This program is within the ability of almost every senior, and well worth the experience. It is also inexpensive for all that is included.

This was my first Road Scholar tour and it won’t be my last. I was a solo traveler and never felt like a fifth wheel. My fellow travelers were just wonderful and were a large part of making it one fantastic trip. It was like a bus load of friends - you would have thought everyone knew each other. Our guide, Mike Young was terrific too, and perfect for the job, he was a master at making it fun for everyone. There was never a dull moment on the bus (or the entire trip). Mike's knowledge of every aspect of the canyon - geology, botany, etc., was impressive - he could get as detailed as you wanted on any topic. Our driver Danny was also impressive - he could turn that bus around on a dime and could park it anywhere - all on top of being a very nice guy. The scenery is astounding; everywhere you look you are just amazed at the immenseness and beauty of the canyon. (Mike made us promise not to use the work "awesome", but I think in this case it applies.) It certainly gives you a new view on perspective and your place in the world. My favorite was the North Rim - I can't get over the green - I love those pines and aspen trees, and Bright Angel Point was the perfect place to see the sunrise. It was like being on top of the world. The tour was the perfect mix of activity and free-time. We could all do as much, or as little as we wanted, so the trip suited a wide-range of activity levels. At the South Rim, we all felt like we were back in summer camp, what with the cafeteria and the flashlight walk back to our rooms. Tours never appealed to me - I kept thinking of all those movies and jokes (funny and otherwise) of tours gone wrong for so many different reasons, and was reluctant to take a chance - but it was the only way I was going to see the Grand Canyon on my own - so I dove in - and it was one of the best decisions I've made and one of the best vacations I've had. (I'm on the Road Scholar social network if anyone wants to keep in touch).

A trully enjoyable experience. Enjoyed it from start to finish, all in great measure due to our group leader, Mike Young. The views of the Grand Canyon at sunrise and sunset were particularly magnificent. The night sky, the deer and moose, the condors and the side trip to the Colorado River were great!!

I enjoyed every aspect of the program. Due to my physical ability I did hold people up at times. They were always very understanding. I do plan to take other programs from time to time.

I had an awesome experience on this trip. The guides were well-informed and caring individuals with amazing information that made learning easy. The enthusiasm of the instructors enhanced the learning experience and propelled me to want to take another Road Scholar trip sooner than later. Richard from Chicago

This was my first Road Scholar trip, actually, it was my first group trip and I approached it with trepidation because I wasn't sure about traveling with 40 people on a bus. It was fantastic, I enjoyed every minute of it and loved the other participants. The Grand Canyon is a national treasure which should be seen by everyone (on a Road Scholar trip if your age qualifies) and it was made even more remarkable by our guide, Mike Young. Could there possibly be a better guide? I don't think so....See you on another trip soon.

Male from Mexico City
number of programs attended: 1
Date attended: 09/15/12 - 09/21/12
Fantastic trip! Way beyond my expectations. The Grand Canyon is just magnificent from any site you look. Seeing the sunrise in the North Rim and the sunset in the South Rim was so overwhelming it will stay in my heart forever. There´s no way to explain all the array of colors nature showed us. The desert sky at night was a super plus I was not expecting to see in such grandeur. We could practically touch millions of stars and could not see the end of the Milky Way. The incredible weather we fortunately had, was another plus.
Mike Young, our guide, excels in knowledge and enjoys sharing it with us. His great sense of humor and his conferences made our trips on the bus shorter when distances were necessarily long.
This is my first trip with Road Scholar, next one is Alaska, and I hopè there are many more to come, always with Road Scholar.
John ... congrats on your photos!!!

YOU'LL HAVE A GRAND TIME AT THE CANYON PARTICULARLY IF YOU HAVE A GUIDE LIKE MIKE YOUNG. PS. THE ADDED BONUS OF EXCELLENT WEATHER WE HAD SURELY MADE THE TRIP PERFECT.

We just came back from the Grand Canyon double rim trip. This was our first Road Scholar program but it won't be our last. Our memories will be remembered forever. I'd certainly recommend this trip to everyone, see the Grand Canyon through the "eyes" of a Road Scholar expert!

This was a excellent tour of the Grand Canyon, & the tour guide Mike Young was very knowledgeable & helpful. You cannot to better for seeing this beautiful National Park.

This Grand Canyon trip was spectacular. The dramatic and gorgeous Grand Canyon and other beautiful sites along the way were lovely and inspiring. But it took the talent and leadership of our guide, Mike Young to uplift the adventure from a fabulous trip to one with great depth. He was able to use humor, warmth and kindness to meld our group into a playful cohesive group. People enjoyed each other as well as the dramatic environment.

We enjoyed in-depth sessions on the geology of the canyon both during travel and at the sites. In one particularly effective talk, Mike gave us a verbal timeline of where humankind fits into the earth’s history, dramatizing the shortness of human existence as compared to the whole of the earth’s life.

This trip was a memorable. In addition to the South and North Rim’s of the Grand Canyon, we viewed the stunning Red Rocks of Sedona, examined the architecture and colorful characters in the Canyon’s history, got to see some California Condor’s up close, and saw the diversity of landscapes in Arizona as we toured between Scottsdale and the Grand Canyon.

Lucky us!

We can’t imagine a better way to see this amazing wonder of the world. There was a lot of bus travel, but thanks to our guide Mike Young the entire experience was informative, on track, and entertaining throughout. Mike is extremely knowledgeable, well organized and accommodating. Even though he's hiked them hundreds of times, he willingly guided several of us down the Bright Angel and North Kaibab trails. He even made the long bus trips fun! Our 32 co-travelers were considerate, well traveled and game, particularly Joy, whom two hip and two knee replacements didn't phase one bit!
In addition to hiking into the Canyon, we enjoyed the changing colors of its vast expanses from both rims at different times of the day. We visited the historic El Tovar Hotel and learned about the history of the area’s development, including the struggles between the miners and the railroads for control of tourism at the Canyon and the extraordinary design contributions of Mary Jane Coulter. Mike gave us terrific talks about the area's unique geology, ecology and plant life. The accommodations were excellent and well located.
We were impressed with the way the Park Service makes the Grand Canyon accessible and educational for some 5.5 million annual visitors of all ages and abilities. The 2.83 mile South Rim Trail of Time, opened in 2010, highlights the different types of rock laid down in the Canyon's many layers over the millennia. We enjoyed Park Ranger presentations on Wesley Powell and his companions’ first hair-raising wooden boat trip down the Colorado, and on the once nearly extinct California Condor, which has been revived in a spectacular fashion, a point brought home to us when several of these birds with their almost ten foot wingspans flew right over our heads on the Navaho bridge on our way back to Phoenix.
In short, the Road Scholar trip put on by Northern Arizona University's Mike Young is a mind- and heart-expanding experience we highly recommend!

The Grand Canyon trip was an amazing adventure made even more so by the expertise and humor of our wonderful guide, Mike Young. Every spot in the Canyon has a great view. Just seeing the south side is not enough. A person has not seen the Canyon until he (or she) has seen the North Rim. Truly awe-inspiring.

A terrific adventure and great learning experience. I cannot say enough about our guide, Mike Young. Mike made the trip so enjoyable with his combination of knowledge and expertise, consideration and humor. What can you say about the Canyon? The South Rim is inspiring. The North Rim is amazing. The Colorado River is cold. The Condors are grand. It all gives you some sense of your place in the universe. Amazing.

The trip was brilliant. I couldn’t have enough:just looking at the Grand Canyon.
Neither photos nor anyone can express what she sees. You have to be there. From every rim, every angle, every point, every corner, every few feet, at various times of the day, one discovers something new, different & majestic. Nature is indeed the best sculptor: dynamic sculpting at its best. You think you have seen it all then you turn again and you are pleasantly surprised; as if things are changing as you breathe. At night, the sky is gorgeous: you reach to touch the stars, the moon & you try to figure out the constellations. It is so peaceful. You can savor every moment. Everything else in your life seems, even if it is only for that moment, trivial.
Our coordinator, Stewart S. Lasseter, was wonderful: very knowledgeable, passionate, inspiring & patient with an amazing sense of humor. He is also, an excellent teacher and educator. I am looking forward for other scholar trips if all coordinators were like him.
My fellow scholars were caring & accommodating. They looked out for each other. We had great fun: you could hear our laughter everywhere we went.
We learned a lot. Some of us discussed that how after this trip we will look at nature differently, and how open minds open doors we did not know exist. We also had enough free time to explore on our own.
It was such a enjoyable adventure in Arizona: have you thought how sunrise, sunset, rainbows & lightning can have different magical "tastes"? How Aspen multi-colour leaves move and why? Have you ever taken a moment to sniff a ponderosa pine to see what it smells of? Or gone through 4 ecological systems in an hour? Washed your feet in the colorado/red river? Seen a condor sun-bathing? Have you made analogies between the rocks, the shapes that nature produces and human-made architectural innovations? On this trip you experience all of this & much more.
A memorable trip indeed. I recommend it to everyone.