Skywalk Odyssey

Skywalk Odyssey is a premium half-day helicopter tour run by Maverick Helicopters that flies from the Las Vegas Strip out to the Grand Canyon West Rim, home of the glass Skywalk bridge. It's an air-only trip - there's no bus leg - so the whole outing is short and scenic rather than a long day on the road.

The EcoStar helicopter lifts off from Maverick's Strip terminal and tracks roughly 45 minutes each way over Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and Fortification Hill before setting down at Grand Canyon West. On the ground you get about an hour, with expedited admission to the Skywalk, a horseshoe-shaped glass walkway that cantilevers about 70 feet past the rim, leaving you standing on a clear floor some 4,000 feet above the canyon. The return flight loops back over the Strip.

The price is the sticking point. It's expensive, starting from $639, and that buys a fairly brief experience: roughly 2.75 hours from lift-off to return, with only about an hour on the ground. To step onto the bridge you lock bags and cameras away in a free locker, though cell phones are allowed, so you can take your own shots, and a souvenir Skywalk photo already comes with the booking. Book a clear day, since haze or wind can dull the views or affect flights. For a splurge that packs a scenic flight and a genuine bucket-list thrill into a compact window, it delivers.