Tusayan is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

located in

Coconino County Coconino County is a County (United States), county in the North Central Arizona, North-Central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. Its population was 145,101 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The county seat is Flagstaff, Arizon ...

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

, United States. It was incorporated in 2010. It is a

resort town A resort town, resort city or resort destination is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding area. Sometimes ...

near the south entrance to

Grand Canyon National Park Grand Canyon National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in northwestern Arizona, the 15th site to have been named as a national park. The park's central feature is the Grand Canyo ...

, acting as a

gateway community Gateway communities are cities or towns that lie just outside major tourist attractions such as national parks, wilderness areas, or nature resort areas. Examples of gateway communities in the US include Jackson, Wyoming; Tusayan, Arizona; and Gardi ...

. The population was 558 at the 2010 census.

Geography

As an incorporated town, Tusayan has a land area of only , or , making it the smallest town in Arizona by area. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in 2000 had a total area of , of which is land and 0.04% is water.

Climate

Under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, Tusayan has either a warm-summer

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(''Csb'') or a dry-summer

continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm to hot summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in central and eastern parts of the three northern-tier continents (North America, Europe, and Asia), typi ...

(''Dsb''), depending on which variant of the system is used. Summer days are hot while nights are refreshingly cool. Wintertime is generally cold, with highs in the 40's and lows in the teens.

Diurnal temperature range In meteorology, diurnal temperature variation is the variation between a high air temperature and a low temperature that occurs during the same day. Temperature lag Temperature lag, also known as thermal inertia, is an important factor in diurna ...

is very high year-round in Tusayan, but even more so during summer, with an average June day being a high of 82 degrees and low of 40 degrees.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 562 people, 222 households, and 101 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 313 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 69.2%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 15.8%

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

, 1.1%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 11.6% from other races, and 2.3% from two or more races. 30.3% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 222 households, out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.2% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 54.1% were non-families. 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 1.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.38. In the CDP, the age distribution of the population shows 25.4% under the age of 18, 15.5% from 18 to 24, 36.5% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 2.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 128.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 125.3 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $34,917, and the median income for a family was $45,625. Males had a median income of $28,125 versus $21,250 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the CDP was $16,637. About 14.9% of families and 18.2% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 18.0% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Tusayan is approximately one mile from the south entrance to

. The town's businesses mainly serve tourists visiting the park although some local residents have shown interest in making the town itself a tourist destination. Hotels in Tusayan have approx 1,100 rooms (more than GCNP).