How much time do you spend at each South Rim viewpoint?

Would 3 hours for the Hermits Road route (ending at sunset)give us enough time to really take in the views at each stop on the shuttle? Or is that too rushed?

How long does it take to properly see the sights on the East Rim Drive? Can it be done in 5-6 hours without rushing from point to point?

Time is limited for us, and we want to see the Sedona area as well, so we don%26#39;t want to over-spend our time in GCNP, but we certainly do not want to cut ourselves short either!! We%26#39;ll be doing South Rim only.

We%26#39;ll arrive at the park on Day 1 with 3 hours till sunset, so thought that would be a great time to do Hermits Road. Day 2, early shuttle to Yaki Point to see sunrise, back to lodge, see the Village, then by maybe 11am or so, take off for the East Rim drive, heading out the East Gate by 5pm or so, and spend Night 2 in Flagstaff or Sedona, the next leg of our trip.

Is that realistic, or would we be pushing it? All we have time for is sightseeing, no hiking, mule trips, etc, but we would like to see some of the sights such as Hopi House, El Tovar hotel, the tower at Desert View, etc.

I know everybody probably spends a different amount of time, for lots of different reasons, but I%26#39;d be interested to hear your experiences. If you have better ideas I%26#39;m all ears!

Thanks for your help!

How much time do you spend at each South Rim viewpoint?

Bump - maybe someone can help you out.

How much time do you spend at each South Rim viewpoint?

I suppose you%26#39;re spending the night at the rim.

You can take the shuttle bus to Hermits Rest and hop on hop off (on the way back the bus only stops at Mohave Point and Hopi Point). You can hike between the various points. 3 hours would be enough with not too long hikes. But would I recommend the bus to Hermits Rest on a short visit like this. No, on your way to GC Village I first would stop at Mather Point. Park your car and walk to the rim. You%26#39;ll never forget this moment!!!! Then go to the Village, try to park your car (not easy) and just walk the rim and visit some places in the Village. See sunset from here. No mather where you are, sunset and sunrise are dramatic from all places. The next morning see sunrise just from the rim in front of you. I would see some more of the village, drive to Yavapoint, attend a ranger talk and drive east rim to the Watchtower. Also maybe visit Tusayan Ruins.

If you take 2-3 hours between Yavapai Point and Desert View you%26#39;ll be fine imho. The outlooks points are mostly right alongside the road. Never miss Desert View.

You%26#39;ll then have the time to drive to Sedona, maybe have a taco at Cameron Trading post and drive along Wupatki NM and Sunset Crater Volcano NM. See the overlooks on Painted Desert between Wupatki and Snst Crater Volcano. On your way to Sedona stop at Oak Creek Canyon, also great.

Well, that%26#39;s what I would do. Actually we stayed much longer and took the bus to Hermits Rest. It was nice with hikes but it will take much time and your time is limited.

Tet

Thanks for the bump ldlb :-)

And thank you,Tet for your help with our itinerary. Having just so much time, we want to definitely see the Canyon sights with no rushing, but just wasn%26#39;t sure how long it would really take to ';do it right';. We do have reservations for 2 nights in the Village, and I kept thinking maybe we should just spend one night at the park, and head for Sedona or Flagstaff late the 2nd afternoon if we made all our stops. The GC is our main destination, though, so we don%26#39;t want to short-change ourselves!

I%26#39;m still mulling over what to do, but I%26#39;m leaning towards keeping the 2 nights reservation, and leave early the 3rd day. That way we can take our time will never feel like we rushed through our visit. The info you gave has helped alot. Thank you!!

Thought you were staying only one night (night at the rim and 2nd night in Flag). You easily can do the Hermits Rest loop if you stay 2 nights at the rim. I also highly recommend to stay for 2 nights!! Have fun

Tet

When I made the reservations I made it for 2 nights, thinking its always easier to cancel a night rather than to add a night, while I%26#39;m in the planning stages. I was feeling a bit wishy-washy in the beginning trying to decide how much time and how long to stay, but I think we%26#39;ve pretty much decided to hang out for the 2 nights. We%26#39;ll just take more time at each viewpoint! Thanks again.