Canyon Motel & RV Park is located on the eastern edge of Williams, Arizona, which is a city that can be found south of the Grand Canyon and Kaibab National Forest. The property is located on 13 acres of land and is open year-round, although the RV park does close in the winter. Visitors are able to have get-togethers and other small events on the property if they would like. East of Canyon Motel & RV Park, one can find the longest stretch of road on Route 66 that is still drivable. Several attractions that are located close to the business include Grand Canyon Deer Farm, Bearizona Wildlife Park, and more. The railroad will often have certain events held throughout the year that visitors can attend.
Canyon Motel & RV Park offers 46 full hookups, two dry RV spaces, and seven tent sites, with a total of 55 outdoor and mobile home arrangements. The RV spaces vary in pull-through and back-in spaces, though all of the full hookups come with water, electricity, sewage, DirecTV, and Wi-Fi. Visitors can also rent an RV called Nomad RV for their stay, which includes amenities such as a full kitchen with a stovetop and oven, a living room with a flat-screen television, a private bedroom, and a private bathroom with a shower. As part of the motel, there are 18 rooms, two caboose suites, and a railcar with three separate rail cart suites, which adds up to 23 rooms and suites. The rooms in the motel come with a microwave, refrigerator, coffee maker, and access to Wi-Fi and DirecTV.
Aside from the RV sites and the motel rooms, the property also has dry storage, which allows for guests to store things like RVs, boats, or "anything that fits," according to the manager. A general store can be found in the main office building that sells snacks, souvenirs, RV supplies, and more. There is a laundry room with coin-operated machines and a bathhouse with showers. An indoor swimming pool is open seasonally and closes during the winter. A fire ring and barbecue gas grill can be found in the motel area, and an additional fire ring and charcoal grill are located in the RV area. Games such as horseshoes, for example, can be played outside on the grounds, and visitors can spend time at the playground as well.
There are a variety of attractions that can be found in the surrounding area, many of which are outdoor areas. A number of people tend to go to the town and walk around, sightseeing on foot, as the city is "about three miles long," according to the manager. Canyon Motel & RV Park is located less than an hour from the South Rim of The Grand Canyon. A railroad system can take visitors from Williams to the South Rim of the canyon as well. Kaibab National Forest can be found in between the property and The Grand Canyon, which offers the largest contiguous forest of Ponderosa trees in The United States. Located closer to town, guests can spend time at Bearizona Wildlife Park, which is a drive-thru park where people can drive and walk through habitats to see various animals, such as wolves, bears, mountain goats, bison, and others. The wildlife park also hosts an aviary building that does bird shows and highlights a number of different species of birds, both exotic and native. Some other natural places of interest include Lava River Cave, Meteor Crater, and Walnut Canyon. Visitors can also find activities like golf at The Elephant Rocks Golf Course or tours of the canyons by airplane or helicopter at Papillion Grand Canyon Helicopter and Plane Tours. At the Grand Canyon Deer Farm, visitors can feed and interact with a variety of animals, including deer, llamas, wallabies, and more.
According to the manager, Williams and the other towns in the area have a large number of restaurants and eateries. She mentions that Goldies Route 66 Diner is one of her personal favorite places to visit. Wild West Junction doubles as both a restaurant and a pub, stylized to look like an old western town. Anna's Breakfast is a café that serves breakfast and lunch. Another café in the area that the manager mentions by name is Pine Country, which serves various flavors of pie. Finally, one restaurant that focuses on offering a higher quality of food and atmosphere is Red Raven.
The manager would like her guests to feel welcomed when they come to Canyon Motel & RV Park. She would like them to be comfortable and to enjoy themselves during their stay. To help them feel this way, she tries to take informative notes of the RV sites, and she tries to learn patrons' names and greet them when they first arrive at the property. She puts forth the effort to interact with them as much as possible, sometimes making rounds to the sites and asking if they are enjoying their stay and if they have everything they need. If guests have the time, the manager may give them what she calls a "two-cent tour of the town," where she will provide a brief explanation of what can be found in the surrounding area and some of the attractions and restaurants that are in Williams and other nearby towns.
The property does not typically hold many of its own events, but the manager explains that guests are free to reserve their own celebrations and reunions. In the past, there have been many reunions and clubs, including motorcycle clubs, church groups, and other organizations that have had get-togethers at the motel. During the winter, the railway has a train ride that recreates The Polar Express, which is a family-friendly event, and during the summer, the railway will take on a more Western theme and put on a Western show where they have cowboys visit and reenact a shootout.
Many people that have left reviews of Canyon Motel & RV Park in the past tend to mention the quality of the buildings and the grounds as well as how helpful the staff had been during their stay. One person's review reads, "Employees were awesome and knowledgeable of the area. The sites are a good size. All amenities were working. A clean place and close to the area's attractions."
Policies on the property include a quiet time, which begins at 10:00 PM. Pets are allowed at the RV park, but they are not permitted inside any of the buildings. The business asks that guests do not walk their dogs around the main office and motel buildings and that they remain on their leashes at all times. For visitors that are planning on arriving after the office closes, they can call Canyon Motel & RV Park ahead of time and arrange a late check-in with the employees. Checkout is at 10:00 AM for motel rooms, and RVs must check out by 11:00 AM. Pool hours are from 9:00 to 9:30, mid-April through October, so long as weather permits. There are no age restrictions for visitors, although there are limitations on how many people can be staying in one space at a time. The typical demographic of guests tends to be families and older couples, though the manager mentions that they see a wide variety of people from many different places, including countries like New Zealand, Japan, Taiwan, Switzerland, and more.
Canyon Motel & RV Park first opened up in 1938 as part of the Route 66 Motor Court. At the time when the property was first built, the only service that was offered was the motel. It remained running as only the motel until the current owners purchased the property around 2002. It was under their jurisdiction that they added the RV park, the swimming pool, and the caboose suites. The Santa Fe cabooses used as living arrangements are authentic and were built in 1929, as well as the Pullman Railcar, which was built in 1950.
One unique aspect of the property is that a TV show called Hotel Impossible helped them renovate one of the rooms. Beyond this, they gave them a small, operable train that is big enough to ferry multiple people around the property. Canyon Motel & RV Park does not have the train out all of the time, but the employees will usually pull it out for the Fourth of July and during the Christmas season.
The current owners, whose names are Kevin and Shirley, have owned the property for about 20 years. Originally from California, they moved to Arizona because they enjoyed the historical, western style of Williams and the other towns. They both had jobs in the hotel business in California, so they took that experience with them to Williams, Arizona, and purchased Canyon Motel & RV Park, which was just a motel at the time. Kevin and Shirley owned an RV of their own and enjoyed what that lifestyle had to offer, so they decided to build an RV park on the additional 13 acres of land that came with the motel, along with other amenities.
1900 E Rodeo Rd
Williams, Arizona 86046
United States
Campground
Kevin and Shirley
