What to do in the Grand Canyon and area
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What to do in the Grand Canyon and area
As part of our round trip in West USA we will be spending some days in Arizona.
Day 1 leaving Bryce for Antelope Canyon, visit and arrival late in the Grand Canyon. We are staying in the Maswik Lodge.
Day 2 free to spend in the GC (another night at the Maswik lodge
Day 3 free, probably half a day in the GC and half a day in Flagstaff. We will spend the night at the KOA in Williams
Day 4 visit Montezuma, Sedona, Jerome, Slide Rock state park.
Any tips, alterations, advice is welcome, as tips on lunch dinner places etc.
Thanks
Wendy
Day 1 leaving Bryce for Antelope Canyon, visit and arrival late in the Grand Canyon. We are staying in the Maswik Lodge.
Day 2 free to spend in the GC (another night at the Maswik lodge
Day 3 free, probably half a day in the GC and half a day in Flagstaff. We will spend the night at the KOA in Williams
Day 4 visit Montezuma, Sedona, Jerome, Slide Rock state park.
Any tips, alterations, advice is welcome, as tips on lunch dinner places etc.
Thanks
Wendy
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Keep checking website (xanterra.com) or call toll-free number for lodging while at GC - Bright Angel might be a somewhat better coice (but I suspect you are not staying there because of inavailability of reservations) - there are often late minute cancellations.
While at Grand Canyon, depending on time of year, you could do varying length hike down into Canyon - for example, Bright Angel Trail has 2 and 4 mile (round trip) options that are doable if you are in reasonable (but not super-athlete) shape. Bring lots of water and reconsider this if you are going in hot part of summer.
Another option at Grand Canyon is to take park loop bus - there are 2 routes. One is more a utility route, taking you to gift shop, info center. The other takes you to about 10 different lookouts - both are get on/get off at any of a number of stops. Take the one that goes to various lookouts - we went mid-summer and even though Park was fairly crowded, most vantage points had only about 5-10 people viewing Canyon.
Try to see Canyon at sunrise and sunset.
We ate dinner at both El Tovar dining room - nice (but not superb) food with a great view, especially since we caught a massive thunderstorm; and ate at steak house (forget the name). Also nice food, less expensive. For other meals pick the cafeteria over Bright Angel restaurant.
Have a good trip
While at Grand Canyon, depending on time of year, you could do varying length hike down into Canyon - for example, Bright Angel Trail has 2 and 4 mile (round trip) options that are doable if you are in reasonable (but not super-athlete) shape. Bring lots of water and reconsider this if you are going in hot part of summer.
Another option at Grand Canyon is to take park loop bus - there are 2 routes. One is more a utility route, taking you to gift shop, info center. The other takes you to about 10 different lookouts - both are get on/get off at any of a number of stops. Take the one that goes to various lookouts - we went mid-summer and even though Park was fairly crowded, most vantage points had only about 5-10 people viewing Canyon.
Try to see Canyon at sunrise and sunset.
We ate dinner at both El Tovar dining room - nice (but not superb) food with a great view, especially since we caught a massive thunderstorm; and ate at steak house (forget the name). Also nice food, less expensive. For other meals pick the cafeteria over Bright Angel restaurant.
Have a good trip
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When you leave Bryce make sure you exit going west on Hwy 12 and then take Hyyw 89 to Page, AZ. Many trip maker programs will tell you to take Cottonwood Road and it's a lot less miles but since it's a dirt road it can really take you longer.
The tour for Upper Antelope Canyon is only a total of 1 1/2 hours so you shouldn't have any problems makeing it to the Grand Canyon if you get an early start.
The first day at the Grand Canyon if you are not into hiking you can ride the free shuttle buses up to Hermit's Rest and stop at all the scenic overlooks. Walk around the Grand Canyon Village rim. This will take up most of your day. I second the idea of seeing sunsets and sunrises.
On the day you leave the Grand Canyon stop at all the scenic overlooks on the way to Desert View. As you drive down Hwy 89 to Flagstaff, take the Hwy 395 loop to see Wupakti National Monument and Sunset Crater. I'm not sure what you had planned to do in Flagstaff, but just east of there on I-40 is Walnut Canyon National Monument.
Utahtea
The tour for Upper Antelope Canyon is only a total of 1 1/2 hours so you shouldn't have any problems makeing it to the Grand Canyon if you get an early start.
The first day at the Grand Canyon if you are not into hiking you can ride the free shuttle buses up to Hermit's Rest and stop at all the scenic overlooks. Walk around the Grand Canyon Village rim. This will take up most of your day. I second the idea of seeing sunsets and sunrises.
On the day you leave the Grand Canyon stop at all the scenic overlooks on the way to Desert View. As you drive down Hwy 89 to Flagstaff, take the Hwy 395 loop to see Wupakti National Monument and Sunset Crater. I'm not sure what you had planned to do in Flagstaff, but just east of there on I-40 is Walnut Canyon National Monument.
Utahtea
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Pick just a couple of things to do on Day 4. Montezuma might take a couple of hours, but you can wander around for hours in Jerome or days in Sedona. Make sure you drive through Oak Creek Canyon between Flagstaff and Sedona. In Sedona, no matter what your religious affiliation or lack thereof, don't miss the Chapel of the Holy Cross, an architecturally-stunning structure built into the red rocks. We went to Slide Rock State Park last summer -- a good experience, but the water was absolutely freezing and all the rocks made for an uncomfortably rough ride down the chutes. It was actually more fun to sit on the large red rocks outside of the water, soak up some sun, and watch the others do their stuff. Half a day was enough for us.