Despite being born and raised here, It took me over 30 years before finally seeing the Grand…read moreCanyon. It is mesmerizing, daunting, and caters to novices and experts alike. I should have gone sooner! Here are some tips: -Be prepared for a long line to get in when the weather's nice -Make sure you bring plenty of water and snacks! You can go for miles without any sort of vendor -If you're afraid of heights, prepare to be MORTIFIED. There are steep drops everywhere, so beware! If you have the time, this is something you should enjoy over a long weekend. You can spend hours walking around and driving between the countless parking lots and still only see a fraction of what it has to offer. A real contender for best park in America, if not the world.

GranTyke GrandCayon RoadTrip Episode 3 "There's a garden…read morespot, I'm told, where it's never too hot and it's never too cold.. Where you're never too young and you're never too old.. Where you're never too thin or tall.. And you're never, never, never too, too, too anything at all, Oh! You're not too mad and you're not too sane And you don't compare and you don't complain, All you do is just sit tight, 'cause it's all so, so, so, so down-right, right...:) We arrived at the South Rim very early, we parked in the Raven 1 Lot, up front, please remember where you parked..:) As you approach the edge of the Rim, You loose your breath in the exhilarating view of this Canyon. The Rock formations, the colour of the striations, the depth of the Canyon, with a River far below is quite mind boggling. We spent 6 hours exploring the South Rim from end to end. Free Shuttle busses help you make it back to the area of your car. Regardless of your age "you're a kid again"..:) As you hike, avoid stepping on loose dirt or rocks. We had no trouble. Our GranTyke liked our slower pace. We eventually made it to their Geology Museum which explains it all. This is a must destination for everyone. Simply the best, with no time restraints. Arriving very early gets you there before any crowds that might arrive. It was a slow day, so we had access to staff when needed. We avoided tours and did a self discovery trip so much fun and worthwhile. Bring lots of water and energy bars/food easy to grab and eat on the move. Though this was not our first trip to the Canyon, It was the First for our GranTyke, which made it seem like the first for us..:) Ha-ha-ha! Ho-ho-ho! And a couple of tra-la-las.. That's how we laugh the day away.. In The Merry Old Grand Canyon Best, Avram WizardOz Jr.

Perfect spot for those wanting the full Grand Canyon experience in the south rim. The area features…read morehistoric stays like El Tovar, Bright Angel and cabins, plus dining and gift shops. The highlight was walking a few miles of the Rim Trail with our dog, it's such a pet-friendly way to soak in those stunning canyon views. It gets a bit chilly up here so I was glad to have my jacket during our early March trip. There's clean restrooms near the bus drop off area, but not on the actual trail. There is no fee for parking, but finding an open space can be difficult during peak hours. A truly lovely time spent here!

Beautiful park with plenty of rangers to answer questions. Easy to walk around to gift shops,…read morerestaurants and the hotel which is a must see!

One of our favorite spots to view the Grand Canyon. The best viewpoint along Desert View Drive is…read moreat the Watchtower where the Desert View Visitor Center is located. If you are headed up to Page, AZ...then Desert Drive would be the best route to take. The road leads all the way east to Cameron, AZ. From there you can take Hwy 89 North to Page or South to Flagstaff. Anyways, there are other view points to stop at Desert View Drive. All the viewpoints give terrific photo opportunities of the Grand Canyon. There is also the Tusayan Museum along this route as well. Most tourists only go to the main Grand Canyon Visitor Center. If you have the time, then check out the sites along Desert View Drive! You won't be disappointed.

I had been to the Grand Canyon before and wanted to check out a part I had not been to yet. We…read moreentered from the east coming from Flagstaff and it was well worth the extra drive. We stopped at the towers first and enjoyed the short paved walk and view. My favorite stop was by far the Grandview Point. There were lots of good photo ops and you can do a short hike that drops you down a few feet in elevation. Parking is tough at this stop as the lot is small, so we had to circle a few times (we were here on a Sunday). However, all of the points along the Desert View Drive are close to where you park so walking is kept to a minimum.

Had a beautiful time! Bring some quarters to put into the binoculars. Has a gift shop inside they…read moretake cards. Bathrooms, parking and picnic tables are near by. Great family outing !

The Desert View Watchtower is a 70 foot iconic stone structure that can be seen from quite a…read moredistance away. It has four stories and was designed by architect Mary Colter in 1932. The Watchtower is located in the Desert View area next to the East entrance. You are able to enter and explore the lower level of the Watchtower called the Kiva Room. There are many windows that you can view the Grand Canyon from. The interior of the tower also has a lot of beautiful stone carvings on the walls. In the Desert View area are bathrooms, a gift shop, general store, and a trading post. Just outside the watchtower is Desert View Point. At this viewpoint you can see the Colorado River make a sharp 90-degree turn to the west. If you drive west on Desert View Drive, there are quite a few other beautiful viewpoints along the way until you get to Grand Canyon Village. If you are traveling on the on US 89, you can get to Desert View by turning west onto State Route 64 in Cameron, AZ. Then travel about 25 miles until you get to the East Entrance. The Desert View area is right after you enter the park. The Watchtower is easy to locate as soon as you enter. It is a popular spot because this is the first viewpoint you can visit as you enter the park. So expect some crowds.

Yeah, it sounds strange to rate an entrance station. I had the same thought pulling up to Grand…read moreCanyon South Entrance Station. But here we are. We've got the lifetime America the Beautiful pass, so the whole interaction took maybe ten seconds. Hand it over, quick nod, a "have a great day," and we're through. No friction, no awkward fumbling, no bottleneck. Just clean, efficient movement. What impressed me is how well it works considering the volume. This is the main way into the South Rim, and it sees a constant stream of cars. Families, tour buses, people who planned ahead, people who clearly did not. And somehow it still functions without feeling like a mess. Multiple lanes, clear direction, and rangers who keep things moving without rushing you out the door. There's also a human element that hasn't been stripped away. It's not robotic. Even in a quick exchange, there's a sense you're being welcomed, not processed. And then you drive on. That's where it clicks. You're not just entering a park. You're crossing into something that has been carved, layered, and exposed over spans of time that don't fit neatly into human thinking. No fanfare, no big reveal at the gate. Just a quiet shift. Trees thin out, the road carries you forward, and somewhere ahead is one of the most staggering landscapes on Earth. It's a small moment, technically. A checkpoint, a transaction. But it's also the threshold to something enormous. Five stars for doing exactly what it's supposed to do, and doing it well. Sometimes the simplest part of the journey sets the tone for everything that follows.

First time to the Grand Canyon and hopefully not the last. What was a welcome gift was free…read moreadmission due to government shut down. Seemed useless to have someone at the gate just hand out maps. The visitor center was closed but bathrooms and shuttle busses still running.

We visited the Grand Canyon North Rim shortly after it reopened following last year's unfortunate…read morefire. While some trails and amenities are still closed, the hiking experience is incredible. We hiked the Cape Royal Trail, which winds across the Walhalla Plateau with panoramic overlooks and stunning short hikes throughout. The trail leads to the iconic Angel's Window, and the views are so vast and beautiful you can't help but be awestruck at every turn. If you're planning a visit, note that the North Rim is still in recovery mode with some closures, but what is open is absolutely worth the trip. The Cape Royal Trail is a must-do if you make it out here. Download the map BEFORE you get there, you'll likely not have cell service out here.

Can't stop thinking about the oatmeal I had during the breakfast buffet. It is hands down the best…read moreoatmeal I've ever had. Our server was kind and attentive. The buffet was $20 per person, and the food was pretty good. The buffet included eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits, pancakes, oatmeal, yogurt, bread and muffins, and fruit. We also stayed a night in the lodge cabins. It wasn't really my vibe. It was very dusty with a lot of bugs and insects. It was do-able for a night, and it's the only place to stay at the North Rim. I got up at 4:45AM to watch the sunrise before breakfast. It was spectacular!

If one thinks hiking nine miles in or out of the Grand Canyon is as easy as walking to the store,…read morethink again. Located a few hundred yards from where we are staying, the Bright Angel Trail is one of the superhighways, with its heavenly name making it the most well-known trail. It follows an old Native American route zigzagging down a vertical wall and then cuts across the flat plateau to the river from the South Rim. Early this morning while the temperature was still cool, my partner and I took only a short distance. The trail was safe. We've seen hikers of all shapes, sizes, ages, and fitness levels. It was well-maintained, easy to follow, consistently about 4 feet wide, and has wider sections for passing. The steepness of the trail is very misleading on the way down. Plan on taking twice as long to hike up as it took to hike down. We enjoyed the views, which can be more spectacular in the canyon than from the rim. There is something about actually being in the canyon that is more memorable and moving than being on the rim.

This is the most popular hiking trail into Grand Canyon! Even though it is well-traversed, this is…read morealso a dangerous trail for people who are not prepared, as it's wayy easier hiking down...but you have to contend with the hike up. Also, there is limited water on the trail (and sometimes there are pipeline breaks), with not a lot of shade. With hot weather, this could be a deadly hike. The trail head has bathrooms and a water filling station. Definitely use them before hiking down. This hike is well maintained, with mules sharing the trail. You can see them...or at least smell them as they leave poop on the trail. I hiked down to the Second Tunnel (1.8 miles) and it wasn't too bad, but I was unfortunately limited on time. It seems past this point the crowds thinned out. Havasupai Gardens at 9 miles round trip is the most the rangers recommend as a day trip. I loved how the view of the Canyon changed as I descended the trail!

Located about 2.0 miles east-northeast of Grand Canyon Village, the limestone projecting rocks at…read morean elevation of 7,120 feet make Mather Point an expansive view of the Grand Canyon at the South Rim. Named the first director of the National Park Service, my partner and I came this morning via their free shuttle bus. This is the closest major viewpoint to the South Entrance, often the first glimpse many travelers have of the Grand Canyon. It is just a short, paved walk from the Visitor Center, making it very accessible for all visitors. The guardrail overlook plunges 4,500 ft to the Colorado River, which one can finally see. Visitors can gape at the 10-mile distance from where they are to the Grand Canyon North Rim or peer into the depths of the abyss below them. Many photos seen online were taken from this spot. It offers such wide, dramatic, and picture-perfect views of the canyon.

There's a reason Mather Point is where so many people start. It would be easy for a place this…read moreaccessible to feel overrun or diluted. It doesn't. If anything, it delivers one of the most honest introductions to the canyon you can get. You don't just step out of the car and see it all at once. There's a short walk from the parking area, a gradual approach, and then the land simply gives way. No warning, no buildup. One moment you're on solid ground, the next you're staring out over a void that seems to stretch beyond what your eyes can process. The first impression is scale. Not just "big," but disorienting in a way that takes a minute to settle. Layers of rock stacked and carved into something that looks almost unreal. Ridges folding into one another, shadows cutting across entire sections of the canyon floor, colors shifting depending on how the light hits them. You find yourself trying to pick a focal point and failing, because there isn't just one. We spent a good amount of time moving along the Rim Trail from this point, and that's where it really opens up. It's not a hike in the traditional sense, more of a slow, deliberate walk that lets you experience the canyon from different angles without losing that initial impact. The terrain is easy, but the experience isn't shallow. Every few steps, something changes. A new formation catches the light differently, a deeper cut in the canyon reveals itself, or the Colorado River flashes briefly in the distance like it's reminding you what carved all of this in the first place. There's an energy here that's hard to pin down. People talk quieter. Conversations trail off. Even with a steady flow of visitors, it never feels chaotic. Everyone seems to understand, at least for a moment, that they're standing in front of something that doesn't need to be rushed. What surprised me most is how long it holds your attention. You think you'll take a few photos and move on. Instead, you linger. You watch how the light shifts, how shadows stretch and retreat, how the colors deepen as the sun moves. It's not static. It's constantly changing, and that makes it hard to leave. If you go early, you catch the canyon waking up. The light comes in low, carving out depth and contrast that disappears later in the day. Midday flattens things out, still impressive, but less textured. Late afternoon brings it back again, warmer, softer, almost quieter in tone. It's also one of the most accessible ways to experience the Grand Canyon without sacrificing the impact. You don't need to commit to a full descent or a long hike to feel it. It's right there, immediate and undeniable. And yet, it never feels like a shortcut. There's something about standing at that edge, knowing how long it took for this landscape to become what it is, that puts everything else in perspective. Not in a dramatic way. Just enough to make you pause a little longer than you expected. You can call it a viewpoint. Technically, that's what it is. But it feels more like a threshold.

This trail is very nice for everyone of all ages and for leashed pets! It's pretty well defined so…read moreyou won't get lost. Most of the trail is paved and some sections are even accessible. It's pretty flat. I would say it's great for a stroll, walking at whatever pace you want for quiet views of the inner canyon. The only drawback is that there's no water on the trail, so be prepared. There are primitive toilets along the trail. At the end of the trail at Hermit's Rest there's running water (and the gift shop with snacks). There are nine scenic overlooks along this trail, although all along the trail you will see amazing views. If you would rather bike, you can bike on the road that kind of follows the rim, or take the shuttle. There are also shuttle stops at various points, so if you only want to do a portion of the Trail that's also doable.

Walking the Rim Trail was easily our favorite part of visiting the Grand Canyon. It's the perfect…read moreway to take in those iconic South Rim views, especially since it's dog-friendly! The path is mostly paved, though we did hit a few moderately steep sections along the way.  There aren't water stations or restrooms directly on the trail, so definitely fill up and use the facilities at the popular stops whenever you can. We drove in and found parking near the lodges (no parking fees). While there are benches and shuttle stations to rest at, keep in mind that dogs aren't allowed on the shuttles, so you'll be walking the whole way back if traveling with your pup. We visited in early March and were definitely glad to have jackets for the chilly weather.

This review is actually of the wider view of Gran Canyon in general. The train trip from Williams…read morewas an experience itself, and the landscapes are exraorinary.

No bathrooms after a 2 hour train ride is not cool. However the prices of tourist items was pretty…read morereasonable