Grand Canyon was one of those parks you visit for the first time and wonder how on earth you haven’t been there yet. It has 200 miles of the most incredible views I’ve ever seen and is one of the most highly trafficked parks in the country! After hiking for hours, you most likely still won’t be able to see the bottom but everything else in sight is so stunning that you won’t even mind. I was so excited that we could pull the van up right to the rim and work for a few hours with the best office on wheels in the world. With free campsites just outside the park, cheap showers, and perfectly marked trails, this will be one of your favorite parks to date!
Campsites | Free & Paid
Forest Road 688
GPS: 35.922305, -112.112742
This campsite is FREE. It’s only 10 minutes away from the South Rim entrance to the park and less than 5 minutes from the town, Tusayan. There are several pull offs to choose from and fire rings at almost each one. Each pull off had quite a bit of space and was a good distance from the next to stay private. Road in was great and well- maintained!
North Rim Dispersed
GPS: 36.439346, -112.079034
This FREE site is basically right on the rim! Incredible views and only about 20 miles from the entrance to the park. There are several to choose from but only 2 directly on the rim. Not highly trafficked and easy to get to. Not great for bigger RVs but completely fine for vans and smaller campers.
Mather Campground
Havasupai St, Grand Canyon Village
Cost was $18 for the night and you should make reservations. We walked up the day of and they happened to have a cancellation. Showers were $2 and you’ll need quarters for them. They also have laundry and several bathrooms. Great campsite but relatively close together, so not as private as the free sites outside the park.
Mather Campground Map
(click image to enlarge and find the best spots to reserve!)
Park Entrance Fees
- Standard Entrance Fee: $30 per vehicle
- Annual (all) Parks Pass: $80 /year
- FREE Entrance days: Martin Luther King Jr. Day | First day of National Park Week | National Public Lands Day | Veterans Day
Hiking
Please note that many of these trails connect allowing you to choose the distance you go. You can turn around at any point and go back. There is no water along most of these and you NEED to bring water with you no matter how far you plan on going. Climbing back up does take longer than going down. Do not wait until you are exhausted to turn around. I personally recommend bringing snacks and water regardless of what trail or hike you are going on.
South Rim Day Hikes:
Rim Trail: Up to 13 miles | Stretches from South Kaibab trail to Hermits Rest
Bright Angel Trail: Up to 12 miles | Seasonally has water available along trail
South Kaibab: Up to 6 miles | Best day hike for views with shorter distance
Hermit Trail: Can go to Santa Maria Spring (5 miles round trip) and Dripping Springs (7 miles round trip)
Grandview Trail: Can get to Coconino Saddle (2.2 miles round trip) and Horseshoe Mesa (6.4 miles round trip)
Pull- Up Spots for Photos
It’s not always easy to find a good spot to back the van up to and get an amazing shot out the back. Some parks have pull offs that allow for this and others don’t. Thankfully, Grand Canyon had a few in different spots. The best place to go is somewhere a little less busy but also a big enough parking area to get in and back up easily.
We found a few pull offs with a pretty big parking area along Desert View Drive. This is on the South Rim side of the canyon. You’ll have to drive a good distance down the road to find the best pull offs. We actually stopped at few of them and took photos because each one was different and amazing! The map shown is the the road you’ll need to go down to find the pull offs. You can find it on the east side of the map.
Final Notes
This was such an awesome park to visit and I’m positive you would enjoy it just as much. The trails are difficult but wonderfully marked and majority are paved. Try one of the day hikes and don’t forget to bring water! There are coffee shops and restaurants nearby in Tusayan along with a gas station. So everything you could need is close by. The free campsites are incredible and I would recommend them over the paid one. But maybe try both and see which you like better! I hope you enjoy the park as much as we did and enjoy the crazy views you really won’t see anywhere else.
Mather campground is full and my family are taking our van for this coming memorial day weekend just to stay on Saturday night.
Does the Forest Road 688 campground fill up? I’m worried about them not having a place to pull over and camp.