Are you planning to celebrate Valentine's Day in style by heading to Vegas? If so, you'll be fairly close to the Grand Canyon, so you should top off your celebration with an air tour over the spectacular natural formation. It's a romantic and adventurous experience, but Valentine's Day is a busy time for air tours of the Canyon, so you need to get your tour booked as soon as possible.
You can fly to the West Rim near Vegas, or even Arizona's South Rim. Flights operate daily, and depart every hour. You can choose from air-only tours, or landing tours that take you right down to the Canyon.
If you choose to visit the West Rim, you can even land inside the Canyon in a helicopter, right next to the Colorado River. To ensure that you don't miss out, you will need to book in advance, and book your tickets online. I suggest booking as soon as you have confirmed your hotel room. Leaving it too late, can mean increased prices, or even missing out on seats for the day that you want to fly.
Helicopter Tours
As an added bonus, Hoover Dam and Lake Mead are along the flight path to the Canyon, so you get an aerial view of them as well. Once at the National Park, you will complete a scenic flyover, before heading back to Las Vegas. If you take a landing tour instead, you'll have time to explore the Canyon. I prefer landing tours because they offer more adventure. For instance, one of the landing tours flies to the bottom of the Canyon, where you can toast Valentine's Day with a Champagne picnic. The Skywalk is on the West Rim too, so you'll get the chance to experience standing on the glass bridge that's suspended 4000 feet above the floor of the Canyon if you're brave enough to try it.
If you want to take a helicopter tour of the South Rim from Vegas, you'll begin with a plane ride to the rim and then you'll choose a 30 or 50 minute helicopter tour. The shorter flight tours the North and South Rims. The longer tour goes over the South and North Rims and also includes a jaunt to the eastern boundary of the park, so in all, it covers about 75 percent of the whole National Park. It is worth the extra expense to take the longer tour because you see so much of the park.
Canyon Plane Tours
Airplanes take the same routes as helicopter tours, with the differences being that they fly at higher altitudes, and they can't land at the bottom of the West Rim. Planes also seat 19 passengers, while helicopters can only accommodate 6. If you're travelling in a group, an Airplane may be the best option.
You can still land at the top of the West Rim, and with an upgrade you could still take the helicopter ride down to the bottom of the Canyon. At the South Rim, the air-only flight follows the longer helicopter route. You could also land in the town of Tusayan, Arizona, where you could take a 2.5 hour bus tour around the South Rim.
Airplane tours are more affordable, but they do sacrifice some of the visibility that you get while in a helicopter. Deluxe helicopters offer 180degree views from the front, whereas airplanes are limited to the oversized windows next to your seat.
Wrapping Up
There's no better time to visit the Canyon and Vegas than on Valentine's Day. The tours are available at different price ranges, so to have the best experience, you'll want to spend as much as your budget allows. When it comes to adding on tour options, you get what you pay for, so the more, the better. Two of the best options to consider are the longer helicopter tour of the South Rim, and the landing tour of the West Rim that comes with a Champagne picnic on the Canyon floor.
Remember to book your tour in advance so you don't miss the opportunity to make this Valentine's Day one you'll always remember.
You can fly to the West Rim near Vegas, or even Arizona's South Rim. Flights operate daily, and depart every hour. You can choose from air-only tours, or landing tours that take you right down to the Canyon.
If you choose to visit the West Rim, you can even land inside the Canyon in a helicopter, right next to the Colorado River. To ensure that you don't miss out, you will need to book in advance, and book your tickets online. I suggest booking as soon as you have confirmed your hotel room. Leaving it too late, can mean increased prices, or even missing out on seats for the day that you want to fly.
Helicopter Tours
As an added bonus, Hoover Dam and Lake Mead are along the flight path to the Canyon, so you get an aerial view of them as well. Once at the National Park, you will complete a scenic flyover, before heading back to Las Vegas. If you take a landing tour instead, you'll have time to explore the Canyon. I prefer landing tours because they offer more adventure. For instance, one of the landing tours flies to the bottom of the Canyon, where you can toast Valentine's Day with a Champagne picnic. The Skywalk is on the West Rim too, so you'll get the chance to experience standing on the glass bridge that's suspended 4000 feet above the floor of the Canyon if you're brave enough to try it.
If you want to take a helicopter tour of the South Rim from Vegas, you'll begin with a plane ride to the rim and then you'll choose a 30 or 50 minute helicopter tour. The shorter flight tours the North and South Rims. The longer tour goes over the South and North Rims and also includes a jaunt to the eastern boundary of the park, so in all, it covers about 75 percent of the whole National Park. It is worth the extra expense to take the longer tour because you see so much of the park.
Canyon Plane Tours
Airplanes take the same routes as helicopter tours, with the differences being that they fly at higher altitudes, and they can't land at the bottom of the West Rim. Planes also seat 19 passengers, while helicopters can only accommodate 6. If you're travelling in a group, an Airplane may be the best option.
You can still land at the top of the West Rim, and with an upgrade you could still take the helicopter ride down to the bottom of the Canyon. At the South Rim, the air-only flight follows the longer helicopter route. You could also land in the town of Tusayan, Arizona, where you could take a 2.5 hour bus tour around the South Rim.
Airplane tours are more affordable, but they do sacrifice some of the visibility that you get while in a helicopter. Deluxe helicopters offer 180degree views from the front, whereas airplanes are limited to the oversized windows next to your seat.
Wrapping Up
There's no better time to visit the Canyon and Vegas than on Valentine's Day. The tours are available at different price ranges, so to have the best experience, you'll want to spend as much as your budget allows. When it comes to adding on tour options, you get what you pay for, so the more, the better. Two of the best options to consider are the longer helicopter tour of the South Rim, and the landing tour of the West Rim that comes with a Champagne picnic on the Canyon floor.
Remember to book your tour in advance so you don't miss the opportunity to make this Valentine's Day one you'll always remember.
About the Author:
Grand Canyon expert Beth Adams is a huge fan of these Canyon tours and recommends readers go here for a list of the best helicopter and airplane rides for Valentine's Day: http://www.grandcanyondaytrips.com/grand-canyon-flights-helicopter-airplane-tours/
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