We are spending 2 nights in the Grand Canyon the third week in October. We are able to choose between the roof garden suite at El Tovar
and a partial view at the Kachina. Can someone help with suggestions? We are actually more interested in the views than the rooms--so far my efforts to snag a suite with a view of Canyon have not been successful.

All advice welcome?

I'm also interested in knowing if room service is available at El Tovar given COVID

Rooftop suite at El Tovar would be my choice

Having a room with a view at Kachina is low value. When you're in your room you'll likely want your curtains closed since there is a lot of pedestrian taffic right outside your window, and you'll have fantastic views no matter where you walk from there.

I don't know if El Tovar has room service - you should call them. Dining options at the GC are very limited right now with the Arizona Room closed. That means tourists are all vying for spots to eat whereever they can get them. The tables at El Tovar are well spaced so eating in there presents no social distancing concerns. You should check back often for open tables to reserve daily or more frequently from now until you are there to grab a table.

EiTovar definitely. Since the view of the canyon is down, getting up higher to look at is a great plus. Kachina is like a very ordinary motel, in a great location, but not much of a view from that level.

Thanks for your help. We are indeed going to stay at El Tovar, they do have room service back again. Our first night will be in the Fred Harvey Suite (we did this because the views from that suite look very very special, like room 450 in the Ahwahnee in Yosemite. We will have driven from Tehachapi near Bakersfield in California, so my hunch is that we will get room service and eat out on the balcony. The second night we will spend in the Roof Garden suite and staff at the hotel will move our stuff. I got us lunch reservations for Sunday (kind of dependent on how we are feeling about COVID at the moment as well as the weather. If it's not too hot we will hike down into the Canyon and have a picnic lunch

I'm glad we decided for El Tovar --thanks again for your input!!

The weather will be cool enough for a hike a short way (or longer) down into the canyon.

The Bright Angel trailhead is a very short walk from El Tovar so that would be convenient, but in my opinion (having done both) the S. Kaibab trail is a far better trail to get out into the canyon. The BA trail hugs the cliff wall for long distance so you don't actually get out into the canyon for 360 views until you get quite far down. For S. Kaibab trail you'll have to take the orange bus from the Visitor Center to get there but it's worth it. If you want more info about the comparison let me know.

We hiked 1.5mi down (about 1000' elevation change) to the Cedar Ridge area. There's a toilet there and a flat open area that is a good spot for a picnic. See my short trip report from this past week about that hike and other info about food/dining options.

short trip to the Grand Canyon this week

Thanks for your help. In 1991, I took a rafting trip to Phantom Ranch in October then hiked up the Bright Angel trail. I had a back injury, carried dry ice, and we knew in advance there was no way we would make it up before dark. The hike was wonderful -- we took it slowly, the trail was not crowded, we saw the sunset, then finished in moonlight, stopping every 1/2 hour for rests. Never have I been so lucky to have an injury, and think we will avoid the Bright Angel trail this time so the memory will be untarnished.

We may have hiked down the South Kahib for a Thanksgiving Day picnic in 1995. Again no one, I think we only hiked down an hour. At the point in life, I have trouble with down hill, is my memory of it being very steep an accurate one? I'm somewhat hesitant of the shuttle because of COVID; is it possible to drive there (but have also heard parking is a problem).

Someone told me that the rim trail empties out after the first 1/2 from the village, but my experience with the rim has sadly always been a postcard one (my problem, obviously, not the Rim's).

Thanks again.

Re parking near S. Kaibab trail. No, you cannot park at the trailhead - that road is restricted to shuttle buses.
The closest car parking is a limited number of spots near Pipe Creek Vista, which is an easy 1mil walk on the rim trail.

Re covid situation. We come from an area where we are used to very high mask compliance and we did not feel unfomfortable for the short ride on any bus, dining at El Tovar dining room, or anywhere else in the park.

Re steepness of the S. Kaibab trail, it has a lot of switchbacks in the first half mile or so, then fewer switchbacks to the 1.0 mile point (Ooh Aah Point). I would not call it steep, but is a steady decline/incline the whole way. The last 0.5mi to Cedar Ridge was even fewer switchbacks, but the same steady slope. There are rock or log steps cut into the trail the whole way. It's like going down/up a long staircase, with one step every 2 paces... You get wonderful views once you get to Ooh Aah point, or even stopping anywhere short of that even. there are places you can stop and rest/picnic, but it's not until Cedar Ridge that there is a flat/open space. There's a primitive toilet at Cedar Ridge and plenty of space to spread out and enjoy the expansive views. We're avid walkers and we took it slow - about 1hr down, 1.5 hrs up, or roughly 1mph pace (vs our normal 3mph walking pace.

Re rim trail, we enjoyed the section between Mather point and Yavapai point - excellent vistas all along but no buildings and very few people. Agree that the view from the rim is a post card picture, but quite a post card it is. The light/shadows/colors change throughout day, especially early or late in the day gives another great post card.