Grand Canyon Helicopter Tours For New Year's Eve 2018

There are two areas from which to complete a helicopter visit. Las Vegas torus go toward the West Rim while South Rim flights do the South. Vegas helicopters don't go toward the South as it's excessively far. There are no corresponding flights between the edges.

New Year's Eve is almost here and if you are going to do a Grand Canyon helicopter tour, the time is now. Flights are filling up and if you want to make sure you get airborne, book soon and make sure you do it online.

There are two locations from which to do a helicopter tour. Las Vegas torus go to the West Rim while South Rim departures do the South. Vegas helicopters don't go to the South as it's too far. There are no connecting flights between the rims.

Las Vegas

Tours from Vegas offer you lots of options ranging from flyovers to landings. They all follow the same flight path over Lake Mead, Hoover Dam, Colorado River, Fortification Hill and the Grand Canyon itself.

Air-only tours, which are the cheapest option, will turn back for Vegas once they fly over the Canyon. Landing tours will go to the bottom or the top or both. The most popular is the Champagne picnic tour, which goes to the bottom for 30-minutes.

For travelers who want more, you can upgrade this tour to include a boat ride down the Colorado River or a top landing and a VIP Skywalk ticket. The Skywalk, also known as the Glass Bridge, let's you walk 70+ feet over the edge until you are standing a whopping 4.5K feet over the bottom.

South Rim

Only flyover tours are available at the South Rim because that's all the National Park Service allows. You can do a 30-minute or a 50-minute flyover. The former goes from the South Rim to the North Rim and back. The later does that, too, plus the East Rim.

The South Rim also offers some really great air-land combo tours. The one I like the best is the 30-minute helicopter ride followed by a 2-hour Jeep tour. The 30-min. Flight goes through the Dragoon Corridor, the widest, deepest section of the Canyon, while the Hummer Jeep tour stops at all the key landmarks.

Upgrades

Deluxe flights are available at both locations. From Vegas, you can upgrade to the better helicopter, which is an EC-130, plus include hotel transfers by limo and an extended tour over the Vegas Strip. At South Rim, your deluxe option is to upgrade to the EC-130, which I recommend.

Winter weather is upon us. I recommend dressing warmly. Vegas can get cold but not nearly as cold as the South Rim. In Vegas, I recommend layers. At South Rim, wear a medium-weight jacket. Remember, helicopters are climate controlled, so if you are doing a flyover, you'll remain in a heated cabin. If you do a landing tour, you'll be exiting the aircraft and that's where you'll want to be prepared.

Conclusion

I hope this article about Grand Canyon helicopter tours during the New Year's holiday proved helpful. For Vegas travelers, I recommend the bottom-landing picnic tour. At South Rim, I suggest you do the 50-minute flyover because after you do it you'll have seen up to 75 percent of the Park. Finally, remember to book online and in advance as that will result in you getting the best deal on the top flights.