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Built in 1905 out of native stone and hand-hewn logs, El Tovar sits directly on the South Rim near Mather Point and is one of the National Park System's most iconic historic lodges. Its guest register includes Theodore Roosevelt and other early 20th-century visitors, and its rustic, Arts-and-Crafts-style architecture set the tone for the log-and-stone lodges built across the American national parks in the decades that followed.
Private Tours
A private tour for your group only — a real scenic drive through Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon to the Grand Canyon South Rim, with a stop at the historic El Tovar Lodge.
Private Tours
A private tour for your group only, up to 4 guests, in a luxury SUV — the real Hermit Trail, El Tovar Dining Room, and Lipan Point.
Visitor guide
El Tovar Hotel is a log-and-stone lodge standing about 20 feet from the Grand Canyon's South Rim in Grand Canyon Village. Opened in January 1905 for the Fred Harvey Company and the Santa Fe Railway, it is a National Historic Landmark and, according to the National Park Service, the oldest hotel still operating within Grand Canyon National Park.
The Santa Fe Railway's chief architect, Charles Whittlesey, designed the hotel. Planning began in 1902, and it opened in January 1905 at a reported cost of nearly $250,000. The Fred Harvey Company, already known for its railside Harvey House restaurants and hotels, ran it as a destination resort. Many considered it the most elegant hotel west of the Mississippi River. The name honors Pedro de Tovar, a Spanish explorer whose reports of a great river led to the Cardenas expedition; an earlier plan to call it Bright Angel Tavern was dropped.
The hotel stood next to the Grand Canyon Depot, about 100 meters away, where trains from the Santa Fe line arrived. The Grand Canyon Railway, which still runs there, ends at the hotel's depot. Theodore Roosevelt visited the canyon in 1903, and Wikipedia reports he stayed at the hotel in 1911 and 1913.
El Tovar was built from local limestone and Oregon pine, with lower walls mainly of log construction and upper levels framed and planked under a shingled roof. Its style is a mix of Swiss chalet and Norwegian villa. It is an early example of the approach that evolved into National Park Service rustic architecture. The central section is about 218 feet long, the lobby rises four stories under a turret with a pyramidal roof, and the dining room sits behind the lobby with windows facing the canyon. Interiors blend rustic Western-Swiss themes with Mission, Arts and Crafts and Southwestern Native American motifs, though many original furnishings have been replaced.
El Tovar was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 6, 1974, and designated a National Historic Landmark on May 28, 1987. It is also a contributing building in the Grand Canyon Village Historic District.
The NPS says the hotel has 78 rooms, many of them suites, and no two are alike, along with a dining room, lounge and gift shop. Dining-room and lodging reservations are handled through the concessioner, and the Park Service notes advance reservations are required for lunch and dinner. Even if you are not staying, the lobby and rim-side porches are part of the Village Historic District walk. Check the NPS and the concessioner for current reservation rules and hours.
Bright Angel Lodge, Kolb Studio, Hopi House and the Bright Angel Trailhead are all within a short walk along the Rim Trail, and Mather Point is a few minutes away by shuttle. On a Voyzo private tour, your private driver and vehicle can drop you at the village door-to-door, so you can explore the historic buildings on foot without searching for parking.
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