Grand Canyon Lodging

I think you can do it (get out your map!). The miles I figure are about 1002. This is about 18:25 hours/minutes of driving time over 4.5 days! Of course, nothing ever goes as planned but that's normal! Here's how it can be done -- leaving Gallup NM at 8:00 AM, drive north to Shiprock, and past Four Corners to Mexican Hat, Utah, then south on US163 to Goulding's Trading Post, and Monument Valley. You can spend 3 hours touring the loop road at Monument Valley and snooping around Goulding's, a venerable establishment in its own right.

Leave the same afternoon for Chinle via Kayenta, US160 to US191, then south on 191. Spend the night at Chinle, take a half day tour of Canyon De Chelly the next morning (or another option, just drive along the rim road and see it from the overlooks). After noon and lunch, head south to Ganado (see the trading post there for awhile if you like, very historic place, then east on I-40 to Flagstaff and south to Sedona on US89A. Spend that night at Sedona, you could make it there by about 4:00 PM, so you'd have time to knock around town a little before dark.

Next morning (8:00 AM), back north on US89A to Flagstaff, and US89 to Cameron, then west into GC Natl Park on AZ64. Stop at Desert View on the way in, and see the viewpoints between there and the South Rim Village; you could arrive by early afternoon, but no hurry. Spend the night at GC and all the next day (Day 4). Consider the West Rim Drive -- winter is the only time you can drive it yourself; in summer, they prohibit vehicles on that road except the park buses.

Morning of Day 5, you drive southbound on AZ64 to Williams, west on I40 to Seligman, take Old Route 66 to Kingman (very scenic and fun), then north on US93 to Las Vegas. You could make it to Las Vegas by mid-afternoon or evening if you just poke along.

The unknown is what will happen with the family to slow you down, but I think this is doable if they are good travelers and everything goes well. This would be a fairly ambitious 4+ days. I could do it, but I no longer travel with wee ones. At worst, it would just take a little more time. What do you think?

Congrats on getting a spot in March! I had no idea that the wait-list for Phantom Ranch was normally so long. Good to know. Hmmmm, I guess I should start planning ahead for that, eh? It's a trip I've always wanted to take.

Yes -- Phantom books that far out. Here's how it works: On the 1st of each month, they open the book on the month 23 months out. So this November 1, you can call for reservations for the month of October, 2005. That's just for the lodging (they reserve the dorms for hikers, normally, the mule riders get the cabins). At the same time you make the reservation for your bed, you "reserve" your meals (there is a choice of beef stew, steak or vegeterian), plus breakfast, and you can order a sack lunch for the trail also. If you have a reservation at Phantom
Ranch, that is all you need as far as hiking the trails.

The program is altogether different for backpackers -- for that, all you need do is get a hiking/camping permit from the backcountry office (rangers). These are limited, but I understand they are easier to get at a later notice than are the beds at Phantom. I am not certain whether a camper can reserve meals at the Ranch or not, but I suspect this is possible. You'd have to ask if you were interested in that.

All the reservations are on a prepaid basis, but you can get a refund if you cancel by the set deadlines (which are reasonable, although I can't remember exactly what they are).

You can get the numbers for Phantom Ranch off Xanterra's website (just search on Phantom Ranch).

Thanks. I'm not one to plan ahead that far but, since this is something that intrigues me, I guess I need to. I had no idea how it worked and will be trying to figure out what the heck I may be doing 2-3 years from now to schedule a visit.

I think you went WAY above & beyond the call of duty with your response. Thank you so much! Your itinerary is amazing. You captured almost everything I was interested in and - more importantly - gave me an idea of driving times in between, as well as times to spend at each place. I'm going to make some modifications, but you certainly did 90% of my work, and I can't thank you enough.

One of the things I wanted to do was stay at the Wigwam Motel for the kids (yeah, right) in Holbrook, so on the day we go to Canyon de Chelly we will swing down to Petrified Forest and Painted Desert, and then spend the night at the Wigwam, assuming I can find their number somewhere to make reservations. To do that, we will perhaps knock out one or two other things, and/or just take an extra day.

Then the next day we will go to Sedona and spend a little more time there, hopefully taking in some of the canyons there. Then it will be on to Grand Canyon. I had thought of taking the main entrance in, but I think I like your idea better (via Desert View).

Thanks again! Any other input would also be appreciated. Oh, by the way - what software do you use for planning trips? The only thing I have is Microsoft Expedia Streets & Trips, which is pretty good but I don't think it does what yours did.

Actually, that IS what I used. I found it for next to nothing on a bargain rack and bought it because I had read posts from others on this site that it was pretty good. Before that, I often used Rand McNally's free software (web-based) which also worked OK, but of course didn't have as many features. I usually decide my route with a paper map or atlas, and then use the planning software to get an idea of mileages and times (too lazy to do the math myself like I used to back in the "olden" days). I hardly ever stick to my plans, but they serve as the framework for what is possible -- like -- can I drive this 3000 miles and still get home in time to make it to work on Monday... :) Enjoy your trip! Bob

If you are hanging around the canyon, it never hurts to check for last-minute cancellations. I am told you have to be there in person, but they are common. Just not a sure thing. Bob