Hotels near Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Chinle

The canyon had great views, but the one unguided hike available (all other hikes required Native American guides), was closed due to “vandalism” in parking lot. So rather than deal with the vandalism, the park simply closes the trail. Hmm, the other trails which require Native American guides don’t have such a vandalism problem, hmmm. The motel within the park is an absolute dump with wild dogs constantly roaming the parking lots. The best place to eat in town is a Denny’s and it was the worst meal we’ve ever been served. My tip: skip visiting this park altogether and just find some online photos to enjoy instead.

Awesomely beautiful area. So much more accessible than the Grand Canyon. Loads of international tourists. We spent 1.5 days and 2 nights, which afforded us the opportunity to do all the viewpoints on both rims, and the White House hike. We did not opt for a jeep tour.

Canyon de Chelly is stunning. Tour the canyon from the top in your own car, but even more beautiful and fascinating is a jeep tour of the canyon itself with a Navaho guide. We took a 4-hour afternoon tour, which include some cool water spray from the river bed--just right on a warm June day.

Amazing scenery. Miniature Grand Canyon. The North and South Rim Drives are easy, on good roads with many turn offs and view points. No need to take a tour with local guides down into the canyon itself. Only minutes away from Chinle with its Best Western Hotel.