El Tovar Lodge on the south rim of the Grand Canyon, one of the seven natural wonders of the world, cannot be beat for location. The hotel sits less than 50 feet from the edge, so you are always nearby the incredible, gaping slash that the Colorado River has carved through the Colorado Plateau over the millenia. This is handy when you want to just roll out of bed at 4:30am to catch the perfect view of the sunrise you get from the south rim by the lodge. The lodge was renovated in early 2005, and it is lovely--the bathrooms are brand new, and extremely white and bright. The rooms are comfy with cable TV, phone, iron/board, hair dryer, CD/alarm clock etc. El Tovar was built in 1905, in an Arts & Crafts style, and is furnished in kind. There is a dining room for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and limited room service. The food was very good, but we stayed there four nights and the menu has enough variety for two nights. There is a lovely shop in the hotel (and two incredible stores--Hopi House and Verkamps--within 100 yards). There are four or five lodges on the south rim; El Tovar is hands down the top of the heap. A remarkable, beautiful, historic place to stay to enjoy one of the most beautiful places on earth. Note: I saw four California Condors in the Grand Canyon, which is very special because they were nearly extinct a few years ago and were recently re-introduced into the canyon. Look out for the huge black birds, they're a treat.
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