Every year thousands of tourists coming to Las Vegas are greeted at the airport with advertisements from tour providers discussing their tours of the Grand Canyon. Many of these tourists have planned to take a day or two out of their trip in order to visit the Grand Canyon, because if you have come this far from home to visit Las Vegas, you might as well use the position as a starting point to also visit one of the most photographed places on earth. The advertisements you will generally see aggressively promoting Grand Canyon tours will also mention the “Grand Canyon Skywalk” which is a man-made glass bridge which is suspended above the canyon floor. Many have been critical of this structure, as it spoils the natural beauty of the Grand Canyon itself, simply for the shock value of walking high above the canyon floor. What many do not realize is that the Grand Canyon Skywalk is a tourist attraction that is designed specifically to lure Las Vegas tourists, based upon the proximity of the West Rim of the Grand Canyon to Las Vegas. The West Rim of the Grand Canyon is located 2 hours from the city, and can be reached by driving or helicopter from Las Vegas. What many people are unaware of is that if you arrange for a tour of the West Rim, you are actually not going to tour the Grand Canyon National Park, which is actually located in the South Rim 4.5 hours away.
There are two different tours that are being provided from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon, the South Rim tour and the West Rim tour. The South Rim is far more lush and scenic, and is probably the area that you have seen in photographs and in movies. The South Rim has far more to do as far as activities like hiking and rafting, as well as more opportunities for nature walks and photography. The West Rim was only developed recently by The Hualapai Tribe specifically as a tourist location. There is little there as far as exploration opportunities, and the area is far less scenic with less plants and animals. The Skywalk project was done specifically to create a reason for tourists to visit an area that received very little as far as tourist traffic, that traffic literally driving past in on route to the national park. Unfortunately, for those who do not research their tour of the Grand Canyon before they book, they may be going to an area that is actually not part of the parks system at all. A quick scan of reviews of the West Rim vs the South Rim illustrate disappointment many times. While there is nothing wrong with the West Rim, many are upset when they find out that they have spent their day out of their vacation visiting an area that is not the one which is famous, and not the one that they have seen in pictures.
If you would like to visit the South Rim of the Grand Canyon and tour the Grand Canyon National park, arrange your tour through Bindlestiff Tours. We are one of the world’s leading providers of tours to this area, and will take care of all the arrangements and details for you.