Get FREE email communications from Fodor's Travel, covering must-see travel destinations, expert trip planning advice, and travel inspiration to fuel your passion.
The park's accommodations include three "historic-rustic" facilities and four motel-style lodges, all of which have undergone significant upgrades over the past decade. Of the 922 rooms, cabins, and suites, only 203 are at the North Rim, all at the Grand Canyon Lodge. Outside El Tovar Hotel, the canyon's architectural highlight, accommodations are relatively basic but comfortable, and the most sought-after rooms have canyon views. Rates vary widely, but most rooms fall in the $100 to $180 range, though the most basic units at the South Rim go for just $89.
Reservations are a must, especially during the busy summer season. If you want to get your first choice (especially Bright Angel Lodge or El Tovar), make reservations as far in advance as possible; they're taken up to 13 months ahead. You might find a last-minute cancellation, but you shouldn't count on it. Although lodging at the South Rim will keep you close to the action, the frenetic activity and crowded facilities are off-putting to some. With short notice, the best time to find a room on the South Rim is in winter. And though the North Rim is less crowded than the South Rim, the only lodging available is at Grand Canyon Lodge.
Just south of the South Rim park boundary, Tusayan's hotels are in a convenient location but without bargains, while Williams (about an hour’s drive) and Flagstaff (a 90-minute drive) can provide price breaks on food and lodging, as well as a respite from the crowds. Extra amenities (e.g., swimming pools and gyms) are also more abundant. Reservations are always a good idea. At Grand Canyon West, lodging options are extremely limited; you can purchase a "package," which includes lodging and a visitation permit, through Hualapai Tourism.
Popular with anglers and rafters, this lodge offers two types of accommodations: standard rooms in the original lodge building and two-bedroom apartments in a newer building. You can play the 1920s piano or sit on the porch swing of the native-rock lodge and look out on Vermilion Cliffs and the desert. Zane Grey and Gary Cooper are among well-known past guests.
The largest motel-style lodge in the park is tucked in a pinyon pine and juniper forest at the eastern end of Grand Canyon Village, across from Market Plaza. The basic rooms are near the park's general store, business center, and main visitor center. The lodge's restaurant, open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, serves standard park-service food; the Yavapai Tavern is a popular hangout after the day's adventures.
