Maverick Helicopters: Grand Canyon South Rim Scenic Helicopter Tour

Your experience

Fly the Grand Canyon South Rim by helicopter on a 25- or 45-minute scenic flight with routes over the Kaibab National Forest and Dragon Corridor.

Getting started

Check in at Grand Canyon National Park Airport in Tusayan, AZ, 30 minutes before your scheduled departure. After your details are verified, you head to the helicopter for a short safety briefing and boarding. Once seated, your professional pilot prepares for takeoff and guides the aircraft toward the Kaibab National Forest to begin your scenic flight.

What to expect

Grand Canyon South Rim scenic helicopter flight

Your experience centers on a helicopter journey from the South Rim that reveals the changing geology and scale of the Grand Canyon from the air. Depending on the option you select, the flight lasts approximately 25 minutes or 45 minutes and follows a set route with no landing or ground time, so every moment is spent in the air.

Features

• Helicopter flight over the Kaibab National Forest gives you an aerial introduction to the region's dense forest plateau before the ground suddenly opens into the canyon itself.
• Flight over the South and North Rims lets you see how the canyon widens and deepens, with panoramic views of the widest and deepest sections as you cross from one side to the other.
• Aerial views of the Grand Canyon's inner features include clear sightlines to the Tower of Ra and Vishnu Schist, among the oldest exposed rock layers visible from your route.
• Your professional pilot manages the entire scenic flight, which is a scenic flight only with no landing, and provides a smooth route over highlights such as the Dragon Corridor and Colorado River.
• On the approx 25-min shorter scenic flight, the Dragon Corridor highlights route carries you from the Kaibab National Forest into the canyon, over the Colorado River toward the North Rim with sustained views of the Tower of Ra and Vishnu Schist.
• On the approx 45-min extended scenic flight, the route via Painted Desert, Desert View Watchtower and the Confluence adds time over the Painted Desert, passes Desert View Watchtower, then continues to the Confluence where the Little Colorado and Colorado Rivers meet before you traverse the widest, deepest canyon sections.

Highlights

• Take to the sky above the Grand Canyon South Rim for sweeping views of cliffs, forested plateaus and canyon depths in just a few minutes.
• Check in 30 minutes early at Grand Canyon National Park Airport in Tusayan, then board for an approximately 25-minute helicopter flight.
• Fly over the Kaibab National Forest and along the South and North Rims, with aerial views of the Grand Canyon, Tower of Ra and Vishnu Schist.
• On this scenic flight with no landing, watch the Dragon Corridor open beneath you as your professional pilot narrates the Colorado River below.
• Upgrade to a 45-minute extended flight that adds the Painted Desert, Desert View Watchtower and the Confluence, where two rivers meet far below.