Grand Canyon trip

[bcla]

Depends on where you fly in. If you fly into Vegas, then obviously you will do Vegas. Death Valley National Park is just a couple hour drive away, as is Hoover Dam.

If you fly into PHX, lots and lots of stuff to see. Our last trip, flying into PHX, we were in N. AZ a little over two weeks -- with two nights in Grand Canyon.

Besides the Grand Canyon, Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon are big attractions, but the entire Northern AZ area is one natural wonder after another. We visited Montezuma's Castle, Walnut Canyon, Wupatki, Petrified Forest, Sunset Crater Volcano Natl Monument, Lower Antelope Canyon (my avatar), Upper Antelope Canyon, Monument Valley, and Four Corners, among others. The last 4 listed are Navajo Nation Parks.

We actually cut short our Grand Canyon visit to spend an extra night in Sedona.

I've never been there, but a friend recommended Meteor Crater, although it's privately owned.

https://meteorcrater.com

 

[Simba's Mom]

We've been to the Grand Canyon twice, and on one of those trips, DH did the hike to Phantom Ranch, stayed overnite, and hiked back. As previously stated, you have to reserve Phantom Ranch over a year in advance. Both times, we stayed at a hotel in the park (Bright Angel Cabins-technically one of the nights, I was the only one there). If anyone's interested in the Phantom Ranch hike, we can share info. Eat at, but I don't recommend staying at, El Tovar.

 

[kymom99]

Depends on where you fly in. If you fly into Vegas, then obviously you will do Vegas. Death Valley National Park is just a couple hour drive away, as is Hoover Dam.

If you fly into PHX, lots and lots of stuff to see. Our last trip, flying into PHX, we were in N. AZ a little over two weeks -- with two nights in Grand Canyon.

Besides the Grand Canyon, Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon are big attractions, but the entire Northern AZ area is one natural wonder after another. We visited Montezuma's Castle, Walnut Canyon, Wupatki, Petrified Forest, Sunset Crater Volcano Natl Monument, Lower Antelope Canyon (my avatar), Upper Antelope Canyon, Monument Valley, and Four Corners, among others. The last 4 listed are Navajo Nation Parks.

We actually cut short our Grand Canyon visit to spend an extra night in Sedona.

I’ve heard Sedona is beautiful

 

[kymom99]

OP, my family flew into Vegas and picked up a car. We ate at in n out burger then drove to the south rim of the GC in about 5 hours. We stopped in kingman to see the Route 66 museum and pick up some groceries and a cooler. We stopped in seligman and got a bite to eat at the sno cap. We spent 3 nights/2 days in Grand Canyon. We stayed at yavapai lodge inside the park. Nothing fancy but very convenient. After the GC, we drove around the csnyon to Zion NP in Utah. We stayed at the driftwood lodge, located just outside the park in Springdale. There is a free shuttle that runs to the park entrance. we stayed 2 nights then made the circuit back to Vegas. Hoover dam tours were not going on for some reason but we still went there to look around. We stayed in Vegas at the mirage. We also drove to red rock canyon. The whole trip was one week. We saw and did a lot in that time.

 

[gopack]

We just got back from a trip to Arizona. We stayed in Scottsdale Old Town because we were there for Spring Training. In the Scottsdale area we kayaked and took a Jeep tour through the desert. We also walked to many fun restaurants in Old Town. My favorite part of our trip was visiting Sedona. It is amazingly beautiful. I enjoyed seeing the Grand Canyon but I thought Sedona was the highlight. We also went through Oak Creek Canyon in the Sedona area. There is beautiful camping in that area too.

 

[1GoldenSun]

It sounds like Sedona isn't something we should miss. Maybe we'll plan on doing our camping there. There is still availability at some of the south rim hotels, so maybe we'll spend a day or two there and take day hikes and see the sights. Then maybe we'll spend another day or two over by the north rim, a couple days in Sedona, a day at Hoover Dam, and a day or two in Las Vegas. I'd still like to do some rafting but I'm not sure where the best place to do that is.

 

[RamblingMad]

It sounds like Sedona isn't something we should miss. Maybe we'll plan on doing our camping there. There is still availability at some of the south rim hotels, so maybe we'll spend a day or two there and take day hikes and see the sights. Then maybe we'll spend another day or two over by the north rim, a couple days in Sedona, a day at Hoover Dam, and a day or two in Las Vegas. I'd still like to do some rafting but I'm not sure where the best place to do that is.

It's nice. But it gets really busy.

 

[Tattylou]

Depends on where you fly in. If you fly into Vegas, then obviously you will do Vegas. Death Valley National Park is just a couple hour drive away, as is Hoover Dam.

If you fly into PHX, lots and lots of stuff to see. Our last trip, flying into PHX, we were in N. AZ a little over two weeks -- with two nights in Grand Canyon.

Besides the Grand Canyon, Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon are big attractions, but the entire Northern AZ area is one natural wonder after another. We visited Montezuma's Castle, Walnut Canyon, Wupatki, Petrified Forest, Sunset Crater Volcano Natl Monument, Lower Antelope Canyon (my avatar), Upper Antelope Canyon, Monument Valley, and Four Corners, among others. The last 4 listed are Navajo Nation Parks.

We actually cut short our Grand Canyon visit to spend an extra night in Sedona.

We did a trip like this years ago - beautiful part of the country. I love Sedona and Monument Valley. I can’t wait to get back out there. I had been waiting for my kiddos to be old enough to appreciate it (and to tolerate the long drives well). They’re almost 11 and almost 13 now so I’m thinking maybe summer 2022.

New Mexico is beautiful too.

 

[JimMIA]

I posted some pictures of Sedona over on the California and the West board. Here's a link: https://www.disboards.com/threads/sedona-pictures.3816141/

 

[pigletgirl]

It sounds like Sedona isn't something we should miss. Maybe we'll plan on doing our camping there. There is still availability at some of the south rim hotels, so maybe we'll spend a day or two there and take day hikes and see the sights. Then maybe we'll spend another day or two over by the north rim, a couple days in Sedona, a day at Hoover Dam, and a day or two in Las Vegas. I'd still like to do some rafting but I'm not sure where the best place to do that is.

Sedona isn't to be missed. It's absolutely incredible. If you are looking for a unique (not super fancy) but incredible NEW Mexican meal, you need to get a reservation at the Elote Cafe. It's unbelievable!

I'd either choose Vegas or Phoenix. The positives of flying into Phoenix is that you can take your time heading north (the I-17 can have crazy traffic so try not to be on it on a Friday or Sat going N or Sunday going S). The Prescott area also has some awesome camping too and it's only an hour from Sedona and 90 min to the Canyon.

 

[JimMIA]

(the I-17 can have crazy traffic so try not to be on it on a Friday or Sat going N or Sunday going S).

I second this! It seems like everyone in Phoenix goes to either Sedona or Flagstaff every weekend. In particular, traffic on I-17 south on Sunday can be very slow. It actually reminds me of the traffic coming out of the Florida Keys on a Sunday.

On a couple of our trips we have used Flagstaff as a base for at least part of the trip. Sedona is beautiful, but it's slow to go anywhere from Sedona. Flagstaff is centrally located at the intersection of several major highways (I-17 to the south, US 89 to the north, and I-40 E-W). There are also a lot of things to see within just a couple of hours of Flagstaff.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

It sounds like Sedona isn't something we should miss. Maybe we'll plan on doing our camping there. There is still availability at some of the south rim hotels, so maybe we'll spend a day or two there and take day hikes and see the sights. Then maybe we'll spend another day or two over by the north rim, a couple days in Sedona, a day at Hoover Dam, and a day or two in Las Vegas. I'd still like to do some rafting but I'm not sure where the best place to do that is.

Check out the Hualapai River Runners. The Hualapai Native Americans offer guided 1 day rafting trips through their section of Grand Canyon West. They bus you down to the river from Peach Springs very early in the morning. Their section of river has a mix of rapids (class II and III) and calm water. At the end of your trip, they helicopter you out to Grand Canyon West. Then you bus back to Peach Springs. It is a very long day, and it is really expensive. I researched the heck out of it, and we almost did it when we visited the GC back in 2014. I really wanted rapids versus just a calm float trip. Most Colorado River rafting trips with rapids are 3+ day trips; I wanted a 1 day trip. The Hualapai trip fit the bill. In the end, we traveled with extended family. None of them wanted to do it due to the cost, and my immediate family ran out of time. I’m not sure how Covid is impacting their operation, so you’ll need to research it.
https://grandcanyonwest.com/explore/colorado-river-rafting/

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

We did an extended family trip to Sedona and the Grand Canyon during Summer 2014 - 6 days in Sedona, 3 in GC (stayed at El Tovar), 1 in Phoenix. In Sedona we were split between Wyndham Sedona and Arroyo Roble Resort.

We flew into Phoenix and went straight to Sedona. We stayed there for 6 days. Saw Montezuma's castle, Montezuma's Well, Tuzigoot, Pink Jeep Tour of Broken Arrow trail, tubing trip on Verde River, Buddha Beach, Golf, Chapel of the Holy Cross, Chuckwagon Cowboy Dinner at Blazin' M Ranch (superfun!!!!).

Then we drove to the GC. On the way we checked out Oak Creek Canyon, lunched in Flagstaff, Walnut Canyon ruins, Sunset Crater, Wupatki ruins. We went in the Desert View entrance of the GC, so we could see the view from there and climb the watchtower. Then we made our way to El Tovar for the night. We stayed in GC for 2 nights and took advantage of as many Ranger talks as we could.

On the way back, we spent 1 night in Phoenix and explored the city. It was a GREAT trip!

Two family favorites:
Pink Jeep Broken Arrow Tour - There are other jeep companies, but Pink Jeep is the only one with access to this trail. It is sooooo worth it!

Blazin' M Cowboy Cookout & show- This is actually in Cottonwood. The whole family ages 7 to 78 LOVED Blazin' M.

Just a note about Slide Rock - It was on our agenda, but the park was closed due to recent fires in the Sedona area, so we missed it.

Also, El Tovar starts booking up a year in advance. Make your reservations as soon as you know your dates. If it is all booked up online, call and keep checking.