Grand Canyon Skywalk Tickets: Which Helicopter Tours Include the Skywalk?

Pass prices at Grand Canyon West

Here is the pass list as Grand Canyon West publishes it. The Sunset Pass is the low-price way onto the bridge, with entry after 3:00 PM Arizona time.

Which Pass to Buy

Grand Canyon West states that the All-Access Pass includes the Skywalk with no additional fee, that General Admission does not include it, and that the Sunset Pass, with entry after 3:00 PM, includes Skywalk admission.

The Skywalk sits at Eagle Point, one of the West Rim points alongside Guano Point. Grand Canyon West is on the sovereign lands of the Hualapai Tribe, so national park passes are not accepted there.

The practical takeaway: if the Skywalk is your priority and you can arrive late, the Sunset Pass costs less than either daytime pass. Peak hours at the bridge are 11 am to 3 pm, per Grand Canyon West, so a post-3:00 PM arrival also dodges the biggest crowds.

Las Vegas departures compared

Helicopters cannot land on Strip hotel roofs, so Las Vegas tours start from a heliport or with a ground transfer, per Papillon. Grand Canyon West sits about 130 miles from Las Vegas, roughly a 2.5-hour drive on paved roads per Grand Canyon West's FAQ page, which is why a helicopter crossing saves most of a day.

Use this table to see what each tour covers. Skywalk admission means the pass that gets you on the glass bridge.

Know before you go

Lockers are provided free of charge to store your belongings during your visit, per Grand Canyon West. Cell phones are permitted at your own risk, so you can still take photos. Strollers are not permitted on the bridge. Children who can walk on their own may cross, and adults may carry younger children.

For the add-on zipline, riders must be at least 4 feet tall and weigh 90 to 275 pounds, pregnant riders are not allowed, and kids 12 and under must be accompanied by someone 16 or older, per Grand Canyon West.

For the helicopter part of your day, plan for weight rules too. Maverick caps passenger weight at 300 pounds per person on Las Vegas and Grand Canyon West flights and recommends closed-toe shoes for canyon landings. Papillon has no age restriction on helicopter tours and asks a woman in her last trimester to check with her doctor before flying.

The case for and against

For: the bridge projects 70 feet over the rim with the canyon floor 4,000 feet below, per Grand Canyon West, and nothing else on the West Rim gives you that view straight down. The afternoon Sunset Pass costs less than any other pass while including the bridge, and post-3:00 PM entry means thinner crowds than the 11 am to 3 pm peak.

Against: you cannot bring a camera or bag onto the bridge, and professional-style photos mean buying from the on-site photographers. A morning visit needs the $99 All-Access Pass to reach the bridge.

If you are flying in from Las Vegas by helicopter anyway, the Papillon Helicopter, Boat and Skywalk Tour bundles the flight, the river boat and the bridge in one 7-hour day at $829 per person. That is the simplest way to make the Skywalk the centerpiece of the trip.

Planning your time at Eagle Point

The walk itself takes only minutes on a 70-foot bridge, per Grand Canyon West's dimensions. What eats time is the line, the booties and the lockers. Peak hours are 11 am to 3 pm, per Grand Canyon West, so an afternoon Sunset Pass arrival typically means a shorter wait.

Build at least an hour or two for Eagle Point as a whole, plus time at Guano Point and Hualapai Point if your pass covers them. Free lockers hold your bags while you are on the bridge, per Grand Canyon West, so grab one first.

What the traveller should do

Grand Canyon West sells day passes at the gate and states no capacity cap on its ticket page. Opening and last-entry times differ between its own pages, so check the time for your date before you set off.

For helicopter tours the opposite applies. Every tour needs a booking, and the operators set firm check-in windows: Maverick asks Las Vegas to Grand Canyon guests to check in at least 45 minutes before departure. Free cancellation on the cards runs from 24 hours to 3 days.

Pets are not permitted on Grand Canyon West tours, per Grand Canyon West, so plan care for your animal before you book.

What you can and cannot use

The West Rim is not inside Grand Canyon National Park, so National Park passes are not accepted there, per Papillon. The park's $35 private vehicle fee and the $100 nonresident entrance fee apply only inside the national park, per the National Park Service, so they do not affect a Skywalk day at Grand Canyon West.

The best price lever on the page is timing: the $59 Sunset Pass, with entry after 3:00 PM, is the cheapest ticket that includes Skywalk admission, per Grand Canyon West.

Kids are welcome on the bridge. Children who can walk on their own may cross and adults may carry younger children, per Grand Canyon West, and Papillon has no age restriction for helicopter tours.