Las Vegas Deals

Grand Canyon Activities: Taking A Helicopter Ride From Las Vegas To The West Rim

Article by K Kravitz

Going to Las Vegas and looking for an awesome activity? Take a helicopter tour to the Grand Canyon’s West Rim. With three types of trips to choose from, there’s bound to be a flight that’s right for you.

The most basic is the classic air tour. It essentially flies to West Rim and back. This trip can easily be upgraded to bundle Grand Canyon Skywalk tickets, a bottom landing, or a smooth-water rafting tour. Here’s a closer look at each of the these West Rim helicopter tours:

Air-Only Tour

A great introduction to the canyon. Includes a ton of West Rim highlights, including Eagle Point, Guano Point, the Skywalk, and the Colorado River. Upgrade to include a flight over the fabulous Las Vegas Strip on the return. Sunrise and sunset flights are available.

Grand Canyon Skywalk Tour

Fly into Grand Canyon West. Go into the Skywalk and be prepared to walk 70 feet past the edge and to be lifted some 4,000 feet above the mighty Colorado River. Includes a delicious BBQ lunch made by the Hualapai Indian Tribe. Take a free shuttle to all key viewpoints. Explore a genuine Hualapai Indian Village.

Base-Landing Tour

Descend 4,000 feet to the bottom of the canyon. Deplane. Enjoy a Champagne toast under a traditional Indian Ramada. Explore the canyon’s ancient floor. Feeling really adventurous? Tack on a pontoon raft ride down the Colorado river.

Most helicopter tours include free shuttle bus pick up and drop off to all hotels on the Las Vegas Strip. Landing and Skywalk trips are led by professional pilot-guides and include a delicious lunch. Prices on the Internet for these packages start around 0 per person.

Trips take off year round from the Vegas metropolitan area and fly over Lake Mead, the biggest man-made reservoir in the U.S., Hoover Dam, the brand new Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Bridge, and the majestic Grand Cliffs Wash. I see these extra sights as a huge bonus, especially since helicopters fly at a lower altitude than airplanes and give you a spectacular bird’s eye view of them.

Book your helicopter tour in advance. Peak season is spring and summer and low season is winter. Flights are limited, popular, and sell out quickly, especially sunrise and sunset tours. If you book a flight the day before you plan to go or on the same day, expect to pay a premium.

Always get your flights online. I’ve seen amazing specials online that take nearly 35 percent off the rack rate. I buy all my trips on the Web, and can attest that these sites are secure and safe when processing your credit-card transaction.

Las Vegas Grand Canyon West Rim helicopter tours deliver loads of fun and adventure. The West Rim is home to the Grand Canyon Skywalk, and it’s the only place where you can land at the bottom of the Grand Canyon and take an optional boat ride down the Colorado River. If you are looking for a Grand Canyon experience that comes with a huge “wow” factor, book a helicopter flight. It’s an activity that will make this Las Vegas trip extra special.

About the Author

Travel writer Keith Kravitz is a frequent blogger about things to do in Las Vegas. Here’s his list of the top Grand Canyon Helicopter tours to the West Rim…

Narita International Airport (NRT / RJAA) 2009-4-29… filmed at RWY34L End (11:57 JST) 2009-5-2… filmed at RWY16R End (10:48 JST)
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Las Vegas Tourist Tips

Article by www.cheapfares.com

Wednesday, May 4th, 2011

Cheap airplane tickets, really cheap discount hotel rooms, as well as cheap vacation packages remain readily available to visitors going to Las Vegas. Paying attention to wearing appropriate clothing, remembering the importance of moderation, and trying to stay on time, can go a long way in making your visit a successful one.

One of the common mistakes made by tourists new to Las Vegas is to assume that Vegas is always hot. The city is subject to strong winds in the fall and winter and extreme dryness and very high temperatures in the summer. Temperatures are known to fall over 30 degrees at night in the winter and remain in the triple digits during the summer. The average winter temperature is 55 degrees vs. 103 in the summer.

Loose fitting, light colored clothing is preferred in the summer as well as sunscreen, sunglasses, hats, visors and plenty of water. During the winter heavy coats, closed toed shoes, gloves and scarves are recommended especially at night. Comfortable walking shoes are preferred by most visitors because the Strip is several miles long.

Vegas casinos are constructed such that no clocks or windows are visible, encouraging people to lose any sense of time. Setting limits is important if you don’t want to suffer regrets later: Decide up front:

• how much you can afford to gamble/loose
• how many drinks you responsibly imbibe at any given point
• how much sun you can be exposed to without burning
• when you need to go to bed to be able to participate in the next day’s activities

Most visitors do not want to pay for one night’s excesses by being incapacitated the following 24 hours.

Visitors need to allow plenty of time to arrive at different Las Vegas destinations. Being on time is important when having dinner reservations, show tickets, and business meetings. Las Vegas Boulevard tends be very crowded during holidays, weekends, when conventions are in town, and peak travel periods, usually between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Waits for the monorail, taxis, and shuttles can easily last in excess of 30 minutes at night and even longer after a convention or show has closed for the day.
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Where Grown Ups Go to Play

Cheap airplane tickets and cheap vacation packages are out there for parents who want to enjoy some time together away from their kids. The ideal adult getaway is where you don’t have to face kids spoiling your tranquility and you can just concentrate on enjoying the moment together.

Sandals Emerald Bay on the outer Bahamian island of Great Exuma is such a place. It is easy to get to; only an hour by air from Miami. Only guests over 18 are allowed. Personal service is readily available along with great food, massages, an extensive list of activities including golf, scuba diving, and kayaking, as well as private excursions. Private dinners can be easily arranged. No jockeying is required to snag beach chairs at any of the pools.

If you would like to stay within the continental United States consider checking out Sonoma County which is about 30 miles outside of San Francisco. Wine infused chocolates are available as well as romantic bike tours and fabulous hotel deals.

Another place to enjoy some peace and quiet is to take a cruise on a smaller ship that does not allow children. Windstar Cruises operates three luxury yachts that hold between 148 to 312 passengers and cruises some of the most romantic ports of Italy.

Sometimes couples need a little away time where they do not have to keep their kids occupied and every minute keep track of what they are doing. Often returning home from such a trip is just the thing to help everyone enjoy their family more.
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About the Author

Cheapfares.com employees enjoy sharing their travel points of view and latest travel news with others who might share similar interests.

Easy Tips For Las Vegas Deals: Because You Deserve A Sin City Adventure

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Life is more stressful than ever these days. You work hard, and deserve some fun. While it may feel like money is too tight to spend anything on travel and leisure, you only live once… so don’t let the economy stop you if you want to blow off some steam with a weekend in Las Vegas. Sure, you may be lacking in funds… but who isn’t these days? Because everyone is strapped for cash, that means Sin City is hurting as well… and desperate to draw visitors back to town, which makes it easier than ever to find Las Vegas deals.

Beyond the rates brought to new lows by the economy, there are a few extra tips you can follow to save even more cash and score great Las Vegas deals and discounts. You can have a shockingly low-cost weekend in Vegas… if you just know a few smart tricks for scoring Las Vegas deals…

Unwrap A Package Deal! The airlines, hotels, and travel sites all offer package deals, which allow you to book your flight, hotel room, dinner reservations, show tickets, and more, in one bundle that costs a lot less than if you paid for everything separately. Whatever you’re looking to do, there is a most likely a package deal that includes tickets to the show you want to see, a room at the hotel you want to stay at, and a flight on your favorite airline, bundled into one discounted package.
Make Wednesday The New Saturday! The hard-party crowd migrates to Vegas on the weekend, and since more people are in town trying to book a room, rates are higher. But if you can take the time to travel during the middle of the week, you can save big money. The cheapest room rates can be found on Wednesdays, in the middle of the work-week. This also means The Strip is less packed, lines are a little shorter, and you actually might get into your nightclub or restaurant of choice without waiting for two hours. There’s really no downside to turning Wednesday into your Vegas party day, especially if you can play hooky from work for a day or two.
Surf The Web For The Best Discounts! The internet is brimming over with travel deal sites offering incredible Las Vegas deals. Travelocity, Expedia, Kayak, Priceline, are just a few of the big players, and it seems like a new one springs up once a day. With such a selection of deal sites to browse, there is no reason for you to not find the most amazing Las Vegas deals and discounts to book your trip.
Find Half Price Tickets! Only suckers pay full price… which is why you’ve got to find one of the booths hawking half price tickets located all over The Strip and other parts of Vegas. These booths are easy to find, since there are usually long lines of discount seekers waiting outside of them to snag tickets for up to half off. If you can stand to wait in the blistering Vegas heat, you can score phenomenal deals. And since they also offer discounted meals from dozens of restaurants and buffets, you might want to put on some sun-block and jump in line.
You’re Already A Player; Join A Player’s Club! All the casinos in Vegas feature player’s clubs or rewards programs which you can sign up for for free to earn points that can go towards comps and discounts. Many Vegas resorts are connected, so you can use your player’s club card to earn points at a bunch of resorts. The MGM Mirage Players Club card is good at 12 resorts, including Bellaigo, Aria, Mirage, and MGM Grand. In addition, Player’s Club members receive exclusive emails with deals, coupons, and enticing offers. The Casinos want you to sign up for the Player’s Club so they can collect demographic information about your behavior at their casino, so if you don’t mind the Big Brother element, join a Players club or two to earn earn comps and other money saving discounts.

There are always more tactics to find Las Vegas Air Hotel Specails, but if you follow the bullet points above, you’ll be well on your way to becoming a master of Las Vegas deals.

Experience an exciting and relaxing trip to Las Vegas, which includes a breathtaking air and ground tour of Grand Canyon, Lake Mead, and Hoover Dam.