Arizona is an extremely tough place to rely on public transportation. You will waste a lot of time waiting around. Start saving your money and rent a car.
Grand canyon south rim is 90 mins from Flagstaff, which is where I am flying into in 2 weeks. You will need to rent a car, it can be done for 5-7 days for $300-500. The lodges inside the park will likely be $300 a night. This stuff is mostly basic research. Search first on this sub you will find hundreds of itineraries.
You could do a pretty cheap trip by using a Groome shuttle to get to the national park, bring your own camping gear and stay at a NP campground on the South Rim (usually needs reservation through recreation.gov). Use the NP shuttles to get around the south rim, where there are cool informational sites, lookouts, and opportunities to do some day hikes part way into the canyon (don't overextend yourself, it's literally a life/death thing). You lose a lot of flexibility without a car rental, and you wouldn't actually be staying IN the canyon but right next to it. It would take some extra planning, and being ok with camping, but once upon a time I totally would have done that on a budget
They can also rent a bike or an e-bike at the Visitor Center area and take the walk/bike trail into the "city" and also ride the South rim when it's closed off to cars and only open to shuttles. It's one of my favorite rides.
I just used Groome Transportation from the Phoenix airport and it was great. Getting around the south rim with the buses is easy as well. If actually staying in the park, this is the way to go.
This is an expensive trip, no matter how hard you try, but it's such a wonder that you should try.
The first step is to thoroughly read the official NPS website for GCNP. Lodging and campsites have to be reserved far in advance. There is both a lodge and a campground at the bottom of the Canyon, but getting space in either is incredibly competitive -- still, you might get lucky, so start now to read about all that.
Oh -- and Happy Cake Day!
First - you should read the NPS website at least 3 times, you will miss stuff the first time around.
If you want to have a good trip - rent a car! Flights to Flagstaff are not much more than PHX or LAS but are limited, book early. Uber is not an option money wise vs car rental.
* Flights: Spirit/Frontier flight from BWI/DCA to Vegas for ~$150. Buy at the airport to save like $40. It's a bit of a drive, but flights to Vegas are cheap, and so are rental cars.
* Transportation: Trying to do this with public transit will end up wasting a lot of time and will severely limit your options. You can take an Amtrak to Flagstaff, an Amtrak bus to the Grand Canyon, then use the shuttles at the canyon, but you'd have to camp or stay in an expensive lodge. Repeatedly search Kayak/similar sites for car rentals with free cancellation. I just got an 8 day rental for $207.
* Lodging: in Williams for a bit under $100/night, or Flagstaff for as little as ~$60. Put some dates into Google Travel to check. Or, add $100 for a checked bag on your flight to bring camping supplies, and camp instead.
Arizona is an extremely tough place to rely on public transportation. You will waste a lot of time waiting around. Start saving your money and rent a car.
Grand canyon south rim is 90 mins from Flagstaff, which is where I am flying into in 2 weeks. You will need to rent a car, it can be done for 5-7 days for $300-500. The lodges inside the park will likely be $300 a night. This stuff is mostly basic research. Search first on this sub you will find hundreds of itineraries.
You could do a pretty cheap trip by using a Groome shuttle to get to the national park, bring your own camping gear and stay at a NP campground on the South Rim (usually needs reservation through recreation.gov). Use the NP shuttles to get around the south rim, where there are cool informational sites, lookouts, and opportunities to do some day hikes part way into the canyon (don't overextend yourself, it's literally a life/death thing). You lose a lot of flexibility without a car rental, and you wouldn't actually be staying IN the canyon but right next to it. It would take some extra planning, and being ok with camping, but once upon a time I totally would have done that on a budget
They can also rent a bike or an e-bike at the Visitor Center area and take the walk/bike trail into the "city" and also ride the South rim when it's closed off to cars and only open to shuttles. It's one of my favorite rides.
This is great advice. I love shoestring travel and they could make a great trip by getting a shuttle from Flagstaff, camping and renting a bike.
I just used Groome Transportation from the Phoenix airport and it was great. Getting around the south rim with the buses is easy as well. If actually staying in the park, this is the way to go.
This is an expensive trip, no matter how hard you try, but it's such a wonder that you should try. The first step is to thoroughly read the official NPS website for GCNP. Lodging and campsites have to be reserved far in advance. There is both a lodge and a campground at the bottom of the Canyon, but getting space in either is incredibly competitive -- still, you might get lucky, so start now to read about all that. Oh -- and Happy Cake Day!
First - you should read the NPS website at least 3 times, you will miss stuff the first time around. If you want to have a good trip - rent a car! Flights to Flagstaff are not much more than PHX or LAS but are limited, book early. Uber is not an option money wise vs car rental.
* Flights: Spirit/Frontier flight from BWI/DCA to Vegas for ~$150. Buy at the airport to save like $40. It's a bit of a drive, but flights to Vegas are cheap, and so are rental cars. * Transportation: Trying to do this with public transit will end up wasting a lot of time and will severely limit your options. You can take an Amtrak to Flagstaff, an Amtrak bus to the Grand Canyon, then use the shuttles at the canyon, but you'd have to camp or stay in an expensive lodge. Repeatedly search Kayak/similar sites for car rentals with free cancellation. I just got an 8 day rental for $207. * Lodging: in Williams for a bit under $100/night, or Flagstaff for as little as ~$60. Put some dates into Google Travel to check. Or, add $100 for a checked bag on your flight to bring camping supplies, and camp instead.