Exploring the Grand Canyon during Winter

The Grand Canyon National Park is an amazing road trip destination that remains high on many peoples bucket list. It’s a must-see destination at least once in your lifetime. Standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon looking down into the canyon itself is breathtaking. It’s like nothing I have ever seen before. However, this spectacular destination can get quite busy during the summer months, with busloads of tourists, large RVs and tons of traffic. This is a great reason to visit the Grand Canyon during the Winter months. Myself personally, I prefer to road trip during the Fall and Winter months. There is less traffic on the roads, and definitely less tourists at these popular destinations. 

 

Fun fact: did you know the Grand Canyon gets snow during the Winter months? I always just assumed the Grand Canyon was part of the Arizona desert, and was hot most of the year, but that’s not the case.

Our first trip to the Grand Canyon was in early March a few years back, and there was still snow on the ground.

As a Canadian girl, who grew up in Vancouver, Canada, the first time I learned that the Grand Canyon gets snow in the Winter months was quite surprising. But this is a great example of why road tripping and traveling is invaluable. It’s a great time to become more cultured from various destinations, and you gain a better appreciation of the world we live in. 

Good to know information:

The Grand Canyon has 3 different areas to visit, there is the North and South Rim of the Grand Canyon, and Grand Canyon West.

The North Rim of the Grand Canyon is closed during the Winter months, from December – May.

Grand Canyon West is closed during the Winter months as well, from November-March. Grand Canyon West is where you can find the spectacular Skywalk over the canyon, and this portion of the Grand Canyon is easily accessible from places like Las Vegas.

This leaves the Grand Canyon South Rim open year-round for tourists, making it a popular destination, not only by default during the Winter months, but it’s also easier to access for many road trippers. The Grand Canyon South Rim is also home to many different trail heads around the South Rim, as well as down to the canyon floor. There are also many tourists stops along the way, leading into the Grand Canyon, including the Grand Canyon Junction, where we stopped and purchased some really cute Western items for our road trip. 

If you do decide to visit the Grand Canyon South Rim, weather in the Summer or Winter months, I highly recommend their famous Mule riding tour of the canyon. We opted to do this activity for my birthday a few years back, and it was a wonderful experience. While hiking is a popular attraction for visitors of the South Rim, I found the Mule riding tour to be quite a unique experience, that took us off the main trail, and away from the crowded tourist spots. Several of the outlooks that we stopped at, we were the only ones there, allowing us an opportunity to really enjoy the views and take in the scenery. It was also my first time riding a mule, which was definitely a unique experience. The tour was also conducted by several Cowboys who were more than happy to share their knowledge of the area, and it’s history with us. Overall, this was a great activity to do while in the Grand Canyon.