While researching new vacation ideas, I recently came across what many insiders say is about to become the modern-day counterpart of the 20th century luxury ocean cruise. Called a rail cruise, it puts travelers eager for a one-of-a-kind vacation experience on board classic trains plying some of the most scenic American countryside. The outings, which take anywhere from several days to more than a week, bring together luxurious furnishings, delicious food and first-rate service in exclusive settings typically reserved for only about a hundred passengers.
If you watch the Travel Channel, you may already be acquainted with rail cruising from a travel guide about one of these tour trains, the American Orient Express (AOE). The train, which was recently renamed the GrandLuxe Express when AOE’s parent company changed its name to GrandLuxe Rail Journeys, is made up of polished, bullet-like lounge and dining cars originating from the 1940s and 1950s. Inside, mahogany and brass give the cars and compartments an elegant art-deco flair that definitely embodies the Golden Age of train travel.
GrandLuxe Rail Journeys sends its trains on excursions that offer passengers views and experiences never dreamed of by earlier of steamship cruisers. One of the most spectacular has to be National Parks of the West, a 10-day luxury rail cruise that starts its south-to-north leg in Albuquerque, New Mexico. From there, the train carves out a route that takes it to Santa Fe, Sedona, the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, a choice of Bryce Canyon or Zion National Parks, Salt Lake City, Yellow Stone National Park and finally, Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park. There’s also a version of the excursion that starts in Wyoming and then moves south (instead of north) to finish up in Albuquerque.
Another great excursion has to be the 9-day journey that includes four of the Pacific Northwest’s most stunning national parks. For those who start their journey with the the eastbound leg of the Great Northwestern National Parks tour, the trip starts in Seattle, Washington, and heads first to Mt. Rainier National Park, where train passengers can enjoy a unforgettable view of the Cascade Range’s highest peak (14,410 feet). After that it’s on to the Columbia River Gorge, beautiful Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, pristine Glacier National Park, Helena, Montana, and finally Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Westbound travelers start at Grand Teton and finish their trip in the Emerald City of Seattle.
Remember, these are carriage-grade tours that offer outstanding comfort and five-star cuisine in a truly unique environment, so expect to pay accordingly. Rates for the 2008 season, which includes eight different departure dates between early May and late June, start at 5,250 dollars per person for the National Parks of the West Tour. The Northwestern National Parks tour starts at 4,710 dollars per person. Included in the fare is the cost of travel, some of the finest cuisine on wheels and on board sleeping accommodations in two-person, original Pullman sleeper cars. Taking advantage of early booking can cut the cost of the trip by an average of about 250 dollars.
If prices like these are just too steep for your wallet, you can still enjoy the luxury of rail cruising. GrandLuxe Rail Journeys also offers rail trips that are significantly less expensive. For example, you can journey from Chicago to Los Angeles for 1,599 dollars or take one of many 789-dollar trips that connect like Washington, D.C. and Miami, Denver and San Francisco, Denver and Chicago, and Chicago and Washington, D.C.
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Compilation of my journey across the States..
Help answer the question aboutGrand Canyon National Park
What kind of landforms are found at Grand Canyon National Park?Okay I need this really quick! It is for a project that is due soon! HELP!
Thank you so much! All of you!
Brilliant work, MWTMC! I’ve posted it to my facebook to share! My friends still talk about how nice it was to meet you! Cheers!
ziet er goed uit hoor! sommige beelden iets te snel voor een ouwe man zoals ik>>> complimenten!!
Erg mooi gedaan!!!
I like
Your (unfortunately stolen) camera shoots great footage! wow!
The easist section of the park to visit for handicapped visitors is the South Rim area north of Flagstaff (which is the most developed). Even here though, there will be some challenges because of the rough and uneven terrain and because many of the historic buildings were not designed for wheelchair access.
Handicap facilities and services are outlined in a document on the Grand Canyon National Park website (see link below). The most important thing to note is that most of the shuttles in the park are not wheelchair accessible, but special shuttle arrangements can be made if you call in advance (this is covered in the link below).
Generally speaking, the area around the lodges has fairly level paved trails running along the rim which would be fairly easy to navigate in a wheelchair and still provide good views. The drive-up overlooks at Yavapai and Mather points also have decent viewing areas that could be reached by wheelchair (although both involve going up some slopes). A particularly nice view could be had from the Yavapai Observation Station – a little geology exhibit and viewing room built right on the edge of the rim with large bay windows.
For lodging, Maswik and Yavapai Lodges are probably the most wheelchair accessible and have the best parking. All of the major eating places are also wheelchair accessible.
Note that one possible challenge is that there are a lot of little ups and downs in the lay of the land around the overlooks and lodges. Most of them are not very steep and all (that I can think of) can be reached by going up a slope, ramp or other incline without requiring steps, but the lodge area is definitely not a perfectly flat plain.
One other little note… the South Rim is at 7000 feet elevation and can have snow and icy patches on the ground well into April which can make it hard for everybody to negoiate the paths and walkways.
The South Rim and North Rim of the canyon are two very different places and because there are no bridges across the Grand Canyon it is a long 5-hour drive around to get from one to the other.
The South Rim of the canyon is more developed (more lodges, stores and overlooks) and is easier to reach because it is nearer to Phoenix and I-40. The North Rim has only one lodge and there are no major cities nearby (even the small towns of Fredonia and Kanab are a good 1.5 hours away). Because the North Rim is a 1000 feet higher in elevation, it is cooler in summer and has more pine trees. However, for the same reasons (colder and less developed), it is closed from mid-October to mid-May. So unless you are planning on going during summer, the South Rim is your only option.
As far as RVs and camping goes. Both the North Rim and the South Rim have large nice car-camping campgrounds with designated spots, picnic tables and bathrooms. If your RV is small enough to fit in a regular spot, than you could go there. However, if it is a large RV that needs a true full-size RV spot and hookups than your only option is going to be the South Rim where they do have a full size trailer park where visitors can rent a space (see links below).
As for which rim is better to visit (aside from RV options), that sort of depends on your interests and when you are visiting. I personally greatly prefer the North Rim during the summer because it is cooler and much more peaceful, while the South Rim can be a zoo between Memorial Day and Labor Day with difficult parking and crowded attractions. However, if you are going outside of summer, need to a full RV hook-up or want more shops and attractions than the South Rim is your best bet.
Note that you can make reservations for both the campground and trailer village and it is a good idea to do so well in advance as getting last minute spots (especially as summer gets closer) is difficult.
Tusayan, AZ is just south of the park enterance. There are a few hotels there. Check out Williams, AZ and Flagstaff, AZ as well. There is lodging for almost every budget in eithe of those 2 towns.
I know it is cold there right now! But, the temperatures can vary quite a bit from the rim to the bottom of the canyon.
From the National Park Service website http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/weather-condition.htm:
With an elevation spanning from around 2000 feet to over 8000 feet (760-2440m), the Grand Canyon area experiences a variety of weather conditions. This weather variety includes cold winters and mild pleasant summers, moderate humidity, and considerable diurnal temperature changes at the higher elevations, with hot and drier summers at the bottom of the Grand Canyon along with cool damp winters. Summer thunderstorms and winter snowfall adds to the weather variety in this region.
Spring
By mid-April, winter weather usually begins to break, and although snow is not uncommon in May, warm spells become more frequent. The winter cold gives way to a warming and pleasant spring period with average high temperatures gradually rising from the 50s and 60s (10-21°C) in April through the 70s to 80s (21-32°C) by June along the Rim, and from the 80s (27-32°C) in April to near 105 (41°C) by June along the river. Low temperatures will typically fall below freezing on the Rim in April and May and warm into the 40s (4-9°C) by June, with low temperatures from the 50s (10-15°C) in April to the 70s (21-26°C) by June along the river. Spring is typically breezy to windy with winds occasionally gusting over 40 mph (18 m/s) and dry with little precipitation occurring in May and early June. Due to the very dry airmass typical of the late spring months, late season frosts and freezes are still a possibility, with sub freezing temperatures being recorded as late as July at the North Rim. Snowfall has been reported as late as the middle of June.
I am unsure of what you mean by sources so I will answer in two different ways.
The natural source of the Grand Canyon is the Colorado River. In the prehistoric past, the Colorado River had become a wide, slow river similar to the Mississippi. It flowed across a flat plain down to the Gulf of California. A geologic uplift occurred and the Colorado's windy course began to cut down into the new plateau creating the deep, winding Grand Canyon.
The historic source of the Grand Canyon National Park dates back to 1848 when the Grand Canyon became a U.S. territory at the end of the Mexican American War. In 1857, the U.S Military traveled up the Colorado from the Gulf of California to the western reaches of the Grand Canyon. In 1869, the Powell Expedition mapped the depths of the Canyon.
Between 1869 and 1906, the Canyon was exploited as a commercial enterprise by the railroads. In 1906, portions were set aside as a game reserve followed by the creation of the Grand Canyon National Monument in 1908. On Feb. 26, 1919, Woodrow Wilson signed the law that created the Grand Canyon National Park.
Phoenix is the best price wise. Flagstaff is the closest but it might be more expensive. Phoenix is about 4 hrs away. Flagstaff is about 1-1/2 hrs away.
Big horn Sheep, condors, and reptiles…go to the link for more info…then you can research their adaptations by googling them
ex: "big horn sheep adaptations" etc.
Good luck!
Great answers so far, I might add-
http://www.bobspixels.com/kaibab.org/
Yes, there are roads all over both of those parks. I have driven them.