And more...

That's better.

^^well, that didn't work at all. Lol.

The Grand Canyon's Temperate Months
South Rim North Rim Inner Gorge
Max Min Precip Max Min Precip Max Min Precip
October 65 36 1.1 59 31 1.38 84 58 0.65
November 52 27 0.94 56 24 1.48 68 46 0.43
December 43 20 1.62 40 20 2.83 57 37 0.87
January 41 18 1.32 37 16 3.17 56 36 0.68
February 45 21 1.55 39 18 3.22 62 42 0.75
March 51 25 1.38 44 21 2.63 71 48 0.79
April 60 32 0.93 53 29 1.73 82 56 0.47

The columns shifted, but the far left column is the maximum temp and so on.

Here's some info on the inner gorge temps in the summer from : http://grandcanyonhiker.com/planners/weather/index.shtml
What's the inner gorge like in the summer? Try this: Preheat your oven to 500 deg F. Open the door to let the wave of heat envelope you. Stand there. Keep standing there. Imagine you can't close the door. Imagine that heat is every where you turn. There's no escape. There's no shade. Even the night radiates relentless heat. That's the Inner Gorge Grand Canyon in the summer. Is your body prepared for that? Are you prepared for that?

Desert adaptation. Just as body physiology adapts to altitude, your body adapts to desert conditions. Your body learns how to use fluids more effectively. Your body learns how to sweat more effectively. Desert adaptation takes about two weeks.

How does your body react to desert conditions? You must learn how your body reacts to desert conditions. This includes leaning the warning signals of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. The Grand Canyon is unique in that within a few hours your concerns can shift from the possibility of heat stroke to the possibility of hypothermia.

Ditto on la Posada, but more for the restaurant. I wouldn't dive to Winslow just for the hotel.

If you have young kids who are into the movie Cars there are lots of familiar landmarks along I-40. The deer farm east of Williams is also fun for younger kids. And the Airport in Sedona is a great place to eat--sit outside and watch the planes come and go, and there's a good playground not far from there.

Pre-kids, I hiked the Grand Canyon (overnighting at the bottom) close to Memorial Day. Our itinerary was meeting in Vegas/drive to Zion/drive to Bryce/drive to South Rim/backpack trip/return to Vegas from the South Rim. We camped at Zion, the South Rim, and outside of Vegas. We did not camp at Bryce because it was pretty darn cold, still, in May. (Bryce has highest elevation in our itinerary). And we got a hotel room on the South Rim for the evening after we came out of the Canyon. I would love to do a variation of this with my daughter -- presumably without the backpack trip down to the river for a few years, and maybe looping down to Sedona on the way back to Vegas.

There's an awesome, historic, beautifully restored hotel in Winslow, Arizona called La Posada. If anyone in your family loves trains, it's a must see. Check out the website - www.laposada.org.

We went to Arizona about 5 years ago (kids were 5, 7, 8 & 10). Most enjoyed attractions were the Pink Jeep tour in Sedona; hiking in Oak Creek canyon; spending the night on the rim of the Grand Canyon, waking up for sunrise and then having breakfast & hot chocolate at the Grand Canyon Hotel; Montezuma Castle National Monument (cliff dwellings); and Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. Petrified Forest was kind of interesting, but the Painted Desert was boring. I think the Meteor Crater was cool, but the kids were less impressed. No one liked Jerome, Arizona - very tourist-trappy.

This thread is nothing short of Awesome. Spring Break. Planned.

Anonymous wrote:Any other advice - we are flying into Phoenix and heading to Grand Canyon, staying in the park for 3 nights... advice on where to stop on the drive? what to see? Kids are 9 and 12.
Thanks!

Montezuma's Castle - A pueblo dwelling built in to a cliff face
The town of Jerome - Mining town built on top of a butte.
The road into Sedona is just plain beautiful.
Head east on I-40 from Flagstaff for the Meteor Crater and take a picture "Standing on a Corner in Winslow, Arizona"
Also near Winslow is the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest.
If you have time the day you fly in go and watch the sunset on top of South Mountain with the city layed out below you

Best vacation of my childhood was a mule ride down the Grand Canyon. Don't know the age restrictions on it but I do know the cost has tripled in the past twenty years.

The Petrified Forest park are also not too far from the Grand Canyon, as is a giant meteor crater (can't remember the name). The Painted Desert is in that area too, but less exciting for kids. You may want to see if your library has any other guidebooks for that area that include more things that appeal to kids. I think the For Dummies travel series has kid attractions flagged, but don't know if they have a Grand Canyon area book.

^^similar aged kids, but traveling with our dog. Any pet friendly hotels?