After visiting the grand canyon, I plan to go to Monument Valley via Page, AZ. Would you all recommend early morning 1/2 day Float trip which would mean I would have to leave GC at 5 AM or do Antelope Canyon tour which would allow me to leave GC later in the morning

Wow, this is a hard choice. A lot depends on your situation and what you most enjoy. We did both of these in April a year ago, and I wouldn't have wanted to miss either experience - but we took two days for them. When will you be going?

The 5 AM departure for the float trip would be a deal breaker for me - I'm not a morning person, and I tend to get to bed late. Is it just you, or do you have other family members/friends along? I'd think the more people you have to roust and get going that early, the harder it would be. But if it's just you and you don't mind the early departure, maybe that would be fine. I assume you don't plan to overnight in Page, but make it to MV by that evening?

Here are some considerations - how long do you want your experience to be? Most of the Antelope Canyon Tours only give you 50 minutes inside the canyon - from what I observed, they do kind of hustle you through. We took the Antelope Canyon Tours photo tour, which gives you a full 2 hours in the canyon - they leave at 11:30 AM, and get you into the canyon a little before noon. You definitely want to be in the canyon at mid-day, that's when the really cool light beams are there, and the colors are most vivid - by the time we left the canyon a little before two, it was already getting quite dark inside. We had a few of the shorter tours push through while we were there. If you like photography, this is the tour to take - besides the fact that we are into photography, I wanted this particular tour because it gave us more time inside the canyon. The Powell Museum website gives you information on all the various tour companies, so you can compare, and they get a small commision if you book through them: http://reservations.powellmuseum.org/CanyonTours.html

I really loved the float trip - the scenery is spectacular, and you can relax and just spend your time gawking at the beautiful sights. We went in April, so there was only one mid-day trip then, so we left mid-morning. After our return, we did the short hike out to Horseshoe Bend overlook to see where we had passed far below on the river a few hours before- it was cool to get the two very different perspectives.

So here's the thing- do you want a 50 minute (or 2 hour, if you do the photo tour) experience in Antelope Canyon, or an approximately 4 hour experience on the river? Bear in mind, if there's any danger of flash flooding, you won't be able to go into Antelope Canyon - I have no idea how likely that is. How unpleasant would it be for you to get going at 5 AM, or would you be happier with a later start? Only you can answer these questions.

One last thought - I see that the early float trip gets back to Page at about 12:30. There are Antelope Canyon Tours that leave at 1:00, 1:30, and 2:00 - could you fit in an Antelope Canyon tour after a flaot trip? You wouldn't get the very middle of the day light, but it would still be very cool.

If I had to choose only one, I would probably pick the float trip, but I love boats, and the longer, more relaxing nature of that trip tips the scales slightly for me. The very early departure might tip it back in the other direction, though!

I remember your itineary...you have no wiggle room when it comes to time.

That said, it's closer to a 3 hour drive from the Grand Canyon village to Page, AZ. I know the tour operator has changed from when I did the float trip, but when we did the float trip we had to be there a 1/2 hour earlier to check in, which means leaving GC at 4 or possibly as late as 4:30 am. Also keep in mind that when we did the float trip, they returned us a 1/2 hour later than they said...which could mess up your MV plans.

That said, between the Antelope Slot Canyon and the 1/2 day float trip, I'd choose the float trip hands down for scenery and enjoyment factor.

Utahtea

Definitely do the float trip! You have to be at the tour headquarters at six thirty they say, but it leaves around seven. The morning trip is best because it's hot in the afternoon. But it IS a three hour ride from GC, you'd have to leave GC at three AM! An alternative would be to take a morning Canyon tour, I think one leaves at eight thirty, you'd probably be back in Page in time for the afternoon float trip, which I think leaves at one. I took the ten thirty tour and the canyon got crowded pretty fast, so the 8:30 tour is probably better although maybe you don't see the light streaming down as well. There are four canyon tour operators, they are online. Colorado River Discovery does the float trips. They can be booked online, a good idea, they do get busy and it's best to have a reservation. I was there last week.