Spectacular autumnal road trip on Utah's Highway 12

Utah's Highway 12 is also known as Journey Through Time Scenic Byway. This 125-mile curvaceous two-lane road is jam-packed with four state parks, two national parks, a national forest, and the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. It is particularly spectacular during the fall.

Start from outside Panguitch (about 250 miles south of Salt Lake City), to red canyons, hoodoos, Bryce Canyon National Park (with Fairyland Point, just outside the gate, as a highlight). Next, move on to Kodachrome Basin State Park with its gravity-defying sandstone chimneys, and then to Escalante Petrified Forest State Park with multi-colored petrified trees.

At milepost 75, you climb up Hogsback with views of the rounded dome of Navajo Mountain. After passing by Boulder Mountain, you end in Torrey, where you can hustle over to the Capitol Reef National Park.

And don't miss out on Hell's Backbone Grill, which is a gourmet destination.

For more information, see http://www.utah.com/byways/highway_12.htm and AAA Via magazine.

Picture from: http://utahpictures.com/Highway_12_Dec.php

Researching your hotel

If you travel a lot, booking hotels is one of the most time consuming part of your research. Besides the price, you have to worry about the cleanliness, location, parking, facilities, bathroom quality, and other such things.

Of course, the pictures look great and the description makes the place sound like a resort spa, but you kinda suspect that the PR people were feeling creative. They never tell you things like how the available parking will cost you $25 a night and that they have only 12 spots. The hotel knows that once you show up, you are not likely to ditch them for another hotel, especially if they already have your credit card information. 

I once booked a hotel that described itself as "hip" and "urban," but it turned out to be an euphemism for "Motel 6-esque with a bit more style." There were no bedbugs, though, so I can't really complain. 

So if you really want a better idea of what you are booking, go to http://www.oyster.com/ first. They send investigators to write honest reports and take lots of pictures. And I mean lots of pictures (see the Photos tab). You'll have a good idea of what you are booking. Finally, a WYSIWYG travel site.