Are you planning to celebrate Valentine's Day in style by heading to Vegas? You can make your trip even more memorable with a Grand Canyon helicopter or plane tour. You'll see many beautiful sights, which is very romantic when you tour with someone you love, but Valentine's Day is a busy time at the Canyon, so you need to book your tour as soon as you can.
Flights from Vegas go to the West Rim and the South Rim, which is farther away in Arizona. Tours depart hourly on Valentine's Day, just like they do every day of the year. 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.
Touring By Airplane
Although the airplanes follow the same flight path as the helicopters that fly out of Vegas, there are a couple of differences, such as the airplanes fly higher and they can't fly into the Canyon and land on the bottom. Another difference is the airplanes carry 19 people at a time while helicopters carry six. So, if you're traveling with a group, then you'll probably want to book an airplane tour so you can all fly together.
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.
Choose one that suits you, and make this Valentine's Day the best one yet.
Flights from Vegas go to the West Rim and the South Rim, which is farther away in Arizona. Tours depart hourly on Valentine's Day, just like they do every day of the year. 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.
Touring By Airplane
Although the airplanes follow the same flight path as the helicopters that fly out of Vegas, there are a couple of differences, such as the airplanes fly higher and they can't fly into the Canyon and land on the bottom. Another difference is the airplanes carry 19 people at a time while helicopters carry six. So, if you're traveling with a group, then you'll probably want to book an airplane tour so you can all fly together.
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.
Choose one that suits you, and make this Valentine's Day the best one yet.
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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