Most people who take a Grand Canyon day trip visit a one or two lookouts and call it a day. Little do they know they've just scratched the surface. To really see the 9,000-square mile national park, you've got to take a helicopter tour.

South Rim helicopter tours leave every day of the year including holidays from Grand Canyon Airport in Tusayan, AZ, the town 10 minutes south of the National Park's main gates. Presently, three tour operators operate South Rim flights.

The airspace over Grand Canyon National Park is highly restricted. Thus, all tours are pretty much the same. Choppers take off from the Kaibab Plateau and beeline at 200 miles per hour into the Dragoon Corridor, the widest, deepest part of the Canyon, before turning back at the North Rim.

Take an early morning flight for best visibility. Sunrise and sunset flights are available, too. If you can upgrade to an EcoStar 130, do it. This aircraft is superior to conventional helicopters and features stadium-style seating, 180-degree wraparound windshields, and quiet-flight Fenestron tail rotors.

Seating is assigned by weight, which must be distributed equally about the aircraft. Each passenger gets a head set, which, when plugged into the digital communication system, lets you talk with the pilot and other travelers. Optional taped tour narrations in multiple languages are available.

Make sure your digital camera is fully charged. Bring extra batteries and memory sticks. Expect to take photographs before, during, and after your flight. Great aerial shots include the Kaibab Plateau, North Rim, the Colorado River, Grand Canyon Village, and the Tower of Ra. Sunrise, sunset, and Monsoon flights are a photographer's paradise.

No direct helicopter flights leave from Las Vegas, NV, to the South Rim. You must book a bus/helicopter or airplane/helicopter combination tour. The luxury bus trip and the airplane flight are 5.5 hours and 45 minutes, respectively. The plane/helicopter package also includes a ride by motor coach to Grand Canyon Village, the commercial hub of the South Rim where you'll discover restaurants, museums, souvenir shops and more.

The best deals for South Rim helicopter flights are on the Internet. I've seen prices slashed by up to 35 percent at certain sites. And I know from experience that the best specials are announced on the Web. When I book my helicopter flights I only use websites that are owned by the company that's operating the tour. I do this because I trust that that my purchase is being handled safely and securely.

Grand Canyon Helicopters offer you the ultimate way to experience the canyon. Exploring it solely on foot is only scratching the surface, especially considering that the park is comprised of more than 9,000-square miles. Las Vegas travelers must book either a bus or airplane trip with helicopter. I recommend the airplane package. It transports you to the South Rim quickly and keeps your energized for all the incredible sightseeing to come. If you want to see as much of the "big ditch" as possible, you've got to get airborne. And when you do, book online. It'll save you a pretty good chunk of change.