Backcountry roads
Four wheel drive tours, and the roads behind them
Some of the best country around Moab sits behind roads a hire car cannot do, and your rental agreement almost certainly forbids trying. These trips are as much about the road as the destination.
The short answer
A vehicle and a driver for roads that need both. Half day trips start at $198, full days at $275, and the harder routes such as Elephant Hill run $348.
Nearly every rental agreement prohibits unpaved backcountry roads, and recovery out here is expensive. For a lot of visitors a guided vehicle is the only realistic way onto these routes.
The comparison
Guided four wheel drive trips, side by side
| Tour | Area | Length | Price | The road |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arches half day 4x4NAVTEC Expeditions | Arches | Half day | $198 | Genuine off road component inside the park |
| Canyonlands half day 4x4NAVTEC Expeditions | Island in the Sky | Half day | $198 | Four wheel drive and hiking combination |
| Backcountry 4x4 half dayAdrift Adventures | BLM land | Half day | Ask | Outside the parks, so fewer restrictions |
| Arches and CanyonlandsNAVTEC Expeditions | Both parks | 1 day | $275 | Shafer Trail and Tower Arch, picnic lunch |
| Discover Moab, 4x4 off roadMoab In A Day | Three parks | 8 hrs | $349 | Off road segments inside a multi park day |
| White Rim Trail full dayAdrift Adventures | Island in the Sky | 8 hrs | $281youth $271 | Descends below the rim onto the White Rim bench |
| White Rim Trail full dayNAVTEC Expeditions | Island in the Sky | 1 day | $298 | A hundred miles of road below the rim, sampled |
| Chesler ParkNAVTEC Expeditions | Needles | 1 day | $348 | Crosses Elephant Hill. The hardest route on this page |
| Horse CanyonNAVTEC Expeditions | Needles | 1 day | $348 | Four wheel drive and hiking combination |
Rates as published by each operator, checked September 2026, before tax and gratuity. Route conditions change with weather and the park service closes roads after rain. Confirm before travelling.
The routes
What each road actually is
Three names come up repeatedly, and they are not equivalent. Knowing which one a tour uses tells you more than the price does.
Shafer Trail
The famous switchbacks
Drops from the Island in the Sky mesa to the White Rim bench in a series of tight switchbacks cut into the cliff. Spectacular, exposed and the part of the day people remember. Graded dirt, but with real drops beside it.
White Rim Road
A hundred miles below the rim
Circles the mesa on a bench between the rim above and the river below. Cyclists take three to four days over it. Day tours sample a stretch and climb back out, usually via Shafer or Mineral Bottom.
Elephant Hill
The hard one
The access to Chesler Park in the Needles, and one of the more demanding routes in Utah. Steep, loose, with switchbacks so tight you reverse to get round them. Not a road to learn on.
Potash and Long Canyon
Closer to town
Lower commitment routes along the Colorado and up onto the mesa, often used by half day trips. Scenic without the exposure of the park descents.
Matching it
Which route suits you
- First time, half a day, near town. NAVTEC's Arches or Canyonlands half days at $198, or Adrift's BLM backcountry trip. Enough road to be memorable without a full day committed.
- The big scenery day. White Rim with Adrift at $281 or NAVTEC at $298. The descent is the point, and you get the mesa from underneath rather than from the rim.
- Both parks and the Shafer switchbacks. NAVTEC's Arches and Canyonlands day at $275, with a picnic lunch included.
- You want the hardest road. Chesler Park over Elephant Hill at $348, which is a serious route and a full day in the Needles on top of it.
- Hiking as well as driving. Horse Canyon and the Canyonlands half day both pair four wheel drive with time on foot.
Dirt roads here turn to impassable clay after rain, and the park service closes them rather than rescue people. Late summer monsoon storms are the usual cause. A cancelled trip is an operator behaving correctly.
The practical reason
Why not just hire a jeep
You can, and plenty of people do. Moab has a large rental fleet aimed exactly at this. Three things are worth knowing before you choose that route instead.
- Standard hire cars are contractually barred from unpaved backcountry roads by almost every agreement. Damage out there is not covered, and recovery is billed to you.
- Dedicated off road rentals solve the contract problem but not the experience one. Elephant Hill and the Shafer descent are not places to learn vehicle placement.
- Recovery is expensive and slow. There is no phone signal on most of these routes, and a winch out of the White Rim is a significant bill and most of a day.
A guided trip removes all three, and adds somebody who knows which formation you are looking at. If you have real four wheel drive experience and your own capable vehicle, self driving the easier routes is a reasonable choice. Elephant Hill is not the place to test that.
Common questions
Questions
How much is a 4x4 tour in Moab?
Half day trips start at $198 with NAVTEC Expeditions. Full days run $275 to $298 for the Shafer Trail and White Rim routes with NAVTEC and Adrift Adventures. Elephant Hill and Chesler Park, the most demanding route, is $348.
Can I drive the Shafer Trail in a rental car?
Almost every standard rental agreement prohibits unpaved backcountry roads, and damage is not covered. The Shafer switchbacks are graded dirt with real exposure beside them. A dedicated off road rental solves the contract problem but not the experience needed to place a vehicle on tight switchbacks.
What is the White Rim Road?
A road of about a hundred miles circling the Island in the Sky mesa on a bench between the rim above and the rivers below. Cyclists take three to four days over the full circuit. Guided day tours drive a stretch of it and climb back out, usually via the Shafer or Mineral Bottom descents.
Is Elephant Hill difficult?
It is one of the more demanding four wheel drive routes in Utah, and the vehicle access to Chesler Park in the Needles. Steep and loose with switchbacks tight enough to require reversing to get round them. It is not a route to learn on, which is why guided trips over it cost more.
Do 4x4 tours include hiking?
Several do. NAVTEC's Canyonlands half day and Horse Canyon trips both pair driving with time on foot, and the White Rim days include short walks. If you want mostly driving, Adrift's White Rim day lists walking as optional.
What happens if it rains?
Dirt roads here become impassable clay after rain and the park service closes them. Late summer monsoon storms are the usual cause. Operators cancel rather than risk it, and an operator who cancels on a bad forecast is behaving correctly.
Next step
Compare more widely
Operator prices checked September 2026 against their own websites. Backcountry road conditions change with weather and closures are common after rain.