Make 2014 the year you take a fun and scenic bus tour of the Grand Canyon. Bus tours depart from Las Vegas and are quite affordable. Here are five things to know about Grand Canyon coach trips.
Early Morning Departures
The buses leave Las Vegas every morning at 7 am. That's it. If you can't make a particular day, book it for the one when you can. Remember, too, that 7 a.m. is your departure time, not your pick up time, which can be up to 1.5 hours prior to that.
Also, you have to decide which rim you want to go see. You have two choices. The South or West Rim. The West Rim is closer at 120 miles and the South Rim is about 277 miles from Vegas. The rims offer different experiences and sights. I suggest you go to the West Rim for thrills and adventure and the South for natural scenic beauty.
The famous Skywalk is located at the West Rim too. It's also known as the glass bridge. The $30 million structure is an unbelievable architectural accomplishment. You can walk out on this glass floor 70 feet past the edge of the canyon. Once at that point, you'll be standing some 4,000 feet over the bottom!
South Rim Coach Tours
As for the South Rim, you'll want to make sure you pick a tour that gives you up to three hours inside the National Park. You don't want to miss out on Yaki Point or Mather Point. They are amazing lookouts that offer spectacular views of the canyon. Be sure to pick up some souvenirs from the gift shop at Bright Angel Lodge.
Last key point I want to make is how long these trips are. They take a full day. The South Rim bus tour lasts 15 hours while the one that goes to the West Rim takes 13 hours. It is better to avoid making any plans in Vegas the night of your tour. You won't get back until late at night. If you want to do something, just schedule it after 11 pm and you should be okay. Remember, Vegas never sleeps so if you aren't worn out after your tour, you will find plenty to do.
Those are the 5 key things I wanted to impress on you as you go about booking your Grand Canyon bus tour. There is still a lot to discover once you look into the tour details such as the complimentary pick up and drop off service to your Vegas hotel. Lunch, too, is included. In the case of the West Rim, it's a picnic-style box lunch while at South Rim it can be the same or a hot buffet style lunch.
Deals
Since these coach trips are so popular, you want to get your seats about 72 hours in advance. If you want to be on the safe side, get your seats a week ahead of time, especially during peak travel times. And make sure you purchase it on the Internet. That is where you will get the best price on your tour. Complete the transaction online and you get to take advantage of the low Internet rate and save some money.
For Grand Canyon National Park bus excursions, this writer recommends these Las Vegas tours companies:
http://grandcanyoncheap.com/bus-tours.html And these specials:
http://grandcanyoncheap.com/bus-deals.html