The question of when you should travel to the Grand Canyon is an important one because the timing of your visit will greatly impact your vacation in a variety of ways. When visiting in the summer, you have a few more lodging options and both canyon rims are open, but you’ll face crowds, increased prices, and sweltering heat. Here’s a look at why winter is a surprisingly great time to visit the Grand Canyon, as well as what you need to know to stay safe and enjoy your vacation.
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Why Experience Winter at the Grand Canyon?
You’ll Beat the Crowds
In the summer and early fall, thousands of visitors pack into the Grand Canyon—creating dense crowds essentially every day from Memorial Day in May until Labor Day in September. You won’t face this problem in the winter, and it will completely transform how you experience this national treasure. During our winter visit to the Grand Canyon, we were often at one of the popular stops along the rim road with no other visitors in sight. It was an amazing experience.
You’ll Find Lower Lodging Prices
My informal survey showed winter prices at 30 to 40% less than summer pricing. If you are a budget traveler, this can be a great saving, and if you’re a mid-range to higher-end traveler, it means you might even be able to splurge for one of the gorgeous hotel properties inside the Grand Canyon, or find a nicer hotel in the town nearby.
Properties inside the Grand Canyon National Park perimeter include:
You Can Drive the Roads Yourself
From December to March, the South Rim Grand Canyon shuttle goes offline and passenger cars are allowed on roads usually off limits. That means you can move at your own pace! My family really enjoyed being able to explore the winter scenes at the Grand Canyon this way. The roads were snow packed when we visited, so you might need to take care, but park rangers close the roads if they get too dangerous.
You’ll See Snow Covering the Grand Canyon
After watching a snowstorm roll in, a dusting of snow covered the majestic Grand Canyon. The white against the red canyon was a beautiful contrasting sight. The vast majority of the visitors to the Grand Canyon will never see it looking just like this, so you’ll have experienced a moment you just can’t imagine if you’re visiting during the sweltering summer months.
There are More Animal Sighting Opportunities
We saw a lot of elk during our winter drive! They were everywhere in the Grand Canyon Village, and were a pretty cool part of our winter adventure. They hung out around town eating low-hanging leaves, and just generally milling about. We also saw quite a few deer as well, and when the crowds pulse through the area during the summer, it’s understandable that the animals steer clear of the humans for that period of time, so you’ll find it much easier to spot animals in the winter versus summer.
Why Summer Might be Better Than Winter
Winter at the Grand Canyon is COLD
My hands froze while taking photos of the sunset, and my kids were less willing to hike than they would have been if it were less extreme temperatures. There’s a reason so many families road trip this region in the summer, and it’s because it makes for that much more iconic “family road trip” experience you see in the movies. It’s going to be cold during your explorations, so you’ll need to bring the right cold-weather gear to keep everyone cozy during any time outside of the car. If you and your kids have thick jackets and you stop for plenty of hot chocolate, it’s absolutely possible to make winter at the Grand Canyon its own kind of amazing experience.
The Grand Canyon North Rim vs South Rim
The North Rim receives more snow than the South Rim, and as such it’s closed for the coldest months of the winter. The East and South Rim, however, are open 365 days a year so you’ll still have plenty of places to explore. The West Rim is also open, but is run by the Hualapai Nation and is run separately from the National Park, so you’ll need to check those websites directly to understand what services (if any) that they’ll have running during the winter months.