Photo credit: JakesMomE on Flickr.com - CC BY 2.0

Dear Arizona Travel:
My children are ages 6, 14, 15 and 18. What tour(s) would be safe for all? What would you recommend? Thanks.
–Deborah H.

Dear Deborah,
Your kids are the perfect age for almost any tour. The only thing you probably wouldn’t be able to do is river rafting as I believe most companies require a child be at least 8 years old.

Where are you starting your trip from, Nevada or Arizona?

For your crew, I recommend the Grand Canyon Railway (www.thetrain.com) at the South Rim, any of the Grand Canyon helicopter tours or airplane tours (either from Las Vegas or the South Rim), a Jeep tour (there is a great one to the bottom of the Grand Canyon through Grand Canyon Jeeps Tours (www.grandcanyonjeeps.com) that also includes a stop at the fascinating Grand Canyon Caverns… it departs from the South Rim), or just some guided hiking at the South Rim. Try Canyon Dave’s (www.canyondave.com) for a really great educational tour that everyone will enjoy… it’s hiking and learning at the same time.

If you’re coming from Las Vegas, you might want to skip the South Rim and instead check out the West Rim (it’s a 3.5 hour drive versus a 5 hour drive) and take a walk out on the Grand Canyon Skywalk (www.grandcanyonskywalk.com). it’s the glass bridge that extends 70 feet out over the canyon rim and looks straight down through the glass 4,000 feet to the canyon floor below.

I always recommend trying to fit in one or two of the guided National Park ranger talks, too. They run almost all day for about an hour each, meet in several different spots at the South Rim and cover a range of different topics from wildlife to geology to art and history to astronomy. All are great and they’re completely free. Check out the Spring 2010 edition of The Guide – the National Park’s newspaper – for detailed times, descriptions and meeting places.

Hope that helps, Deborah! Have a great trip!

Photo: Arizona Office of Tourism

On a recent Diane Rehm Show broadcast on National Public Radio, guest host Susan Page spoke with historian, Douglas Brinkley, and Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, about President Theodore Roosevelt’s vision for preserving America’s wilderness and the future of our national parks and monuments.

The national park system will celebrate its centennial in 2016 and national parks like the Grand Canyon continue to top the list of desired vacation destinations. When asked in a 2009 survey¹, over 66% of respondents expressed interest in vacationing to a National Park destination; the number one answer.

Table: Arizona Office of Tourism

How important are the national parks to the nation? According to Secretary Salazar,

[National Parks] play a very major role in terms of the economy and jobs for America. They also play a very major role in the health of our communities and, they are…what connects up the people of this country to our lands, our soils, our air, our wildlife. They’re very special places.

Special places, indeed. The National Park System received over 400 million visitors last year. That’s more visitors than people who attended Major League Baseball, NFL, NBA and NASCAR events combined².  But even so, that’s fewer visitors that in previous years.  So what has happened?  Again, Secretary Salazar:

I think the nation and the nation’s population is suffering from Nature Deficit Disorder. That is, that we have fewer and fewer people getting out into the outdoors… Today, on average, young people are spending 4 minutes a day in the outdoors, and, it is said, 6 hours a day in front of a television or a computer. So one of our challenges of these times is really to reverse that and to get young people – all people – out into the outdoors, as part of a healthy Americans agenda.

Writer Douglas Brinkley agreed.

Young people no longer know the difference between an oak or a maple. We’ve lost their sense of…the difference between birds. Or just getting that fresh air for your health and clearing your mind.

Source: Library of Congress

Here in Arizona, we’re lucky that the antidote to Nature Deficit Disorder is right in our very own backyard. Visit a national park. Check out a national monument, a state park, or a wildlife refuge. Make an annual trip to the Grand Canyon.  Why not hop in the car and take your family out for a day of kayaking on Watson Lake in Prescott? Or horseback riding in Mayer? Or whitewater rafting on the Upper Salt River? Teddy Roosevelt would certainly approve. Said Brinkley,

[Teddy Roosevelt]…loved the American West. And he liked…urban centers – where you’re within a day’s reach of…wilderness areas. Just a weekend in the woods or on a lake or canoeing or by a stream could replenish the spirit and get you back to your work grind… But to just tune out our natural surroundings, Roosevelt thought was not just a mistake, but…unpatriotic.

In preparation for the 2016 centennial of the national park system, make a resolution to make the outdoors a part of your life and your kids’ life every day. Turn off the TV, grab a camera, a magnifying glass for bug inspection and a field guide to local birds and wildlife and engage your family in curing their Nature Deficit Disorder.

¹Arizona Office of Tourism – Ypartnership/Yankelovich National Leisure Travel Monitor

²National Public Radio

We are planning a trip for four days with our kids to visit the Grand canyon and are debating whether or not to visit Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks as well. Would that be a good idea or is it too much too little time? How many days typically does a family stay in the Canyon?

Regards, DD

ChristinaToo says:

Thanks for your question, DD:

Our estimate is that the typical length of a Grand Canyon stay for a family with children is around 2.5 days. I’m guessing you won’t be doing any heavy-duty hiking, backpacking or rafting with the kids, so your activities will probably include walking along the rim at the South Rim, attending ranger-led talks and maybe doing the Grand Canyon Railway or a helicopter tour. Two and a half days will be sufficient to see the Grand Canyon this way.

You would need to dedicate at least a half day of travel up to Zion from the South Rim. You know your kids best… if you think they’ll be antsy or worn out after a 5 hour drive, then certainly take a whole day and stay overnight in St. George (Kanab or Cedar City would work, too, depending on your next destination.) If you think they can handle the drive in the morning and a half-day doing easy hikes at Zion like Weeping Rock and the Lower Emerald Pools, that would certainly be reasonable. Read more at our Zion National Park guide

Bryce Canyon is amazing but the drive from Zion and seeing the park would require another full day, plus a day or more to get back to your origination point. Read more at our Bryce Canyon National Park guide.

Check out the pages on thecanyon.com I’ve included above for more details, including exact driving directions from the South Rim to Zion Canyon and Bryce Canyon National Parks.

Enjoy your trip!

-Christina

With few exceptions, the 1.2 million acre Grand Canyon National Park is fair game for foot traffic. Due to the difficult terrain the vast majority of the backcountry is only accessible by experienced off-trial hikers or uphill forays from rafting trips. To assist the rest of us there are approximately two-dozen established trails that provide access to some of the park’s most remarkable destinations.

Read more of this comprehensive Grand Canyon hiking, backpacking & camping guide at www.thecanyon.com.

The improved conditions allow fire managers at Grand Canyon National Park to lift fire restrictions on the South and North Rims of Grand Canyon. Fire restrictions had been in place since June 5, 2006.

Restrictions that are being lifted include: Charcoal grills and campfires (that were restricted in Mather Campground, Desert View Campground, the North Rim Campground and residential areas). The restriction on smoking, which was only permitted within and directly adjacent to buildings that had designated smoking areas and within private vehicles provided an ashtray was used, has also been lifted.

Campfires in Grand Canyon National Park are only permitted in designated grills within established campgrounds on the rim, and along the Colorado River providing fire pans are used.

Historically conditions continue to moderate once the monsoons arrive. However, conditions can again dry out especially in early fall. If this occurs, fire restrictions will again be put in place.

Visitors and residents are reminded that even though fire conditions have improved and restrictions have been lifted it is important to practice fire safety at all times throughout the year.

Entrance fees for individual hikers and bikers will rise to $12 from $10.

Drivers entering the park will have to pay $25 per private vehicle, up from $20. Both fees are good for seven days on the North and South Rims of the Canyon.

The cost of an annual pass is increasing to $50 from $40. Fees for commercial vehicles, such as tour buses, will remain the same.

Golden Age Passports will remain at $10. The program is a lifetime pass to national parks for those age 62 or older.