The summer months are a great time to pack up your RV with essentials and significant others for a trip to the Grand Canyon, because the season offers the best weather for a visit. However, depending on the which side of the canyon you visit, you may compete with an estimated 5 million annual visitors for face time with the natural wonder.
Decide what part of the Grand Canyon you want to visit. Most guests visit the South Rim, on the Arizona side of the Grand Canyon. This side of the canyon includes an airport and rail service. Due to these amenities and easy access, the South Rim is very busy during the summer. The North Rim, on the Utah side, is Grand Canyon National Park's more rustic section. Keep in mind that while there are only 10 miles between the North and South Rim, it may take up to five hours to drive between the sites because the Colorado River bisects the Grand Canyon.
Make a reservation far in advance, since campgrounds fill up fast. Open mid-May to mid-October, North Rim campgrounds do not have hook-ups, but are equipped with dump stations. Up to six people and three tents are allowed on North and South Rim campsites. Guests may have two vehicles per site--a motor home counts as two vehicles. The Mather Campground on the South Rim is open year-round but, does not provide hook-ups and restricts trailers or RVs to 30-feet in length. Group sites are available on the South Rim for up to 50 people with no more than three vehicles. As of 2010, the National Park Service recommends reservations for the South Rim from March 1st through mid-November. Reservations are not available from mid-November to February 28. Next to Mather Campground is Trailer Village, where trailers and RVs are invited to park and use hook-ups. Advance or same day reservations are accepted at Trailer Village.
Take your chances and stay at campsites that don't take reservations. Guests with RVs may stay at South Rim's Desert View Campground, which does not have hook-ups and has a 30-foot limit for RVs and trailers. Open May through mid-October, no reservations are needed for Desert View's 50 sites. During busy summer months, campsites usually fill up by early afternoon.
