Grand Canyon Family Vacation on Points
Grand Canyon at South Rim entrance 😍
We’ve heard it so much before: “You have to see it in person, it’s so much better!”
And you know what? They’re right!
The Grand Canyon is a masterpiece! Pictures don’t do it justice. Besides my husband, my family and I had never been to any of the Southwest states before. I was excited to show the kids a different environment other than the trees and hills in Tennessee!
How we got there:
It's no surprise we flew Southwest for this trip, utilizing our two companion passes for two of our kids. These were nonstop flights from Nashville to Phoenix for around 20k points/each round-trip.
If you have someone who regularly flies with you, or you’re a big family, the Southwest Companion Pass is the way to go here. They fly domestically within the United States, as well as parts of the Caribbean such as Mexico, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico. They also just announced a partnership with Iceland Air, but we’re not sure if or when we’ll be able to use the Companion Pass to fly there.
If you’d like more information on attaining the Companion Pass, check out this post.
Landing in Phoenix SkyHarbor International Airport
Next is hotel.
We used IHG points plus two free night certificates for our stay at the Holiday Inn Vacation Club in Scottsdale. Usually we book at least four nights in a row in order to get the 4th night free, but we broke up our trip so we’d be at the Grand Canyon on a Wednesday, assuming there would be less people. It worked out!
Our original plan was to leave out on a Monday, however, I didn’t think that would be enough time to relax before going to the Grand Canyon, so I added Sunday night. It wasn’t available on IHG to use points, so I jumped on Chase’s travel portal and found a 2 bedroom that included a $30 credit for breakfast for only 18k points! The manager upgraded us to a 2 bedroom the rest of the trip so we wouldn’t have to check out and move multiple times. We also have Platinum Elite status because we hold the IHG Premier card, so that helped ;)
We arrived Sunday afternoon and checked out Tuesday morning to make the 2.5 hour drive to Williams where we stayed at the Grand Canyon Railway & Hotel so we could board the train the next morning without rush. We booked this hotel through the travel portal for 19,524 Ultimate Rewards points and $0. Original cost of this hotel was $250/night.
Then we headed back to Scottsdale for the remaining 3 nights. We used points for one night, then we used a Free Night Certificate my husband had from having his IHG card for one year. Then I used my Free Night Certificate for our last night in Scottsdale. The Holiday Inn Vacation Club Scottsdale cost us 35k points/night.
My kids absolutely loved the amenities of this hotel. This property has a splash park area with zero-entry and 2ft water level. My five and four year old both were able to stand and had a blast! A short walk brings you to the other deeper pool that connects to the two water slides. Right next door was the activity center that included arcade games (requires a money loaded card), a pool table, life-size connect four, and a lounge area for reading. It’s a great place to get a break from the Arizona heat!
Holiday Inn Vacation Club Scottsdale entrance with beautiful landscape and mountains for a backdrop! Can’t beat the location a mile from the shops and in a great neighborhood.
The spacious lounge/arcade area across from the slide pool. This area also offers crafts and nightly movies.
I reserved our Grand Canyon train tickets about a month ahead of time. Tickets were around $50/pp for round-trip seats in Pullman class, and there is a separate price of admission for the national park that you’ll need to pay with your train tickets.
However, since my oldest is in fourth grade, I was able to use her park pass code and make that $0. You do need to show an I.D and park pass to the train attendant when you get your tickets before boarding. For more information on the Every Kid Outdoors Pass, check out their website here. The train is about 2-2.5 hours long. Every car has a host, and ours was fantastic! Shout out to Sheryl in the Pullman car! She gave us a lot of info about the Williams town as well as the Grand Canyon park and surrounding area.
Getting on the Grand Canyon train in Williams, AZ.
Rental Car:
We booked our car through the Chase travel portal for 56,160 Ultimate Rewards points. Because we need a bigger vehicle, we use more points when it’s all 6 of us together. This would have cost over $700 if we paid cash.
We rack up UR points through our Sapphire Preferred + Ink cards
Beautiful scenery on the way to Williams, AZ
In Summary:
Airfare: Southwest points + two Southwest Companion Passes: 79,196 points total + $67.00 for taxes/fees round-trip total for 6 people. (19,799/pp round-trip)
Hotel: 88k IHG points + 2 Free Night Certificates (FNC) & 19k Chase points total for 6 nights
Rental Car: 56,160 points booked through the Chase travel portal.
Original Price we would have paid for this trip: $4,500
What we paid after using points: $67.00
