ccb213

We are planning a trip to the above mentioned places this August (yes, I know it will be hot and crowed but it's the only time we could go) with our three children who are 12 and 13 (twins). I have read through some old posts, and below is a tentative itinerary and I would love feedback and recommendations:

Day 1 - Fly to Las Vegas (arrive around 11:30 am)
Day 2 - Vegas:
- any suggestions on where to stay - Mandalay Bay? Four Seasons? Venetian?
any suggestions on what show to see - maybe Michael Jackson One or O?
Day 3 - Drive to GC - Southern Rim - by way of Hoover Dam and Old Route 66
Reservation at GC at Yavapai Lodge (so far that is the only place with availability)
Day 4- GC
Day 5 - Drive to Page - try and do Lower Antelope Canyon and HorseShoe Bend?
Where to stay in Page?
Day 6 - Maybe Early morning 1/2 day float - Lake Powell or Colorado River??
Drive to Bryce - overnight in Lodge in Bryce
Day 7 - Bryce - then drive to Zion - possible reservation at Cliffside Lodge and Gardens? Thoughts?
Day 8 - Zion
Day 9 - drive from Zion to LV for a noon flight home

As I said, any suggestions and comments would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

DownUnderDrifter

Sounds like you should have a fantastic time. Personally, I loved Lake Powell area. We stayed at Lake Powell Motel (don't know how big some of the rooms are), but it was excellent value for money and spacious. Definitely do Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon. I also enjoyed the half day trip on the lake, though my mother thought it was a bit boring. If the kids are active, maybe some canoeing or something similar if possible?

Itinerary looks good. Pretty similar to what we did, though we had more time and included Moab and Monument Valley.

Have fun!

emalloy

Sounds like a nice introduction to the area.

Yavapai is ok for lodging, but if you want closer to the rim, call and keep calling as people do make reservations way in advance and cancel as time gets close.

There are quite a few motels in Page, not fancy but ok. I would google and look for one with a pool so the kids could swim after a day of hiking.

It is always a good idea to keep a cooler with snacks, drinks and plenty of water in the car and top off the gas tank any time you get down to a half and see a station.

Enjoy this beautiful area.

WhereAreWe

I would try to add one day to Zion. Cut out one night at Page. I would think if you leave the Grand Canyon by mid-morning you can reach Page in time to do the half day float trip in the afternoon. Then get up and do Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend the next morning and drive to Bryce.

Zion really needs more than 1.5 days, which is all you have allotted. The other option is to cut a night from the Grand Canyon if you aren't planning on doing a lot of hiking.

smetz1

My wife and I have done similar trips twice, most recently earlier this month. Overall, your itinerary sounds just about right to me.

Have you been to Vegas before? Since you're flying in and out of Vegas, it probably makes some sense to spend your first night there, though for a family such as yours you'll probably find all of the other locations to be much, much nicer. We most recently stayed in the Bellagio, which is a very nice hotel, and your kids would probably enjoy the garden and the pool. "O" plays there, and the fountains in front of the hotel are really spectacular (if you get a room with a view of the fountains it's especially nice). Also, Jersey Boys plays at the Paris hotel right across LV Blvd. There are lots of things in Vegas you'd have to overlook - the smoky casinos, hawkers on the strip advertising girls who can be sent directly to your room, drunk bridesmaids, drunk groomsmen, drunk people in general walking around with frozen drinks in elongated plastic containers with even more elongated straws... just to name a few! If it were me, I'd skip Vegas, it's generally awful. But you can certainly find a few nice things to do for an afternoon or an evening.

At the Grand Canyon, I agree with emalloy that if you can get a change to be closer to the rim, especially at El Tovar, you'll be glad you did. In the early morning and evening, Elk graze on the grass around El Tovar, and if you've never seen them, it's really something. Are you planning on hiking, especially down into the canyon? That is a wonderful way to experience GC. One thing to keep in mind throughout your trip is, if you hike be sure everyone carries lots of water. You'll here that constantly out there, and it isn't trite at all - if you're from back east, like I am, you'll be very surprised at how quickly your body loses water out there, especially in the August heat.

If you are going to hike, at any or all of the locations you're going to, here is one strong suggestion I would make: Given the time of year, plan hikes for the early morning before it gets hot, and stay at places that have nice pools for the afternoon.

ccb213

Thanks for your replies and helpful suggestions. Based on what I've heard so far, should I cut out one night at Las Vegas and add it to Zion? In that case, we would have about 1/2 day as our first dat off the plan and one night in LV before heading out. I don't really like Vegas but my husband and kids have never been there and I thought there would be enough for the kids to do if they went to the pool and maybe amusement park at circus circus or gondola at Venetian. We really don't gamble much so I welcome your suggestions.

Alternatively, should I switch the itinerary and spend first night in Vegas and then next day head straight to Zion and do it in the opposite order? My husband really wants to see the Hoover Dam and I heard that it gets crowded late in day so I was trying to do it in the morning on the way out of LV also as a way to break up a long day of driving. If we did it that way, maybe we would spend the last night in Vegas.

One other question - is Antelope Canyon and a float/raft in the Lake Powell area worth it? We were in part doing it to break up a long drive and give the kids something to do other than hiking/walking.

Thanks for all the suggestions about water. We will definately hike /walk early in the day or late afternoon (and SMetz1 - yes, we are from the east coast).

Any other suggestion or revisions are welcome! I really appreciate the feedback.

emalloy

If your trip is this August, you are a bit late getting lodging. I would try for lodging near Grand Canyon, Bryce, and near Zion first and see which you CAN get lodging for on the days you are planning to go. I'm assuming you are planning on the south rim (my favorite), but if it was north rim you really need lodging too. That will give you the direction you will want to go first - towards Zion or towards GC. If they say they are full, call and keep calling as people do make reservations a year in advance and then cancel when they find they can't do the trip.

Then you can look at lodging in Vegas and Page where there are more options.

If you get into Vegas early, say by noon, then head towards either GC or Zion, whichever you got lodging at and do an overnight with the kids at the end of the trip. If it is later and you are heading for GC, maybe head towards Hoover dam and get lodging near there so you can do a dam tour early and be at GC by late afternoon. Vegas will be unbearably hot in August so doing outside activities will not be much fun and the inside ones tend to be pretty lame and also smokey.

If you are from sea level, be aware that you will be at high enough elevation to be aware that you need to drink tons of water, even when you don't feel thirsty. This is especially true for Bryce where some suffer from altitude sickness and many find them sucking wind if they exert themselves at all.

As to Page activities, we enjoyed both the float trip on the Colorado river and Antelope Canyon, but I can't say what your kids will want other than a motel with a pool if your other lodging is in the NPs. If you want to see pictures of them I have some at www.flickr.com/photos/emalloy2009 in the 2008 album.

cd

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...dale_Utah.html

This is a great place to stay for Zion. It is right next to the park with a bridge to walk over and you're in the park! It is clean, has a little store next door and the AC was great!

Our trip was July last year and hot, hot, hot! We stayed at the resort on Lake Powell. I really enjoyed the boat trip to Rainbow Bridge the rock walls at the edge of the lake make for lovely views http://www.lakepowell.com/accommodat...modations.aspx
We took the float trip and I was miserable. I really thought
I would pass out it was so hot. There is no shade on the trip.

bwcnc

We did the Lake Powell half day float trip a few years ago and really enjoyed it. Unfortunately there was a bad thunderstorm the day we planned to visit Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend, so we didn't get to see them. I think we stayed at the Courtyard in Page. Zion is a family favorite so we always prefer to have more time there than in Vegas.

cd

I am reasonably sure bwcnc means the float trip on the river: http://raftthecanyon.com/ Lake Powell only has boat tours:http://www.lakepowell.com/play/boat-tours.aspx

smetz1

Antelope Canyon is 1,000% worth it, IMO! It is really incredible, and you won't soon forget the surreal experience. If you can time your tour when sun is high in the sky, around noon or a bit later, it's quite amazing with the shafts of light coming into the canyon. You can indeed do it without spending the night in Page, but rather as a stop between the GC and Zion or Bryce. The whole tour takes about 2-3 hours & you need to sign up for it in the town. Horseshoe Bend takes very little time - park your car and walk maybe a mile to the canyon rim (some of it through sand, so you get a good idea of what it would be like to be lost in a hot desert), to get the view. Beware, though, it's a flat-out cliff with no railing!

Another great place to stay at Zion is Desert Pearl Inn. If you get a room or suite on the river, it comes with a wonderful deck or patio with access to the river, and a great view of canyon walls. They have a nice pool too.

bwcnc

Yes, I misspoke; got my boats and floats mixed up. We did the half day boat tour on Lake Powell, not the river float trip. It was beautiful and the whole family had fun. I also second the recommendation above for a river view room at the Desert Pearl Inn; we've stayed there twice.

ccb213

Thanks for all of your helpful insight and guidance. One more question - if we fly into LV with a flight from the east coast expected to arrive at noon - is it too much to drive the the South Rim of the Grand Canyon that day? If we do it that way, we can get a reservation at the GC at the Maswick Lodge (and we will keep searching for others). We would then switch our itinerary and to GC (2 nights) - Page (1 night) - Bryce (i night) - Zion (2 nights but with a more time than originally planned) - LV (2 nights and 1 full day with tour of Hoover Dam as part of that day) and fly out of LV. Thanks again!

mlgb

I think it is too much. It would be better to head for Springdale (Zion) which is only about 3 hours away.

There are plenty of options in Springdale, many with pools, not just Desert Pearl. La Quinta has a new two-story hotel there, with queen beds and an included breakfast.

emalloy

If you get in before noon, I would go for GC, but not stop at Hoover Dam as you indicate. You can pick up the car and be there before sunset if the flight is on time. You probably won't want to be on the road after dark, we've seen deer and elk very close to the road on the way into GC.