1 or 2 Days at Grand Canyon?

[TinkerBabe]

Evening dibbers
For those who have visited the GC at the south rim, would you recommend 1 or 2 full days? I am looking to book accommodation in the park, so deciding whether to book 2 nights (giving 1 full day) or 3 nights (giving 2). We are a family of 4 adults (my kids are 21 & 22) so we will be off exploring but not hiking the full trails.

Thanks for any input 😊

[sprocket]

If you want a quick visit then 1 day, but if you are like us that likes to take it all in and explore (not hike), relax and take it easy then 2 days.

[abiknox]

We booked one night, we arrived at sunset (a bit later than we had hoped) and then woke the next day for a sunrise tour and spent the full day exploring. That was enough for us as we didn't have more time to spend there, however, we could have spent another day happily had time allowed.

[akmcf]

We only booked 1 night for our National Parks road trip this year and wished we had booked 2.

[emmab]

Where did you stay was thinking of doing one night.

[abiknox]

Originally Posted by emmab

Where did you stay was thinking of doing one night.

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We stayed at the Maswick lodge. It was very basic, no aircon, just a couple of stand up fans and it was pretty dated too but it was clean & comfy and did the job for one night.

[dvc]

We did South Rim in one day. The shuttle buses around the area are free and you can see the canyon from all points where they drop you off

[400ixl]

Depends on what time you will arrive and leave. If you get there mid one day to have the afternoon and evening, the overnight and have the next morning then that would suffice for most.

[fiona88]

It's a difficult one to judge, as many are happy with the 3 hours a coach trip from Vegas gives you.
We were there last December did 3 nights with 2.5 days and could've stayed longer, we did the trail along the rim which is flat over the 2 days so it wasn't too strenuous, you see so much and can stop at different places long the way, we used the bus to get to some view points, drove to others that were off the bus route.
If you're there at peak times too you might need the extra time to wiggle around other tourists at the viewpoints etc. We also missed sunrise the 1st morning as we didn't realise the time stated isn't the time it starts, so would've been gutted if that was our only chance.

However, you may only need the 1 full day if you're arriving early or leaving late the day before/after

maybe look at the park map and see how much you'd want to do and whether it's worth the extra day compared to other locations on your list

[Sew109]

Last trip arrived lunchtime left after breakfast the next day it was enough was my 6th trip there though but never stayed longer than one night