The Grand Canyon holds a special place in my heart. My first backpacking trip was to the Colorado River from the South Rim when I was just 23 years old. Even though I made every first-timer mistake in the book on that trip, it’s still filed away in my brain as one of the best trips ever. Also, I never made any of those mistakes again. lol.

I’m on a mission to explore this stunning national park in all different ways. Along with the backpacking experience, I’ve explored Havasupai twice (10/10 recommend!) and I’ve endlessly hiked the Rim Trail on the South Rim. Someday I want to raft down the Colorado River, too.

I’ve found myself drawn to this Natural Wonder of the World again and again. We have so many fond memories visiting the park that it’s seemingly become our annual winter trip.

This 3-day itinerary is our favorite go-to trip when we’re on a time crunch, but it still allows us to enjoy the journey and views. Since we both work 9-5 M-F jobs we consider ourselves weekend warriors. With both of us getting the Friday after Thanksgiving off, we decided to make the best of the long weekend and headed our early to the Grand Canyon National Park for our annual trip.

Day 1: Leave OC | 8:00 AM

Time to make the 7 hour drive to Williams, AZ, The town we were staying in. We weren’t in a rush to get there as long as we arrived early enough to grab dinner at one of the restaurants. Although it’s the holiday season, I’ve noticed smaller mountain town business tend to close early. In previous years we arrived around 9-10pm and realized there was nowhere to eat other than fast food. But Williams has such a great selection of restaurant options, it’s worth planning on trying one of the local spots out.

Travel Tip:

Be sure to check online for hours of places you’re considering to visit. I like to use Google Maps, starting with my hotel location, and working from there to see what local businesses are within walking distance and its hours. Picking which restaurants, coffee shops or attractions I want to check out.

Wiliams, Arizona | Arrive 7:00 PM

I totally recommend staying in Williams, Arizona. We always like to stay in this town even though there are other hotels closer to the Grand Canyon entrance. Along with being really affordable, the town has so much to offer. Most hotels are centrally located around the downtown area that’s also along Historic Route 66, making it extra cool and cute.

Williams feels like it’s frozen in time. Old cars from the 50’s and neon signs line the main road, along with vintage shopping with classic Route 66 memorabilia being part of the fanfare. Just know you’re gonna get cute vibes, good food and fun experiences when you stay in Williams.

Hotel: Checked into the Rodeway Inn

This was our first time staying at the Rodeway Inn in Williams and we were happily surprised. The room was small, cute, and had everything we needed —especially a heater. It got as low as 17 degrees at night.

Be sure to check out my YouTube video for a room tour.

This hotel is located right in the heart of Williams, so we could walk to all the exciting things happening in town for the holidays.

Contrary to the areas closer to the national park, you have a great selection of food and drink options. All are unique, family-owned and take pride in their menu.

Dinner: Grand Canyon Brewery

We really enjoy eating at The Grand Canyon Brewery. The cabin aesthetic is so cute and their menu is delicious. I love that along with beer, you can get drinks made with their house made liquors too! We had the burger and fries, and fish and—onion rings. Their gin an tonic with their house gin was especially good!

Take the Train

Williams is also home to the Grand Canyon Railway. After we finished dinner we started the stroll back to our hotel and made our way through the railway station to see all the Christmas lights. We saw they do a Polar Express version and that just seemed so fun and perfect for the holidays. I really want to check that out on our next winter trip.

Even if you’re not doing the Polar Express, you can take the train to the South Rim from this spot, but be sure to check their website for the schedule and tickets. They tend to sell out.

We Love Exploring the Town During the Holidays

Sitting at 6,765 elevation this quaint mountain town also does the holidays right. Hopefully you get a little snow, too! There were spots of snow on the surrounding mountains so it was pretty cold, dropping from the 40’s to the 20-30’s in the early night. It adds to the holiday ambiance they fill the town with. With a large Christmas tree in the middle of their downtown area (with a fun sled photo op!) and other light displays, it makes Williams the better more charming choice over the tourist trap clumps of hotels closer to the park entrance.

Day 2: Grand Canyon NP

Williams is a 1 hour drive from the Grand Canyon entrance. Depending on the season, this entrance can get backed up with traffic with people trying to enter the park. So if you’re visiting during peak season, plan to enter early to avoid long entry lines.

After eating the complimentary breakfast at our hotel we hit the road a little later, knowing we had planned to stay late. We were visiting Thanksgiving weekend (2022) and worried it might be super busy during the holidays, but we were happily surprised to see that although there was a line at around 11AM, we made our way through it in about 15 minutes.

Our America the Beautiful (NP) Pass got us into the park free—and I have to say this pass for $80 is totally worth it. We’ve gotten so much use out of our pass this year and will definitely be renewing for the third year in the row—If you don’t have the pass, entree fee is $35 dollars per vehicle and good for 7 days.

Get the South Rim Grand Canyon Map [CLICK HERE]

Grand Canyon Info:

Entrance fee: $35 for 7 days, or included in the America the Beautiful Pass

Plan your trip and check the NPS website for updates, road conditions and alerts.

When to Visit:

March - May: Best time to visit. It starting to warm up and it’s before the tourists have arrived.

June - August: Peak Season. With long summer days, canyon breezes and the occassional monsoon rains its easy to see why people love to visit during this time. It’s also the only time both the South Rim and North Rim are open at the same time if you’re interested in seeing both.

September - November: Best Time to Visit. Kids are back in school, the tourists have disappeared and the weather is crisp and perfect.

This is when I visited during this trip (November 2022) and I can attest to the perfect conditions! There is also a chance of getting snow. The days were a perfect 50 degrees but as it gets close to sunset, be sure to bundle up (or check my packing list below!).

December - February: Nice but cold. This is definitely a peaceful time for the park but be prepared fro frosty temperatures with possibly a decent amount of ice and snow.

Shuttle System:

Get Current Updates from the NPS Website

Village (Blue) Route: Year Round

Kaibab Rim (Orange) Route: Year-round

Hikers' Express Shuttle: Year-round

Hermits Road (Red Route): Between March 1 and November 30, closed during winter

Let’s Do This

We parked at the Grand Canyon Visitors Center with a plan: hike the Rim Trail with a plan to watch sunset at a specific viewpoint.

First things first, we got my NP passport stamp and explored the visitors center. Do you get the cancellation stickers/stamps at NP visitors centers? Let me know in the comments if you’re a nerd like me.

The Rim Trail starts at the South Kaibab Trailhead, but starting at the the Visitors Center puts you in a great spot at popular viewpoint, Mathers Point.

Time for Mathers Point

This is one of the most popular viewpoints on the South Rim, especially for sunset—and it’s for good reason! It’s easily accessible, but also, check out this view:

We walked some of the Rim Trail here, walking all the way to the Yavapai Point/Geology Museum before hopping on the blue Shuttle to take us to the Village Route Transfer Shuttle Stop so we could start the Rim Trail from the Bright Angel Hotel.

Rim Trail:

Difficulty: Easy

Distance:

12.7 miles from South Kaibab Trailhead to Hermits Rest

7 miles from Bright Angel to Hermits Rest

Shuttle System: Seasonal

From Bright Angel Lodge, There are 8 Viewpoints:

Maricopa Point
Powell Point
Hopi Point (Bathroom located here)
Mohave Point
The Abyss
Monument Creek Vista
Pima Point
Hermits Rest (Bathroom located here)

Hiking Time

We headed out on the trail and enjoyed the perfect weather and clear skies. Knowing we had plans to watch sunset at Mohave Point we made our way through the trail, enjoying the hike and all the views. It meanders through forest-y wilderness and stunning rim views.

Walking the trail versus taking the shuttle allows us to bask in the vast landscape while avoiding crowds. Periodically we’d make it to a viewpoint and there’d be a small crowd, but most people moved on fairly quickly and we’d get the spot to ourselves for a short bit until the next shuttle drop off.

I like to know in advance where I want to end up or watch sunset. It helps plan for the day and takes the stress out of where to go next.

Best Places to Watch Sunset on the South Rim

Mathers Point
Hopi Point
Mohave Point (this is our favorite spot)
Pima Point
Yavapai Point

Plan Ahead

Where would you want to watch sunset on the South Rim? Our favorite is Mohave Point. It’s slightly less crowded than Hopi Point, but also just a 5 minute walk away if you wanted to see both sunset views. Mohave Point is also my favorite because of its view of the Colorado River:

With any popular sunset spot, we anticipated crowds and took a seat early at Mohave Point. We found a perfect bench with the most amazing view to catch the sunset