With a variety of different tours available, Great Venture Tours is a good option for visitors to the greater Grand Canyon region who seek a quality guided tour. Great Venture Tours offers multiple different types of tours to Grand Canyon National Park, as well as tours that explore other favorite area attractions like Antelope Canyon and Sedona, Arizona. Each individual tour is priced differently; prices depend on how involved the tour-in-question is, as well as how long it takes—regardless, most tour rates usually fall between $100 and $200 per person.
Popular Great Venture Tours
Great Venture Tours prides itself on its friendly, experienced staff of tour guides. On a Great Venture tour you can expect a highly informative narration that shares fun and insightful facts about the history, geology, and wildlife of the remarkable Northern Arizona environment. Each Great Venture mini-coach comes standard with large windows, comfortable seating, and a PA system.
Complete Tour
This full-day tour leaves from (your choice of) Flagstaff or Sedona; standard departure-return time for Flagstaff is 8:30am-5:30pm, while Sedona typically starts at 7:45am, and ends at 7:00pm. A ticket costs approximately $150 for adults, and $135 for children under 15. Tour highlights include Sunset Crater National Monument, Wupatki National Monument, lunch at the historic Trading Post in Cameron, and of course the South Rim of the legendary Grand Canyon.
Deluxe Tour
Another full-day option, this tour also picks-up and drops-off in Sedona (7:45am/7:00pm) and Flagstaff (8:15am/5:30pm). The rate is approximately $140 for adults, and $125 for children under 15. This guided excursion stops at the Cameron Trading Post, takes guests along the western edge of the Painted Desert, and spends four hours within Grand Canyon National Park—where you’ll be able to stop at Desert View Watchtower, Grandview Point, and Grand Canyon Village. Lunch is included, and takes place at Maswik Lodge.
Antelope Canyon
This excursion to one of the region’s iconic slot canyons is appropriate for all ages and provides views along the way of such famed locales as Oak Creek Canyon, the Painted Desert, Lake Powell, Glen Canyon Dam, and Vermillion Cliffs. A guided tour of Antelope Canyon itself is the highlight, and last approximately two hours. A box lunch—turkey sandwich, chips, pretzels with hummus, and cookie—is provided to all tour participants. For adults, the tour runs under $200; children 12 and under less than $170.
Things to Know & Insider Tips
- The slanting beams of beautiful light that Antelope Canyon is famous for are best seen from April through September. If that particular part of the Antelope Canyon experience is what you are looking for, you will want to plan your visit accordingly.
- At the end of your tour experience, it is customary to tip your guide approximately 20%, as gratuity is not a part of your ticket’s purchase price.
- Great Venture Tours offers visitors a discount on ticket prices if you go on two or more of their several different tours. This is a smart option for travelers who know they may want to experience guided tours of a number of the region’s many different natural attractions.
- If for whatever reason you find your travel plans must change, you may cancel your tickets with Great Venture Tours at no charge whatsoever as long as you do so more than 24 hours in advance of your tour.
Is Great Venture Tours for You?
Great Venture Tours is an experienced, reliable tour operator. They regularly run a nice mix of tours of varying styles and lengths, meaning that when dealing with Great Venture you will have a decent number of choices from which to make your choice. The duration of their average daily tour is a little longer than some other tour companies in the area that run similar tours. The longer the day, the more you’re able to see, of course—it just means in some cases here a nearly 12-hour day. Whether this is a good thing or bad thing depends on your preferences.
