EastEileen

Still working on our itinerary...Your suggestions have been most helpful. We have reservations in Santa Fe for 3 nights and reservations at Gouldings (Monument Valley) for 2 nights. Since we have 2 nights in between, we could use some recommendations for that time. We definitely want to do Canyon de Chelley. Should we plan on arriving there late afternoon and doing the tour the next day and leave the following morning -- or try to spend one of those nights somewhere else? Also, we will have a tent with us and to economize, we're wondering about campgrounds in the area. (We're spending a lot in Santa Fe.) We aren't looking for back country camping -- just a pleasant place to rest ourselves.
Thanks again!

utahtea

I would recommend spending two nights at the Canyon de Chelly National Monument campground. It's a nice campground with big cottonwood trees for shade. There is water and bathrooms and best of all the price is FREE! Compared that to $106 for the Thunderbird Motel!

I would get there the first evening and make your arrangements to go on a tour and then go watch the sunset at one of the overlooks. The next morning you can walk over from the campground to the Lodge to pick up your tour early in the morning. We only did the half day and I wish we had done the all day. After the tour you can spend the rest of the time site seeing on the rim and spend the second FREE night at the campground. There are no showers. That will be the only down side.

Utahtea

EastEileen

Thanks! I just checked the NPS website and noticed they don't take reservations. I wonder if they get very full at that time of the year??? Also, do you have a favorite for the tours? I noticed that the Thunderbird has a tour and I also just found another company Leon Skyhorse Thomas --Canyon De Chelly Unimog Tours.

utahtea

We were in Canyon de Chelly on Memorial Day weekend in May 2001 and the campground did not fill up. If it doesn't fill up on a holiday weekend I really don't think you would have to worry.

Canyon de Chelly is still an out of the way destination so you shouldn't have a problem getting a campsite. There are almost 100 campsites at Cottonwood Campground.

We took the tours out of the Thunderbird Lodge and we were really happy with our tour guide. I would use them again.

This has nothing to do with which tour guide you use, but I guess I might as well warn you that there are restrooms on the tour but they don't have doors on the stall.

Utahtea

snarla

I've stayed at the campground..I think it was Memorial Day weekend about six years ago. Very nice campground. The rez is known for lots of stray BUT NICE dogs running around and we ending up "adopting" a buddy for the weekend. He just latched on to us and watched our camp while we were out and about. He would even sleep outside the tent. One thing to note: open fires aren't allowed so you need to be sure and bring your stove. They do have grills so charcoal would be good too.

We did the hike down the canyon on our own.

JoeG

EastEileen,
Yes, two nights at Canyon de Chelly.
JoeG