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Orderville, Utah: The Honest 2026 Guide

The honest summary: Orderville is a town of about 600 people on US-89 in Long Valley, Kane County, and it has no gay bars, no LGBTQ+ venues and no Pride event of its own. People come here because the lodging puts them between Zion's east entrance and Bryce Canyon. That's a good reason to stay, as long as you know what the town is and isn't.

Legal in one line: Same-sex marriage has been legal in Utah since late 2013 (federal ruling, made final in 2014). Since 2015, state law has banned discrimination in employment and housing, but there is no statewide public-accommodations protection. Since 2025, Pride flags can't be flown on government buildings or at schools.

What Orderville actually is

Orderville was founded in 1875 at Brigham Young's direction to live the United Order, a communal Latter-day Saint economic system. According to the town's own history page and Utah Humanities, it ran longer than any other United Order experiment in Utah, about ten years, before it was abandoned around 1885. The 2020 census counted 598 residents. The town sits along the East Fork of the Virgin River, and the culture is still small-town and LDS. Wikipedia and older listings sometimes call it unincorporated. It isn't: Orderville is an incorporated town.

Mount Carmel and Mount Carmel Junction, a few miles south, are where US-89 meets State Route 9, the road west through the Zion-Mount Carmel tunnel into the park.

Getting there

You need a car. There is no public transit and no airport in Kane County with scheduled flights.
- Zion east entrance: about 17 miles (roughly 25 minutes) via Mount Carmel Junction and SR-9.
- Kanab: about 20 miles south on US-89.
- Bryce Canyon National Park: roughly an hour north via US-89 and SR-12.
- Cedar City Regional Airport (CDC): about an hour and a half by road. St. George Regional (SGU) is roughly two hours through Zion. Las Vegas (LAS) is about three hours.
- Salt Lake City: about four hours north.

Where to stay

This is where Orderville is useful. Lodging runs along State Street (US-89), and more sits up on the plateau toward the park:
- Parkway Motel, 74 E State St: a small independent roadside motel in the middle of town.
- The Escape to East Zion, 125 S Center St: a small lodging run from town.
- East Zion Resort, 490 E State St: yurts, treehouses, tiny homes, cabins and Airstreams, with pools and hot tubs, according to its own website.
- Arrowhead Country Cabins in Mount Carmel and Best Western East Zion Thunderbird Lodge at Mount Carmel Junction, which has a 9-hole golf course and a restaurant.
- Out toward the east entrance: Zion Mountain Ranch (cabins, on-site restaurant, bison), Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort and Zion Backcountry Glamping, all with Orderville or Mount Carmel postal addresses. Expect a 20-30 minute drive back to town.

All of these are mainstream businesses. We list them as places to sleep, not as gay venues. Our hotels page has the current list.

Food and evenings

Evenings are quiet. There are only a few places to eat in town, and some of them keep seasonal hours. The bigger properties (the Thunderbird Lodge, Zion Mountain Ranch) have their own restaurants. Plan dinner before dark and buy groceries in Kanab. Utah's liquor rules are stricter than most states', and there is no bar scene here at all.

Gay life: what exists nearby

Nothing in Orderville is LGBTQ+-specific. Our venue searches for the town and the wider valley found no gay or queer-identified business. The nearest options are:
- St. George (about two hours): Southern Utah Pride is held there each September. Encircle, the LGBTQ+ youth and family nonprofit, runs a house in St. George.
- Las Vegas (about three hours): the nearest full gay nightlife scene.
- Salt Lake City (about four hours): Utah's LGBTQ+ centre. Utah Pride Festival 2026 took place on 6-7 June.

In June 2023, Kane County's commissioners proclaimed June as Pride Month, which local outlet Kane County Connects described as the first such action in the county's history. It was a small but real signal. We found no Kane County Pride event announced for 2026.

Practical tips for LGBTQ+ travellers

- Expect polite, tourism-oriented service from lodging and park businesses. This is still a conservative, church-centred town, so read the room before public displays of affection.
- Book early for spring and autumn, when Zion and Bryce are at their busiest. Winter is quiet, and some smaller properties close or cut back.
- Fill up on fuel and food in Kanab or Springdale. Phone coverage on the plateau and in the canyons is patchy.
- Orderville Canyon, a Zion backcountry slot canyon that feeds into the Narrows, is not a walk from town. It is a technical route and needs a National Park Service wilderness permit.

Closed or changed / Gone but still Googled

- "Mount Carmel Hotel": our old listing under that name actually pointed at East Zion Resort's Google record. It has been corrected.
- Older guides (including our previous one) put Orderville on State Route 9, 30 miles east of Kanab, and next to Escalante Petrified Forest. All three are wrong. Orderville is on US-89, about 20 miles north of Kanab, and Escalante is a long drive to the northeast.

A few words

Long Valley: the stretch of the East Fork of the Virgin River that runs through Glendale, Orderville and Mount Carmel.
"East Zion": local shorthand for the plateau and lodging on the park's east side.

At a glance

- Gay bars / clubs: none
- Saunas / cruising: none
- LGBTQ+ organisations in town: none (Encircle St. George is the nearest)
- Pride: none local; Southern Utah Pride (St. George, September) and Utah Pride (Salt Lake City, June)
- Best for: a quiet base between Zion and Bryce Canyon
- Getting around: car only

FAQ

Is Orderville safe for LGBTQ+ travellers?
Visitors who use it as a park base rarely report problems, and lodging businesses here live off tourism. It is a small, conservative LDS town, though, so be as discreet as you would anywhere in rural Utah.

Are there gay bars in Orderville?
No. There are none in Orderville or Kanab. The nearest gay nightlife is in Las Vegas or Salt Lake City.

Where is the nearest Pride?
Southern Utah Pride in St. George, held each September. Utah Pride in Salt Lake City is in early June.

How far is Orderville from Zion?
About 17 miles to the east entrance, roughly 25 minutes. To reach Zion Canyon and the Springdale shuttle, you drive through the Zion-Mount Carmel tunnel.

Is Orderville a good base for Bryce Canyon too?
Yes. Bryce is about an hour north, so Orderville works well if you are doing both parks without changing hotels.

Last verified: October 2026