All overnight trips inside Grand Canyon National Park require a backcountry permit. The backcountry of the park is divided into four separate management zones. The Corridor Zone, which is the main section of the canyon, hosts the majority of Grand Canyon hiking traffic. This area has designated campsites and several water fountains along its popular trails.

Other zones often require wilderness route-finding skills. Some have designated campsites, while others require wilderness camping practices on a random flat spot. There are different regulations pertaining to each zone. These zones are listed as the Threshold, Primitive and Wild Zones. 

Backcountry camping is popular in the park’s Corridor Zone, and these campsites are often booked months in advance. 

NPS – Grand Canyon – Permits

NPS – Grand Canyon – Trail Distance Chart

This park is replete with backcountry trails and many of these are simply too far removed to be considered feasible for day hikes. That said, there is likely no better place to spend an evening or two than some of the remote sites accessible to backpackers in this park.

There is just too much information to cover in the activities section, so Park Junkie created another page dedicated to backpacking in the Grand Canyon. It will be expanded as more shit comes to light… Check it out…

Backpacking in Grand Canyon National Park

Bike Rentals and guided tours are an option. The Bright Angel Bicycle Company provides tours and rents bikes in Grand Canyon Village. They offer tours that include a ride along the Hermit’s Rest Road while you learn about the unique history of the Grand Canyon. The bike shop is closed in winter. See the link below for more info.

Bright Angel Bicycle

For three long months, Powell and his crew of men endured the elements and slowly navigated the treacherous waters of the Colorado River. They knew the canyon eventually opened some 250-300 miles away, but they knew nothing of the challenges awaiting them in the canyon itself.

Today, you can follow his lead and take your own trip through this desert wonderland. Both private and commercial trips are available and trip lengths can vary greatly, allowing you to customize your experience to your desire. Tours can be motorized or manually oared and different companies offer different options regarding lengths and options.

Here are a couple of reputable companies with numerous options to investigate. Western does motor only trips whereas Oars offers the classic manually powered trip.

Western River Expedition:

Western – Grand Canyon Rafting

Oars:

Oars – Grand Canyon Rafting

For those who want a private trip, you’ll need to win a spot in the lottery to gain a permit.

NPS – Rafting Grand Canyon

South Rim

Those who wish to ride from the South Rim can choose between a 2-hour ride and an overnight ride that leads to Phantom Ranch, where weary riders take shelter for the night.

The two-hour ride runs along the East Rim Trail, which provides stunning views into the canyon. This trip stops occasionally to provide information about history and geology in the canyon.

Rides to Phantom Ranch provide a unique experience and take riders from the Rim to the bottom of the Grand Canyon on the back of a sturdy mule. The descent is 10.5 miles, and takes about 6 hours. Riders stay in cabins at Phantom Ranch and eat at the Phantom Ranch Canteen. The exit ride is 7.8 miles and takes about 5.5 hours.

One or two night stays are available at Phantom Ranch. Reservations are required and book up far in advance. So get your plans together soon if this option interests you.

South Rim rides are available year-round.

South Rim – Mule Rides

North Rim

Rides from the North Rim do not go to the river, however the options available here can provide a memorable experience, as the views along the North Rim are unforgettable.

Riders can choose the one hour Rim of the Grand Canyon Ride, which winds through the tall pines of the Kaibab Forest and skirts the canyon rim.

Two other choices allow a longer ride with a bit more adventure. The three hour Uncle Jim’s Point trip follows the Ken Patrick Trail along the North Rim. The three hour ride to the Supai Tunnel takes riders more than 2,000 feet below the canyon rim into the cliffs below.

North Rim – Mule Ride

Desert View Drive: A cruise along the South Rim is probably necessary if you’re driving into the South Rim area. This drive runs 25 miles from the Desert View entrance to Grand Canyon Village. It provides access to some of the most famous vistas in the park. Along the way, motorists can stop at Desert View Watchtower, Navajo Point, Moran, Grandview, Shoshone, Yaki and Mather Points.

Desert View Drive

Cape Royal: The 23-mile-drive to Cape Royal provides a view of the canyon country from the highest points along the North Rim. The road winds through a mixed forest of ponderosa pine, douglas fir and quaking aspen and is a favorite in autumn, when golden leaves bring a glow to the land. Closed in winter.

Cape Royal

Toroweap: A drive to Toroweap is not on the agenda for the average visitor to the Grand Canyon, and there is nothing average about this journey. The destination is unmatched in the park for sheer vertical drop, and the road to the end can lead motorists to believe they are truly in the middle of nowhere.

Toroweap

Bus tours along the South Rim include the four-hour Desert View tour, which runs the length of Desert View Drive, stopping at various viewpoints along the route. Other tours include the Hermit’s Rest tour, which runs along the sixteen-mile Hermit’s Rest Road, along with a sunrise and sunset tour.

Bus Tours

Walking tours of the village area take visitors to several scenic overlooks, as well as some classic structures such as the Hopi House, Kolb Studio, Bright Angel Lodge, the El Tovar Hotel and the Buckey O’Neill Cabin.

Here’s an informative guide to the village from Grand Canyon Lodges.

Walking Tour

This classic western adventure comes complete with staged armed holdups and gunfights. Cowboys, western musicians and lawless marauders present a unique story of the good ol’ wild west during the train’s early days.

Train Tour

Helicopters take routes that are lower, and they fly slower, while the airplanes cruise higher and faster. Either will provide a view that you won’t soon forget. These tours leave from Grand Canyon Airport, just south the park in Tusayan. There are tours that leave from Las Vegas as well.

Airplane Tours

Helicopter Tours

Park junkie skipped this one… but if you really wanna see it, here are some links.

Grand Canyon West – Skywalk Tickets

Visiting Skywalk

NPS – Skywalk

Because the falls are outside the park, there are a number of peculiarities involved in arranging a visit. First of all, your national parks pass does not provide access to the falls. This is tribal land and requires a separate fee.

The falls are not easy to access. It is a 195 mile drive to the trailhead from the South Rim. From there you’ll be hiking another 10 miles to the falls. Day trips are not permitted and camping is not cheap. Reservations are mandatory, so get started early. The Havasupai Tribe reports that this trip books out in minutes and you’ll need an account on their website to reserve a site.

For those who don’t really want to carry their packs for twenty miles, mules can be hired, or even a helicopter for those who don’t want to walk. The mule service must be reserved online, although you can hail a chopper at the last minute, should you balk at the thought of hiking the twenty miles in the hot desert sun.

Visiting Havasu Falls