Recently in West Grand Canyon Category

But back to the Sky Walk. Well, what a drive that was ! We were well prepared for Death Valley - on July 5, which is now recorded as the highest temp in about 20 years in that area- but we had but a few sodas in the car for our trip to the Sky Walk. We drove for about an hour through the desert, the high light seeing a real live coyote and then, well, the pavement ended and we were on a red dust and stone road for 14 miles. I shall simply say that I did not like that road one bit, although *the boys* thought that it lent an adventurous flavor to the trip, a rugged element. Western.

I read the other day that the Haulapi ( you try and spell it) Indians have just settled with a guy who owns a ranch down there for 750,000 dollars and can now pave that road. And now we can say that we were there *when*. Pioneers, in a way.

As a tourist note, the Sky Walk is - by all accounts- fabulous, but very, very expensive. The Haulipi's are planning on a big park, with various attractions of interest which- so far- are not there. One pays 50 bucks to get on to the reservation and then an additional 25 to go on the Sky Walk. As there is nothing else on the reservation at this point ( excepting a gift shop which has one of the most wicked funny T- Shirts that I have ever read- both Mike and Han now own one), it is in essence 75 for the Sky Walk, which includes a lunch. But read this: all three of our kids said that they were willing to sit for 8+ hours in a car if they could go on the Sky Walk, and not a fuss was heard.

Read more...

Despite early reviews that knocked it for being too expensive and hard to reach, the Grand Canyon Skywalk drew more than 50,000 visitors in its first full month of operation.

The Hualapai Indian Tribe, which owns the glass-bottomed walkway 120 miles east of Las Vegas, reported approximately 55,000 paying visitors in April. During the same month last year, 14,000 tourists visited the reservation.

The increased volume has prompted the tribe to hire 140 people, nearly doubling the staff for its burgeoning tourist destination at the canyon's west rim.

"It's been wild," said Sheri Yellowhawk, a former Hualapai council member who now serves as CEO for the tribal-owned Grand Canyon Resort Corp.

The whole experience was quite disappointing. While the views were spectacular, the cost was just far too high, especially because they were not clearly advertised anywhere. $25 might have been worth it, $75 was far too high. Additionally, none of the infrastructure was able to support the number of visitors and all of the buildings in the advertisements are not built yet. We spent most of our time waiting in line, a lot of it out in the cold, even avoiding the one really long line. My suggestion is to wait until they at least have the buildings built and hopefully have realized that most people do not want to pay that much for that little.

Read more...

Opening on March 28, the Grand Canyon Skywalk is a glass-bottomed, horseshoe-shaped cantilever hanging on the edge of the Grand Canyon. GotoBus.com, a leading online bus tickets and tours company, rolls out bus tours that take travelers to experience first-hand the Grand Canyon Skywalk with cost as little as $129.

If you're afraid of heights, think twice. Opened on March 28, the Grand Canyon Skywalk is a horseshoe-shaped, glass-bottomed walkway extending 60 feet out over the edge of the Grand Canyon. With a drop-off of 4,000 feet above the Colorado River, the Skywalk allows travelers to step out onto the glass floor for a 720 degree view of the Canyon.

"The Grand Canyon Skywalk is one of the most exciting attractions this summer," says Jimmy Chen, the President of GotoBus.com, an online leading bus tickets and tours company. "We want our customers to enjoy their trips to the Skywalk without worrying about how to get there. With our bus tours, all you need to do is to get on the bus and make yourself comfortable. Our bus tours will take care of the rest."

The Skywalk is located on the Hualapai American Indian reservation in Arizona, known as the Grand Canyon West Rim. It's a short two-and-a-half hour drive from Las Vegas. Visitors will have to wear shoe covers to protect themselves from slipping and to protect the Grand Canyon Skywalk glass bridge from scratches. The cost of walking on The Skywalk is $25 in addition to the purchase of a Grand Canyon West tour package. In the near future, the Skywalk facility will also include a 6,000 square-foot visitor's center, which will contain a museum, movie theater, VIP lounge, gift shop, and several restaurants and bars.

Experience the Your First Skywalk with GotoBus

Because of its low-price, quality bus tours and vacation packages as well as easy to navigate website, GotoBus.com has become one of the most popular travel sites visited by students, budget travelers, and international travelers of all ages. GotoBus has designed three different tours based on your schedules, budgets, and personalities:

#1 For Students and Smart Shoppers--- 4 Days for Less Than $60 a Day!

For students and smart shoppers, we recommend "Las Vegas and Grand Canyon West 4-Day Tour Package" for only $232. You get complimentary round-trip airport transfer, hotel pick-up, accommodations (one night in L.A. and two night in Las Vegas), and semi-guided tour---with plenty of time and freedom to explore Las Vegas and Grand Canyon on your own! The adventure starts from L.A. and takes you to Las Vegas, where you have a whole free day to gamble, watch shows, explore and enjoy the fascinating city. The trip followed by a journey to Hoover Dam before heading to the West Rim. Visitors have more than three hours to explore the Canyon or choose to take a separate Skywalk experience. Before heading back to L.A., the tour takes you to the Las Vegas Premium shopping outlet for some last minute shopping.

#2 For Busy Professionals--- Weekend Getaway

"Los Angeles to Las Vegas, Grand Canyon 2-Day Tour," $129, is designed specifically for the 9-to-5ers who need a short yet memorable weekend getaway. The two day getaway starts from Las Vegas and then takes travelers into Boulder City, Lake Mead, and the Hoover Dam on their way to the Canyon. You also have the option to walk onto the World 8th Wonder Skywalk glass bridge. The tour will return to L.A. in the evening.

#3 For Nature Lovers

For those who love to be close to the nature, we recommend "Grand Canyon West and Yosemite 7 Day Tour," $430. The tour departs from L.A. to visit the fabulous Las Vegas, where you can enjoy a whole afternoon and evening at the "Entertainment Capital of the World." The tour then takes you to the Grand Canyon West Rim, the only location in Grand Canyon where travelers can experience a helicopter ride to the canyon's base for a brief Colorado River boat ride. Travelers can enjoy a brief pontoon boat ride down the Colorado River and a deli style lunch, after which there is plenty of time for Skywalk exploration.

The second half of the trip will start in Denmark Villige-Solvang, a small villiage with antiquated windmills and Northern Europeans-style architecture. You can also pay a visit to the ornate Hearst Castle, built by the newspaper tycoon at the cost of the millions of dollars. The tour proceeds to San Francisco, and ends with California's best-known Yosemite National Park.

Plan Your Own Skywalk Adventure on GotoBus.com

Come to GotoBus.com and search for your perfect trip to the Skywalk by simply keying in your preferred date, location and key words. GotoBus.com offers bus tours that run every week and vacation packages that depart from Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon Skywalk. Customers can choose from a variety of options including weekend getaways to 10-day luxury vacations, with price ranging from $114 to $724. GotoBus offers Skywalk vacation packages that take travelers to attractions including Las Vegas, Disneyland, Solvang-Hearst Castle, Yosemite National Park, San Francisco, San Diego Sea Park, Universal Studio, and of course--the Grand Canyon West Rim including Hoover Dam, Mead Lake and the Skywalk.

For more information about the Grand Canyon Skywalk and related tours and activities, please visit GotoBus at http://www.GotoBus.com/grandcanyon or GotoBus.com

About GotoBus

GotoBus is the leading online marketplace for bus tickets and tours. The GotoBus online booking system, similar to those used by major airlines, makes it easy for travelers to quickly compare schedules, prices, and pickup/drop-off locations for over 100 bus companies throughout the United States and Canada. GotoBus.com is the fastest growing gateway for bus travel on the Internet today. In February 2007, The Washington Post featured GotoBus.com as one of the best travel websites and named it "Best of the Web" in the "Motorcoaches" category.

For more information please contact Jill Wang at marketing at GotoBus dot com or 1-617-354-2101.