Grand Canyon in January (Williams, Tusayan: hotels, theater, schools) - City-Data Forum

deskjockey · 11-23-2011, 09:45 AM

A couple from Ohio with two kids, 7 and 8 year old are thinking about visiting Grand Canyon for the first time. We were thinking about flying into Las Vegas but unsure about this. Seeking suggestions and recommendations.

keninaz · 11-23-2011, 10:18 AM

Just dress warm and watch the WX. The Canyon is a whole different experience that most see when it's got snow on the rim too.
Here at the WX averages for the Park. Monthly Averages for Grand Canyon Natl Park, AZ - weather.com

As you can see, it can be cold in Jan.

We are just some 125 miles from the gate and love to go in the cold when the park has very few visitors.

Bummer · 11-23-2011, 11:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deskjockey

A couple from Ohio with two kids, 7 and 8 year old are thinking about visiting Grand Canyon for the first time. We were thinking about flying into Las Vegas but unsure about this. Seeking suggestions and recommendations.

As Keninaz as already alerted, primarily due to the elevation of about 8k feet, it will be cold but not too cold to be a spectacular trip and well worth the effort.

To avoid the possibility of heavy snow, etc, you may want to consider a day trip on The Train Grand Canyon Railway - The Official Site out of Williams.

Good Luck and ENJOY.

LuciaMomof6 · 11-23-2011, 11:51 AM

Just be careful.. The ONLY time in my life that I have ever come close to going to jail was at the Grand Canyon in January !! It was January of 2002 and there was a blizzard... My kids were 11,10,7,5,2,1 .... We had tickets for the Grand Canyon railroad, which was a train ride to the Canyon and then a couple of hours to eat at the canyon, then the train ride back... Well, to make a long story short, we arrive at the canyon, theres freezing rain and snow flying to the point that visibility was nearly zero and we shuffled into the restaurant, the babies were hungry the kids were cold and hungry... The witch who was supposed to seat us told us there was not a table big enough and that we had to go into the bar to wait.. The bartender told us to leave because there were no kids allowed in the bar.. After an hour of standing in the little hallway waiting I had enough! I went up to the witch and started yelling at her that my young children were hungry and we were running out of time (the train was going to board in like an hour) ! She called the Rangers on me..they held me aside and would have brought me to jail had I not had so many little ones.. They ended up driving my hubby and kids over to a little cafe/indoor burger stand.. I lost my mind because I know that that witch wasn't seating us because of the amount of children which, by the way, were very well behaved!!

That's my January Grand Canyon adventure!! I guess make sure that you pack some snacks would be my advice LOL

keninaz · 11-23-2011, 07:23 PM

Wow, and I thought my two where a handful to travel with at times.

rational1 · 11-24-2011, 08:26 AM

It might be cold, and it also might be very cold with wind.

Vegas is a good place to fly to because flights tend to be cheap and available. Often (though not always) you can get good deals on hotels. Just avoid giving back any of your savings at the tables.

Zonie5 · 11-25-2011, 06:13 PM

i live maybe 80 miles from GC . best bet would be if you are in Vegas to pay attention to weather at GC and if it looks favorable , go for it . how do you plan to get there ? .if yo will be driving it will be around 150 miles of interstate and winter it can be chancy . if there is snow I-40 might be closed off to all traffic and there are no roads to get around that . bigges hurdle will be the "Ash Fork Hill" starting at mile marker 146 . it is a hill that lasts up to around mile marker 158 and then it levels off . in Williams take highway 64 for about 60 more miles of empty country side .i have been to GC in January and it was balmy .

nitram · 11-25-2011, 10:03 PM

I've been there in January. The weather was good when we went, no storms. Yes it's cold but it wasn't bitter cold and during the daylight hours it can feel quite hot with a jacket on. The roads were maintained in excellent condition by the road dept. The amazing scenery and spectacular views at that time of the year are well worth the trip.

deskjockey · 11-26-2011, 01:14 PM

After reading the above posts, I am rethinking the time for this visit to GC because of the weather. The next available time is August, 2012. I am not a risk taker when it comes to children.

keninaz · 11-26-2011, 01:31 PM

I don't think the kids would be at risk as such but I think you would all enjoy it better in better WX, at least for the first visit. I already sent you the monthly WX for all year so you know the temps will be better for doing things.
If you plan it after mid Aug the schools in AZ will be back in session around the 3rd week if I remember correctly and that will take some of the kids and vacationers away from the park too.
Mid week is also better for less people.
We get lots of visitors at the park
I would recommend that you get reservations when you go for at least one night in Tusayan. It's a little town just outside the park at the south rim with more reasonable accommodations than inside the park and easier to get too. I know that Best Western and Holiday Inn Express have places there too.
That way if you come in late to the town you can have a meal, rest for the night and have a full day at the Canyon. You could drive back to Vegas that night if you wished without staying another night. If you plan on hiking down the Canyon or taking the mules of course that will take more time.
And I don't know if it's still there but they used to have a nice IMax theater presentation in Tusayan that was worth seeing too.
Enjoy your trip whenever it might be.