Apache Trail and Dolly Steamboat Van Tour
Phoenix, USA
Apache Trail and Dolly Steamboat Van Tour
Recommended by 96% of travelers
Phoenix, USA
- 8 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
Why travelers loved this
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Overview
Ride the old fashioned Dolly Steamboat through the slot canyon at Canyon Lake and then hit the Apache Trail through the Sonora Desert on this tour from the Phoenix area. After your narrated cruise, visit the small town of Tortilla Flat, taking in views of the rare desert landscape along the way.
- Take a cruise through a slot canyon on an old-fashioned steamboat
- Ride a van through the Sonora Desert, a rare desert environment
- Lunch in the historic mining town of Tortilla Flat
- Pheonix hotel pickup and drop-off are included
What's Included
Meeting and Pickup
Itinerary
Additional Info
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.8
based on 206 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
One of the most interesting tours we have ever taken. Full of history and interesting facts. There never was a dull moment. If you are lucky enough to have Frank as your guide, you will not b disappointed. Such a great experience
The tour guide was great and gave us a lot of great information about the history of the area and the vegetation that is found in the desert. Helped us get some of the best seats on the boat tour. Helped us was able to us in the restaurant with no waiting after the boat tour.
Make sure to wear clothes that match the weather and comfy footwear because there is exploring to do outside the vehicle but so worth it. Also if you get Cynthia she is amazing and knowledgeable about anything Az. She even took time to help us find something else to do in Mesa after the tour. Above and beyond what was expected. Awesome person!
Patric was an amazing tour leader, very knowledgeable, the place was very unique too. Definitely recommend this tour.
Frank shares a lot of history & knowledge, has a great personality. He's fantastic in all facets of his job!
Relaxin, informative, and fun. Love how the captain pointed out the wildlife, and turned the boat around to allow each side to view the animals and birds.
We had a good time. I would have liked a little more time at Toritilla Flats. We didn't get to see any of the town after lunch.
Try to do it when is not 108 degrees!!
All good. Frank was a great tour guide.
Boat ride was nice and we were fortunate to see big horn sheep.
A great way to spend a hot day in Phoenix. We had a great time on the boat and seeing the cacti. Eric was wonderful
Going with Eric to Dolly Steamboat & Apache Trail was FANTASTIC! So professional, kind & we all ate together and had so much fun! This Tour Company will never let you down! Don’t miss a tour! Thank you. Betsy.
Loved everything about it, my favorite was the boat ride. The scenery was beautiful. I would definitely do it again.
The day was perfect, hardly a cloud in the sky. The guide, Frank, was knowledgeable and engaging. A great day for all.
It’s kind of slow. Our tour guide was so busy talking about himself and all of the scary, dangerous plants that we didn’t gain much knowledge of anything. We were bored and disappointed.
Response from Host, Apr 2025
Thank you for your review. We will definitely discuss this with the guide. This is a wonderful tour, greatly appreciated and enjoyed by the vast majority of our guests. It's a beautiful, unique area, well worth taking a day to delight in.
While the trip had a number of positives, the late pick up and drop off as well as a frustrating lunch experience( Eric was not successful at getting our group a table & the service at Tortilla Flat was poor)detracted from the trip. The boat ride at Canyon Lake was delightful but we arrived 40 minutes early and had significant down time
Response from Host, Mar 2025
Thank you for taking the time to review this tour. Because the first person we picked up was late, it set the pickup schedule about 10 minutes late. Dolly Steamboat requires us to arrive at least 30 minutes early. We will definitely discuss your concerns about lunch with Tortilla Flat. This tour is truly an amazing experience going deep into the Sonora Desert. Besides the desert walk where your guide shows you the flora that lives only in this part of the world, the experience on the cruise is amazing. The boat captain narrates the tour for our guests. There are incredible views of big horn sheep and many times eagles. The cliffs that surround the lake are filled with interesting history. We are very proud to be able to share this incredible tour with our guests..
We had a great time. Our tour guide Derek was fantastic, talked to the group about the history of the Apache Indians, the trail and the mountains. The Dolly steamboat part was very relaxing and beautiful. Lastly, the food at Tortilla Flats was spectacular.
Always call the primary operator for the pickup location. The tour company has the correct pickup location
Fun, educational, and relaxing. Eric gave us wonderful insights ib the history of the area and how life progressed. He was open to all questions and when asked for options of other things as to do he gave us answers. Eric also talked with my granddaughter to answer her questions, at 5 she had a few. We will come back again and use the company so we can share with others.
Experienced parts of Arizona that we had no idea that even existed—Apache Trail, Canyon Lake Tortilla Flats. We enjoyed visiting the desert.
Eric was a fantastic guide.
The variety of venues on this one tour was really unique and made the experience so memorable. And our tour guide Eric was just terrific. He knew so much about what we could expect and what we were seeing during each stop. First we took a hike in the desert and Eric pointed different cacti and other plants unique to this environment. We then had a 90 minute paddle boat ride on Canyon Lake where we saw several dozen Mountain Sheep. We then had lunch in the small town of Tortilla Flats at a truly unique restaurant called Suspicious Saloon where the food was delicious. Set aside the day as the tour took about 8 hours in total.
Wonderful experience. Our tour guide Eric was great, he gave us great information and pick-up /drop-off was timely. Started with the Apache Trail, went to a mining ghost town, then had a serene ride on the Dolly steam boat. We were lucky to see some wild life and before heading back to Phoenix we stopped at a restaurant in tortilla flat. I would highly recommend this tour. There weather was also perfect, in early November for this tour.
Driver and tour guide Patrick was excellent! Knowledgeable and had a great soundtrack playing in the background! The pick up at the hotel was convenient and the small number of other guests was great as you got to know everyone. The boat trip was fantastic and the scenery beautiful. The places we visited were interesting. Would recommend this tour to anyone!
The steamboat ride was wonderful and relaxing. The Captains narration was fantastic. However, our guide Frank made the trip for us. He exceeded our expectations with his knowledge of the history, vegetation and love of the area. His efforts to make our tour run efficiently added greatly to our enjoyment. Thank you Frank!
The boat ride and lunch. Eric, our driver was fantastic and knew all about the area and was able to tell us about the catch’s and other trees and plants. He willing took pictures of us some of the prettiest places.
Had a great time. Eric was a wonderful tour guide and we hope to join him again on our next adventure.
The knowledge from our wonderful guide Frank! We got first hand education around all of the history of the area. Learning about all the cactus and plants was super interesting.
It was a wonderful and picturesque drive.
Happy to learn about the plants, the Tortilla flats with 6 people!
Missed seeing the Ram and birds.
Crater lakes are one of a kind!
Eric was very knowledgeable and shared lots of interesting information. Tour was just enough outside exposure and van was cool and comfortable.
All the history that Frank shared with us. The Dolly steamboat ride was great. Enjoyed eating at Tortilla Flats-great food
Eric was a great host/driver for our tour today. Very knowledgeable and fun! It was a great way to spend our day!
The Dolly steamboat was the best part. The scenery was stunning and it was great to see the desert up close. Frank was very informative.
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