Where is the nearest airport to the Grand Canyon, in Arizona?
October 14, 2008
The nearest major airport to the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park is Sky Harbor airport in Phoenix. It is about a 3.5 to 4 hour drive from Phoenix to the park entrance.
As the poster above notes, there are also very small regional airports at Flagstaff (about 1.5 hours away) and at the canyon itself (near the little town of Tusayan). Both do have commerical flights (Scenic airlines runs passenger flights to Vegas and Pheonix out of the GC airport), but these are limited to nearby towns and very expensive.
If you are looking into visiting the South Rim, than you could fly into either Vegas or Phoenix and then take a local commuter flight to Tusayan or Flagstaff, but you would still need to rent a car to get around the canyon. It is much cheaper and easier to just fly into Phoenix, get a rental car and drive up.
Las Vegas is 50 miles further away and takes closer to 5 hours to reach the park (less of the drive is on interestates too, so it is slower going), so if you are planning on going to the South Rim of the National Park, Phoenix is definitely your best bet.
Note that the above refers to the South Rim of the National Park which is the most developed side and the one that most people visit (it is where the old railroad is and most of the big lodges, trails and attractions are). Las Vegas is closer to the less developed North Rim (about 4 hours away from LV), but the North Rim is only open from mid-May to mid-October. When it is open, the North Rim is a cooler and less crowded alternative to the South Rim which can be a zoo in summer. Las Vegas is also closer to the area above Lake Mead called Grand Canyon West where the new glass SkyWalk is located, but that is a money-making tourist venture and is NOT part of the National Park.
Las Vegas promoters like to make it sound like the town is right next to the National Park (they also often confuse people about the difference between Grand Canyon National Park and Grand Canyon West), which is why so many people get the perception that LV is closest to the National Park even when Yahoo Maps and other driving website clearly indicate that it is much further away than Phoenix.
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7 Responses to “Where is the nearest airport to the Grand Canyon, in Arizona?”
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Las Vegas is the nearest major airport.
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Yep, Vegas.
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Flagstaff.
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It depends on where along the Grand Canyon you plan to visit. (It's very big!) The South Rim is the most popular area for visitors. If you are going there, then Flagstaff is the nearest airport with commercial air service. There is actually a Grand Canyon Airport near the South Rim, but no commercial airline flies there. Flagstaff is about 90 miles away. Las Vegas is about 280 miles away.
If you're going to the so-called "West Rim", then Las Vegas is closer.
References :
Mapquest, personal experience driving to the South Rim from Flagstaff and Las Vegas.
The nearest major airport to the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park is Sky Harbor airport in Phoenix. It is about a 3.5 to 4 hour drive from Phoenix to the park entrance.
As the poster above notes, there are also very small regional airports at Flagstaff (about 1.5 hours away) and at the canyon itself (near the little town of Tusayan). Both do have commerical flights (Scenic airlines runs passenger flights to Vegas and Pheonix out of the GC airport), but these are limited to nearby towns and very expensive.
If you are looking into visiting the South Rim, than you could fly into either Vegas or Phoenix and then take a local commuter flight to Tusayan or Flagstaff, but you would still need to rent a car to get around the canyon. It is much cheaper and easier to just fly into Phoenix, get a rental car and drive up.
Las Vegas is 50 miles further away and takes closer to 5 hours to reach the park (less of the drive is on interestates too, so it is slower going), so if you are planning on going to the South Rim of the National Park, Phoenix is definitely your best bet.
Note that the above refers to the South Rim of the National Park which is the most developed side and the one that most people visit (it is where the old railroad is and most of the big lodges, trails and attractions are). Las Vegas is closer to the less developed North Rim (about 4 hours away from LV), but the North Rim is only open from mid-May to mid-October. When it is open, the North Rim is a cooler and less crowded alternative to the South Rim which can be a zoo in summer. Las Vegas is also closer to the area above Lake Mead called Grand Canyon West where the new glass SkyWalk is located, but that is a money-making tourist venture and is NOT part of the National Park.
Las Vegas promoters like to make it sound like the town is right next to the National Park (they also often confuse people about the difference between Grand Canyon National Park and Grand Canyon West), which is why so many people get the perception that LV is closest to the National Park even when Yahoo Maps and other driving website clearly indicate that it is much further away than Phoenix.
References :
Arizona resident and frequent Grand Canyon visitor and hiker. Have been to GC West and both rims many times and have driven there from both Las Vegas and Phoenix.
Scenic Airways:
http://www.scenic.com/
Grand Canyon National Park transportation page:
http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/directions.htm
Distances to South Rim from Yahoo Maps:
Phoenix to GC: 228 miles, 3.5 hours
Las Vegas to GC: 277 miles, 4.5 hours
Flagstaff to GC: 88 miles, 1.5 hours
The Grand Canyon has one and there is another in Flagstaff.
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First it depends on if you are planning to go to the south rim or the west rim. As others have noted the west rim is closer to Vegas. If you had heard about the new horseshoe glass walkway at the canyon that is going to be at the west rim. If you have your heart set on seeing that, go to Vegas; I do not recommend it. It is overprised, the road to it is dirt, and they don't want you to take rental cars on it.
The south rim is much more convenient and the larger of the tourist attractions. If that is your destination, you're going to want to stay in Flagstaff, AZ. This is 80 miles south of the canyon. There are lodges at the canyon, but they are overpriced for their location.
There are aiports in Phoenix (225 miles from the canyon) and Flagstaff (82 miles from the canyon). There is a grand canyon airport but that is for tours and not commercial flights. The Flagstaff airport is much closer, but also much more expensive. It would be better for you to fly into Phoenix Sky harbor and rent a car to go to Flagstaff.
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I work at a hotel in Flagstaff, AZ.