If you want am unforgettable present for Mom on her special day, you should take her on an air tour of the Grand Canyon. You can choose an air-only tour or one that also lands, both are great fun!

Grand Canyon airplane tours take off from airfields surrounding Las Vegas, Nevada, and also from the Grand Canyon National Park Airport in Tusayan, AZ. If you begin your trip from a city in Arizona, you have to go to the South Rim, but if you depart from Vegas you can go to the South Rim or the West Rim.

Can you think of anything more thrilling for Mom's big day than whisking her away from Sin City for the fun and excitement of a Grand Canyon airplane tour? But first, you need to figure out which rim you will visit.

The South Rim is great if your Mom is into nature and would enjoy seeing natural beauty. If she's looking for thrills and excitement, the West Rim is the ticket.

Flights To The West Rim

On your way to the West Rim from Las Vegas, you see other interesting sights from the air such as the scenic Lake Mead and huge Hoover Dam. The air-only plane tours give you a bird's eye view of all the notable highlights along the western rim of the canyon, including the Grand Canyon Skywalk. There are also landing tours available and these are a lot of fun so you should consider taking one if you can. With a landing tour, you can add several thrilling side excursions.

For instance, you can treat your Mom to a landing tour that includes a VIP pass to the Skywalk or Glass Bridge. She can walk 70 ft beyond the edge of the canyon and stand 4000 ft above the ground below. It is a once in a lifetime experience!

If that's not her cup of tea, she'd probably be thrilled by taking a helicopter flight down to the canyon floor. The West Rim is the only place you can do this (South Rim regulations prohibit flying below the level of the rim), and it's a truly unique experience. The flight is spectacular but the experience is even better when you add on a rafting trip down the smooth waters of the Colorado River.

South Rim Flights

Tours to the South Rim from Vegas depart two to three times daily. It only takes about an hour to fly there. Included in your airplane tour to the South Rim is a motor coach tour of the National Park that is about two hours long, plus you can add on a helicopter tour of the region too.

The 50-minute helicopter flight is a good option because it lets you see the East, South, and North Rims of the canyon in a single tour. You'll have seen almost ? of the entire National Park by the time you finally land!

Something else you can add on to your South Rim tour is a Jeep ride through the Antelope Canyon where you Mom can see some amazing rock formations. A fantastic way to end your tour is with a relaxing smooth-water rafting trip down the Colorado River. What could be better?

In Conclusion

These are some fantastic ideas for celebrating Mom's special day on Sunday, May 12. The airplane tours fill up fast though so don't wait to buy your tickets. Buy your tickets online at the tour operator's website and you will save enough money to treat Mom to dinner when you get back to your hotel!