Apache Trail Day Tour — Superstition Mountains, Goldfield & a Lake Cruise

The tour featured on this page, Arizona Scenic Tours' small-group Apache Trail day, starts from $215 per person. That covers hotel pickup across the Phoenix area, a local guide, bottled water and taxes over a day of about 9 hours. The 90-minute Saguaro Lake cruise ticket is bought separately after booking, from about $34, which brings the day to about $249 per person, and at least two adults must book. Lunch and the guide's tip are extra. Guided Apache Trail days range from $169 to $455 per person; see our Apache Trail tour cost guide for every option.

The featured tour includes hotel pickup and drop-off at Phoenix-area hotels and resorts, a local guide, bottled water and taxes, in a group of no more than five. Not included: the Saguaro Lake cruise ticket (bought separately after booking and non-refundable), lunch at a local restaurant, the guide's tip, and paid extras at Goldfield Ghost Town such as the train. Inclusions vary by operator, so check the tour you are booking.

The featured tour runs about 9 hours with hotel pickup. The listing gives about an hour and a half in the Superstition Mountains, the 90-minute Saguaro Lake cruise, an hour and a half for lunch and about an hour in Goldfield Ghost Town. Cruises usually leave at noon and 2 PM, or at noon only in the off-season, and the order of stops is adjusted to fit.

Yes — the Apache Trail (State Route 88) is a public scenic road, and you can self-drive it in a rental car. However, roughly 5 miles are unpaved with sharp switchbacks and no guardrails, which some rental agreements restrict. A guided tour also builds in a lake cruise, narrated history and timed stops you'd otherwise have to plan yourself. See our guided tour vs. self-drive comparison for a full breakdown, or our guide to driving the Apache Trail yourself for the route mile by mile, vehicle requirements, and the rental-car restrictions that apply on the unpaved section.

The Dolly Steamboat is a 90-minute narrated cruise across Canyon Lake, one of four lakes formed along the Salt River by the historic dam system at the end of the Apache Trail. Several full-day Apache Trail tours include it. It suspended cruises on August 30, 2026 while the lake is lowered for dam work and expects to restart at the beginning of January 2027; Arizona Scenic Tours' day, featured on this page, takes its cruise on Saguaro Lake, which is outside the closure. See our Canyon Lake, Arizona visitor guide for fees, wildlife, and the 2026 lake closure.

Goldfield is a recreated 1890s gold-mining ghost town near the base of the Superstition Mountains, with historic-style shops, a narrow-gauge train, and gold-panning. Most Apache Trail day tours include a stop here, and general admission to the town is typically free (extras like the train ride cost separately). See our Arizona ghost town & gold mining tours guide for the full attraction price list, the Mammoth Gold Mine tour, and how Goldfield compares to Jerome, Bisbee and Tombstone.

The Apache Trail includes narrow, unpaved switchback sections with steep drop-offs and no guardrails. On a guided tour, an experienced local driver handles the road so you can enjoy the scenery without navigating it yourself — a common reason travelers choose a tour over self-driving this particular route. If you want the rough terrain deliberately rather than reluctantly, our off-road & Jeep tour guide compares guided-ride and self-drive options and their prices.

Most Apache Trail tours offer hotel pickup from Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, and Mesa. Exact pickup times and locations are confirmed after booking — check your specific tour's meeting point details, since pickup windows vary by operator (typically 8:00–9:00 AM).

For most visitors, yes. For $215, plus about $34 for the cruise ticket, you get a day of about 9 hours in a group of five or fewer, with the Superstition Mountains, Goldfield Ghost Town and a 90-minute cruise on Saguaro Lake, which stays open while Canyon Lake is closed. It is rated 4.9/5 from 27 reviews on GetYourGuide. Lunch and the tip are extra, and a solo traveller can't book it, because at least two adults must book. See our Apache Trail tour cost guide for cheaper and private options.

Wear comfortable walking shoes and dress for the desert — light layers in summer, a warm layer in winter mornings. Bring sunscreen, a hat, sunglasses, and a camera. The Sonoran Desert can exceed 100°F (38°C) in summer, so bring extra water even though bottled water is provided. See our month-by-month guide to Arizona and the Grand Canyon for what each season actually does to the temperature, and why most open-air desert tours pause from June to mid-October.

Tours may be rescheduled or modified in case of severe weather or road conditions. Most tours offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure, so check your specific tour's cancellation policy when booking.

Yes — several Apache Trail tours offer pickup from both Phoenix and Scottsdale (as well as Tempe and Mesa), since all four are within the same Valley of the Sun metro area. Confirm your pickup location is offered when booking. Booking for a large party is a different process — see our group, corporate & team-building tour guide for capacity limits, per-vehicle pricing and how resort transport works for 20 people or more.

Partially. State Route 88 is paved from Apache Junction past Canyon Lake to Tortilla Flat, but the long stretch beyond Tortilla Flat toward Roosevelt Dam, including Fish Creek Hill, is unpaved, narrow and steep with switchbacks. ADOT closed 18 miles of it between Tortilla Flat and Roosevelt Dam after monsoon damage on July 17, 2026, and reopened it by July 23. Guided tours typically turn around at Tortilla Flat or Fish Creek Vista rather than continuing on the unpaved section. See our Apache Trail road conditions guide for the current status.

Apache Junction, the western gateway to the Apache Trail, is about 30–40 minutes from Scottsdale and roughly 40–45 minutes from downtown Phoenix, depending on traffic. Most guided tours factor this drive time into pickup schedules, departing hotels between 8:00–9:00 AM. See our best day trips from Phoenix & Scottsdale guide for how it compares to Sedona, the Grand Canyon, and other options.

The Superstition Mountains are a genuine wilderness area — sudden weather, extreme summer heat, and difficult-to-navigate canyons have led to real search-and-rescue incidents and fuel the enduring legend of the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine. Maricopa County recorded 602 heat-related deaths in 2024 alone. Guided day tours stay on established roads and popular stops like Goldfield Ghost Town, which carry none of the risk associated with backcountry hiking deeper into the range. See our Sonoran Desert & Superstition Mountain guide for the geology, wildlife and heat-safety detail.

Yes. Tonto National Forest is closing Canyon Lake — including every boat ramp and access point — on September 8, 2026, while the Salt River Project lowers the lake by about 54 feet for roughly 16 weeks of dam-safety work at Mormon Flat Dam. The Dolly Steamboat suspends cruises starting August 30, 2026 and expects to reopen around the beginning of January 2027. The paved drive along the Apache Trail to Tortilla Flat stays open the whole time. See our Canyon Lake, Arizona visitor guide for full details.

For a genuinely close option, the Apache Trail corridor is hard to beat — Goldfield Ghost Town and Canyon Lake sit about 40 minutes from Phoenix and Scottsdale, closer than Sedona, the Grand Canyon, or Tucson. If you have a full day to spend, Sedona, Jerome, and Payson are popular 1.5–2.5 hour options, while the Grand Canyon is doable but requires a pre-dawn start — our Phoenix to Grand Canyon day trip guide works through the real drive times, the 2026 fees and what you actually get at the rim. See our best day trips from Phoenix & Scottsdale guide for a full breakdown by drive time.