Assistance Please! Driving Around the Grand Canyon

[Freedumb Driver]

I need some road trip assistance, recommendations, and a few ideas for some great memories. I'm looking to see a lot of the amazing sites Arizona - you know the huge holes in the ground, crazy rock formations, and everything else. I would like to see things that people discovered that is less commercialized, but with the commercialized included - if that makes sense. Assistance is needed on cheap places to stay (motel or camping), places to see, and crazy adventures.

This is the general idea -
Day one: Arrive in Vegas - spend the night
Day two: - Leave at first light and drive to the Grand Canyon (Stopping at any thing in-between - need help!). Spend the night in the Grand Canyon area.
Day three: Leave at first light - again, and drive up towards Page, AZ and the amazing state parks (Assistance needed here definitely - can't see it all, but I want to make sure I see the best). Sleep anywhere that is interesting and cheap.
Day four: Leave wherever I am, driving back towards Vegas, but not ready to get there completely. I need a place to stay (Hotel or camping) that is between my Day Three location and Vegas (I'm traveling back to Vegas via a different route through the bottom half of Utah)- again stopping everywhere and any where worth seeing.
Day Five: Hang out in Vegas on Saturday - win some money.
Day Six: Fly back to Ithaca, NY

My trip is still in its infancy, but this is were I need help - Best routes, best lodging/camping, best memories.

Thanks,
Ryan

[RoadTripper Brad]

Welcome to the forum!

My suggestion would be to do the Grand Canyon-Zion NP loop. From Vegas, you would head SE on US 93 over Hoover Dam to Kingman. There you could either take a leg of old 66 or I-40 east to the AZ 64 cuttoff to Grand Canyon NP at Williams. This will take you through one of the areas, and the longest stretch of Rte 66 still completely intact (and signed as such).

You can spend the remainder of the day at Grand Canyon. The next morning head east on AZ 64 to US 89. Seeing as you'll have time, you could head south on US 89 and take in Sunset Crator National Monument and Wupatki National Monument. Then, head back north on US 89 to Page.

From Page, take a visit at Lake Powell for a while, then head west on US 89 to Hancock Road. I have never been up this way, but my map shows Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park about 15 miles down Hancock Road from US 89 about 10 miles north of Kanab. From there, return to US 89 and head north-north west again to UT 9 and Zion National Park. After Zion, continue west on UT 9 to I-15, heading south into Arizona, and back into Nevada. But we're not done yet. Once into Nevada, look out for NV 169, and take a ride through Valley of Fire State Park and along the shores of Lake Mead. You can return to Vegas by going completely through Valley of Fire State Park on NV 169, or, along Lake Mead on NV 167.

I know you can at least find some cheap lodging in the way of a Motel 6 in St. George, UT (along I-15 just north of the UT/AZ line), but other areas, I'm not familiar personally with any inexpensive lodging or camping facilities, but I know there are plenty of people here that do!

Enjoy your trip!
-Brad

[Midwest Michael]

I'd agree that your best bet would be to head toward Bryce or Zion on your undecided day 4. There are certainly plenty of things to do, and your problem will be narrowing down your choices to fit your timetable, not finding things to do.

As Brad mentioned, Hoover Dam is on your way from Vegas to the South Rim, I'd make a quick stop there, but on your time table I don't think you'll really have time for much else. Its about 5 hours from Vegas to the Canyon, so at best you'll only have a half day there - and I'd want to spend as much of that day enjoying the canyon as I could.

Looks like a great trip, have fun.

[jarenoldss]

I would suggest taking 89A I think it is and it goes around by the north rim of the Grand Canyon after you visit the south rim. Its an awesome drive that climbs and curves up into some mountains with some awesome views of rock formations. You can take that into Kalab UT or something like that where theres all kinds of cheap Mormon motels and hotels that are kind of interesting.