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Grand Canyon, Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon: Can You Do All Three in One Trip?
The short version
- Grand Canyon South Rim to Page (Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon) is about 135 miles and 2.5 hours via Desert View and Cameron.
- Antelope Canyon is on the Navajo Nation and can only be visited on a guided tour with an authorised operator. Book ahead, especially for midday light in Upper Antelope.
- Horseshoe Bend is a 1.5-mile round-trip walk from a paid City of Page car park, 5 minutes south of town. No booking needed.
- One-day "all three" tours exist from Las Vegas and Phoenix. They are 14 to 16 hours long and give each place about an hour. From Flagstaff, two days does it properly.
The geography
| Leg | Distance | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Flagstaff to Grand Canyon Village (US-180) | 80 mi | 1.5 h |
| Grand Canyon Village to Desert View | 25 mi | 45 min with stops |
| Desert View to Page via Cameron (SR-64, US-89) | 110 mi | 2 h |
| Page to Horseshoe Bend car park | 5 mi | 10 min |
| Page to Antelope Canyon (Upper or Lower) | 5 to 8 mi | 15 min |
| Page back to Flagstaff (US-89) | 135 mi | 2.25 h |
Notice that Desert View, the eastern end of the South Rim, is on the way from the canyon to Page. That is the hinge the whole plan turns on.
The booking rules you need to know
- Antelope Canyon (Upper and Lower, plus Canyon X and others) is Navajo Nation land. Entry is by guided tour only, with Navajo-owned operators, and a Navajo Parks permit fee is built into the price. Upper Antelope is the famous light-beam canyon (beams roughly late March to early October, around midday); Lower is narrower, involves ladders, and is usually cheaper and less crowded. Both sell out in season; book weeks ahead.
- Horseshoe Bend is a City of Page site with a per-vehicle parking fee, a graded 0.75-mile trail each way, and a railed viewing platform. Sunrise and late afternoon are best; midday the river is in shadow and the car park is full.
- Grand Canyon National Park charges $35 per vehicle for seven days. Non-US residents 16 and over currently pay an additional per-person fee unless they hold an annual pass; details here.
The plan that works: two days from Flagstaff
- Day 1, Grand Canyon. Take the day tour (we handle the park fee, lunch and the driving, and finish at Desert View) or drive yourself and end the day at the Watchtower. Sleep in Flagstaff, or push on to Page (2 hours from Desert View) if you have booked a morning slot canyon.
- Day 2, Page. Antelope Canyon tour late morning, lunch in Page, the dam overlook, Horseshoe Bend from about 4 pm. Drive back to Flagstaff by 8 pm, or stay a second night.
- Day 3, optional. The half-day float from the dam to Lees Ferry (see our rafting guide), or kayak Horseshoe Bend from below.
Can we do it in one day?
From Flagstaff, technically: leave at 6 am, two hours at the South Rim, Desert View, Cameron, a 1 pm Antelope slot, Horseshoe Bend at 4, home by 7:30. You will have driven 350 miles and spent 90 minutes at the Grand Canyon. If that is truly your only option, we would rather you did that than skipped the canyon. But the people who write to us afterwards wishing they had done it differently are almost always the one-day people.
If you would like us to build a private two-day version with a guide the whole way, ask. We do this route often.
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Want to see it with a local guide?
Small groups, no more than 10 guests, park fees and lunch included on our day tours. Book online or ask us anything.
