We got an email from a visitor to theCanyon.com, our Grand Canyon tours and hotels guide, today that totally struck a chord with me. I think Diana’s question is really common and who better to answer than another mom? Check it out and see if it will help you with your Grand Canyon vacation plans.
Dear Arizona Travel:
My fiance and I are getting married in Vegas in July 2010. From Vegas we want to visit the Grand Canyon. We only plan on spending 1 day there and we will have 3 small children with us. What is better? the North, South, or West Rim? Would you suggest renting a car and driving from Vegas or taking a tour? I am totally lost at what to do. Any and all help is appreciated. Thank you so much!
–Diana R
Read on for my answer:
Hi, Diana. Best wishes on your upcoming marriage and congratulations to your fiance!
I am assuming you want to drive yourselves and are not considering taking a helicopter or air tour from Las Vegas to the South Rim. If you hadn’t thought of flying, you might. It’s a great way to minimize car-trip boredom, and get your tour and transportation in one. It’s also the most time-efficient, as you can do one of these tours in half a day instead of a full day.
If you want to drive, start out early to maximize your time and the canyon and beat the heat. As to where to go and what to do:
From Las Vegas, the West Rim is closest – only about 121 miles (2 hours) versus 278 (4.5 hours) to the South Rim. The North Rim, while amazing and a great choice, is a longer drive-time from Las Vegas (only 282 miles, but over 5 hours) and with 3 small kids in the car, might prove to be just too long a trip.
The West Rim is where you’ll find the Grand Canyon Skywalk and several other Native American cultural sites. While the Skywalk offers a unique view of the Canyon (a glass bottom sidewalk that juts out over the edge of the canyon, allowing you to look straight down) it might not be the most kid-friendly activity and while there are several small educational exhibits out there, too, the Skywalk is really the main attraction. Also, Grand Canyon West is not actually a part of the National Park; it is on Hualapai Tribal land, so if you are going for a more informative, educational and “classic” visit to Grand Canyon National Park, I think the South Rim is a much better choice. Further, the West Rim is rather expensive to visit… it’s at least $81.20 per adult and $61.16 per child ages 4 – 11. Children must be at least 4 to walk on the Skywalk. There are extra fees (up to $35 total) just to enter the West Rim and ride the optional shuttle bus from the parking lot.
If you do choose the West Rim, I recommend U-Drive Tours (udrivetours.com) – they’re amazing. They not only package up all the Skywalk tickets and entrance fees to make things easy, but they include in their tour price the rental of a Jeep, SUV, Escalade, Prius or other fun cars that can handle the unpaved road that is the final 15 miles to the West Rim. The owners are a super nice couple with young kids so they could be very helpful to helping you book the best trip to the West Rim possible. They know that area like the back of their hands and they operate / depart your tour from Las Vegas which is great for you. They can also help round out the activities by recommending an add-on helicopter flight to the bottom of the canyon, horseback riding or a rafting trip.
The South Rim is the most visited for good reason. The views are amazing, and the park service does a great job offering free ranger-led programs that are great for kids and will allow you to get the very most out of your 1 full day there. It’s most crowded in the summer, though, so the trade-offs are big crowds at popular viewpoints and it can be difficult finding parking.
As the mother of an almost three year old, I suggest driving yourself to the South Rim vs. paying for a traditional bus tour for all of you. I would like the flexibility to come and go in my own car, stop for bathroom breaks, keep “mommy” supplies in the car (change of clothes in case of potty accidents, snacks, etc.) Plus, not knowing the age of your kids, you might want to bring strollers or a wagon as there is A LOT of walking at the Grand Canyon. Parking lots are usually about 1/4 mile from the rim itself, plus walking along the rim trail. You can also ride the free hop-on-hop-off shuttle bus that runs around the South Rim from one viewpoint to the next… Definitely take advantage of that.
That’s not to say that tours aren’t a good idea… there are some FABULOUS choices once you’re at/near the South Rim. Here are some of my favorite totally kid-friendly tour ideas at the south rim:
1) Ride the Grand Canyon Railway from Williams (an hour south of the park) to the South Rim of the park. There couldn’t be a more relaxing, value-packed and kid-friendly way to spend a full day at the Canyon and they have different price points. www.thetrain.com
2) Take a Jeep Tour with Grand Canyon Jeep Tours… you can depart from either Williams or Tusayan (which is the town just outside the park entrance.) They do a jeep ride to the bottom of the Canyon which is super cool. (www.grandcanyonjeeps.com)
3) Take a helicopter tour with any of the companies on theCanyon.com – they’re all great and you can’t go wrong. Two popular choices are MaverickHelicopter.com and Papillon.com (which also owns Grand Canyon Helicopters)
To find all these companies, check out theCanyon.com:
Grand Canyon Jeep Tours, U-Drive Tours and Grand Canyon Railway
Have a great trip and again, best wishes for your marriage!
–ChristinaToo
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Yes, enjoy yourselves! I don’t know what the best part of the canyon is, but I definitely have not heard good things about Skywalk…
Lipan Point is a promontory located on the South Rim. This point is located to the east of the Grand Canyon Village along the Desert View Drive. There is a parking lot for visitors who care to drive along with the Canyon’s bus service that routinely stops at the point. The trailhead to the Tanner Trail is located just before the parking lot. The view from Lipan Point shows a wide array of rock strata and the Unkar Creek area in the inner canyon.
good luck