From Caesar's to the Grand Cayon

Would you rather rent a car and drive from CP to GC or would you prefer a tour ride. I got a link offering 2 for 1 tour to South Rim.

How many hrs or miles is it. Does it really take 14 hrs....?

From Caesar's to the Grand Cayon

Vegas to South Rim is 290 miles. It%26#39;s impossible to appreciate the canyon fully if you drive there and back in a day. In fact any trip to the canyon should ideally feature staying overnight if you want to experience it properly.

From Caesar's to the Grand Cayon

The wife an I are going to be doing the same thing in October, we decided to do the drive to the south rim and spend a nite or two at one of the lodges (as a break from Vegas..?...)

Any thoughts on what type a car. The wife wants econo car, for gas milage and such, I%26#39;m thinking something with alittle more power in case it%26#39;s needed (maybe midsize). $$ is a factor, but don%26#39;t want to get stuck anywhere on that long drive.

Any other helpful hints on how to make the drive better, faster, less of a pain.. (Ok, I%26#39;m not big on driving 5+ hours on vacation)

TR-

Good idea with the car with more power. Lots of STEEP mountain roads to climb. The economy cars will actually use more gas (honest) do to the strain they are put on. Also, do not drive these mountain roads at night (at least we wouldn%26#39;t dare). Very dark and no guard rails. You are a gonner if you go off the road. Very looong way down. Not trying to scare you but just so you are aware. We stayed for a night right down the road outside the main gate (your car pass is good for a week I beleive so you get right back in the next morning). Very reasonable rate a few years back, $69 I beleive. I proposed to my wife there almost 8 years ago (Sept. 22) and we got married the next day back in Vegas!

Have a great time.

Bob in Ct.

What difference does it make what hotel you start from when you you have a 285 mile drive?. It is 4.5 hours from anywhere in town.

Sorry, but I have to disagree with DopplerBob - I didn%26#39;t find the drive to Grand Canyon to be very mountainous. To be honest, I was fairly surprised to discover how high up I was once I reached the rim. IMHO I think the climb is gradual. I will agree there are no guard rails and much of the ride is pretty boring – very little scenery. I think you may be better off with a more economical car, but automobiles are not my specialty so you can take that little bit of advice with a grain of salt ;-) .

I did the drive later on in the day in January and it took me approximately five hours. Part of the trip was at night and that was not fun. Not so much because I was worried about driving off the road or having mechanical difficulties, but I was worried about hitting something, i.e. a wild animal due to the rate of speed I was driving – it was late, I was sick, not to mention tired and I just wanted to get to my hotel room.

There’s not a whole lot to see between the Hoover Dam and Kingman – be sure to check your gas in Kingman, but you should be able to make it to Williams. Ditto on the drive between Kingman and Williams and much of the same can be said between Williams and Tusayan. I’d gas up in Williams as it’s a bit more expensive once you head towards the park. I think the next gas station between Williams and the Grand Canyon is in Tusayan and it’s rather pricey.

As the others have suggested, you really need to spend at the very least a night at the park – whether inside or outside the park is up to you. The El Tovar looked nice, but I know there are cheaper choices within the park. I stayed at The Grand Hotel in Tusayan and enjoyed it, but there are other choices as well.

Depends on how much time you have and how much you like traveling with a tour and going with their schedule. Obviously, driving yourself, you can stop when you please.

The only time we went to the GC from Vegas it took a little over 5 hours to get there, that was with stopping for a meal and gas. The nice thing is there was absolutely no traffic, you can drive fast because the speed limits are higher and it is relatively flat except when you get closer to the GC. We had a mid size car which was fine. The drive was beautiful, the scenery seemed to change every 100 or so miles. Next time we go back, will stay at least one nite, but even with spending about 10 hours in the car, it was an experience I will never forget. It was absolutely beautiful and well worth the 10+ hour car trip. But I would leave early to get there and leave early coming back because like the other person said ,you don%26#39;t want to be out there driving in the dark.