As we roll into the expansive grounds of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary near Kanab, Utah, it’s immediately clear this isn’t just a sanctuary—it’s a world unto itself. Sprawling over 3,700 acres in the red-rock desert, the sanctuary is home to thousands of dogs, cats, horses, rabbits, birds, and more, all cared for in large, natural habitats designed to mimic their native environments. Walking through the grounds in early morning with the desert light casting warm tones across the mesas and buttes, it’s impossible not to feel a deep sense of peace and purpose.
“Every animal here has a story and every story reminds us why kindness matters.”
—Abbey, longtime volunteer
A sanctuary like no other
Where compassion, community, and red-rock beauty meet
Founded in 1984, Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is a living testament to compassion and rehabilitation. Spanning 3,700 acres of desert landscape near Kanab, the sanctuary provides large, natural habitats for thousands of animals including dogs, cats, horses, rabbits, birds, and other farm animals. Each species has its own dedicated area—Dogtown, Cat World, the Equine Area, and the Rabbit Garden & Farm Animals—functioning as “mini sanctuaries” that allow animals to thrive in safe, species-appropriate environments.
Visitors can explore the sanctuary on self-guided walks along well-marked trails or participate in guided tours which offer an in-depth look at the animals’ stories, rehabilitation processes, and the sanctuary’s mission to create a no-kill nation. Guided tours are particularly valuable for first-time visitors as staff and volunteers share personal insights, highlight unique animals, and explain the care and enrichment that go into each habitat.
The sanctuary also features several points of interest for exploration and reflection:
- Welcome center: Your first stop for maps, orientation, and information about programs and tours.
- Gift shop: Handcrafted items, animal-themed merchandise, and locally sourced products support the sanctuary while providing memorable keepsakes.
- Display barn: Interactive exhibits and informative signage offer an up-close view of the sanctuary’s operations, animal care techniques, and educational programs.
- Angels landing: A serene overlook with panoramic views of the surrounding desert, ideal for contemplation and photography.
Whether walking quietly among grazing horses or observing playful dogs in Dogtown, the sanctuary invites visitors to connect with the animals and witness firsthand the impact of rescue and rehabilitation. For photography enthusiasts, guided or self-guided tours provide countless opportunities to capture both candid animal moments and sweeping desert landscapes all within a structured, respectful environment.
Visitor tips for touring the sanctuary
A little planning ensures a rewarding experience
To make the most of your visit, plan ahead and embrace the sanctuary’s quiet rhythm. Whether you’re here for a guided tour, volunteering, or simply exploring the grounds these tips will help you experience Best Friends at its best:
- Plan your timing: Animals are often most active in the early morning or late afternoon making these times ideal for tours and photography.
- Dress for the desert: Wear sturdy shoes, bring a hat, sunscreen, and a reusable water bottle. The sun can be intense, even outside of summer.
- Allow time to explore: The sanctuary spans thousands of acres. Plan at least half a day to enjoy multiple animal areas or a full day to include a scenic drive and the Welcome Center exhibits.
- Be respectful of the animals: Many are recovering from trauma or neglect. Follow staff guidance, maintain quiet voices, and move slowly to avoid causing stress.
- Guided vs. self-guided: Guided tours offer insider knowledge and highlight animals with compelling stories while self-guided walks allow for a leisurely, flexible pace.
- Stop at the Gift Shop: Proceeds support sanctuary programs and you’ll find unique keepsakes that reflect the heart of Best Friends.
The Best Friends RV Campground
A serene and convenient base for exploring both the sanctuary and southern Utah’s red-rock country
One of the sanctuary’s greatest amenities for travelers is its on-site RV campground. Designed with both comfort and convenience in mind, the campground allows visitors to stay close to the sanctuary and immerse themselves in its tranquil desert environment.
Each site offers full hookups with water, electricity, and sewer service and every pad is level and concrete making setup quick and easy for both large rigs and smaller campers. Sites are well spaced ensuring privacy and quiet evenings beneath the stars. A few select pull-through sites accommodate big rigs comfortably while back-in spots often offer better views of the surrounding mesas and desert vegetation.
The campground’s tranquil setting perfectly complements the sanctuary’s spirit. Mornings bring the soft sounds of canyon wrens and doves and in the evening the desert sky glows pink before fading into deep blue twilight. With minimal light pollution this is one of the best places in southern Utah to enjoy true dark-sky stargazing.
Amenities are simple yet thoughtful: clean restrooms and showers, picnic tables, shade trees, and easy access to walking paths that connect to the sanctuary’s scenic Kanab Canyon Loop. It’s an easy stroll or short drive to the Welcome Center, the café, or many of the animal areas. Pets are welcome, too, though visitors are asked to follow the sanctuary’s pet-friendly policies and keep animals leashed when outside the RV.
Traveler tips for staying at the campground
A quiet introduction to the sanctuary’s surroundings
Staying at the campground transforms a day trip into a full immersive experience. You can wake with the sunrise, take a peaceful morning walk past grazing horses and playful dogs, and watch the desert light shift across the canyons—all just steps from your RV door.
- Reserve early: Sites book up quickly, especially during spring and fall.
- Plan to stay at least two nights: Between tours, volunteering, and scenic drives, you’ll want time to fully experience the sanctuary and surrounding area.
- Bring binoculars and a camera: Wildlife sightings—rabbits, ravens, and occasionally mule deer—are common around camp.
- Enjoy the night skies: With virtually no artificial light, this is prime stargazing territory.
- Stock up in Kanab: The town is just 5 miles away and offers groceries, fuel, and dining options.
Staying at the Best Friends Campground allows visitors to experience the sanctuary’s mission up close—from the first morning light over the cliffs to the quiet hum of desert nights. It’s a stay that blends comfort, purpose, and peace perfectly suited to those who travel with both curiosity and compassion.
Volunteer opportunities & photography hotspots
A variety of volunteer opportunities for visitors
Few experiences bring visitors closer to the heart of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary than volunteering. The sanctuary offers a wide range of volunteer opportunities suited to every schedule, skill level, and comfort zone. Whether helping for a morning, a day, or an extended stay, volunteers play an active role in the daily rhythm of the sanctuary.
Common tasks include feeding and cleaning, walking dogs in Dogtown, cuddling cats in Cat World, grooming horses or donkeys in the Equine Area, or simply spending quiet time with shy or senior animals that thrive on gentle companionship. Every interaction contributes directly to the animals’ healing, confidence, and eventual adoption.
Volunteers receive orientation and guidance from staff and can sign up for shifts online before arrival. Many travelers build their entire itinerary around volunteer sessions combining meaningful work with the chance to explore the sanctuary’s trails, scenic overlooks, and the nearby red-rock wonders of southern Utah. Some even return year after year to reconnect with the animals and caregivers they’ve come to know.
For photographers, the sanctuary is a dream canvas. Dogtown and Cat World provide opportunities to capture candid animal moments as dogs romp and cats explore interactive habitats. The Equine Area offers majestic desert light on grazing horses and burros while Rabbit Garden and farm animal areas provide playful and intimate subjects. Angels Landing with panoramic views over the sanctuary and surrounding red-rock mesas and the Kanab Canyon Loop with sweeping desert landscapes and occasional roaming animals are perfect for wide-angle shots or sunrise and sunset photography. Photographers are encouraged to be patient and respectful allowing animals to move naturally while capturing authentic, memorable images.
Favorite photography locations include:
- Dogtown and Cat World: Capture playful, soulful, and often humorous moments of daily life.
- The Equine Area: Horses and burros framed by red cliffs and soft desert light create classic Western scenes.
- Rabbit Garden and Piggy Paradise: Offer intimate, close-up opportunities and glimpses of gentle interactions.
- Angels Landing: A breathtaking overlook ideal for panoramic sunrise or sunset photography.
- Kanab Canyon Loop Road: Provides striking views of the sanctuary and surrounding mesas especially in late afternoon light.
Photographers are encouraged to move quietly, use natural light whenever possible, and allow the animals to move freely. Some of the most powerful images come not from posed shots but from those unguarded moments that reflect the sanctuary’s spirit of trust, renewal, and love.
Whether lending a hand or capturing an image, every visitor who gives a bit of time or attention becomes part of the sanctuary’s larger mission—to Save Them All.
RV traveler’s perspective
Connecting the experience of visiting Best Friends with the lifestyle of RV travelers
For RV travelers, Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is more than a destination — it’s a heartfelt pause in the rhythm of the road. Tucked into Angel Canyon just north of Kanab, the sanctuary feels like a world apart yet it’s conveniently close to U.S. Highway 89 and within easy reach of Zion National Park and the Grand Staircase–Escalante region.
Arriving in an RV, visitors often sense an immediate change of pace. The drive through Kanab Canyon Road into the sanctuary winds past sculpted cliffs, sunlit mesas, and stands of juniper that whisper in the desert wind. It’s a route that invites you to slow down, take in the scenery, and feel the sanctuary’s quiet presence long before reaching the Welcome Center.
Many RVers choose to stay right on the property at the Best Friends RV Campground where level concrete sites, full hookups, and wide-open desert skies create an ideal home base. From here, you can join a morning tour, volunteer for a few hours, or simply relax under the shade of your awning as the canyon walls glow in the late-afternoon sun.
For full-time RVers and seasonal wanderers alike, Best Friends represents something rare: a chance to connect deeply with both the landscape and a meaningful cause. Many visitors spend several days here splitting their time between volunteering with the animals and exploring the surrounding wonders of Zion, Moqui Cave, Peekaboo Slot Canyon, and Mount Carmel Junction.
Evenings bring the kind of serenity only desert nights can offer. The stars emerge bright and countless and the silence of the canyon settles in—broken only by the occasional call of an owl or coyote in the distance. It’s an experience that stays with you long after the engine starts again and the road beckons onward.
Beyond Kanab: Best Friends across the country
From coast to coast, the work of Best Friends continues
While Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab remains the heart and soul of the organization, its mission extends far beyond the sandstone cliffs of Angel Canyon. What began here in the 1980s as a small community of animal advocates has grown into a nationwide movement to Save Them All—a network of adoption centers, lifesaving partnerships, and community programs reaching across the country.
Today, Best Friends Animal Society operates nationwide programs and smaller “satellite” sanctuaries. Urban Lifesaving Centers in cities like Los Angeles, Atlanta, Salt Lake City, and New York City focus on adoptions, fostering, spay/neuter programs, and community education helping reduce shelter euthanasia in major metropolitan areas.
Best Friends also partners with local shelters nationwide to create no-kill communities offering funding, training, and logistical support. Seasonal rescue efforts and disaster-relief initiatives extend the sanctuary’s reach even further. Visiting Kanab is just one way to experience the sanctuary’s larger mission: transforming the lives of animals across the United States.
Practical tips for visitors
Plan ahead
A visit to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is equal parts inspiration and adventure and a little preparation helps make the experience even more rewarding. Whether you’re stopping by for a tour, volunteering for a day, or settling in at the campground these tips will help you make the most of your time in Angel Canyon.
- Start at the welcome center: Begin your visit at the Best Friends Welcome Center located just off Kanab Canyon Road. Here you can check in for tours, browse the gift shop, learn about the sanctuary’s history, and enjoy a cup of coffee while taking in the red-rock views. Knowledgeable staff can help plan your day and answer questions about volunteering or the sanctuary’s various animal areas.
- Take a guided tour: Free, guided tours are offered daily and are the best way to get an overview of the sanctuary’s mission and layout. Specialty tours, such as Dogtown, Cat World, or Horse Haven can be booked in advance online.
- Dress for the desert: Kanab’s weather can vary widely with the seasons. Bring layers, sun protection, and plenty of water especially if you plan to walk or hike. Comfortable shoes are essential—even short walks can involve sandy or rocky terrain.
- Plan time for volunteering: Even a half-day volunteer session provides a meaningful connection with the animals. Schedule volunteer shifts in advance and arrive a few minutes early for orientation. If traveling with children note that age requirements vary by animal area.
- Explore the loop drive: The Kanab Canyon Loop Road winds through much of the sanctuary passing animal areas, the Memorial Gardens, and overlooks such as Angel’s Landing. It’s a peaceful and photogenic route best enjoyed slowly.
- Stay overnight if you can: Whether in one of the guest cottages or at the Best Friends RV Campground spending a night or two on-site allows time to experience the sanctuary’s tranquil rhythm—sunrise walks, quiet evenings, and dark-sky stargazing.
- Respect the sanctuary environment: Best Friends is a working refuge where animals heal and thrive. Follow all posted guidelines, stay within visitor areas, and remember that calm voices and patience go a long way toward keeping the animals comfortable.
- Explore beyond the canyon: Allow extra time to explore nearby highlights: Kanab, Zion National Park, Coral Sands State Park, Peekaboo Slot Canyon, Moqui Cave, and Mount Carmel Junction are all within a short drive.
Visiting Best Friends isn’t just about sightseeing—it’s about participating in a place built on compassion and renewal. With a little planning, your visit will be both inspiring and unforgettable.
Final thoughts
Few places capture the heart quite like Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. Between the Welcome Center, Display Barn, Angels Landing, Kanab Canyon Loop, on-site RV campground, volunteer programs, and photography opportunities visitors can engage with the sanctuary on multiple levels—educational, emotional, and visual. And beyond Kanab, the organization’s national network of Lifesaving Centers and community programs reinforces the message that every animal matters, everywhere.
Whether you’re an animal lover, a photography enthusiast, or simply seeking a peaceful desert retreat the sanctuary offers a rare combination of natural beauty, purposeful travel, and meaningful connection. Abbey’s words resonate long after the visit: “Every animal here has a story, and every story reminds us why kindness matters.”
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in November 2025. Information reflects what was accurate at the time of writing. For topics that may change quickly, please verify current details before planning. To ensure honesty and avoid bias, this website features no ads, no sponsored content, and no affiliate links—just straightforward information for fellow travelers.