The 5 Best Bus Tours to Grand Canyon from Las Vegas

What are the best bus tours to the Grand Canyon from Las Vegas? Your super detailed guide to the 5 very best bus and 4WD day-tours to the Grand Canyon from Las Vegas with my reviews and all pros and cons of each tour. South Rim at Grand Canyon National Park bus tour: the cheapest way to visit the most beautiful section of the entire Grand Canyon from Vegas. Grand Canyon West & Skywalk bus tour: if you want a taste (still tasty!) of the Grand Canyon and see the famous Skywalk without spending too many hours on the bus. Bus, helicopter & boat tour at Grand Canyon West: a very special and complete experience, including an helicopter flight to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and a boat ride on the Colorado River. Luxury Suburban SUV Grand Canyon West tour: a VIP tour to see the Grand Canyon without having too many other tourists around and returning to Vegas in the early afternoon in time to enjoy the swimming pool and the evening on the Strip. Pink Adventure 4WD, fly, float combo Grand Canyon West Tour Trekker: a super exclusive tour, if you are looking for the best of the best and want to travel in style aboard the most comfortable vehicle among those used by all Las Vegas companies. A comparison and detailed description of the 5 best tours you can book in Las Vegas to go to the Grand Canyon by bus, van and 4WD, with my considerations, some suggestions, all the important things you need to know before choosing and direct links to book online by credit card.

Photo Credit: Grand Canyon National Park

What are the Best Bus Tours to the Grand Canyon from Las Vegas?

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The 5 Best Grand Canyon Bus and 4WD Tours from Las Vegas

Are you in Las Vegas and want to book a bus or van tour to the Grand Canyon? Do you have doubts whether to choose a tour to Grand Canyon West or to the South Rim at the Grand Canyon National Park? Are you looking for a VIP small group 4WD tour or do you prefer to join a cheaper big bus group tour?

I have selected tens of bus and van tours to the Grand Canyon from Las Vegas and have chosen 5 different tours. These are not the only ones you can book but in my opinion they are among the best and most complete bus, van and 4WD tours to the Grand Canyon available on the market and departing from Vegas.

All of the different excursions described in this chapter involve traveling from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon and back by coach or 4WD. Once you arrive at your destination you visit the Grand Canyon by shuttle bus, on foot, by helicopter or by boat depending on which area of the Grand Canyon and which tour you choose.

Both the bus tours to the South Rim and those to Grand Canyon West all include about 3 hours stay at the Grand Canyon, without major variations between one excursion and the other.

The differences between one tour and another are given instead by what you see, the miles you travel, the vehicle you use, the group size, the duration of the tour and the time of return to Las Vegas.

If you go to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon National Park it’s 560 miles round trip. Grand Canyon West is much closer to Las Vegas, only 260 miles round trip. That’s less than half the miles you travel to get to the South Rim.

Bus tours to the South Rim last approximately 15 hours and return to Las Vegas in the late evening, sometimes well beyond 10pm. Bus tours to Grand Canyon West take less time returning to Vegas between 6 and 8 pm, being able to dine and enjoy the night on the Strip properly.

You can book all these tours easily by credit card through Viator and Get Your Guide, for the great majority of tours you get instant confirmation, while for some, tour confirmation is subject to availability and will be given within 48 hours of your booking.

For last, if you want to visit the Grand Canyon and looking for an airplane tour please read The 4 Best Grand Canyon Airplane Tours from Las Vegas (with Pros and Cons), my technical reviews of the most interesting and value for money airplane day tours from Vegas to Grand Canyon West, the South Rim at Grand Canyon National Park and the remote and rarely visited North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Photo Credit: Todd Petrie

South Rim at Grand Canyon National Park Bus Tour from Las Vegas

The South Rim area at the Grand Canyon Village, in the very heart of the Grand Canyon National Park, is the destination of this very long but interesting and well thought bus tour from Las Vegas.

How does it take place? Leave very early in the morning, during the outward journey there is usually a photo stop of about fifteen minutes at the Hoover Dam bridge on the border between Nevada and Arizona, a stop for breakfast and a further stop on the historic Route 66 near Seligman; where you stop there are toilets and small shops to buy food/drinks/souvenirs.

In the early afternoon you enter the Grand Canyon National Park, to welcome you first is the large and magnificent pine forest that covers a large part of the summit plateau at the southern edge of the Grand Canyon; by bus you reach the visitor center area, here you go down, take a few steps to Mother Point and finally the abyss will appear in front of you.

You have three hours to freely visit the various viewpoints of the South Rim on your own, you just need to understand the time and place where the driver will meet you for the return journey. Local provider is Grand Canyon Destinations, instant confirmation at time of booking.

Duration: about 15 hours, the participants are collected from the different hotels in Las Vegas before dawn and then actually leave for the Grand Canyon around 7.30, calculate an actual return to Vegas between 10 and 11pm.

Price includes: pick-up and drop-off at many hotels of the Strip area + big bus transportation + entrance ticket to Grand Canyon National Park + breakfast on the outward journey + lunch and a bottle of water.

Pros: you visit the most beautiful and exciting part of the Grand Canyon; and if you consider that in addition to transport, breakfast, lunch and the park entrance ticket are included, you can’t really complain, the quality/price ratio is really excellent.

Cons: only one, the many long and almost infinite hours on board the bus to go and return, but you know it in advance; those who complain about this in the reviews could have taken a look at the map before booking and choosing another excursion.

Good to know: expect the typical waste of time in departure and return to collect/drop off the participants in the different hotels, this sometimes takes up to an hour and a half and often the bus that goes around the hotels is not the same bus that takes you to the Grand Canyon, you avoid getting impatient; you will be on the edge of the Grand Canyon between early and mid afternoon, in summer this is the favorite time for thunderstorms, in addition to the fleece bring a light waterproof jacket. On board the bus, documentaries about the Grand Canyon are shown (on the outward journey) and films (on the way back).

Tips: do not hesitate to take the paved section of the Rim Trail that from Mather Point in less than 15 minutes leads to Yavapai Point located on the extreme northern point of a rocky spur that overlooks the canyon, the panorama from here is even wider and exciting. But if you want you can do even more, and without effort: walk the 1.3 miles of the flat path that from Yavapai Point goes west along the edge of the canyon to the historic El Tovar Hotel and Bright Angel Lodge, will you enjoy phenomenal views; if you opt for this walk do it immediately as soon as you get off the bus, in order to be at the meeting place that your guide will have communicated to you; remember you can use the free shuttles of the park to which you are entitled because you are in possession of the entrance ticket.

Recommended: if you want to see the grandest section of the entire Grand Canyon for as little money as possible.

Price and bookings: GetYourGuide | From Las Vegas: Grand Canyon South Rim with Snacks & Lunch

The same South Rim Grand Canyon bus tour from Vegas with Viator: the same tour is offered by Viator with Viator | Grand Canyon National Park South Rim Bus Tour from Las Vegas, sometimes there are promotions, it’s worth checking the price.

Another South Rim option: a tour very similar to the one presented above, always by bus from Las Vegas to the South Rim, is the one proposed by Sweetours and can be booked with GetYourGuide | From Las Vegas: Grand Canyon South Rim Full-Day Tour

The option with IMAX or heli flight: if in addition to the base bus tour you want to add a ticket to the IMAX cinema in Tusayan where a special movie of the Grand Canyon is shown or a helicopter flight over the canyon, check the tour GetYourGuide | From Las Vegas: Grand Canyon South Rim Full-Day Trip by Bus. In my opinion neither of these two additions is a great idea because they take away your precious time that you can instead dedicate to walking on your own along the edge of the canyon, enjoying it calmly and without spending anything more. Keep in mind that helicopter flight sometimes involves considerable waiting before boarding. And if you want to see a movie, watch it on YouTube at your home before you come, don’t waste the only three hours you have in the Grand Canyon.

Photo Credit: Get Your Guide

Grand Canyon West & Skywalk Bus Tour from Las Vegas

The destination of this tour is Grand Canyon West, the section of the Grand Canyon closest to Las Vegas, indeed much closer to Las Vegas than both the South Rim and the North Rim. Located outside the boundaries of the Grand Canyon National Park, it is located within the Hualapai Indian Reservation instead.

You need about 3 hours to travel the 130 miles that separate the Strip from Grand Canyon West, along the way make a brief stop on the bridge that runs along the Hoover Dam to admire and photograph the dam. Once you reach the Grand Canyon West welcome center, transfer to one of the shuttle buses run by the Indians that transport you in a few minutes to the only two viewpoints of Grand Canyon West: they are Eagle Point where there is the Skywalk and the replica of a village complete with an amphitheater for performances and the more northerly, beautiful and exciting Guano Point.

In total, you have about 3 hours to admire the view and (if you have booked the option including tickets) to walk the transparent panoramic walkway of the Skywalk. Then another three hours by bus back to Vegas.

Duration: 11 hours or longer, especially if you are among the first to be loaded and among the last to be taken back to the hotel; pick-ups start at 6am with actual return to the hotel which sometimes does not take place before 7pm.

Price includes: pick-up/drop-off at many Las Vegas hotels + transport by bus + light snack immediately after departure + entrance to the Hualapai Indian Reservation including the shuttle bus to the viewpoints + bottle of water and sandwich-based picnic lunch which is usually eaten immediately before arrival to Grand Canyon West; if you have chosen the Skywalk, it also includes the ticket for the latter.

Pros: shorter driving hours to go to Grand Canyon West and back to Las Vegas compared to excursions to the South Rim; the price usually affordable compared to other similar guided tours leading to Grand Canyon West.

Cons: do not expect the depth and grandeur of the true Grand Canyon that is one at the South Rim; then there are those who say that Grand Canyon West and the Skywalk are wonderful, I have no reason to doubt it but I also think that those who say this probably have not been and have not admired the beauty of the shapes and colors of the Grand Canyon from the panoramic viewpoints of the South Rim within the Grand Canyon National Park. Obviously the same reasoning applies to all the tours to Grand Canyon West that you find described here.

Skywalk YES vs Skywalk NO: it is not mandatory, but since you come here and considering that the cost of the Skywalk ticket is not excessive then you might as well include it, at least you can say you have been there and tell your friends about it; also allow half an hour to queue to access it; no selfies or photos, you better know right away, on the panoramic walkway you absolutely cannot take your cell phone or cameras (nor backpacks and bags) with you, there is a storage area where you can leave your things; instead you can buy at an exorbitant cost the photos that the official Indian photographer will take of you while you walk on the Skywalk…

Tips: it is neither from Eagle Point nor from the Skywalk that you have the most beautiful view of Grand Canyon West, it is instead from Guano Point; one reached by shuttle bus do not hesitate for a moment to leave the crowded area where the buffet restaurant and the Hualapai Market are located, walk on the elementary and wide path that in just over 0.2 miles goes up to the extreme rocky spur overhanging the canyon, this is the most exciting point in all of Grand Canyon West, the one where you can leave at least for a moment the sad commercial junk and that slightly amusement park atmosphere that distinguishes all of Grand Canyon West and enjoy instead as it should be the natural atmosphere of the place.

Recommended: if you are in Vegas, want a taste (still tasty!) of the Grand Canyon and see the famous Skywalk without spending too many hours on the bus.

Price and bookings: GetYourGuide | Las Vegas: Grand Canyon West Bus Tour with Hoover Dam Stop

The same Grand Canyon West bus tour offered by Viator: the same tour is offered by Viator of the TripAdvisor family, see Viator | Grand Canyon West Bus Tour With Hoover Dam Photo Stop and Optional Skywalk, compare prices, book the tour that most inspires you.

A very interesting VIP option: a special tour to Grand Canyon West by bus with bathroom onboard from Las Vegas with the very big pro of the VIP bus access, this means once you arrive at Grand Canyon West there is no need to transfer to a shuttle bus (these shuttle buses often have long lines and waits of over an hour to board) to take you around the view points like other tours – this tour uses the same bus that picks you up from the hotel and take you around at the Canyon, meaning more time to enjoy the views, and less time waiting in lines. Link to book is GetYourGuide | Las Vegas: Grand Canyon West & Hoover Dam Tour with Meals and local provider is super rated Comedy on Deck Tours.

Photo Credit: Christian Lendl

Bus + Heli + Colorado River Boat Tour at Grand Canyon West from Las Vegas

A tour that includes everything. And a very special and complete experience. From Las Vegas, travel by bus to Grand Canyon West as on the previous tour, but once you arrive, two very special activities await you: a helicopter flight to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and a boat ride on the Colorado River.

By helicopter you leave from the edge of the escarpment to go down and land at the bottom of the canyon, this is where you board the boat for a short cruise on the Colorado River. Then take the second helicopter flight that takes you back from the bottom of the canyon to the small airport of Grand Canyon West. Here you have time to visit the two overlooks of Eagle Point and Guano Point by shuttle bus and if you want you can also go to the Skywalk. Then at the end return to Las Vegas again by bus. Not bad.

Duration: about 12 hours of which 3 and a half hours to go, 3 full hours in Grand Canyon West, 3 hours to return and the remaining time spent to collect/drop off the participants in the various hotels in Vegas; the departure is usually scheduled around 7.30 but the pick-ups start even earlier, you return in time for late dinner.

Price includes: the price you see in the first instance refers to the normal tour, to know the correct price enter the date and number of participants and then click on “Check availability”, all the available options will appear; the cost includes bus transport to Grand Canyon West from/to your Las Vegas hotel + entrance to the Hualapai Indian Reservation with the right to use the shuttle bus to viewpoints + panoramic heli flight from Grand Canyon West to the bottom of the canyon and back + short boat ride on the Colorado River between the first and second helicopter flight + lunch; Skywalk is extra.

Pros: to reach the Colorado River at the bottom of the Grand Canyon with a short helicopter flight and not only admire it from above, this is the plus of the tour.

Cons: what makes the cost rise is the helicopter but do not expect a luxury or exclusive tour; here the transport is with the usual big bus, and like all shared coach tours, expect the inevitable and long waste of time both at departure and at return.

Tips: the helicopter flight lasts just under 5 minutes each way, to board it you will be asked for an ID photo identification or passport; forget the Skywalk option, if you take the heli to the bottom of the canyon it is not necessary to do the panoramic walkway, also because the helicopter usually has waiting times and if you enter the Skywalk you risk not having the time to walk on the path that leads from Guano Point to the rocky spur, and this would be a shame.

Recommended: if you want to experience the thrill of the helicopter and also see the Grand Canyon from below, this does not happen to many.

Price and bookings: Viator | Grand Canyon West Rim Bus Tour with Hoover Dam Stop, Meals and Optional Upgrades

If you want to be back early to Las Vegas: a very interesting tour that includes an early morning departure before most of the other tours and subsequent return to Las Vegas usually by 5pm so that you do not loose your evening on the Strip is Viator | Grand Canyon West Rim Bus Tour & Hoover Dam Photo Stop with Optional Skywalk; the local supplier is Comedy on Deck Tours, transport is by large coach and in addition to the driver there is a real guide which is not bad; the hotels provided for the pick-up are already predetermined and it is perhaps the only company that does not let you transfer buses before leaving; unlike other tours there is also a real hot breakfast (instead of the usual juice + croissant) in addition to the buffet lunch; VIP bus access at the Canyon is included and Comedy on Deck offers the option of the tour only and the one with the helicopter, the latter with an extremely attractive price, it can be an idea if you do not want to spend excessive amounts but keep in mind that the helicopter tour includes only overflight of the Grand Canyon and not – like the main tour presented here – the descent with landing at the bottom of the canyon followed by the short boat trip on the Colorado; it costs less but there is a reason.

Photo Credit: Vegas To Hollywood Tours

Luxury SUV Grand Canyon West VIP Tour from Las Vegas

Want to see the Grand Canyon without having too many other tourists around? Leaving very early in the morning and returning to Las Vegas not later than 3pm so you can enjoy the rest of the afternoon at the swimming pool and the evening on the Strip? Do you want to travel comfortably and are you looking for a VIP tour? Well, the right tour to visit Grand Canyon West is the one proposed by Vegas To Hollywood Tours.

The tour is very well designed, departing very early from Las Vegas around 6am so you can get to Grand Canyon West well before all the others (by the time the bus crowds arrive you will be leaving), visit the place without other tourists and return to the Strip between 2pm and 3pm. If you want to experience the Skywalk your guide will help you buy the tickets on the spot. Luxury Suburbans SUV are used for this Grand Canyon tour and lunch is always included.

Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, this tour requires a minimum of 2 participants, the local provider is Vegas To Hollywood Tours and the reviews on TripAdvisor are excellent.

Duration: 8 to 9 hours.

Price includes: hotel to hotel pick up & drop off + professionally narrated tour + continental breakfast + full lunch & unlimited drinks + complimentary umbrellas to shade you from the sun during the summer time.

Pros: personalized service; no waste of time: on board the comfortable and powerful Chevy Suburban there are no more than 5 or 6 passengers, which means avoiding the classic and inevitable long rides in Las Vegas both on departure and return to load customers from the many hotels, typical of normal coach tours. Great!

Cons: expensive, but sometimes you are lucky enough to have a driver and a Suburban all to yourself…

Recommended: if you are looking for a true small group experience.

Price and bookings: Viator | Grand Canyon West Rim SUV Tour From Las Vegas With Lunch

Photo Credit: Pink Adventures

Pink Jeep 4WD + Fly + Float Combo Grand Canyon West Tour Trekker from Las Vegas

This is a super exclusive tour. If budget is not an issue and you are looking for the best of the best and want to travel in style you will hardly find a better tour.

There is not only the visit of Guano Point in Grand Canyon West, the helicopter descent to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, a short cruise on the Colorado River, the off-road route in the Joshua Tree forest and a photo stop at the Hoover Dam. The peculiarity are the guides, very experienced and attentive to the wishes of the customer. In addition, this small group tour is carried out with a very special vehicle.

Transportation takes place on the super comfortable and unmistakable pink off-road Tour Trekker of Pink Adventures, a Chrysler build custom vehicle with 4-wheel drive, only 10 reclining captain seats and extra large tinted windows. A tour super rated on TripAdvisor.

Duration: 9 to 10 hours and 30 minutes.

Price includes: free hotel pick-up at most hotels on the Las Vegas strip + travel to Grand Canyon West by 4WD + helicopter tour to the bottom of the Grand Canyon + short cruise down the Colorado River on a power pontoon + Guano Point visit + lunch with bottle water. Skywalk ticket is optional, you can buy it on the spot.

Pros: Pink Adventure offers the most comfortable vehicle among those used by all companies in Vegas, the over-sized windows allow an undisturbed view of the surrounding landscape.

Cons: only one, this is not a cheap tour.

Recommended: if you are looking for a Grand Canyon VIP tour with a very personalized service.

Price and booking: Viator | Grand Canyon West Rim by Tour Trekker with Optional Upgrades, please note that for the Covid, the heli experience and the cruise on the Colorado River may not be temporarily bookable.

Video: the whole experience of 4WD, fly and float tour from Las Vegas to Grand Canyon West by Pink Jeep Tour in this video by iAmAileenTV, helicopter boarding is at minute 1’20”, landing at the bottom of the Grand Canyon and the navigation on the Colorado River at minute 1’50”, at 3’50” the exploration by land begins:

Important Things to Know About Grand Canyon Bus Tours from Las Vegas

Grand Canyon bus tours from Las Vegas depart every day, all year round, weather permitting.
Drivers and guides speak English, individual headsets with audio guide and narration in multiple languages are available on board the helicopters. For all tours with heli flight a photo ID identification or passport is mandatory.

Before booking read the full description of the tour you like in the official page of Viator and GetYourGuide carefully, please check what is included and what is not, meeting points, times of departure and cancellation policies. After booking, if you have any queries or doubts, immediately contact Viator or GetYourGuide Customer Service in order to receive assistance.

The day before the tour, please reconfirm the pick-up time with the local supplier. You receive phone and email of local supplier of the tour immediately after your booking. Maybe your hotel can help.

Read the reviews. If the majority of the reviews are positive that’s a good thing. And always check all the info you read here in the official page of each tour, things change and the official site provides the latest updates.

Last Update: December 7th 2023

Front cover photo credit: Tour Trekker at Grand Canyon West, courtesy of Pink Jeep Adventures.