If you want to characterize the Grand Canyon, use the word “epic.” This national park comes in at a whopping 1,900-square miles in size and 190 miles in length. How do you sightsee this beast? Take a helicopter tour – it’s the only way to come to terms with such outsized proportions. Need more prodding? Here are seven more reasons you need to get up in the air:
#1. It’s the fastest way to see the National Park. The flight plan is South Rim (Kaibab Plateau), the chasm, North Rim, and back. In that time, you’ll see:
-The Kaibab Plateau -The Colorado River & Little Colorado River -The Dragoon Corridor -Grand Canyon Village -Phantom Ranch -Bright Angel Trail -The San Francisco Peaks (Humphrey’s Peak is the highest in Arizona)
This is just a fraction of what you’ll see.
#2. It’s the best way to enjoy a South Rim sunrise and/or sunset. Make advance reservations as seats fill up quickly. These are premium flights. Expect to pay more for them.
#3. It’s safe. No helicopter company has ever experienced an accident flying South Rim tours.
#4. It’s cheap. Flights start at around $130 per person. Purchasing a deluxe package will get you into an EcoStar 130. Expect to spend around $160 per adult to enjoy the comforts of this luxury aircraft. Purchase your tour on the Internet to get the lowest price.
#5. It’s packed with the best views on the planet. The South Rim is relatively flat, forested, and lies at an elevation of 7,000 feet. To get clear views, you have to get to the rim’s edge. Flying, it’s all sky above and Canyon below.
#6. It’s pilots are great guides. These guys fly the Canyon daily and know it like the back of their hands. Helicopters are equipped with two-way communication systems and personal headsets that allow you to talk to your pilot and fellow passengers.
#7. It’s thrilling. Helicopters strafe the South Rim and enter the Canyon at 200 mph. Highly maneuverable; these aircraft descend, ascend, and turn with ease.
Helicopter tours average between 30 to 50 minutes and departs from Grand Canyon Airport in Tusayan just outside the Park’s South Rim entrance. Flights typically head across the Kaibab Plateau and into the Dragoon Corridor, the widest, deepest part of the canyon, before turning back at the North Rim.
Group and private tours can be reserved. For the best deal, go online. Specific tour operators will slash 35 percent of the price of a South Rim flight if you use their secure website. I strongly recommend that you book in advance. Flights are limited and sell out fast.
If you are coming from Las Vegas, NV, you will need to book a 45-minute airplane flight or a 5.5-hour bus trip to the South Rim, and then transfer to a helicopter. There are no helicopter or airplane flights between the South Rim and the West Rim (Grand Canyon West).
The Grand Canyon is an overwhelming experience. It’s 277 miles long, up to 18 miles wide, and covers up 1,900 plus square miles. Personally, I recommend seeing the South Rim by Grand Canyon helicopter, and then exploring it by foot, including an easy hike that goes beneath the rim. This combination of air and ground will ensure that you see as much of the Canyon as you can in a limited amount of time.
Nothing beats a visit to the South Rim, especially if you experience it aboard a Grand Canyon helicopter. If you enjoyed this article, check out travel expert Keith Kravitz’ tour operator reviews at: http://www.GrandCanyonHelicopterTourReviews.com
tourists get a briefing prior to boarding their grand canyon helicopter flight for the south rim.
a grand canyon helicopters’ flight lifts off for a tour over the grand canyon’s south rim.
inside the maverick helicopters terminal, tusayan, arizona, just outside the entrance to grand canyon national park.
lobby of grand canyon helicopters, tusayan, grand canyon national park airport.
papillon helicopters is one of the three major tour operators of flights over the grand canyon’s south rim.
papillon helicopter prepares for a take off over the south rim of the grand canyon from the national park airport.
check in and reception at the maverick helicopters terminal, south rim, grand canyon.
visitors get ready to take off in a grand canyon helicopters’ flight over the grand canyon.
