Papillon Helicopters is the largest provider of Grand Canyon helicopter tours. The company offers trips to the West Rim and the South Rim. I have flown Papillon to both destinations. Here is my no-nonsense review of my trip to the West Rim.
I booked the most complete trip that Papillon offers. It included a descent to the bottom, a 30-minute Grand Canyon river rafting trip, and tickets to the Grand Canyon Skywalk.
The trip includes free hotel pickup and drop-off. My driver picked me up exactly as scheduled and took me to the helipad early. I chose a morning flight to have better visibility. I also upgraded my helicopter to an EcoStar 130. It’s a bigger plane and has theater style seats. It’s also a smoother, quieter ride and comes with wraparound windows.
I hit the sky with five other excited passengers. The maximum occupancy in helicopters is six people. I’m 6′-4″ and had plenty of leg room. I wasn’t crushing my neighbor either. Each of us had our own personal headphones. You can use them to listen to a pre-recorded narration of the tour (translated into 10 languages!) or chat with its pilot and other passengers.
The flight took us over Lake Mead, the Hoover Dam, and the new Hoover Dam Bypass. Helicopters fly lower than airplanes. The aerial views were phenomenal. Our pilot was kind enough to take the “long way” over the Hoover Dam before heading straight for the Grand Canyon.
The West Rim was before us. Our pilot excitedly told us to prepare for the 4000 foot descent to the bottom. Unreal. Basically it was a canyon carved between cliffs, hills and towers. Ten minutes later we landed at the base. My package included a champagne picnic (delicious!). I walked along the Colorado River and boarded one of the huge pontoon rafts.
This is a floating tour in calm water. That means there are no rapids. Glad I brought sunscreen and a hat. It was hot and I am fair skinned. The rafting trip was incredibly smooth. The view from the water is spectacular. My guide was a walking canyon encyclopedia and was the first to spot one of the area’s rare bighorn sheep.
Back in our Papillon helicopter, we made the ascent to the top (just as exciting as the descent) and out onto the airstrip near the Grand Canyon Skywalk. I am a big fan of the glass walkway. Everyone has an opinion about this attraction. I for one loved it and I think you can’t leave Vegas without experiencing it.
There was a bit of a crowd. I turned on my iPod and time flew by. The glass platform, whose panels are said to have cost over $250,000 each, takes you 70 feet past the edge of the rim! It is totally safe. The bridge was designed to hold 800 people during an earthquake with 100 MPH winds! I looked down. My stomach cried. Below about 4,000 feet was the river I had just sailed in (it looked like a ribbon).
On the return trip to Las Vegas, we got a second chance to see the lake and the dam. The weather was beautiful that day and the cameras came out. Overall, this Papillon helicopter’s ride gets two thumbs up. You get a real feeling that you have “done” the canyon, which, surprisingly, was accomplished in just 1 day! If you plan to fly on the West Rim, definitely consider going with Papillon.