Grand Canyon National Park is one of few places in the world that genuinely stopped us in our tracks and left us speechless the very first time we saw it. It’s unimaginably vast and immense, and no photos (not even ours!) do it justice. You simply have to see it for yourself in person. We’ve been to South Rim twice; photographing sunrises and sunsets, visiting all the viewpoints and hiking the popular trails. It’s one of our favorite US national parks, not just for the views but also because it’s so easy to visit.
In this comprehensive Grand Canyon South Rim travel guide we help you plan your first trip to Arizona’s world famous national park, based on our own experiences. We’ve written lots of guides about the Grand Canyon, so click the orange links in this guide if you want to learn more. Oh, and if you’re a serious planner like us, be sure to check out our popular Grand Canyon South Rim Guidebook which goes into far greater detail with bonus itineraries, maps and more.
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Park Information
Here’s a general overview of Grand Canyon National Park to get you started:
- State: Arizona
- Established: February 26th, 1919
- Size: 1.2 million acres
- Annual visitors: 4.5-5 million
- Lodging: Park run lodges and nearby towns
- Campgrounds: Desert View, Trailer Village, Mather
- Things to do: Hiking, photography, rafting, backpacking
- Major trails: Bright Angel, South Kaibab
- South Rim: Open year round
- North Rim: Open May-October
- Permits: No reservations or timed entry required
You’ll pay $35 for a 7-day permit to enter Grand Canyon South Rim and North Rim. This fee is for your vehicle and all passengers, so you’d pay the same for 2 people as you would for a full family of 5 (here’s more on fees). The only way to get free entry to the Grand Canyon is if you have an in-date America The Beautiful Pass, also known as the Interagency Pass.
North Rim: Around 90% of visitors to the Grand Canyon only go to the South Rim, which means just 10% of people visit the North Rim. This is in part because it’s only open from May to October but also because it’s harder to reach and it has fewer amenities. In this travel guide we only focus on South Rim because it’s where the overwhelming majority of visitors will go.
Top Experiences
You might be surprised to hear us say this, but there’s actually not a huge amount to do at the Grand Canyon. Now, that’s not necessarily a bad thing because it means seeing the highlights is easily achievable and you don’t need long to see them. In other words, it’s not an overwhelming park to visit.
Hiking and travel photography are what we love to do, and the Grand Canyon delivers big on both. There’s a handful of hikes with incredible scenery, and there’s a bunch of overlooks providing mind-boggling views into the canyon. You can try a few other activities but they’re either expensive or remote, which is why most visitors stick to the trails and photo spots.
Here’s what we would prioritize above all else:
- Watch a striking sunrise
- Hike South Kaibab Trail
- Hike Bright Angel Trail
- Drive to Desert View Watchtower
- Stop at overlooks on Desert View Drive
- Take the shuttle to Hermits Rest
- Walk the South Rim Trail
- Watch a serene sunset
With more time or a bigger budget:
- Take a helicopter tour
- Try a Colorado River rafting tour
- Take a mule ride into the canyon
- Hike Rim to River or Rim to Rim
- Hike to Havasu Falls (very remote)
- Visit the Skywalk (not worth it for us)
Hiking Trails
Now we’re getting into the good stuff! Hiking at the Grand Canyon is a totally unique and truly amazing experience. What we love the most is that it doesn’t matter which trail you hike, there’s always going to be non-stop canyon views. Our top recommendation for all visitors is the South Rim Trail. It’s flat, easy and follows the edge of the rim for miles.
But if you’re fit, healthy and want to try hiking down into the canyon, you should choose between Bright Angel Trail and South Kaibab Trail. They’re the two popular routes to Phantom Ranch and the Colorado River at the bottom of the canyon. We’ve done both and we prefer South Kaibab, but that’s just our opinion.
Here are the hikes you can try at South Rim:
- South Rim Trail
- Shoshone Point Trail
- Grandview Point Trail
- Bright Angel Trail
- South Kaibab Trail
- Hermit Trail
- Tonto Trail
Are you a very strong hiker looking for adventure? You might want to consider trying either Rim to River or Rim to Rim. We hiked Rim to River Trail (down South Kaibab and up Bright Angel) in December 2021 and it was one of the best day hikes we’ve ever done. It was hard, but what an awesome experience. Next time we’ll do Rim to Rim!
Important: Do not attempt any hikes leading down into the canyon on hot days. It’s like an oven in there and so many people have to be rescued each year. There are also fatalities most years, so don’t risk it.
Need help planning your trip to Grand Canyon?
Our popular Grand Canyon travel guidebook helps you with planning every aspect of your visit to South Rim, including the best viewpoints and hikes, where to eat and stay, itinerary ideas and map!
View Guidebook
Viewpoints
Okay, you can visit 18 viewpoints along Grand Canyon South Rim. Three are easy to reach by foot in Grand Canyon Village near the visitor center and main parking areas, six are accessible by car along Desert View Drive and nine are only reachable by shuttle bus along Hermit Road between March-November (you can drive up Hermit Road December-February).
If you read our guide on the viewpoints, you’ll notice we include 20. Why? Because we think some of the best views are from inside the canyon on the trails we just mentioned above, and from the bottom of the canyon at Phantom Ranch. But even if you don’t hike, you can still easily visit the other amazing viewpoints along the rim.
Our favorite overlooks include:
- Pima Point
- Hopi Point
- Yavapai Point
- Mather Point
- Grandview Point
- Lipan Point
If you have time, we highly recommend taking the Hermit Road shuttle and walking back towards the village on South Rim Trail. It takes you to each of the viewpoints on the west side of the rim, which we think has the more striking and photogenic formations.
Sunrises And Sunsets
Landscape photography doesn’t get much better than sunrises and sunsets at the Grand Canyon. In fact, you don’t even need to be interested in taking photos, this is just mother nature showing off! It’s impossible not to enjoy the spectacle at dawn or dusk because the formations glow and illuminate with deep pinks, oranges and reds alongside bright highlights and deep shadows.
Here are our favorite places to watch sunrise:
- Mather Point
- The rim near Mather Point
- Yavapai Point
- Ooh Ahh Point
- Shoshone Point
And here are our favorite places to watch sunset:
- Hopi Point
- Yavapai Point
- Pima Point
- Shoshone Point
The difference between a great or magical sunrise or sunset? Clouds in the sky. If you get lucky with those cottonwool clouds and gaps in-between, they might just erupt into pinks, purples or even fiery reds. We implore you to try at least one sunrise and one sunset when you visit. But be warned, sunset is a wildly popular time of day on the South Rim.
Itinerary
Compared to lots of other popular national parks, we actually think it’s really easy to create a Grand Canyon itinerary. Why? Because there’s not a whole lot to do and the touristy area along South Rim is smaller than you might imagine. In the end, it will come down to how much time you want to spend hiking.
You can easily see the highlights in one day if you don’t hike into the canyon. We wouldn’t necessarily say a day trip from the likes of Las Vegas would do it because then you wouldn’t be able to do a sunrise or a sunset, which would be a shame. But if you’re road tripping around the region, one night is enough.
That is unless you do want to hike into the canyon. During our second trip to South Rim, we spent our first full day hiking Rim to River, the we planned to spend the next day doing viewpoints along the rim from dawn to dusk. It snowed heavily so we couldn’t do much, but that’s an easy way for you to spend 2 days in the park. One day hiking, one day at the viewpoints.
Here’s how we would spend a day at South Rim if it were our first time:
- Watch sunrise at Mather Point
- Hike South Kaibab Trail to Cedar Ridge
- Drive to Desert View Watchtower
- Stop at every overlook on the way back
- Shuttle to Hermits Rest
- Walk South Rim Trail to Hopi Point
- Watch sunset at Hopi Point
Where To Stay
One of our least favorite things about visiting some parks in the US is figuring out accommodation. But here’s the good news: There’s plenty of places you can stay at Grand Canyon South Rim so this isn’t an issue. Inside the park you have several lodges with a ton of rooms, but there’s also a few nearby towns with motels, hotels, glamping and more.
Here are the 7 park run lodges on South Rim:
- El Tovar Hotel
- Bright Angel Lodge
- Kachina Lodge
- Thunderbird Lodge
- Maswik Lodge
- Yavapai Lodge
- Phantom Ranch
El Tovar, Bright Angel Lodge, Kachina Lodge and Thunderbird Lodge are all located next to one another in a crescent shape along the edge of South Rim. Maswik Lodge is 5 minutes walk from the rim and Yavapai Lodge is 10 minutes walk from the rim. Finally, Phantom Ranch is located at the bottom of the canyon and can only be booked through a lottery system.
Here are the places you can stay nearby:
- Tusayan – 6.5 miles (10 minutes drive)
- Grand Canyon Junction – 29 miles (35 minutes drive)
- Williams – 59 miles (1 hour drive)
- Flagstaff – 79 miles (1 hour 30 minutes drive)
Why would you stay outside the national park? Well, park run lodges fill up quickly and they’re expensive. Plus, you’re limited to on-site restaurants which aren’t great. The other reason is because logistically a place like Williams might work better if you’re on a road trip and only go into South Rim for a few hours before needing a place to crash.
Airports
If you’ll be flying into the American Southwest, there are 4 airports near Grand Canyon National Park you can choose between:
- Flagstaff Regional Airport (FLG)
- Phoenix International Airport (PHX)
- Las Vegas International Airport (LAS)
- Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC)
Flagstaff is closest but it’s a small regional hub with flights originating in Denver, Dallas/Fort Worth and Phoenix, so it’s not ideal if you live anywhere but those three areas.
Phoenix is the closest major airport to South Rim, and what we love about using Phoenix for a visit to Grand Canyon is being able to stop at Sedona Arizona on the way.
Las Vegas is the most commonly used airport for visiting the US southwest because it’s close to Death Valley, Zion National Park and Valley of Fire. Plus, you’d get to spend time in Las Vegas! But it is further away from Grand Canyon than Phoenix, so think carefully about your plans before booking flights.
And finally, you might be wondering why we’re including Salt Lake City? Yes, we know it’s a long way from Grand Canyon, but it’s a central place to start a long road trip to Yellowstone, Grand Teton and maybe even Glacier before looping back down to see the five Utah national parks.
Getting Around
Getting around South Rim is easy. There are only two ways in and out, and once you arrive there’s really not much driving involved at all. The only time you’d have to drive a long way is if you wanted to see the North Rim before or afterwards because it’s 200 miles away, which takes 4 hours and 30 minutes.
Here are the two South Rim entrances:
- Main entrance (south)
- East entrance
The main entrance is located 5 miles to the south of Grand Canyon’s visitor center and parking area. It’s accessed by I-40 and AZ-64 from places like Las Vegas, Phoenix, Flagstaff and Sedona.
The east entrance is located 22.5 miles to the east of Grand Canyon’s visitor center. This entrance is accessed by Desert View Drive from places like Page, Kanab, Moab, Zion and Grand Canyon North Rim.
Tours
Most tours are booked as day trips to South Rim from places like Las Vegas or Sedona, but there are still a handful of highly rated tour options originating in Tusayan near the South Rim entrance.
Here are the top rated tours we recommend:
It’s important to know that if you book a day trip from Las Vegas to Grand Canyon that the tour goes to South Rim and not West Rim. Lots of tour options only go to West Rim, which isn’t anywhere near as good as the South Rim.
One of the most popular tours goes to Horseshoe Bend, Antelope Canyon and South Rim from Las Vegas. It’s a long old day, but you can see all three popular spots with someone else doing the driving and explaining.
Best Time To Visit
We think the best time to visit Grand Canyon South Rim is between October and April. More specifically, between November and March if you’re planning a serious hike into the canyon, and either October or April if you’ll only be sightseeing because it’s a bit warmer.
Why are the cooler months better? Because the park receives fewer visitors, hotels are cheaper, trails are quieter and hiking temperatures are much safer than summer. Visiting in May-September means huge crowds, expensive lodging, dangerously hot temperatures (especially hiking down into the canyon) and long lines for shuttle buses.
Here’s what you can expect:
Spring – Good balance between costs, weather and crowds. If you’ll be hiking, visit earlier in spring, whereas if you just want to see the viewpoints and photo spots, April and May will be warmer.
Summer – June, July and August are the worst times of year to visit because they’re hot, expensive and overcrowded. We know that’s not what you want to hear if you can only plan around school times, but it’s the harsh reality!
Fall – Back to a good balance between costs, weather and crowds. September and October are busy, but less crowded than spring. November has a bunch of benefits with the only real downside being plummeting temperatures.
Winter – Winter is the best season to visit for serious hiking into the canyon because temperatures are safer. It’s the cheapest time with the least crowds and you can drive up Hermit Road. But it’s very cold and there’s no atmosphere.
We visited Grand Canyon South Rim in the winter and had the biggest contrast in experiences. The first day was clear and beautiful, and we spent 9 hours hiking Rim to River. Then the day after we were in a dense snow cloud with snow on the ground, so we couldn’t really do anything at all. That’s the trade-off.
Our first visit to the canyon was back in November 2019 and we had glorious sunshine throughout. In fact, we remember feeling like it was far too hot to be hiking when we made it to Cedar Ridge on South Kaibab Trail. So there was a huge difference, even with just one month between trips.
Our Grand Canyon Photos
We hope our Grand Canyon National Park travel guide helps with planning your vacation to Arizona!
Happy Travels,
Mark and Kristen
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