Grand Canyon Tours

I can't speak for tours going from California to the Grand Canyon, but I took one from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon (West Rim) last week over Labor Day. I was satisfied with everything, no problems. Only a few minor caveats about these types of bus tours:

1.) The bus driver is on a schedule; if he gets delayed for whatever reason, including the tour company's fault, you pay for it in time lost visiting your destination.
2.) Because they are on a schedule, you have to be proactive in planning out your time so that you get to see what you want to see.
3.) A lot of times their add-ons can be purchased cheaper at your destination or through the actual rafting/hiking/helicopter/etc. company itself. My friend and I paid for the cheapest Grand Canyon West Rim bus tour so we could go on the Skywalk. The tour company's Skywalk Adventure was $40 extra, and the day of they told us our package didn't allow the Skywalk as an add-on on our package. We arrived at the West Rim and were able to purchase tickets at the Skywalk itself for $27 each.

All in all, these types of tours bundle convenience at a decent price at a bit of a sacrifice for time and bargains. Good luck and have fun.
posted by lychee at 4:05 PM on September 10

With bus tours in general, some people like them and some people don't. You won't get much time at each attraction. For example look at this:
Day 6 Kanab - Grand Canyon - Zion National Park - Las Vegas:
For me that seems like a lot for one day. Each of these parks easily warrants a multi-day trip on its own.
Bus tours aren't totally evil. They're good to see a lot of places quickly, so you can come back to the ones you like. You can't stay longer at the places you like, but you don't stay long in the places you hate. So, ok.

They are best if you go with people you know you travel well with, because they're no fun at all if you don't like the group. And one irritating person can make your vacation suck.

A good bus tour has multi-day stays, because they're a lot more hectic if you have to pack every morning, and drive to somewhere every night. The optional activities are where they make their money... if you ever see "free afternoon at the Grand Canyon to see the sights", that's code for "$50 donkey rides". And everyone on the tour does them, because of peer/tour guide pressure and "I'll only be here once" syndrome. You can easily spend 50% on top of the tour price on extras.

Anyways, another option is something like Trek America. They are more of a camping trek outfit, but they do have hotel tours. For instance. It's a slower schedule. And it's only a 13 person van, instead of a 50 person bus, which means you don't overwhelm every place you visit. And smaller groups can stay in better hotels. (The camping tours are awesome too, but that's a different sort of thing.)

2) California Condors. These extremely rare birds are a One of the rare California Condors in flight.treat to watch as they fly overhead at the South Rim. Their wingspan is close to 10 feet. They were near extinction and now 60 call Arizona home. They seem to like watching the park visitors as much as we liked watching them. Many were always in view near the El Tovar resort area.

3) History, Culture, Geology. While every view is spectacular, you may also enjoy learning that the Grand Canyon is all about ancient Indian cultures, geologic formations, ancient seas, unique flora and fauna andHopi House near El Tovar. exceptional archeological finds. Knowing just a bit about these things helps you appreciate the Grand Canyon even more.
5) River Trips. A variety of river rafting trips are also available.
6) Mule Trips and Horseback Rides. Single-day and overnight mule trips can be booked well in advance through Xanterra. Trail rides on horses are available from a private stable.

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Depending on which rim of the Grand Canyon you venture to, it will be a good day's drive from Las Vegas, but well worth the visit. Carved over millennia through the rocks of the Colorado Plateau, the Grand Canyon never ceases to be awe- inspiring, with its beauty and size. If the scenic views aren't enough, there's hiking, backpacking, biking, bird watching, boating, camping, cross country skiing, fishing, horseback riding, nature walks and more.

The first stop was the Hoover Dam - I've seen programs on it before and seen videos and studied it in geography so I wasn't expecting to be that impressed really but I so was. It is absolutely massive, I can't believe that it was built in the 1930's though I just can't believe that they could have done that then and its still as strong as it was then - there has never been a crack in it at all! The only thing they have done is replaced the mechanical bits actually inside and install computers. They are freaking out about it though, the whole coach had to be searched before we were allowed near it and they are now building a bridge across the top of Black Canyon (which will be another engineering miracle cos it'll be so high) and a bypass because at the minute all the traffic on that particular freeway drives straight across the top of the Dam.

It takes 3hrs on the bus to get to the West Rim of the Grand Canyon (the south rim where the National Park is takes 5hrs) and its all owned by the Indian tribe who live in the area and run it. The West Rim is where the new acclaimed Sky Walk is -I didn't do it, glass bridge with a 4000 ft drop - not a chance! I was quite pleased that I didn't actually because you aren't allowed to take cameras on there, they have a professional photographer on there taking pictures and charge $25 for the privilege! People were not happy because you get rushed along (apparently) I didn't speak with anyone who wasn't moaning about it!

Right where the sky walk is, is an area of the Canyon called Eagle Point where you can see and eagle actually in the Canyon (if you use your imagination) - check the picture. The elders of the Indian Tribe really didn't want the sky Walk built there because they consider it one of the most sacred places in the whole 100 million acres of land that they own but the younger generation argued and it got built and now visitor numbers have increased from 250 per day to 2500 per day so I guess it was worth it.

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