Grand Canyon

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irvinewestpark_IHB

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Hi,





How much I wish there was a travel section in the forums and we could discuss travel deals and the best places to see and reviews for the places already seen.



Planning a trip to grand canyon south rim with family. We have been there 8-9 years ago for a day trip so haven't seen much. Would like to know:



1) Has anyone been on the grand canyon railway .How was your experience?Is it just for going from Williams to Grand Canyon or does it offer some views of the Canyon.My kids would love to do the train trip but I would like to know from you .



2)Another activity that has been suggested is the grand canyon river rafting adventure (which includes plane trip or grand canyon for $279 per person) I am little confused as this trip is abt 12 hours long so must be very exhausting especially for the young kids .Still thinking if it is worth that much time and money.Helicoptor or plane trip which one is bettter ?



3) Has anyone hiked into the canyon and seen the waterfalls .How long is the hike ?



4)How much time should be ok for the trip (not planning to do camping) and which hotel you stayed?
 
I've been to GC twice. I have two kids in elementary. Unfortunately, I can't afford any of the tours that you mentioned (train, river rafting, helicopter, or plane ride) because $280 x 4 = too much.



However, I can share my experience and things I heard from others.



1) The area for the Havasu Fall hike was closed last year due to flood. You should check before you go. REI has scheduled tours given availability of the area. It's long hike with donkeys though...



2) Train ride to San Diego is actually not bad so may be your young kids may like that better and also cheaper.



3) I took my kids and stopped all the point of interests along South Rim and went down the Angel trail (?) about a third way down. They liked it very much. Whenever we go trips, I let my kids have digital cameras so they can take pictures. It's a good way to keep them occupied, enjoy scenaries more, and develope artistic and technical skills if you can teach them some picture taking tips.



4) We saw IMAX film located right out side of the gate. That was a good over view of the park and very good alternative to heli or plane ride, in my opinion. I think I paid something like $50 for four of us.



5) We spent three nights and four days last time when we went. First and third night at Laughline (very cheap), and second night at Williams because we couldn't get a room at Bestwestern next to IMAX theater. So day 2 and 3 were for the south rim. From Williams, it's about 1 hour to the gate so may be better to pay more and stay near the gate. It's up to you.



6) Two days should be good for overall viewing of the canyong. You can get there driving on one day straight but your kids may not appreciate it. Hope this helps...
 
We went last year for Memorial Day. I'd recommend checking out some tour books from the library on the Grand Canyon. All the waterfalls are fairly remote and unless you are willing to camp I don't think that's a possibility. I don't think they are particularly spectacular falls either.



We did the helicopter tour and it wasn't worth the money in my opinion. The IMAX movie actually was more spectacular and showed you more of the canyon. Things I didn't like about the helicopter ride were: it was crowded - I think there were six of us (including 4 strangers) in the same large helicopter, the plexiglass windows were very dirty and scratched which ruined most of the pictures, the helicopter didn't dive into the canyon like other trips I've been on (Sedona comes to mind - that helicopter ride was worth every penny). Also the helicopter pilot and the people running the place were rude and treated the customers like cattle.



What I would recommend is the National Geographic Best of the Canyon tour. It's under $100 a person and they show you many things you might otherwise miss: Native American petroglyphs, ruins of a luxury hotel from the beginning of the 1900s, etc.



Our National Geographic tour operator said the train was kind of hokey but fun - especially for the kids. I'd also recommend eating at least one meal at the El Tovar Hotel/Restaurant on the edge. It's a classically beautiful old place that is reminiscent of the Titanic and that era.



Enjoy! The Grand Canyon is an amazing place. I can't wait to go back.
 
Thanks to both of you.



I know the $280 tour was way too pricey for the 5 of us.Not only the price but time also as it starts from 6 am to 6.45 pm (12 hours+)it must be very tiring esp. for kids. I saw a couple of videos on youtube of the helicoptor ride it didn't go down much . Since our Helicoptor ride in Kuaui was worth every penny I was thinking maybe it is good to have a different view of canyon.But yeah each place is different.





I would like to know more abt Sedona.I was doing some internet search yesterday and found slide rock state park which has natural water tube and beautiful views and read a lot about oak creek canyon scenic drive .Has anyone been there? We would be staying in phoenix so looking for two to three places that can be done as a day trip each day.We love lakes ,waterfalls , quite rivers and streams .Is there any other place near phoenix that has these ?
 
I lived in Arizona for 10 years, (Tucson, not Phoenix) but we did a lot of traveling in the state. When will you be at the Grand Canyon? The South Rim is really crowded from June to late August. The train from Williams is fun for kids, but not very scenic. It's mostly rolling grassland and then some pine forest just before you get to the Canyon. The good points from an adult point of view is that taking the train keeps you out of the traffic mess entering the park, and solves the parking problem. Because of the crowds, I think an organized tour is better than trying to see stuff on your own. The National Geographic tours are well recommended. Hiking/mule rides down to the bottom are really a 2 day trip. One day down, overnight at the campground, and back up the next day. I think rafting would be too challenging for the kids.



I believe the Park Service stopped helicopters "diving" into the Canyon a few years ago after some spectacular and fatal mishaps. I would opt for the IMAX version.



Sedona is beautiful and more accessible to kids. I haven't been to Slide Rock park, but have only heard good things about it. Phoenix itself offers "tubing" on the Salt River. You rent large inner tubes at one end of the park, float down the river for a mile or so, and turn the tubes back in at the end. You either hike back to the parking lot, or in the summer I'm pretty sure they run a tram back. The Salt River is about 5 feet deep and has a steady current, depending on how much water is released from the dam upstream. Check on line for "Salt River, Phoenix" and I'm sure you'll find the details. It's popular for "end of school" events, and picnics. There are a lot of trees, and shade.



Between Phoenix and Sedona, in Camp Verde, there's a wildlife park that specializes in big cats. It's called "Out of Africa" and it's pretty interesting. They used to be closer to Phoenix, but got pushed out by development.
 
We went to Sedona Labor Day weekend 2007. We did the Call of the Canyon hike that borders along Oak Creek. This hike goes through an old abandoned orchard and farm dwellings. Very beautiful. We saw a lot of families hiking along there as well. I think Sedona is a vastly underrated destination. It's one of my favorite trips ever.



Interesting you should mention the Kauai helicopter ride. My husband had previously done that one and he said Sedona was almost a tie in terms of how spectacular the experience was. I sat in the front of the Sedona helicopter ride with the pilot though so I don't think his experience was as amazing as mine. But he still enjoyed it and agrees with me that the Grand Canyon ride was not nearly as entertaining and twice the cost.



Some shots of the Sedona ride:



<img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1159/1317039017_d83f965106.jpg?v=0" alt="" />

<img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1145/1317061157_f62d37ccb9.jpg?v=0" alt="" />

<img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1261/1317949328_500bef15fc.jpg?v=0" alt="" />





vs. Grand Canyon where you never got down at eye level like that in the GC. These are probably the most dramatic of the umpteen pictures from that ride:



<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2043/2526669529_3878bf1a85.jpg?v=0" alt="" />

<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2223/2527491142_ce165977d6.jpg?v=0" alt="" />
 
Here is the link for the National Geographic tours.



<a href="http://www.offthebeatenpath.com/gcvc/?ref=NGE">National Geographic Grand Canyon Tours</a>



We did Best of the Canyon and loved it. It's $90/adult and half that for kids under 12. The National Geographic guides are very knowledgeable about the park - our guy was able to answer deep dive questions about the animals, the history, the native tribes in the area, the types of trees in the park...
 
I live about 30 min from Sedona and visit the area often to hike, 4-wheel, and enjoy the great town. It is worth the time to visit and is not too expensive since most activities are outdoors in the redrock area and you purchase a pass for a few bucks. The jeep rides are fun. You can also rent jeeps and take your family exploring.



The short drive from I-40 through Live Oak Canyon is very beautiful. Like the other poster said the GC is very crowded.



Another train ride you may consider is from Clarkdale to Perkinsville on the <a href="http://www.clarkdale.az.us/railroad schedule.htm">Verde Canyon Railroad</a>.



Jerome <a href="http://www.azjerome.com/">http://www.azjerome.com/</a> is also interesting if you haven't seen it.



Slide Rock is on the agenda for my wife and I this spring.



Enjoy!
 
Thanks to all of you for the wealth of info.



As for the National geographic tour link I couldn't understand whether they take inside the canyon or go and see the canyon from different places of south rim or they drive you to some

attractions.We plan to go there for the memorial day but rethinking it looking at everyone posts I am sure it will be very very crowded.



I read about Sedona in LAtimes travel section so was interested in it and it is amazing Grand Canyon always takes all the attention of anyone visiting Arizona and other places so beautiful are not that hyped.



On the Arizona tourism website there is this area called White mountain full of lakes ,trails and natural beauty .Any IHBer been there ? Maybe If it turns out to be good can go there sometime later in this year.



Salt river looks interesting .May plan a day trip for that.Thanks
 
About the National Geographic tours... the Best of the Canyon tour is mostly them driving you point to point w/ no more than 15 minutes of walking at any particular site. There is another tour that is mostly hiking into the canyon - I haven't done that one.



Grand Canyon will probably be very crowded Memorial Day yes. We went last Memorial Day, it was hailing and snowing, and it was still crowded. At this point actually your hotel choice would probably be pretty limited at Grand Canyon. The first year we wanted to go to Grand Canyon (Labor day 2007) we couldn't get a decent hotel room and ended up going to Sedona instead. Hopefully this year with the economy it will be less crowded for your family.
 
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