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.
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.
Touring By Helicopter
The tour helicopters that fly out of Vegas pass over Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam along the way, so you get an impressive aerial view of these famous landmarks too. The air-only tours then fly around the West Rim so you can see all the main highlights, and then the helicopter heads back to the city. If you opt for a landing tour instead of an air tour, you'll have more time to spend at the Canyon. Taking a landing tour is the way to go because it is filled with a lot of fun things to do. The tour that flies down to the Canyon floor is very popular, and it even comes with a Champagne picnic that is a perfect touch for Valentine's Day. 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 fly to the South Rim, or if you start your tour from Arizona, you will be able to choose between a 30 minute, and 50 minute Canyon tour. The shorter one heads to the North Rim, and back to the South Rim. The longer tour includes the eastern area of the park, and will have you gazing at over 75% of the entire National Park. I recommend the longer tour, because the increase in ticket price is worth it for the additional sightseeing.
Touring By Airplane
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.
Airplanes can't fly to the bottom, but they can land on top of the rim, so you can still enjoy all the fun activities at the Canyon including taking a helicopter ride to the Canyon floor. When you take a plane tour of the South Rim, your airplane follows the same path as the longer helicopter tour. If you want a land experience at the South Rim, you can add on a scenic 2 1/2 hour bus tour through the park.
Airplane tours are more affordable, but you do have the tradeoff of diminished visibility as compared to a helicopter tour. When you take a tour on a deluxe helicopter, you get panoramic views from a wraparound windscreen on the chopper, but when you fly on an airplane, your views are limited to the sights you can see outside the window by your seat.
Conclusion
Valentine's Day is the perfect occasion for a trip to Vegas and a tour of the Canyon. 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. The Champagne picnic landing tour is my favorite at the West Rim, while the 50 minute helicopter tour is my recommendation for the South Rim.
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.
Touring By Helicopter
The tour helicopters that fly out of Vegas pass over Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam along the way, so you get an impressive aerial view of these famous landmarks too. The air-only tours then fly around the West Rim so you can see all the main highlights, and then the helicopter heads back to the city. If you opt for a landing tour instead of an air tour, you'll have more time to spend at the Canyon. Taking a landing tour is the way to go because it is filled with a lot of fun things to do. The tour that flies down to the Canyon floor is very popular, and it even comes with a Champagne picnic that is a perfect touch for Valentine's Day. 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 fly to the South Rim, or if you start your tour from Arizona, you will be able to choose between a 30 minute, and 50 minute Canyon tour. The shorter one heads to the North Rim, and back to the South Rim. The longer tour includes the eastern area of the park, and will have you gazing at over 75% of the entire National Park. I recommend the longer tour, because the increase in ticket price is worth it for the additional sightseeing.
Touring By Airplane
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.
Airplanes can't fly to the bottom, but they can land on top of the rim, so you can still enjoy all the fun activities at the Canyon including taking a helicopter ride to the Canyon floor. When you take a plane tour of the South Rim, your airplane follows the same path as the longer helicopter tour. If you want a land experience at the South Rim, you can add on a scenic 2 1/2 hour bus tour through the park.
Airplane tours are more affordable, but you do have the tradeoff of diminished visibility as compared to a helicopter tour. When you take a tour on a deluxe helicopter, you get panoramic views from a wraparound windscreen on the chopper, but when you fly on an airplane, your views are limited to the sights you can see outside the window by your seat.
Conclusion
Valentine's Day is the perfect occasion for a trip to Vegas and a tour of the Canyon. 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. The Champagne picnic landing tour is my favorite at the West Rim, while the 50 minute helicopter tour is my recommendation for the South Rim.
Choose one that suits you, and make this Valentine's Day the best one yet.
About the Author:
Grand Canyon specialist Beth Adams is a huge fan of these Canyon tours and suggests readers visit here for a list of the top heli and plane rides for Valentine's: http://www.grandcanyondaytrips.com/grand-canyon-flights-helicopter-airplane-tours/