yk

We stayed at five hotels on our 10-day trip. You can find my reviews on Tripadvisor via the hyperlinks below. The hotels were:

Las Vegas — Signature at MGM Grand (1 night)
Zion — Cable Mountain Lodge (3 nights)
Bryce — Lodge at Bryce Canyon (2 nights)
Page — Holiday Inn Express and Suites (2 nights)
Grand Canyon North Rim — Kaibab Lodge (1 night)
Las Vegas — Westin (1 night)

oldemalloy

Sorry you had a it of a glitch at the end of the trip, but good that you got a good alternative.

what did your son find most interesting or enjoyable on this trip?

For us Vegas is a place to fly into/out of when you want to visit the NPs. Do visit the south rim of GC and walk a bit down into the canyon. We have seen condors there too. Maybe a spring trip with the south rim, Death Valley, and some of the other parks like Valley of Fire, Wupatki, Sunset Crater, Red Rock. Canyon.

Thanks for the report.

yk

This is probably one of the more ambitious trip I have planned in a decade. (If you know me from before, prior to having a child, I used to have whirlwind solo trips to Europe.) This was a bit overwhelming at the start; I have been wanting to go for a few years but simply didn't know where to start. Then 2 of my friends had gone in the past 18 months so I combined their 2 itinerary, added advice from here and tripadvisor and made our own trip. Going in mid-June (right after my son's school ended) worked out well because Zion and Page weren't *too* hot yet, whereas Bryce and GC North Rim weren't too cold. GC NR doesn't even open for the season until mid-May, but I think they had a delayed opening this year to early June due to too much snow. I think September or early october probably is a better time to visit but it will be difficult for us to do so with school year just starting.

We usually take trips to cities so this trip to national parks is vastly different, and I love it. I am already thinking where we should go next year. Also considering the fact that I'm not getting any younger, so if I want to do more hiking I should do it soon. Besides, our son will only be spending time with us for another 6-7 years so time is limited. Open for any suggestions!!!

Final costs
This trip ended up being quite expensive despite us having homemade breakfasts and lunches. Lodging was the priciest given we were visiting during peak season and supplies are limited. Sit-down meals are also pricey; I could have looked for cheaper options but when you're traveling with a child, most often is that convenience is worth the extra costs. Besides, after eating homemade breakfasts and sandwich lunches, I wasn't going to be cheap about dinners.

So here's the breakdown:
Transportation $592 (airfare**) + $457 (Amtrak) + $100 taxi + $522 (rental car) = around $1750 when you add in gas/parking ** JetBlue refunded part of our airfare **
Hotels $3424 (10 nights)
Food $1272 (sit-down meals + groceries)
Sightseeing $325 for Antelope canyon tour + boat tour; we did not have to pay for any National park entry fees thanks to my son's 4th grader pass

total $6770 for 10 days for 3 people

yk

Thank you everyone who spent time reading this and for your comments!

oldemally - my son's favorite was Antelope Canyon. I think being inside a slot canyon is a very cool experience! thanks for your suggestions too - we have school vacation in mid-April but my spouse usually cannot join us. I wonder if it's a trip I can safely do with just me and my son (thinking about the hikes, whether we can easily get help if we get in trouble etc)

Fra_Diavolo

You asked for some suggestions --

On our last trip we visited Mesa Verde which was a true highlight. We stayed in the park at the Far View -- the rooms were average for a national park but the restaurant was several cuts above the norm. Lots of both independent and ranger-led hikes.

On out next rip I hope to visit Monument Valley and Canyon de Chelly.

Enjoyed your trip report and photos and appreciate the details!

HappyTrvlr

tt

HappyTrvlr

I enjoyed reading your trip report on our beautiful National Parks and your stay at the TWA Hotel. We have been to all the parks and the hotel! We LOVED the TWA hotel, a live museum of American culture of the 1960s and beyond. We smiled the whole time we were there! It was designed by Eero Saarinen and we had worked with his daughter at a summer job as teens.
mk, your photographs are stunning! You have a real talent; thanks for sharing it with us all.

bon_voyage

Thank you for this wonderful trip report and photos whose richly detailed and informative content and easy, conversational style made for a very enjoyable read.

tpatricco2

Thank you for this wonderful trip report! I'm currently fast-track planning a similar trip for this June with my husband and 13 year old son - so lots of valuable details for me here.

oldemalloy

Yk, this older thread popped up on my email and I noticed that I did not answer your question regarding the safety of visiting some of the other parks without your husband. My experience with most of the National and state parks is that they are pretty good at giving information about length and difficulty of hikes. That said, I would definitely want to hike on trails that are not so remote that you do not see other hikers.

Of all the parks I would want my son to see Grand Canyon south rim and Yellowstone.

If your husband has been to GC, then take your son there. trail is easy hiking and there is a hop on/off bus that goes parallel to it with stops at the most spectacular views if you do not want to go all the way on foot (it is long). Bright Angel trail goes down into the canyon and is pretty wide and smooth, elevation change but no scrambling and go down as far as you want and expect it to take longer to get back. There have been some ranger led hikes that were nice there too. There are no railings at the cliff edge so don’t be distracted taking pictures. You also could do the donkey trip down but need to reserve that ahead. If the donkeys are coming by when you are hiking on the trail, just stop and face the wall and they will walk on by you.

Yellowstone I would want to save for a family trip in June when the baby bison and elk etc are around. Most of it will not be open in April. Look at flights to Bozeman MT to avoid the long drive from larger airports. I know Southwest flys there maybe Jet Blue. It is only an hour and a half from the northern entrance. The park is huge so you would want to get lodging in a couple of places in the park.



The old folks on Bright Angel Trail

yk

oldemalloy Thanks for taking the time to respond! you guys look great on the Bright Angel Trail. I should plan a Yellowstone trip in the summer for next summer or the following one (2025 or 2026). A friend of mine had gone last summer and also suggested staying at more than one location due to the vastness of the park.

As for GC south rim, I'll have to see how that will fit; maybe a future April vacation trip to visit Northern AZ (sedona and north).