What Antelope Canyon tours cost

Thirteen tours in one table

Six tours sit on the home page and seven more turn up across these guides. Each line shows the regular "from" price per person in US dollars, the lower of the two booking sites unless noted. The date you choose sets the final figure, and summer dates usually sit above it.

Read the permit column before the price column. A ticket that looks cheapest can end up dearer than its neighbor once $16 a head is added at the check-in desk.

Why one canyon has several prices

Every canyon walk on Navajo land is run by a licensed Navajo outfitter, and the booking sites sell those slots in two ways. Some listings belong to the outfitter itself. AACT's Upper tour is one, and Dixie's Lower walk on Viator is another. Other listings come from resellers such as National Park Express or JoyFun, which sell places on the outfitters' tours with their own margin on top. Ken's Lower walk shows the spread best. It sells from ~$75 on JoyFun's GetYourGuide listing and up to about $129 elsewhere, for the same stairs with the same guides.

Upper works the same way. AACT's own Upper tour costs ~$92 on GetYourGuide, where the permit goes unmentioned, and about $119 on Viator with every fee and tax inside. National Park Express's Upper ticket, from ~$90, adds a $16.05 permit per person, and which outfitter you get depends on the option you tick.

The hour matters too. Midday slots in Upper and some Lower slots sell as premium grades, and Ken's Viator listing splits into Prime and Non-Prime. On GetYourGuide the "from" price usually belongs to a quiet date in late autumn or winter, so price your own date before you compare.

Fees and extras on top of the ticket

• The Navajo permit. Several listings put it at about $15–16 per person, though older pages still say $8. It comes inside the price with Dixie's and Ken's in Lower, as it does at Canyon X. National Park Express's Upper ticket adds it on top, so does Deer Spring on Viator, and some check-ins want it in cash. Whatever you book, read the "included" and "not included" lines of the exact option;
• Tips. Listings suggest $2–5 per person for the guide, and Ken's asks for at least $5. Carry small bills for it;
• Horseshoe Bend parking. The public overlook trail south of Page charges for parking. Deer Spring's tour avoids it by using a private viewpoint;
• Glen Canyon entry. The kayak and boat trips start inside Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and the park charges about $30 per vehicle on top. A National Park pass covers it;
• Car seats. Some Upper and Canyon X listings require seats or boosters for small children in the 4x4s and expect you to bring your own.

Cancellation terms side by side

The cheapest listing is not always the safest one to hold for months. Storms close the canyons at short notice, and a strict refund rule bites hardest when plans change for other reasons.

• AACT in Upper. Free cancellation until 24 hours before on both sites, with reserve now, pay later;
• Dixie's in Lower. 24 hours on its own Viator listing, also with pay later;
• Ken's in Lower. Three days' notice on GetYourGuide with no pay-later option, against 24 hours on Viator;
• National Park Express in Upper. Five days on GetYourGuide, while its Viator twin is non-refundable;
• Canyon X. Four days on GetYourGuide and non-refundable on Viator.

When an outfitter cancels for weather, the listings promise a new date or a full refund. Arriving late is another matter. Several listings refuse late guests without a refund, and the hour between Arizona and Navajo clocks causes many of those cases, as the time-zone guide explains.

A family of four, added up

Take two adults with children of 10 and 13. In Upper with AACT they pay four times about $119 on Viator with nothing more due, or four times ~$92 on GetYourGuide, where a permit may still be asked at the desk. AACT prices ages 8–12 as children, so the younger one may cost a little less, and nobody under 8 can come at all.

In Lower with Dixie's, from ~$94, the bill is four full tickets with the permit inside, because Dixie's child rate covers only ages 4–7. At Antelope Canyon X, from ~$82, the child band runs from 8 to 17, so both children can fall into it. Add $8–20 in tips for the group wherever you go. For this family Upper costs the most once fees are in and Canyon X the least, though Canyon X gives the least room to cancel. Our Upper and Lower comparison helps decide which walk earns the extra, and the guide to kids and access lists every age rule.

Two extras at the top of the range

Tse Bighanilini's prime-time Upper entry, from ~$95, sells the hour when the sun reaches the canyon floor. The catch sits in the terms. Its GetYourGuide listing has had few recent reviews and needs four days' notice to cancel, and the Viator version is non-refundable, with some recent reviewers asked for extra cash on site.

Dineh Tours' Upper and Lower outing, from ~$369, picks you up at a Page hotel and drives you to both canyons with water and snacks on board. Two standard tickets booked yourself come to about ~$75 plus ~$90, so the outing costs more than twice as much. It also fills a long half day of about 4.5 hours. Viator reviewers add that guests join the same public groups at each canyon.

The month moves prices as much as the seller does, so read the best time of year to visit before you pick a date. If Upper or Lower feels steep, the quieter slot canyons cost about the same with fewer people.