This is one of those things Jay and I have talked about doing for a long time. We finally decided to suck it up on this trip and book the tour, especially since we found a great deal online that allowed us to knock $100 per person off the tour cost. In an unprecedented show of general niceness and do-goodery we booked one for Jon, too, as a birthday present. We would have included Grimace in the tour but she had no interest in being airborne - she was on a bus by 7AM headed for the middle of nowhere to gamble with a bunch of other old fogeys.
Sundance Helicopters is considered one of the best, if not the best, tour operators in Vegas. They have been in business since 1985, have an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau, provide fabulous customer service, and offer several different daily helicopter tours in varying price ranges. We chose the Grand Canyon Tour with a picnic on the floor of the big pit itself - how cool is that!? Our package included all of the following: complimentary limo pick-up at our hotel and drop-off anywhere along the strip, flight departure from Las Vegas International Airport, flyover of Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and the Mojave Desert, descent into the Grand Canyon, 30 minutes on the ground to gawk at nature's glory and enjoy a champagne picnic, and then a return flight to Sin City with a strip flyover before ending up back on terra firma.
We booked the 8AM departure which meant we had to be waiting outside of our hotel by 7AM for that long shiny limo to pick us up. Earlier concerns about windy conditions proved to be unfounded - the day was gorgeous and mild and clear and calm. In a word: perfect!
Dude, where's my car?
That's a limo ... not a car!
Yes, we could get quite used to this.
Upon arriving at the terminal, parties are called up to the main desk to check-in, face the scales, and pay for the tour. Yes ... I said scales. There is a 275 pound weight maximum per guest - if someone tops out over that I believe they have to purchase an additional seat. Once those formalities were taken care of we waited around with several other groups and watched the safety video and gawked at the company's helicopter fleet which was lining up out on the tarmac.
Whirlybirds!
Our Whirlybird!
Cram it!
So cute!
Oooooooh, we're airborne!!
Those fashionable headphones not only muffled the noise of the helicopter, but also provided narration at key points during the flight as well as allowing the pilot to speak to tour members when necessary. The rest of the time a musical soundtrack played that Jay and I found to be quite entertaining. When the whirlybird first took off it was Austin Powers' theme song; as we left Vegas behind us it was Sheryl Crow's Leaving Las Vegas; as we were landing in the Grand Canyon it switched to Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries. As a side note, we just thought the Wagner selection was a hoot because it caused the three of us to start singing "Kill the Wabbit" and freaked out the other party that happened to be sharing the copter with us. There were other great musical selections along the way, both to and from Vegas, but I don't remember all of them now ... I shared the best ones with you and if you want to know more why don't you just book a tour the next time you're in Vegas?
I'm going to stop now and just let you enjoy the pictures - the rest of this post is the flight to the Grand Canyon and our wanderings on the floor before having light breakfast. The second post will include only pictures of the flight back to Las Vegas - we both got to share the front of the whirlybird on the flight back and it was just amazing! We can't say enough good things about Sundance Tours - they really are the cream of the crop and you will be in good hands with them and their staff if you choose to book a tour through their organization.
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