Ahhh Antelope Canyon … every time I saw it pop up on my Instagram feed I couldn’t wait to visit the USA. It has been on my list of must-see places for a very long time!
A beautiful slot canyon, carved out by mother nature (literally!) Antelope Canyon is a natural phenomenon created by flash floods. Its perfectly smooth, orange sandstone walls are a result of water running through it for hundreds of years.
One of its most iconic features are the swirling canyon walls that rise 120 feet up from the ground. And of course the famous sun light beam shining down right between them.
But is visiting Antelope Canyon really as awesome as the pictures make it out to be? Or is it just another beautiful place ruined by tourism after going viral on social media? Keep reading to find out more so you know what you are getting yourself into!
Don’t forget to check out our blogpost on USA ROADTRIP: 15 Places to See in the West or check out the full YouTube video below!
Book Ahead!
So we got to the U.S. We figured out our route. And we knew roughly when we’d be in Arizona. Great! Next we wanted to figure out how to get into Antelope Canyon. We were in for a BIG SURPRISE!
It turns out you have to book weeks ahead (if not months during peak season). There was absolutely no way for us to get in! And besides, even if we could get a date, I can’t think of anything worse than losing all your flexibility to work around this time slot. We felt gutted!
Click here for the list of companies offering Antelope Canyon tours!
You might get lucky
Two months later, whilst riding across Arizona, we suddenly saw a sign post for ANTELOPE CANYON. No way! We stopped the motorbike, nodded to each other, and immediately turned around.
Can you imagine the surprise when we realised we could join a tour in half an hour? We were over the moon! And of course we felt super lucky. Although I found it was rather odd just how many time slots they were able to offer us. They were obviously not fully booked, yet I couldn’t buy a ticket several weeks before. VERY STRANGE !!!
Be prepared to spend a lot of money!
As we couldn’t even get a time slot online, we hadn’t really paid attention to the price. And Antelope Canyon doesn’t come cheap! We had to fork out 70 USD each for this tour. It wasn’t an easy decision. We had already visited other beautiful slot canyons which WE LOVED and didn’t have to pay for. Was Antelope Canyon actually worth spending so much money on?
We were here now and somehow we felt it was meant to be! So without paying much attention to our budget we went for it. There was no queue for paying and we were able to join a tour to Upper Antelope Canyon almost immediately!
Upper Antelope Canyon is much MORE EXPENSIVE than Lower Antelope Canyon
WHY you might ask. Well, the famous light beams can ONLY be seen in Upper Antelope Canyon. This makes it more popular and as a result … you guessed it … much more expensive!
But before you choose to follow suit, bear in mind that the conditions need to be right. The light beams ONLY occur in high season (March – October). And only around midday. And only if the weather is good. So it’s a bit like the Northern Lights … only visible at certain times of the year but never guaranteed!
Generally speaking the walk through Upper Antelope Canyon is completely flat and quite short (100 yards). The walk through Lower Antelope Canyon is much longer (600 yards) and requires you to climb up and down a series of ladders and step over some boulders.
You may only enter Antelope Canyon with your camera and a bottle of water
You need to leave your belongings with the tour operator! The only items you can carry with you are your phone and/or camera. In addition you may carry a bottle of water.
I couldn’t even enter with my hydration pack. Instead, I had to purchase a bottle of water. Personally, I don’t like hiking while carrying water in my hand. Little did I know that I need not have worried …
Visiting Antelope Canyon involves ZERO hiking
So we had our tickets sorted and the tour was about to start. I quickly applied some sunscreen and put on my sunglasses, ready to hike! But as it turns out we were rushed into a 4×4 vehicle instead. After a 2 miles off-road ride they dropped us RIGHT OUTSIDE the entrance of the canyon.
That’s really not how I had imagined our visit. In addition the walk through the canyon is short so even if Lower Antelope Canyon is significantly longer (600 yards) it can barely be considered a hike. As soon as we exited the canyon we drove straight back to where we had purchased our tickets. The whole experience felt commercial and underwhelming – but more details below!
Get ready for the crowds inside Antelope Canyon
We generally make an effort to avoid crowds. Naturally this is not always possible. Some places simply require a guide and visiting Antelope Canyon was one of them!
Don’t get fooled by ‘small group sizes’
Our group consisted of only Fiona and I. We felt super excited about our ‘private tour’. Unfortunately we quickly had to join other ‘small groups’ as they split us into 4×4 vehicles. The group quickly grew to 8 people. Still, not too bad I thought to myself. But once we started driving towards the entrance of the canyon, we started seeing more and more off-road vehicles filled with tourists.
We soon realised that no matter who you book your tour with, you’ll end up as one huge crowd. The more vehicles joined our convoy, the less excited I became about this entire experience. But the worst was yet to come!
There might be a queue to get inside Antelope Canyon
Given our allocated time slots I was gobsmacked to discover there was a queue to enter the canyon. Really? Initially I thought we had to wait for the group in front of us to finish before we got in but I was wrong. We simply joined the very end of the queue.
The queue NEVER disappeared! The entire ‘hike’ is nothing more than walking through the canyon at a ridiculously slow pace. If not for the crowds, you could walk it within a couple of minutes. But because of the crowds and constant stop and go it took around 45 min. By this point, I deeply regretted our decision to spend so much money on this highly commercial experience.
Once you reach the end, you have to turn around right away. The walk back is brisk and you cannot take ANY more pictures! The main focus is basically to get you out of there as soon as possible.
The guides will RUSH you through it
How can they rush me if I’m walking at a snail’s pace you might wonder? Well despite the crowds the canyon is actually very beautiful. And no matter how many people are in front or behind you EVERYONE is taking photos.
As soon as there is a gap when people start moving forward someone will try and pose for a picture. The guides of each group (EVEN YOUR OWN!) will prevent this and quickly close those gaps. This makes it very unlikely, if not impossible, to take a nice picture.
There is just one exception! One single spot where guides will take a photo of you, so that everyone can walk away with at least one picture! That picture will be taken as quickly as possible and of course you can’t review it, let alone ask them to retake it!
The only people that really got the chance to take pictures, are those that were part of a special PHOTOGRAPHY TOUR. They paid a premium for their tour and in return the guides would block traffic and throw sand in the air for them to capture the perfect shot!
Fiona and I stopped a few times just before the canyon curved around to take a photo without the crowds. We got SHOUTED AT! By the visitors, the guides … so yes we got a few shots without people in it but at what price?
Photography Tours were banned in 2020
Shortly after our visit, and following many complaints and negative reviews, the popular Photography Tours got banned! Photography tours interrupted the natural flow of regular visitors but were also disappointing for those who paid for them.
Given the price tag around 200 USD I can’t blame them! The only way to visit these days is by booking a standard “sightseeing tour”. However, you may no longer enter with tripods or even monopods.
Your Guides know the best PHOTOGRAPHY SETTINGS on your Phone
All tourist guides are EXPERTS on which PHONE SETTINGS work best for photography inside the canyon. It doesn’t matter if you have an iPhone, Samsung or Google phone.
While you queue to get into the canyon, they will grab each phone and pre-select the best setting to take pictures. Great service? Or just another reminder of how commercial this tour is? You tell me!
In any case that doesn’t mean they won’t rush you through as previously mentioned! You can still take beautiful pictures of the canyon walls pointing your camera up, even if you are sandwiches between a dozens other people.
Don’t make this RIDICULOUS MISTAKE
I feel a little foolish to even share this, but if it is saves just ONE SINGLE person from doing it, I figure it’s worth it. Remember how I thought we were going on a hike and put on sunscreen and sunglasses?
Well that’s pretty dumb because you can’t see much with sunglasses inside the canyon! And why would you want to miss out on those beautiful colours it’s so famous for? Unfortunately for me, I was wearing prescription sunglasses and as I wasn’t allowed to bring my hydration pack (which contained my regular glasses) with me, I was stuck with them for the whole trip!
The walls of the canyon are pretty high and create a lot of SHADE! It actually felt a little cool inside. Not cold, but pleasantly cooler compared to the hot weather outside. Only towards the end could we see the blue sky as we got closer to the exit.
Conclusion: Is Antelope Canyon worth it?
If like us you have already visited other beautiful slot canyons without the crowds then you are more likely to be disappointed. Especially given the steep price tag!
But despite all that, you cannot deny that Antelope Canyon is a particularly spectacular slot canyon. Is it worth seeing? Of course!
How off putting has this blogpost been to you? If it’s put you off going, then I guess your decision is already made. And rightly so! But if you think you still want to see it, despite everything you’ve read, then perhaps you should go.
Personally, if someone told me all these things before I went in, we would have skipped this! BUT sometimes knowing what to expect ensures you don’t set your expectations too high. So perhaps if you decide to visit with lower expectations, you might like it and feel less disappointed!
Looking for more travel inspiration?
Check out these 12 Awesome travel destinations in Arizona
TO SUM IT ALL UP
If you don’t like highly commercialised tourist attractions, give it a miss!
If you are dying to see it and can get over the fact how commercial and busy it is, go!
So if Antelope Canyon isn’t all that, which slot canyons are worth a visit?
Our absolutely favourite slot canyons were Peekaboo and Spooky slot canyons in Utah. If you want to find out more about our visit or how to get there check out USA ROADTRIP: 15 Places to See.
Was this blog-post helpful? Do you still want to visit Antelope Canyon? Or have you been and want to share your experience? Please share your comments below – we’d love to hear from you!
