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When I went to look at some of my analytics I saw I was ranking for the phrase “is Canyonlands in the Grand Canyon?“

This got me thinking. What else are people wondering if it’s part of the Grand Canyon? So off I went to find out and this post was born.

In this post you’ll find out what landmarks in the American west are part of the Grand Canyon, which aren’t, which states it’s in, and more you may have never thought about!

You’ll also learn about some other “Grand Canyons” throughout the US and even why people think you can get to Africa from the Grand Canyon. Yup.

One thing to know about the Grand Canyon and this post: This is the entire Grand Canyon, NOT just Grand Canyon National Park.

Some of the frequent players you’ll see in this post include:

• Glen Canyon
• Lake Powell
• Grand Canyon (the non-national park part)
• Grand Canyon National Park
• Lake Mead

National Park Goodies

• If you’re planning to visit three or more national parks within a year from your trip, definitely get the America the Beautiful pass. It will save you money in the long run if you’re going to more than three parks in a year. Buy the pass here.
• If you’re planning on doing a lot of hiking on your trip, or even at home, check out AllTrails! This is my favorite app to find, keep track of, and track my hiking activity. And it’s FREE! Sign up here.
• This Ultimate National Park Planning Bundle is a must-have. You get two ebooks and a planner, saving 50% by getting them as a bundle! If you want all the details, this is the bundle for you. Buy the Ultimate bundle here.
• This National Park Planner (one of the ebooks from the bundle above) is perfect if you just want some guidance in your planning. Buy the planner here.
• Get yourself a National Park journal for all of the NPS sites (400+!) to keep track of your travels!
• Consider reading some of these books set in national parks before your big trip, on your adventure, or once you get home to take you back to the parks until next time.

Is it part of the Grand Canyon?

Were starting of with “Is is part of the Grand Canyon?” and this is where you’ll find out what landmarks are or are not part of the Grand Canyon.

Is Canyonlands part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! Canyonlands is not part of the Grand Canyon. Glen Canyon shares a border with Canyonlands but they’re all separate things.

Is Horseshoe Bend part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! Horseshoe Bend is not part of the Grand Canyon. It’s part of Glen Canyon still. But not part of Lake Powell either.

Is Antelope Canyon part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! Antelope Canyon is not in the Grand Canyon. Or Glen Canyon! It’s actually just a series of slot canyons on Navajo Nation outside of Page, Arizona.

Is Hoover Dam part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! Hoover Dam is in Lake Mead National Recreation area at the west end of the Grand Canyon (opposite of Glen Canyon).

Is Zion part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! While both are popular Utah/Arizona road trip stops, they’re not even touching each other.

Zion is about 2.5 hours from the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, and about 4.5 hours from the West Rim Skywalk and Grand Canyon Village on the South Rim.

Is Bryce Canyon part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! Bryce Canyon is even further from the Grand Canyon than Zion at just over three hours from the North Rim and five and six hours to south and west, respectively.

Is Glen Canyon part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! Glen Canyon is right next to the Grand Canyon but not part of it. Like, when Glen Canyon ends, the Grand Canyon starts, but not the national park part of the Grand Canyon.

Is Marble Canyon part of the Grand Canyon?

Yes! But it’s also in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Lees Ferry is where the Grand Canyon starts and Glen Canyon ends. It is not in Grand Canyon National Park though.

Is Sedona part of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! Sedona is not in the Grand Canyon, it’s about two hours southeast of Grand Canyon Village.

Is Havasu Falls in the Grand Canyon?

Yes! Havasu Falls is in the Gran Canyon, but it’s not in the national park part of it. It’s in Havasu Creek on the Havasupai Reservation.

Is part of the Grand Canyon in it?

Now we’re onto what the Grand Canyon is part of instead of what is part of the Grand Canyon. Basically, where is the Grand Canyon and Grand Canyon alternatives.

Is part of the Grand Canyon in Arizona?

Yes! The Grand Canyon is entirely in Arizona, though it’s not terribly far from Nevada at it’s end point.

Is part of the Grand Canyon in Utah?

Nope! While it’s not far off, the Grand Canyon is not in Utah. Canyonlands is somewhat comparable canyon in Utah though.

There is, however, a Little Grand Canyon in the San Rafael Swell in southern Utah below The Wedge Overlook!

Is part of the Grand Canyon in Colorado?

Nope! The Grand Canyon is not in Colorado and the only place I can think of that’s even sort of comparable is Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

But don’t go there expecting the reds and browns of the Grand Canyon. Or the wide vast canyon. It’s entirely different but an absolutely amazing canyon.

Is part of the Grand Canyon in Nevada?

Nope! The Grand Canyon is not n Nevada and I don’t personally think there’s a great alternative there. Some people say Red Rock Canyon is but it’s not the same kind of canyon.

There are, however, tons of tours from Las Vegas that go to the Grand Canyon.

• Las Vegas: Grand Canyon West & Hoover Dam Tour with Meals
• From Las Vegas: Grand Canyon Helicopter Tour with Champagne
• From Las Vegas: Grand Canyon West Rim Airplane Tour
• Las Vegas: Grand Canyon South Rim Tour with Lunch

Is part of the Grand Canyon in New Mexico?

Nope! The Grand Canyon is not in New Mexico but sometimes Rio Grande del Norte is considered the Grand Canyon of Nevada.

I don’t know if I would say it’s a good alternative but you can decide for yourself there.

Is part of the Grand Canyon in California?

Nope! The Grand Canyon is not in California but you can find the “Orange County mini Grand Canyon” in southern California.

Irvine Ranch Conservancy is home to California’s mini Grand Canyon called The Sinks. Public access is only allowed once or twice every few months so visiting may be difficult.

Is part of the Grand Canyon in Texas?

Nope! You won’t find the grand Canyon in Texas but you will find Palo Duro Canyon State Park which is sometimes called the Grand Canyon of Texas.

Is part of the Grand Canyon in Canada?

Definitely not but the Grand Canyon of the Stikine River is in Canada! I think it looks more like the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone than Grand Canyon National Park but it still looks beautiful.

Other Grand Canyon FAQs

Now we’ve got the other questions about the Grand Canyon. These are sort of general random questions that you may or may not have been wondering about.

Is the Grand Canyon in Canada or America?

The Grand Canyon is in America but like I said above, Grand Canyon of the Stikine River can be found in British Columbia, Canada.

Is the Grand Canyon the biggest canyon in the world?

The Grand Canyon isn’t the largest canyon in the world but it’s not to far off. The actual largest canyon in the world is a bit debated.

It usually comes down to Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon along the Yarlung Tsangpo River in Tibet at 18,000 feet deep and 313.5 miles long or Kali Gandaki Gorge in Nepal at 21,000 feet deep (from the river to surrounding peaks).

Is the Grand Canyon a wonder of the world?

Yes and no! The Grand Canyon is one of the Natural Wonders of the world but not one of the New 7 World Wonders. It’s also a World Heritage Site.

The Seven Natural Wonders include:

• Aurora in high latitude regions
• Grand Canyon
• Great Barrier Reef
• Harbor of Rio de Janeiro
• Mount Everest
• Paricutin Volcano in Mexico
• Victoria Falls on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe

The New 7 Wonders of the World include:

• Great wall of China
• Petra
• Christ the Redeemer
• Machu Picchu
• Chichen Itza
• Colosseum
• Taj Mahal
• Giza Pyramids (honorary candidate)

Is the Grand Canyon man made?

Absolutely not. The Grand Canyon was formed by the water of the Colorado River and erosion over millions of years.

We’re not getting into all the details of how the Grand Canyon was formed but it was definitely not made by humans.

Is the Grand Canyon a desert?

Yes! It’s on the Colorado Plateau in the northern Arizona desert, however it is not part of one specific desert (like the Mojave, Sonoran, Great Basin, or Chihuahuan).

That said, the western part of the Grand Canyon is influenced by the Mojave Desert, the eastern by Sonoran Desert, with ponderosa and pinyon pine forests on both rims.

Is the Grand Canyon in Las Vegas?

Nope! But like I mentioned above there are tons of tours from Las Vegas too the Grand Canyon.

• Las Vegas: Grand Canyon West & Hoover Dam Tour with Meals
• From Las Vegas: Grand Canyon Helicopter Tour with Champagne
• From Las Vegas: Grand Canyon West Rim Airplane Tour
• Las Vegas: Grand Canyon South Rim Tour with Lunch

Is the Grand Canyon a national park?

Part of it is, yes! Not all of the Grand Canyon is a national park but the main part of it and easiest parts to see are.

Does the Grand Canyon have water?

Yes! The Colorado River runs through the bottom of the Grand Canyon and all three campgrounds below the rim (plus Phantom Ranch) have drinking water available at least during parts of the year.

Does the Grand Canyon have a river?

Yes! The Colorado River, which formed the Grand Canyon, still runs through the canyon.

Does the Grand Canyon get snow?

Yes! It does snow in the Grand Canyoon! The South Rim gets a little snow but the North Rim closes in the winter because it gets quite a bit more snow.

Does the Grand Canyon have waterfalls?

Yes! There are some in Grand Canyon National Park and some near Havasu Creek. Here are Havasu area waterfalls in the Grand Canyon (permit required):

• Fifty Foot Falls (New Navajo Falls
• Rock Falls (Little Navajo Falls)
• Mooney Falls
• Havasu Falls
• Beaver Falls

Here are the waterfalls in Grand Canyon National Park, almost all of which are extremely difficult to reach and only for very experienced hikers:

• Ribbon Falls (currently inaccessible)
• Deer Creek Falls (only for very experienced canyon hikers)
• Thunder Spring
• Elves Chasm (usually reached on rafting trips or an extremely demanding and dangerous off-trail backpacking trip)
• Cheyava Falls (seasonal, after snowmelt or thunderstorms)
• Vasey’s Paradise (only visible by raft)

Where does the Grand Canyon begin and end?

The Grand Canyon starts at Lees Ferry and ends at Grand Wash Cliffs 277 miles later! Grand Canyon National Park is just one part of the Grand Canyon.

It passes through Grand Canyon National Park, the Kaibab National Forest, Grand Canyon–Parashant National Monument, the Hualapai Indian Reservation, the Havasupai Indian Reservation, and the Navajo Nation.

Can the Grand Canyon flood?

I’m sure the Colorado River water levels can rise and maybe flood some of the shore but the whole Grand Canyon is probably not going to be flooding any time soon.

Can you camp in the Grand Canyon?

Yes! Aside from the campgrounds above the rim, you can stay at Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the canyon or you can camp at Bright Angel Campground, Indian Garden Campground, or Cottonwood Campground.

Can you drive to the bottom of the Grand Canyon?

Nope! But you can take mule rides into the canyon. However, i don’t know how ethical the Grand Canyon mule rides are as far as animal welfare goes. If you do want to ride a mule into the Grand Canyon you need to book way, way in advance.

Here are some resources to help decide if it’s something you’re comfortable with (I’m on the fence). If you’ve done this, I would love to hear your experience and how you felt the mules were treated.

• TripAdvisor review
• Mules in the Grand Canyon
• Reddit comments
• Grand Canyon mule ride experience
• Mule rides

Can you swim in the Grand Canyon?

You can swim in the pools at the bottom of the waterfalls at Havasu Falls, yes! As far as I can tell, you cannot swim at Phantom Ranch. You can swim in some spots on Grand Canyon rafting trips.

Can the Grand Canyon be seen from space?

Yes! Here is a series of photos put together of the Grand canyon from the International Space Station.

Can you get to Africa from the Grand Canyon?

Well, yes, you can get to Africa from the Grand Canyon. You cannot walk to Africa from the Grand Canyon though unless you go up through Alaska then into Russia and all the way through Central Asia and into Africa.

When I first saw this question I was like no. What? Why would people even be asking this? And then I remembered. Portals.

Some people believe there are caves and portals in the Grand Canyon that are illegal to go to because they’re tying to hide history of Egyptians and Egyptian artifacts in the Grand Canyon.

You may be shocked to learn though (probably not) that there is also a Grand Canyon of Africa! It’s Fish River Canyon in Namibia and absolutely the closest resemblance to the actual Grand Canyon compared to all the alternatives in here.

Did I answer your question about the Grand Canyon? If not, ask below and I’ll answer there!