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Page is home to some of the best slot canyons in Arizona, the best slot canyons in the country, really. At least the most famous slot canyons.

Sometimes it’s even a destination for road trips, not just a stop on a Utah road trip or a southwest road trip. It’s the whole trip.

Side note: triple check the tours are running before driving thousands of miles for this. I actually saw someone on Facebook who drove 3,000 miles for this in 2020 and the tours weren’t running. Can you even imagine?

There are so many slot canyon tours in Page, Arizona, it’s incredibly overwhelming to choose either the best one or the one that’s right for you. Enter, me.

I think one of the most confusing parts is that almost none of the tour company names and website URLs match. It gets confusing keeping them all straight but I’ll hopefully help with that in here.

My goal before leaving Page was to do as many slot canyon tours as I could so I could write about all of them. But they’re expensive and I couldn’t spare another $672 to do the four I have left.

That’s right. $672 for four tours. I just did the math and to do everything in this (except for Owl Canyon) it comes out to $1112. The price of these tours astounds me.

After months of looking at all of this, I’m still astounded by the cost. And that’s just for one person. If you’re travelling as a family, you may have to sell a family member to do more than one of these.

So, now that we know how horrifically expensive these are, let me help you choose which Page slot canyon tour is best for you. There are a lot to choose from but I’m confident we’ll find the right one for you.

And even though I didn’t make it to four of these, I literally can’t even pick a favorite from the ones I did see because they all have their pros and cons.

Best time to visit the Page slot canyons

If you want to see the light beams, then you’ll need to go between 11-1:30 from May to September. If not, I would still go in the time frame (prime time during the day) but you could go any time of year.

Definitely avoid mornings and later afternoon, at least for Upper, Lower, and Antelope X. Those are all more narrow letting in less light and can be very dark outside of prime time.

What to bring on a Page slot canyon tour

You’re not allowed to bring much on a slot canyon tour in Page. No bags are allowed, no tripods unless your’e on a photography tours, but you can bring water, cell phone, and camera.

If you’re visiting in winter, be sure to dress warm, especially if you’re tour is in the morning. It can get very cold in them. I forgot gloves at Upper Antelope and my fingers were very sad about that.

Tips for visiting the Page, Arizona slot canyons

• If you’re determined to visit Upper Antelope Canyon, definitely book it in advance. Checking throughout the winter it was usually booked out a week or two but in summer I would imagine it’s more. Looking at these now, prime time is booked out a few weeks on most of these and some are almost all booked except for one or two random spots, so definitely book in advance.
• The same goes for Lower Antelope. Really, all of them or at least keep an eye on them as your trip dates approach.
• Pay the extra for a prime time tour. Trust me. Not all of them are more at prime time but it’s worth it.
• Most of these tours are non-refundable so keep that in mind with any planning but check with each company.
• If it’s raining or bad weather, they may cancel the tour and reschedule it. Refunds may depend on the company, I would check their FAQ or call and ask.
• If it’s really windy, the tour is probably still on. Sand will blow down into the canyon and probably into your eyes. You may want something to go around your camera if you’re worried about sand getting in it with wind in the forecast.
• These tours are not cheap. Plan to spend at least $50 per person (Antelope X is just under $50 but not much) no matter the tour but most are more.
• Don’t forget to tip your guide! It’s not required but it is appreciated.
• Light beams can be seen in Upper, Lower, and Antelope X from May-September usually from 11-1:30ish.
• Sometimes prices for kids are lower, but not always, it just depends on the canyon.

Upper Antelope Canyon

Ahh, Upper Antelope Canyon. This was the last slot canyon in Page I went to, literally days before we left, and it was, uhh, a little disappointing. But also not because it was not busy at all since it was mid-February and first thing in the morning.

This is also probably the most famous of the Page slot canyons. You can see the famous light beams here from May to September in that prime time tour slot (11-1:30ish.) It’s not the only canyon you can see them in.

This was honestly my least favorite of the slot canyon tours in Page because of how dark it was. It was a bummer for how much we spent on the tour. I wouldn’t do this outside of prime time.

There are five companies that offer Upper Antelope Canyon tours and we went with Adventurous Antelope Canyon so we could also go to Rattlesnake and Owl Canyons. They’re the only company that goes to those two.

Cost: $102 per person, $112 per person at prime time ($133 at prime time after tax)

The good: It’s beautiful, it’s classic Antelope Canyon, it’s an easy hike.

The bad: It’s so dark outside of prime time, it’s expensive.

Who it’s good for: Photographers and anyone looking for the classic Antelope Canyon views. (Photography tours no longer exist here, though, you’d have to pick a different one if that’s a requirement for you.)

Rattlesnake Canyon

Rattlesnake Canyon was my favorite of the three canyons we saw on our last tour. It’s not as tall as Upper or Lower Antelope Canyon but it’s really beautiful.

It’s also a lot less busy because only one company goes there (though it was busier than Upper Antelope which I thought was weird.)

We didn’t see any owls in here but did get to hear some babies, so if you want to see owls but don’t want to add on Owl Canyon, this is a good option.

Cost: $209 at prime time since that’s the only time I would do it ($241 with tax). It’s more because you can only see this one with Upper Antelope.

The good: It’s less busy, it’s winding, it’s beautiful.

The bad: It’s expensive and only one company goes here so they can charge more for it just because.

Who it’s good for: People that want to see a classic Antelope Canyon but also want to see another slot canyon in Page but don’t have time for two totally separate tours.

Owl Canyon

This was my least favorite of the Page slot canyons. We didn’t see any owls (I wasn’t too surprised), it’s short, it’s kind of wide. I wouldn’t spend the extra almost $30 for it, especially if you’re on a budget, unless you just really hope you’ll see owls.

It’s not a bad canyon by any means but compared to allllll the other slot canyon tours in Page, it’s just OK. But still not bad. If you’ve never been in a slot canyon, it could be good but if you have, it’s just fine.

Cost: $234 at prime time because that’s the only time I would do it. It’s $268 after fees and taxes because you can only do it with Upper Antelope and Rattlesnake.

The good: You might see owls, you’ll probably be the only people here

The bad: You might not see owls, it’s short (distance and height)

Who it’s good for: People that want to see owls?

Lower Antelope Canyon

Dixie Ellis and Kens Tours are the two companies that offer tours in Lower Antelope Canyon, the other most famous Page slot canyon. It was also the first one i went to back in 2016!

It was very busy but I did like it a lot. I was still able to get pictures without people in them and the lighting was absolutely perfect. We didn’t even book it in advance!

It’s busy but it’s beautiful and it this point if it’s between Upper and Lower Antelope, I would go for Lower. It’s more affordable, a little more fu