Going to Grand Canyon for the Labor Day Weekend? Then you better book that helicopter tour now. This is the last big summer holiday and it\’s a sure bet that many of these super-popular flights will sell out. So book online and do it now or you\’ll be stranded on the tarmac.

Departure Points

There are two places from which you can take a heli ride: Las Vegas and South Rim. Vegas flights leave from The Strip or from Vegas suburbs like Henderson, NV, and Boulder City, NV. South Rim tours go from Grand Canyon National Park Airport, which is located in the small town of Tusayan, AZ.

Also note that Las Vegas helicopters are the only ones that fly below the rim and land on the bottom. Such flights are banned at the South Rim, and thus your only options there are all-air tours. Finally, Vegas choppers only go to the West Rim — the South Rim is too far. Conversely, there are no flights from South Rim to West Rim.

OK, so from Vegas, you pick from air-only or landing tours. Both follow the same flight path and go over Lake Mead, Hoover Dam, the Colorado River and the Canyon. Air-only will turn back at this point while landing tours make the 3,500-foot descent to the bottom for a Champagne picnic.

Landing Tours

The most popular tours are the picnic landing tours. If you want more adventure, you can add a Colorado River boat ride and VIP tickets to the Grand Canyon Skywalk, which is an all-glass bridge that lets you walk some 70 feet over the edge until you are standing a whopping 4K feet over the bottom.

There are two South Rim tours and they range from 30 minutes to 50 minutes of airtime. The former goes from the South Rim to the North Rim and back. The later does that, too, plus everything up to the Park\’s east border. Do the 50-minute tour and you\’ll have seen up to 75 percent of the Park, which is why I mostly recommend it to travelers.

There are basic and deluxe versions of all these tours. The key difference is the helicopter. Basic heli rides use the older Bell Ranger or AStar choppers while the deluxe tours use the EcoStar 130. Why I prefer the Eco is pretty obvious: it features a 180-degree wraparound windshield, stadium-style seats and is designed to be the quietest ride in the sky.

Make sure you book these tours online and in advance. All tours mentioned in this article are very popular and tend to sell out during holidays like Labor Day. Key is to book it online. That\’s where you\’ll get the best rate. Just remember to complete your transaction online in order to qualify for the Internet discount.

Conclusion

I hope this article on Labor Day holiday Grand Canyon helicopter tours helped you plan your trip. From Vegas, I\’m a huge fan of any flight that lands at the bottom because you can only do it from Vegas. At South Rim, go only with the 50-minute tour. And try to fly the deluxe version of any tour you pick. That\’s because the EcoStar is the more superior of all the helicopters out there and it delivers the smoothest flight you\’ll ever experience.

The author is a Grand Canyon expert and recommends going here for the best South Rim helicopter tours and here for ones that depart from Las Vegas: http://www.grandcanyonhelicopters.org/las-vegas/

The author is a Grand Canyon expert and recommends going here for the best South Rim helicopter tours and here for ones that depart from Las Vegas: http://www.grandcanyonhelicopters.org/las-vegas/

Author Bio: The author is a Grand Canyon expert and recommends going here for the best South Rim helicopter tours and here for ones that depart from Las Vegas: http://www.grandcanyonhelicopters.org/las-vegas/

Category: Travel
Keywords: grand canyon, las vegas, vegas, arizona, south rim, tusayan, national parks, travel,