Boy, was this a whirlwind of a trip. Please read the whole review, though!
TL;DR: Admission is really steep. I thought we fell into a tourist trap and we kind of did. Skywalk is not worth the admission and you aren't even allowed to take pictures from it. IT IS OKAY--GUANO POINT IS AMAZING AND TOTALLY REDEEMS THE TRIP!
Arrival: We pulled up to the gate and I was immediately skeptical because we're at a wonder of the natural world that you can see from space but you still have to pay admission and ride a shuttle bus? Okay. We get inside and hadn't done any research so we were blindsided by the prices. $50+ for general admission and $75/each if you want to include the skywalk? Ouch, but okay, you only live once. After we paid, we immediately see the sign they don't have prior to that point. "No personal belongings allowed on the skywalk." Are you kidding? I paid $75 and I can't even take pictures? Immediate bad taste in the mouth as we head outside to wait for a shuttle bus. At this point, I'm on Trip Advisor and reading the worst reviews about it being a tourist trap and a scam and I'm only getting more irritated. The bus take 15 minutes to arrive and we are crammed in like sardines so we can head off to...
EAGLE POINT: Your first great glimpse of the canyon, but it's all roped off and you can't get super close. Pretty cool, I guess. Security is screaming with a bullhorn at anyone who crosses the rope trying to get a decent look or photo. We spend about 10 minutes here and head up to...
THE SKYWALK: You go in and they punch your tickets again and put all your belongings in a locker and put on booties as to not scratch up the skywalk floor--Actually smart to protect the view through the floor. We go out and the view is pretty darn cool and the glass floor gimmick is alright. We're trying to soak it in for 30 seconds at the furthrst point and one of the attraction photographer girls asks us to move so she can take pictures of a couple who paid even more than we already had. Wow, okay, that's insulting. We paid $75 to be here and are STILL getting bumped out of the way for people paying even more money. I'm just irritated now. We finish up pretty quick, retrieved our items, and it funnels you back through a gift shop where we both would have probably spent more time and money if we weren't so burned up about it already. Waited about 7 minutes for the next shuttle to haul us to...
GUANO POINT: At this point, my expectations were shot. We had drove through the desert for hours just to get ripped off by the natives. We hop off the bus and--WOW. This was amazing. No ropes, minimal signage, and 100% access to the canyon. All the photos we could ever want, breathtaking views. Stunning and natural, the canyon visit I wanted all along. No roped areas, sidewalks, advertisements, or anyone trying to sell me an upcharge. It's a huge area, so even though there were many people, it was a very personal experience with nature, and it was phenomenal. It was open to the point that I was surprised because of the potential danger if you aren't careful, but that's 100% what we wanted. I can't overstate how quickly Grand Canyon West redeemed itself by doing nothing but granting me the unfettered access to the canyon's natural beauty I wanted.
Conclusion: We were so overwhelmed on the bus trip back to the main gate. The second stop of the bus trip redeemed what I had been sure would be a total waste of my time and money. In conclusion, my best advise would be to skip the skywalk, don't even get off the bus at Eagle Point, and go straight for the sweeping wraparound spectacle of Guano Point. If the whole trip had been $50 and one ride to Guano, I would've given this a 10/5 star review. The irritation I felt for the first 2/3 of our experience lost the 5th star in what should just be an automatic home run 5-star attraction.