sharondi

We just reserved a motel style room at the North Rim and wondering if the cabins offer anything extra (ie: more privacy, views, better access to trails, etc) Thanks for your help. Sharon

disneynan

We stayed at N. Rim 2 yrs ago and originally were booked at the motel because that was all that was available. I kept a vigilant watch up at the parks website and finally saw cancellations coming in & was able to get a WESTERN STYLE cabin (2nights) for a few $$ more and was so happy I did. It was nestled near the rim, in a grove of trees with a porch, 2 beds and lots of room. (Would have loved the RIM VIEWs , but there did not seem to be any cancellations)...as I recall the motel is on the main road as you drive up to the lodge..As I said, price wise it was worth it for the cabins. We could go out the door and be overlooking the canyon in seconds...

placeu2

Definately go for the cabin. I called and called and eventually got one due to a cancellation. It is worth it. I am not even sure that we saw the motel rooms so I can't comment on location. I can say that disneynan is accurate about the access to the rim and close trails from the cabins.

detraveler

I stayed at the North Rim with a group of 18 people. Beacause I was a single I was in the motel rooms but the couples were in the cabins. The cabins were quite spread out and some were just as far from the rim as the motel units so unless you get a rim view don't count on it being any closer. I was disappointed at first to be in the motel units but after hearing the others in my group complain about the very thin walls in the cabins which are set up like a duplex, I was much happier where I was. A very short walk after dinner did not seem so bad in exchange for a quiet room. I recall that with the exception of the Bright Angel trail all of the popular trails are a drive from the hotel area anyway.

bob_brown

hmm. The cabins and the motel rooms at the North Rim are all accessed by the same road. There are 3 types ofs cabins, Frontier, Western, and Pioneer. The Western ones are the best ones, and are a little more expensive.

The other cabins are a little larger than a motel room, but unless you stay in one of the $116 canyon view rooms, none of them overlook the canyon.

The motel rooms are close to the canyon as well, so I don't agree with some of the other claims made above. You must go through the dining room/office building to get to the views, or else dodge through the cabin area. Or drive to one of the few overlooks on the north rim.

I am not sure there is much to choose between them except the cabins offer more space, which I prefer, and which I selected last trip.

There are not enough trails at the north rim to fret about, nor will you gain appreciably in privacy by selecting a more expensive cabin. They are all packed into a very small area.
You park a ways away, too. As I recall we could drive close to unload, but then had to go to a big lot north of the cabin cluster to park and walk back to the room.

The Bright Angel Trail is a south rim trail only. It goes to the bottom of the canyon. If you continue on to the north rim, you ascend via the North Kaibab Trail, which is a lung buster.

And if you want to eat in the restaurant, please note: Reservations for dinner are mandatory. From experience, give plenty of lead time or eat last!

Cats_Do_Dance

My family was one of the lucky ones who managed to get one of the rim view Western cabins. It was (IMO) glorious! I don't remember anything about the motel style rooms at all. Sorry.

There was a book published years ago about lodging in all the National Parks. My family first used it for our vist to the North Rim and continued to do so up to last year for Yellowstone/Grand Tetons. One would think I would remember the name of this book, but I can't; it's something like "Lodging in the National Parks". This book has excellent advice on all the available lodging choices and tells you which ones they think are the best and why. Check your local library and see if they have it, it'll make your decision easier. Personally, I would go for the Western Cabins.

ITA with making dinner reservations for the North Rim as soon as you can.

disneynan

This has nothing to do with the cabins at N.Rim,but with a lovely , almost life-size brass sculpture of the famous burro who worked at the Canyon. He is sitting inside the main lodge at N.RIM Would anyone remember his name??? I can't for the life of me think of it, but we took a ton of photos sitting with him?

Cats_Do_Dance

>>>This has nothing to do with the cabins at N.Rim,but with a lovely , almost life-size brass sculpture of the famous burro who worked at the Canyon<<<

"Brighty" I believe is the name.

disneynan

CATS: Thank You! that just made my day..we have been pondering for 2 days ...next time I will mark my photos.

bob_brown

The immortal burro's name was indeed Brighty, named after the Bright Angel Trail, although the animal himself was no dummy.
This web site has a few more details.http://www.angelfire.com/film/horsefame/brighty.html
His story is one of the most rewarding tales from the many tall tales about the Grand Canyon. If even half of it is true, the guy was well worth knowing.