No Hassle Grand Canyon Trip
May 26th, 2007, 06:40 AM
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No Hassle Grand Canyon Trip
My husband and I want to go to Arizona and the GC. Because of glittery/excitement seeking daughters (11 and 14) cannot do the general road trip/pure nature adventure. We would like the following: A 5-7 day trip to a resort (kid friendly, good pool), with a two day trip to the GC and we want someone else to do the driving. We are near resorting to the Disney Adventures tour but feel that we should at least attempt to do this less expensively and on our own. Travel agts here (Phila suburbs) thus far have not been helpful. Any suggestions?
May 26th, 2007, 02:34 PM
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glittery is the word I use to describe Las Vegas. I am told that there are lots of kids friendly places there and you can take a bus trip to the grand canyon. Also, I can't imagine why kids would not like to wade up the narrows in Zion NP Utah. rb
May 26th, 2007, 09:54 PM
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I don't understand- an 11 year old is dictating how you spend your vacation? Can you please explain what is preventing you from taking a general road trip? Don't the parents set up and pay for the itinerary? The SW is amazing in so many ways. Do the trip you really want to do.
Jun 4th, 2007, 07:58 AM
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It's not that hard to make AZ & the entire 4 Corners region exciting for kids that age. We are taking our third trip out there with our boys who are 12 & 13. The Native American culture is amazing. There are petroglyphs everywhere. Not to mention the amazing scenery. Monument Valley was a hit. My youngest couldn't wait to stand in four states at once at the Four Corners monument. We are from Maryland. You & your daughters will be amazed at how different the Southwest is from the megalopolis of the East Coast. The shear volume of stars in the sky will wow them. Grab a copy of Fodor's National Parks of the West and a National Parks Passport. Pick a "tour" or pick & choose what your family perfers from several tours.
Jun 4th, 2007, 08:21 AM
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It will be too late to do it this year, but maybe for 2008 your thrill seekers would like to whitewater raft the Colorado through the GC and then hike it up to the South Rim. We did that with our kids ages 11,14 and 16 one year, the two younger ones are girls. They loved it and will remember it always. We stayed overnight at Phantom Ranch at the bottom and then hiked out. Not too many kids that age can say they hiked out of the Canyon! Try the national park site for the companies that provide/do it all for you. We also did the 4Corners and Monument Valley like mom2boys did and I've always wanted to do the train thing like Grasshopper suggests! Good Luck.
Jun 4th, 2007, 08:32 AM
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I'd agree that coming from the NE, I had no idea how mindblowing the SW would be. The painted desert, Monument Valley, and of course the GC.
One suggestion is if you're driving down into Sedona, AZ, take the crazy-curvy Oak Creek Canyon road and stop at Slippery Rock State Park. It's a good place to cool off, and your kids will have fun sliding down the natural water chute.
One suggestion is if you're driving down into Sedona, AZ, take the crazy-curvy Oak Creek Canyon road and stop at Slippery Rock State Park. It's a good place to cool off, and your kids will have fun sliding down the natural water chute.
Jun 4th, 2007, 06:13 PM
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I understand completely - you need a vacation where everybody has some satisfaction ("happy"). With a 16-year-old girl on our first trip to GC, we had to include fun things for her so we could all enjoy the trip. A Vegas stop with a stay at New York New York was perfect for the teen (24 hrs. was enough), then she loved GC for about an hour and she went back to the hotel while we hiked. But the next day we had booked a smooth water raft trip through GC (all-day trip included scenic bus ride, picnic, hikes, swimming and the astounding raft trip) - she loved it! Sedona was fun for all of us with the hiking, Slide Rock Parl and the swimming hole near Red Rock crossing.
My advice is just to do what YOU want to do and pick out (or let them pick from some choices you provide) what they would like to add into the trip.
Get a Frommers or Fodors guide book to help you find names of various tour groups. But actually you can drive easily on your own and spend the money on the high-interest for teens activities.
My advice is just to do what YOU want to do and pick out (or let them pick from some choices you provide) what they would like to add into the trip.
Get a Frommers or Fodors guide book to help you find names of various tour groups. But actually you can drive easily on your own and spend the money on the high-interest for teens activities.
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gardengrl
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