El Tovar Access Path

Best Time to Walk It

This is a village path open year-round, so timing follows your broader Grand Canyon Village visit rather than any trail-specific season.

What You'll Pass

• El Tovar Hotel, built in 1905 as a Fred Harvey Company railroad hotel and now a National Historic Landmark.
• Hopi House and Verkamp's Visitor Center, both just steps away at the top.
• A direct connection into the Rim Trail, the paved path running along the South Rim through Grand Canyon Village — skip the stairs and take the paved route if you're using a wheelchair or stroller.

Getting There

Start at the Train Depot area in Grand Canyon Village and choose either the stairs or the paved, wheelchair-accessible route up to El Tovar Hotel's front steps.

What to Expect on El Tovar Access Path

This is the short climb that links the lower village to the rim at El Tovar Hotel. From the Train Depot area, a set of stairs and a separate paved, wheelchair-accessible path both head up the hill, gaining the canyon rim right at the historic hotel's front steps. It's not a backcountry trail — it's village infrastructure, but it puts you exactly where the South Rim's most storied buildings sit shoulder to shoulder.