Perhaps you’ve seen spectacular photographs of the world-famous slot canyons and red rock formations in the heart of Arizona’s Canyon Country and wondered if a visit with kids is doable. Great news—there are several slot canyons in the area that kids (ages 8 & up) have so much fun exploring, making it an excellent destination for families. Here we share tips and suggestions about a family trip to Page, Arizona, including details about slot canyons, Horseshoe Bend and water activities on the southern end of Lake Powell, all of which are part of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.
WHERE IS PAGE, ARIZONA?
The City of Page, which is at the border of Arizona and Utah, is a small town of 7,500, so many people don’t realize when they visit Horseshoe Bend, Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon, southern Lake Powell, Rattlesnake Canyon and Glen Canyon Dam, that they’re in (or going through) it! Not only does this family-friendly destination offer a plethora of hidden gems to uncover, it’s also a haven for adventure-seeking families (read more about that under Things to Do).
Page is located on the edge of the Navajo Nation, which spans over 27,400 square miles in Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. Part of the experience is learning about local Indigenous culture. Tours are conducted on tribal lands with Navajo guides.
Page is in close proximity to a number of national parks and monuments. It’s only 30 miles from Rainbow Bridge National Monument and two hours west of Monument Valley. It is conveniently positioned between Grand Canyon National Park and Bryce Canyon (each is about two hours to the north or south), making it a great “home base” for people who want to make the most of their visit to Arizona’s kid-friendly slot canyons.
BEST TIME TO VISIT ARIZONA SLOT CANYONS
Arizona’s monsoon season is June, July and August. For this reason—and due to higher Arizona temperatures during the summer—spring and fall are the best times to explore Arizona slot canyons.
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WHERE TO STAY IN PAGE, ARIZONA
Due to the proximity of Page to so many natural wonders, they get millions of visitors each year. It’s no surprise there are dozens of hotels in the area. How to decide where to stay? We’ll make it easy for you:
Hyatt Place Page/Lake Powell
Suite-style guestroom that are perfect for families, desert landscape views, and—get this—the only Hyatt property in the country with an onsite Adventure Concierge! What’s an adventure concierge? An expert on all local activities and tours who can help design a custom adventure itinerary for your family. Hyatt Place Page also offers unique cultural experiences that are complimentary to guests, such as traditional Navajo storytelling and dreamcatcher workshops—both led by local Navajo people.
- Navajo Storytelling. Having lived his entire life in the Navajo Nation and listening to folklore passed down by tribe elders, Eli Secody’s storytelling is rooted in the oral tradition of Indigenous people. Storytelling is combined with songs and drumming, leaving guests with a memorable taste of Navajo culture.
- Dreamcatcher Workshop. Take a fun one-hour class with Pearl Seaton and learn to weave traditional Navajo dreamcatchers. Participants learn the purpose and meaning of dreamcatchers and hear heartwarming stories from Seaton’s childhood.
The hotel’s onsite restaurant, Prickly Pear Kitchen, offers a Sonoran-inspired menu curated by hotel General Manager Nadia Santacruz. Santacruz shares her Sonoran roots (even some of her grandmother’s recipes) with guests by featuring made-from-scratch sauces, dressings and soups in dining options. Paying homage to the restaurant name, also on the menu are a Prickly Pear Cactus Quinoa Salad, Prickly Pear Margarita and Prickly Pear Tres Leches for dessert. With advance notice, the restaurant even offers boxed lunches to go if your family plans to be out exploring all day.
Hyatt Place Page/Lake Powell is only three minutes from the Page Municipal Airport (should you be flying in/out). Learn more by visiting https://PageLakePowell.Place.Hyatt.com.
THINGS TO DO WITH KIDS IN PAGE, ARIZONA
Whether you choose to explore by land, water or by air, the City of Page offers a plethora of outdoor adventures and excursions, including slot canyon tours, kayaking, paddle boarding, horseback riding, dinner theater, guided hiking, camping, wake boarding, air tours and more. Here are some specific recommendations:
Horseshoe Bend Slot Canyon Tours
Two awesome semi-private tours in one! Taking a tour with Horseshoe Bend Slot Canyon avoids large crowds, tour buses and parking issues. The three-hour experience starts with an exhilarating off-roading adventure in an open-air safari-style truck that seats 12 people. Cruising through dirt roads (with seatbelts, of course) was so, so fun! We drove a good 20+ minutes to our destination (Secret Antelope Canyon), then walked for about 10 minutes to get to the canyon entrance. The family-friendly trail and canyon is mostly level; making it doable for walking, able-bodied children ages 6 & up.
It was the first time most of the group had experienced a slot canyon, so it was absolutely magical. The high canyon walls and beautiful layers of sandstone were otherworldly. It seemed like we were on a movie set. Our knowledgeable guide shared fascinating history and information about how the canyon was formed, plant life, cryptobiotic soil and local wildlife. This is also when we got our first lesson about the Diné—the Navajo people.
After Secret Canyon, the second part of the tour is getting an exclusive look at Horseshoe Bend (not from the public viewing spot). We drove through a private entrance accessible only by a guide, which was awesome because our group of 12 was able to take in spectacular views and take amazing photos without navigating other visitors. Learn more about this awesome tour at www.horseshoebendtours.com.
Fun fact: We were pleasantly surprised to discover that each Navajo guide we encountered is incredibly knowledgeable about how to change iPhone settings to capture the best slot canyon photos!
Horseshoe Bend Trail Rides
Another way to explore Horseshoe Bend is via horseback. Take a one-hour horseback tour to with an experienced Navajo wrangler. www.hbtrailrides.com
Horseshoe Bend Rafting Experience
The Horseshoe Bend Rafting Trip with Wilderness River Adventures is a half-day excursion on calm water that appeals to all ages and skill levels. Visit the fascinating archeology of Petroglyph Beach and view cliffs above Horseshoe Bend while learning about ancestral Puebloan people of the area. The return bus ride offers views of Vermillion Cliffs, Marble Canyon, Navajo Bridge and other geologic wonders. www.riveradventures.com/horseshoe-bend-rafting
Red Heritage Dinner Theater
This Navajo-owned and operated dinner theater shares a taste of Native American cuisine and culture through powwow dances in traditional regalia, live drum and flute music, storytelling and tasty frybread tacos. The one-of-a-kind show is appropriate for all ages. www.red-heritage.com
Adventurous Antelope Canyon Tours
Upper Antelope Canyon, Rattlesnake Canyon and Owl Canyon are on Navajo land, so tours are led by experienced Navajo guides. Adventurous Antelope Canyon Tours offers different canyon tours (for ages 8+) throughout the year, so check their website for current offerings. www.adventurousantelopecanyon.com
Our awesome tour started with a three-mile drive on a bumpy dirt road to the canyon entrance. One of the many things we learned is that there are three types of slot canyons:
- A-frame canyons are shaped like an A from the top down, meaning the top of the canyon walls are close together and get wider as they reach the ground.
- V-shaped canyons are the exact opposite of A-frame. The canyon walls are very close together on the ground (making a very narrow path to walk through) and get wider as they go up.
- Parallel canyons have walls that go straight up, parallel with each other.
Famous for the silos of light that beam down from above, Upper Antelope Canyon (an A-frame) is great for families. The best time to catch the light silos is afternoon, when the sun is directly overhead. As we wound our way through three large chambers of 200-million-year-old sandstone, we learned how slot canyons are naturally formed by water and eroded by wind. We were in awe of the beautiful color variations as our guide pointed out fascinating formations (naturally created by rushing water), such as Eagle, Bear, George Washington and Shark.
The most challenging (but totally doable) part of Upper Antelope Canyon is after exiting: a 700-foot walkway goes uphill to multiple staircases back down to the tour vans.
Rattlesnake Canyon (a V-shaped canyon) is a shorter, but more adventurous experience that includes stairs, metal walkways, short ladders, some very narrow (and super cool) sections of the canyon, and a tall ladder to climb at the exit.
If you have an opportunity to go through Owl Canyon, named after the Great Horned Owls that live there, do it! This parallel canyon offers a different experience with a wide trail and open sky above (and if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll spot an owl). Owl photo credit: Sari Hitchins.
Antelope Point Marina
A hidden gem of Lake Powell, Antelope Point Marina offers a plethora of ways to explore the unending nooks and crannies of this huge reservoir on the Colorado River. Take a boat tour or rent your own SeaDoo, kayak, pontoon, tri-toon or houseboat. There are two floating restrooms on the lake for those who rent their own watercraft.
Boat tours: Experience the pristine blue, calm waters of Lake Powell via one of two boat tours that wind through towering canyon walls where the canyon meets the lake. A one-hour tour through Antelope Canyon features 100-foot canyon walls; a two-hour tour of Navajo Canyon features canyon walls closer to 400 feet high.
What’s a tri-toon? A patio tri-toon has all the benefits of a houseboat except a place to sleep. It features a bathroom, two patio levels, waterslide, kitchenette, barbecue and bar. Some people like to rent tri-toons for daytime play on the lake, then dock it at night and camp along the shore.
Antelope Point Marina offers transportation from any Page hotel to the marina for a nominal fee.
Learn more at www.antelopepointlakepowell.com.
Lake Powell Air Tour
Seeing Lake Powell from above is an exhilarating experience that will provide a bird’s eye view of the lake and surrounding landmarks, such as Glen Canyon Dam, Horseshoe Bend, Navajo Mountain, Navajo Canyon and Tower Butte. Consider taking a scenic aerial tour with IKG Air/Antelope Air Tour Company, the first and only Native American aviation company. www.antelopeair.com
The Wave
To visit the world-renowned sandstone formations that make up The Wave, you must obtain a permit via lottery. To learn about that process, visit www.visitpageaz.com/places-to-go/the-wave.
A NOTE ABOUT TIME ON NAVAJO LAND
The Navajo Nation observes daylight savings time, whereas the state of Arizona does not. While touring around the Page/Lake Powell area, it is likely that you will traverse in and out of Navajo land. This was very confusing to my iPhone, which automatically changed time the first couple times (as expected), but then stopped changing. I spent the rest of my visit one hour off. Be aware.
HOW TO GET TO ARIZONA SLOT CANYONS FROM SAN DIEGO
The drive from San Diego to Page, Arizona is about nine hours. When I take this trip again, I plan to fly into Flagstaff, rent a car, and enjoy the beautiful two-hour drive to Page, which was highly recommended to me. This route offers the flexibility of taking a side trip to Grand Canyon National Park on the way to Page or back to Flagstaff.
If you don’t want to meander through the mountains via car, you can fly from San Diego to Phoenix; then fly Phoenix to Page, Arizona via Contour Airlines. Head’s up: Contour planes are small (30-40 people) and service (in Phoenix) is inconsistent. But don’t be fooled by the small Page Municipal Airport. They may only have one gate, but they run a reliable, timely ship. Give yourself plenty of time to go through security as snacks and liquids must be removed from carry-ons before boarding.
TIPS: EXPLORING SLOT CANYONS
- Only enter slot canyons with an experienced guide. Slot canyons are subject to flash flooding that can be very dangerous. Do not attempt to enter one without an experienced guide.
- Always stay on the trail.
- Wear closed-toe, comfortable shoes.
- Best to wear layers as slot canyon temps are often cooler than it is outside.
- Leave no trace (of anything behind).
Lisa Gipson is managing editor at San Diego Family Magazine. Photos courtesy of Lisa Gipson, except where noted.
