Question:

We are coming to the Grand Canyon and want to go to the Grand Canyon Skywalk. Where is the best place to stay overnight?

Answer:

The Hualupai Lodge at Diamond Creek is the closest overnight accommodations to the Grand Canyon Skybridge, but at this time of year, you'll need reservations.

The next most convenient place to stay will depend on where you are coming from. Are you flying into Phoenix or Las Vegas, or Driving from somewhere?

The two decent sized towns nearby are Kingman (convenient from Vegas/California and about 70 miles/2 hours driving time from the Skybridge) and Flagstaff (convenient from Phoenix/Colorado/New Mexico and about 216 miles/4 hours driving time from the Skybridge).

To get to the Skybridge from Sedona, you'd need to drive north to Flagstaff/I-40. Then you'd go west past Williams and near Seligman, turn onto the old Route 66. Take Route 66 to Peach Springs. From Peach Springs, you'll turn off onto another road and go northeast to Grand Canyon West. From Sedona to Peach Spring should take you 3 hours or so.

Grand Canyon West is actually not that far from Las Vegas, so an alternate plan for you might be to fly into Vegas, drive to GC West, then to Sedona, then to the Grand Canyon via I-40 or 89A and then fly back out of Flagstaff.

Any way you slice it, it's a pretty long driving trip!

Be sure you know where you are going

There appears to be a lot of misinformation out there regarding the Skybridge. Google maps had their Skybridge marker way off!

Grand Canyon West, where the Skybridge is, and the Grand Canyon West Rim, where most of the 5 million yearly visitors to the Grand Canyon go, are not the same place.

Actually, they are not even close! Grand Canyon West, which is where the Skybridge is, is outside of the national park on the Hualupai reservation. The Grand Canyon Village/West Rim is over 4 hours drive from the Skybridge, so if you have a limited time to visit, you may need to choose between the two.

Are you itching to see the new glass-bottomed Grand Canyon Skybridge? Check out this map and plain English explanation of the area before you get yourself lost in the Arizona desert: http://www.beckysbackyard-grandcanyon.com/200609.html

Rebecca Beltran is a former long-time resident of the Grand Canyon National Park. To hear more about what to see and do when visiting the Grand Canyon and ask her your own questions, go to http://beckysbackyard-grandcanyon.com