Park!

The closest town to the dunes is Kanab, but it makes a great road trip destination if you’re coming from a major city like Phoenix, Las Vegas, or Salt Lake City.

State Park Fees

This unfortunately is not a free state park and you are unable to use any National Park passes here such as the America the Beautiful Pass.

All out of state visitors are subject to pay an entrance fee of $15 per vehicle.

For Utah residents however this price goes down to $10 per vehicle. 

How the Coral Pink Sand Dunes Formed

This pink sand is a product of eroded Navajo sandstone which is a prominent geological formation found in the area. Over millions of years, weathering and erosion gradually broke down the sandstone into fine grains of sand, which then got carried away by wind.

The surrounding mountains influence wind patterns and act as a funnel that shapes the size and distribution of the sand.

As the wind carries sand particles across the landscape, they accumulate in certain areas, forming dunes that can reach heights of up to 50 feet or more.

Although the highest dune known to the park is nearly 100 feet tall! 

Over time, the dunes continue to evolve as wind patterns shift and new layers of sand are deposited. These dunes are ever-changing so this park is sure to look much different thousands of years from now. 

According to the parks website, these sand dunes are said to be around 10,000 to 15,000 years old! 

Best Times to Visit

Spring & Fall

Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park is open year-round, but some seasons will provide better experiences over others.

Just like when visiting the Big 5 National Parks in Utah you will have the best weather in the fall and spring.

I’ve visited this park twice in the past couple years. The first time was in early January and the second time was in September.

Coral Pink Sand Dunes in Winter

Below are some photos of what it looked like on the dunes in January:

As you can see, it’s very snowy and you can’t see any of the beautiful scenery that we all want to visit this park for.

The dunes sit at around 6,000 feet so they are no stranger to cold weather. However, just because it’s winter doesn’t mean you’re going to get snowed out. 

This area tends to have very unpredictable weather during the winter months so I recommend just checking the forecast before heading out. You could get snow, or you could get a nice sunny day. 

Unfortunately we had already been planning our trip months in advance and were pretty bummed when we got to the park and saw snow coming down and covering the sand dunes.

It was too cold for us to hike far out on the dunes and we weren’t prepared for snow. Needless to say we didn’t stay for long.

Coral Pink Sand Dunes in Late Summer

Now here are some photos of when we went back in September:

That’s more like it!

We were in awe of the beautiful coral-colored dunes and the red cliffs surrounding them. These were both aspects to the park that we missed out on the first time around.

Do note that if you visit this park in the heat of the summer, expect the sand to be hot on your feet. Plus, there’s no shade here so I definitely wouldn’t recommend visiting between the months of June-August.

In September, temperatures were beginning to cool down so walking on the sand was quite pleasant.

I would definitely recommend visiting in the spring or fall when temperatures aren’t at their extremes.

Recreational Activities

Sandboarding

Sliding down the pink sand dunes is one of the best activities that this park has to offer. You can easily rent sandboards or sand sleds for the day at the Visitor Center.

They have both sandboards (stand up) and sleds (sit down) available to rent.

If you have experience snowboarding, I’m sure you would be amazing at sandboarding. But for me, I had trouble balancing on the boards.

I would much rather use a sand sled, which would probably work best if it’s your first time doing something like this.

Along with the board, they will probably give you a small block of wax which helps you slide better on the sand. For best results, it is recommended that you wax the bottom of the board before each run down the sand. 

Rental prices go for $25 per board (sandboard or sled) and they need to be returned back to the Visitor Center at least 30 minutes before they close.

The Visitor Center is open 7 days a week during daylight hours. So, their operating hours differ from season to season. You will either have to ask when you’re there or call for specific hours when you visit. 

Hiking

The main opportunities for hiking in the park consists of just hiking up on the dunes.

There are not any designated trails across the sand dunes. You’re free to explore as you please.

If you choose to hike up to the tallest dune you will get in quite the workout!

Walking in sand can already be challenging enough, but imagine walking up a steep incline in the sand. You will be rewarded for your efforts with gorgeous views of the park & dunes at the top. 

ATV Riding

Another popular activity the park offers is ATV riding. 90% of the sand dunes are open to ATV vehicles.

There are a few different tour companies that you can book tours through to ride around on the dunes.

The park has their very own tour service called Roam Tours.

Roam has several different tours available to book. Most of their ATV tours are combined with other activities like canyoneering or hiking through slot canyons. There’s even a sunset ATV tour that will provide you with s’mores as the sky turns dark and all the stars come out. You can click here to view all their tour options with pricings of each.

Another company you can go with is the Coral Pink ATV Tours. They are a very highly rated guided tour company that is committed to providing you with a safe and fun experience. They also have a few different tour packages which can all be found here with their rates.

If you prefer to go out exploring on your own, ATV Rentals Utah has you covered.

This company rents out ATV’s for day use. You can check out this page on their website to find their rates. They have a plethora of different ATV’s available so you’re able to choose ahead of time which vehicle you want.

I personally have never done an ATV ride at the Coral Pink Sand Dunes yet, but I know they are incredibly popular. When we were hiking several ATV’s flew by us.

If you’re into off-roading this would be the perfect activity for you.

Overlook Area

If you aren’t in the mood to hike or go very far out on the dunes, there is a large platform built out into the sand which you can walk to from the parking lot.

This gives you a beautiful overlook of the sand dunes and is accessible to people of all ages and abilities. 

There are some infographics built into the platform which give you a little bit of information and history on the dunes. There are also a couple benches on the dock perfect for taking in all the beautiful scenery. 

The overlook is a great addition to the park. We enjoyed the views it provided before running out to the highest dune.

Camping at Coral Pink Sand Dunes

Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park has a total of 30 campsites that are all available year-round.

These campsites are located on a small loop drive in the very back of the park. So you aren’t able to camp right on the dunes unfortunately. (But, if you want a place where you CAN camp on sand dunes, check out the Imperial Sand Dunes in California!)

From the entrance station, you just take the main road all the way there. It’s a nice area filled with trees for privacy. 

16 of those campsites are just standard tent camping/ car camping sites. Most of these sites have a max number of 8 people per campsite. 

12 of the campsites are suitable for RV’s and have partial hookup services including a water hookup, dump station, and electric hookup.

If you’re traveling with a group of friends or family, the park offers two group campsites. Both of these sites can accommodate a max of 50 people and up to 5 vehicles. They also come with electric hookups.

When you book any of the campsites above you will receive the following amenities:

• Clean restrooms
• Hot showers
• Drinking water
• Picnic tables
• Fire pit
• Grill

If you want to make a reservation you can click here to book. 

How Much Time Do I Need at Coral Pink Sand Dunes?

You can spend anywhere from 30 minutes to all day at the Coral Pink Sand Dunes.

If you’re not up for much physical activity or don’t have a whole lot of time, you can easily just walk up to the overlook and enjoy the views of the park.

Or, you can spend an entire day at the dunes either hiking, sandboarding, ATV riding, or all of the above!

When we went in September, we rented a sand sled and hiked to the tallest dune and we probably spent 3 hours in the park. That seemed like the perfect amount of time for us.

Are the Coral Pink Sand Dunes Worth Visiting?

If you find yourself in the area exploring southern Utah’s Big 5, I absolutely think it’s worth checking out on your way to or from Zion National Park.

The Coral Pink Sand Dunes are a surreal sight to see and always a blast to visit.

But, don’t expect these dunes to be like the Great Sand Dunes or White Sands, because the Coral Pink Sand Dunes are smaller and not as vast.

Also, if you’re traveling on a budget, $15 might not be worth it if you’re only going to spend a short time in the park. The main thing to do here is explore and hangout on the dunes so if you aren’t able to do that, it may not be worth your time.

If you plan on spending most of the day out on the sand, then I would say the entrance fee is definitely worth it.

And that will conclude my complete guide to the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park in Kanab! This is one of my favorite Utah parks and I feel like it doesn’t get as much love as the southern Utah National Parks do although it is just as beautiful!

I hope you were able to take away some valuable information from this article and put it towards planning your own trip to the dunes! Thank you for reading!