It’s safe to say that we’ve never seen anything like Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon. These slots canyons are simply incredible and look like works of art carved out of the desert. Once you begin to walk through these narrow, winding canyons, you’ll feel like you’re entering another world.
However, you won’t be alone. These slot canyons in Arizona are insanely popular and we’ve heard horror stories about how busy they can get (have a look on Youtube and you’ll see the carnage). If you go in high season (April to October) you may have to book your tickets up to four months in advance.
With their huge surge in popularity has inevitably come an equally huge price increase, so you may not want to spend over $150 - $200 per person to visit them both. We decided we did want to see both so here are our thoughts on Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon to help you make an informed choice.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon
When judging Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon, the primary difference between the two is that Upper Antelope Canyon is a lot deeper, shorter, is flat and has those light beams. It is the busiest though. Lower Antelope Canyon is less crowded, longer and requires some climbing up and down ladders, but isn’t deep enough to get those light beams.
Here’s a full break down of both and what to expect. Click on the links below to skip to the section you want to read about.
What is Upper Antelope Canyon?
Upper Antelope Canyon is a slot canyon carved out of the Navajo Sandstone rock and was the place where the most expensive photo ever sold was taken - (Peter Lik’s “The ghost”) - for over $6 million.
It is the most famous of the two canyons because of the highly distinctive light beams and the incredibly high canyon walls, which are very photogenic.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: The heart in Upper Antelope Canyon
What is Lower Antelope Canyon
Lower Antelope Canyon starts about three miles away from Upper Antelope Canyon and used to be the less popular canyon to visit but lately its visitor numbers have dramatically surged. It is pretty similar to Upper Antelope Canyon in many ways except the canyon walls aren’t quite as deep (high). You won’t get such vivid light beams as at Upper, but there are plenty of positives that make this canyon well worth visiting.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: Looking up in Lower Antelope Canyon
Which is the most picturesque canyon?
If you have never seen a slot canyon before, you will love either Upper or Lower Antelope Canyon. Both are incredible places to explore and we really enjoyed them both. However, that’s not why you’re reading this blog!
Upper Antelope Canyon
Upper Antelope Canyon blew us away - it is truly unique, even among all the other slots canyons in Arizona. There’s something about this place that feels so special and has been attracting professional photographers for years.
As Upper Antelope Canyon’s walls are a lot higher than Lower Antelope’s this makes it the most awe inspiring. There are patches that are really, really dark, but this adds to the mystery and allure of the place. Plus the lighter sections are stunning and create all kinds of shapes and formations to enjoy.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: One of the famous spots in Upper Antelope Canyon
Light beams in Upper Antelope Canyon
If light beams are what you are looking for, then head to Upper Antelope Canyon. In the words of a Lower Antelope tour guide Upper’s light beams blows Lower’s out the water.
Note that you will only see those famous shafts of light, during April to October and only at specific times of day. Consult the tour companies for when this will happen and prepare to have to pay more for it (yep, it gets a whole lot more expensive).
Lower Antelope Canyon
Lower Antelope Canyon is a beautiful place to enjoy, but it doesn’t quite match Upper. The canyon has some incredible formations and places where the light struggles to get in, but it isn’t quite on the same level as Upper Antelope Canyon.
We also loved the sections where you had a bit more space than Upper Antelope Canyon, so you almost had a corridor of slot canyon.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: The formations in Lower Antelope Canyon
Light beams
Sadly, Lower Antelope Canyon doesn’t get very dramatic light beams as it isn’t deep or dark enough. You may get some depending on time of year and day but it won’t be in the same league as those at Upper Antelope.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: most picturesque
We would say that Upper Antelope Canyon is the more picturesque of the two and will take your breath away (especially if you visit in the summer and get those light beams). However, both are very beautiful so remember we are comparing two exceptional slot canyons.
Walk length and difficulty
Upper Antelope Canyon Difficulty
It doesn’t get much flatter than Upper Antelope Canyon! You start the walk at ground level and there’s not a step, ladder or slope for the entire tour. At no point does it get especially narrow or require any manoeuvring.
Simply put, you won’t have any problems whatsoever with Upper Antelope Canyon. The entire walk is 0.5 miles and is extremely easy going.
This can be a positive or negative depending on what you are looking for, this is not an adventurous canyon which will please some and disappoint others.
Lower Antelope Canyon Difficulty
We wouldn’t say Lower Antelope Canyon is hard, but it requires more effort than Upper Antelope Canyon. The tour starts by going down a 75 foot (25 metre) set of stairs and also has a few ladders along the way. There are sections which get a little narrow, but on the whole it shouldn’t be anything to worry about.
The entire canyon is 1.5 miles long, but unless you are worried about ladders or have mobility concerns, we think you won’t have a problem with Lower Antelope Canyon.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: The tallest staircase on Lower Antelope Canyon
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon Difficulty
Neither canyon is difficult, but if you are concerned then go to Upper Antelope Canyon. This is completely flat, short and has no ladders or narrow sections. If that all sounds a bit too easy for you, you will prefer Lower Antelope.
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Tours/Amount of people
Sadly you can only visit Upper or Lower Antelope Canyon with a guide and you’re likely to be joined by many other people (some groups can get as high as 40 people and multiple operators are taking tours through at the same time).
Edit for 2023: Tours in Upper Antelope Canyon are now one way, which has reduced the number of people in the canyon at any one time.
Upper Antelope Canyon Tours
Tours to Upper Antelope Canyon last for an hour and are by far the most popular of the two. There are four companies operating here and even in February (low season), we saw a lot of tour groups here being squeezed through the canyon.
This made the canyon feel really crowded at points and hard to get photos without someone walking into it. No matter what time of year you go, Upper Antelope Canyon will be busy, there is no avoiding it. However, at least in low season we did have some moments where if we kept to the front of our group, there was no one in front of us and you could snatch a moment of peace in this exceptionally beautiful place.
We were told that in peak season Upper Antelope Canyon has as many as 10,000 people a day! That’s nearly 1,000 people an hour cramming into 0.25 miles of slot canyon…. - this number should now be about half as you no longer return the way you came.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: Even at the quietest time of year you’ll get continuously photobombed….
As it gets pretty busy, the tour leaders will start shouting for people to move on, stop taking photos and become more like crowd control than a guide.
For someone who likes taking their time (especially in a place as beautiful as Upper Antelope Canyon) this was a real let down.
The tour wasn’t very personal or friendly. Our guide did point out some features and pictures to take, but was more mindful about getting us moving. We actually can’t imagine how it would be in high season!
Lower Antelope Canyon Tours
Lower Antelope Canyon only has two tour companies operating (Dixie Ellis and Ken’s Tours) and isn’t quite as popular as Upper Antelope Canyon.
Our tour guide said that in January (the time he believes is the quietest) he took a tour where only one person was booked on it! That lucky guy was able to have the whole canyon to himself!
Tours here last 1.5 hours, mainly because the canyon is longer. When we visited in February we were in a group of eight (us and six others) and the canyon was quiet enough for our tour guide to give us a lot of freedom to go ahead and find places for ourselves.
It was considerably quieter and we only saw people around every 10 minutes, so we were able to explore on our own and get plenty of photos without anyone else in them. Now this isn’t common and we were told how lucky we were.
If you can visit in January or February you should hopefully also experience this and believe us, it is magical! Once you’ve seen those Youtube videos you will truly see how fortune you are.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon: The teardrop in Lower Antelope Canyon
As Lower Antelope Canyon runs as a one-way system, you don’t have the same struggles as Upper Antelope Canyon. In peak season it will be very busy, but you won’t have people walking head on towards you.
Our tour guide for this trip was the best we’d ever had, anywhere in the world. He took into consideration our desire to get photos and have independence, so he let us go ahead and organise ourselves whilst making sure we didn’t miss a single epic spot or interesting angle to shoot.
He was enthusiastic, helpful, considerate and allowed everyone to get what they wanted from the tour. Plus a bottle of water at the end was a nice touch.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon Tours
Lower Antelope Canyon is far better for a more relaxing tour. Upper Antelope Canyon is smaller, runs a lot more tours and has a two-way system that exacerbates the problem.
The tours guides in Lower seemed to be friendlier and got a lot better reactions from the groups than Upper. While people on an Upper Antelope Canyon tour were getting shouted at for moving too slowly, the Lower Antelope tours were playful and more enthusiastic.
Photo opportunities
Upper Antelope Canyon Photo opportunities
Upper Antelope Canyon is undeniably picturesque and a photographer’s dream. If you’ve seen slot canyon screensavers on Windows or full page images on National Geographic, it is likely that it was taken in Upper Antelope Canyon (although Apple did use one from Lower!).
Until 2020, you could book a photography tour that allowed you to set up a tripod and get a really clean photo, but these tours no longer run. This makes getting that screensaver photo incredibly hard.
Upper Antelope Canyon is a very very dark place and is incredibly frustrating if you plan on taking photos handheld. I was lucky to ever get a shot under 1,000 ISO and sometimes it struggled to get a shot at 12,800 (which is a grainy and blurry setting)! You can’t use a flash either to make things easier.
When you add all the crowds, Upper Antelope Canyon can be a very very frustrating place to photograph as even when you have nice light you’ll probably get someone standing in your shot just as you get shouted at to keep moving.
You may be able to get a chance to shoot light beams in the summer, but without a tripod it will be a very difficult task. I spent a lot of the time shooting upwards, praying that some of them weren’t grainy or out of focus.
You are only allowed to take photos in one direction for Upper Antelope Canyon as they don’t allow you to shoot on the way back.
This meant we only had 30-40 minutes to take photos of an hour long tour. Hardly ideal.
Lower Antelope Canyon Photo opportunities
You’re not allowed tripods in Lower Antelope Canyon either, but the great news is that you won’t need one! As Lower Antelope Canyon is a lot lighter, you can comfortably take handheld photos and not have to worry about your ISO going through the roof and getting grainy/blurry photos.
Added to this, the less people in the canyon and you have a much easier time. We were able to find space to get some shots and have time to think about what we wanted to shoot. As it is a one-way route, you can also shoot for the entire 1 hour 30. We didn’t feel rushed, pressured and panicked into getting a shot in Lower Antelope Canyon and even had plenty of time to put the camera down and enjoy the canyon.
Our experience was made better by going in February, things are more rushed in peak season.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon Photos
This is a tricky one to judge as I know the photos from Upper Antelope Canyon would have been a lot better on the photography tours they used to run and during the light beam season. I fully admit, that the dream shots are from the Upper Canyon.
However, I struggled to enjoy it on a normal tour. The Upper Canyon was very dark, crowded and the pressure of the tour guides shouting at you made it hard to enjoy. Add in the policy of only being able to take photos in one-direction and I would have to say it was a disappointment.
This is why Lower Antelope Canyon is our favourite for photos. You don’t need a tripod and have more space and time. You don’t need to be an award winning photographer with a tripod to get a great shot here! We just simply enjoyed the photo taking process here more.
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Cost
This is probably the hardest to stomach as they are so much more expensive than they were a few years ago. Since the introduction of mandatory tour guides, the prices of tours have skyrocketed and are extremely expensive. In our opinion way of out of proportion with the general cost of things in America.
However, not only did we go, we actually visited three slot canyons. So long as people like us (and the 9,998 per day) keep going, the prices will continue at these obscene levels.
Upper Antelope Canyon Tour Cost
Four companies operate in Upper Antelope Canyon and we went with Antelope Slot Canyon Tours. They were ok but nothing special.
Prices are correct at time of writing (November 2022).
Adventurous Antelope Canyon Photo Tours - this is the company I would have used if it wasn’t so expensive! Adult tickets start at $102, children under 8 years old are free. Tours at prime time (light beams) start at $112 per adult, children under 8 are free.
They also run tours to other less busy canyons but again these are very expensive.
Antelope Slot Canyon Tours - this is the company we used. Winter prices are $102 per person. Children are $71.40. All other times of year adult tickets are $120 per person and children are $110.
Prime time (light beam) tours are $120 per person, children are $110. It doesn’t mention young children being free but double check.
Antelope Canyon Tours - The sightseers tour prices are - Adult $93.00 (ages 8 & up), Children $75.00 (ages 0-7 years).
The prices go up for prime time (12pm tour, April 1st - August 31st) Adults $113 (ages 8 & up), Children $105 (0-7 years).
Antelope Canyon Navajo Tours - I spoke to this company on the phone and sadly got someone who was both rude and seemed not to know what they were talking about so ruled them out as a company to go with.
Adults are between $100-$120 (depending on the time of day). Sadly it doesn’t mention the price of tickets for children online.
Lower Antelope Canyon Tour Cost
Two companies currently operate in Lower Antelope Canyon, Ken’s Tours and Dixie Ellis. I emailed both companies ahead of our trip and chose the company to go with based on how good their response was (I asked a number of questions about light and least busy time of day to come).
Dixie Ellis blew Ken’s out the window. As we mentioned it was the best tour guide we have ever had and made the hefty fee easier to swallow. During our tour at Waterholes I had also mentioned Dixie Ellis and our guide said that it was also his favourite company.
Prices are correct at time of writing.
Dixie Ellis - $50 per adult and $30 per child (children under seven go free)
You will also need to pay a Navajo Nation permit fee of $8 per person. If you visit Upper and Lower Antelope on the same day you don’t pay this fee twice.
Ken’s Tours - They are roughly the same price as Dixie, advertised as $50 per adult and $30 per child (under seven’s are also free).
The price doesn’t include the Navajo Park Permit ($8) or taxes and fees ($9.15). If you visit Upper and Lower Antelope on the same day you don’t pay the Navajo Park fee twice.
Upper vs Lower Antelope Canyon Cost
A tour to Lower Antelope Canyon is cheaper than Upper, but only by $10-15. You will save even more money by doing both on the same day and avoid having to pay the Navajo Park Permit fee twice.
Which one should you visit?
The cop out answer is both! We loved both Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon as both are unique and slot canyons are just amazing places to explore.
However, if you were to only do one then we’d side towards Lower Antelope Canyon. As there are fewer people who visit, you get a lot longer in the canyon and better conditions for handheld photography, we enjoyed this more than Upper Antelope Canyon. The guides were better and it was just a nicer experience all round.
If you can cope with crowds and are desperate to get that million dollar photo, then hop on a photography tour and pray the crowd gods are in your favour at Upper.
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Alternatives to Upper Antelope Canyon and Lower Antelope Canyon
Waterhole Canyon
If you can’t get on either Antelope Canyon tour - or just fancy a much quieter slot canyon - then head to Waterhole. This slot canyon has only just introduced a tours only requirement (grrrrr) but the benefit is that a lot fewer people know about it.
When we visited, we were literally the only people on our tour and we’re quite sure the only people visiting all day. This means you can enjoy it without the crowds, pressure or hassle of a tour guide watching the clock.
We were given 1.5 hours to do the whole canyon which was very generous. The canyons are stunning and the trip is a lot of fun with a touch more adventure than either Upper or Lower Antelope Canyon.
You can read all about it in our Waterhole Canyon article.
Getting to Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon
You can only access either canyon on a tour which can sell out a long way in advance, so book as early as you can - don’t expect to be able to rock up and hop on the next tour. Both Upper and Lower Antelope Canyons are best accessed from Page which is a 10 - 15 minute drive away.
All the other major areas to stay are at least 2 hours + away. While in Page you can also visit the stunning Horseshoe Bend, Lake Powell, the Toadstools and a couple of walking trails, making it worth staying for at least a couple of nights.
Warning - Are you a blogger or photographer?
If you want to publish a picture of either Upper or Lower Antelope Canyon on your website or even on a social media channel you must have a photography permit. This is the case whether you make any money from your blog or social media or not.
These permits cost $50 if you order it ahead of time or $200 if you order it retrospectively.
You can pick up the permit in person in their office in Page (location is 337 North Navajo Drive) or you can apply in writing.
We were able to get our permit immediately on going into the Page office but they said applications made in writing can take up to a week to process. You must have a tour booked to apply as they send the permission ahead to your tour company.
Where to stay in Page
Country Inn & Suites by Radisson
The Country Inn and Suites by Radisson is currently getting rave reviews and is a great choice in Page. It’s in a central location, very close to both Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon. The rooms are modern, comfy and a great place to rest up in after a day exploring in Page.
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Are you planning a trip to Antelope Canyon? Which slot canyon is your favourite in Arizona? Let us know in the comments below!
