Arizona & South Utah
We spent 8 days exploring Arizona and South Utah. We started our trip off in Tucson for a trade show and then went to Phoenix, Sedona, Grand Canyon, Page, and ended our trip at Zion National Park. We saw some of the most stunning landscapes I’ve seen and went on a hot air balloon ride!
Tucson
My fiancé created a construction safety product a few years ago which we attend trade shows often for and this year we had a trade show in Tucson, AZ. I try to make trips out of these if we’re going somewhere cool so I planned out a week of traveling in AZ after the trade show. In Tucson, we stayed at the JW Marriott Star Pass Resort. It was beautiful, you have views of the mountains and Tucson. The resort itself was beautiful and they had many great amenities. Included in the price we were able to take a golf lesson, go to the driving range, guided hikes, a daily morning energy cleansing session, and an evening tequila toast. And of course they had pools, gym, a spa, and a handful of great restaurants on the property. The food here was amazing, I could tell it was good quality. I would definitely stay here again, 10/10.
Phoenix
We picked up our rental car at Enterprise in Tucson and headed to Phoenix. It was about a 2 hour drive. We stayed at the Home2Suites in Avondale. I always enjoy staying at Home2Suites, the rooms have everything you need, it’s large, and comfortable. Our first day we settled in and tried to get to bed early because we had to get up at 3:30am to get ready to check into our hot air balloon flight at 4:30am.
We checked into our hot air balloon flight and then our pilot drove us to a parking lot where they were getting the hot air balloons ready. We have to get up super early because it’s a sunrise flight and the sun rises at 5:30am here during this time of the year. In the winter they do afternoon flights since the temperatures are cooler but I think that only lasts from Nov-March.
We watched them fire up the balloons and then we were up in the air just in time for the sunrise. It was breathtaking. It’s been on my bucket list for almost a decade so I was extremely excited to do this. We flew for about an hour, had views of the city, some fabulous homes, and flew through the hills. It wasn’t scary at all, sometimes I can be afraid of heights but I felt very comfortable.
One thing I recommend is to have noise cancelling headphones because they have to fire up the balloon every few minutes or more and it’s very loud. Other than that the ride was amazing. Everything I had hoped for.
The landing was a bit scary, you almost feel like you’re going to tip but most times they don’t, just hold on tight lol. Once you land they serve you mimosas! It’s a tradition to serve champagne after flight, it started in France, according to our pilot, back in the day the pilots would have to land the hot air balloons on strangers property because you can’t really control where it lands too much and the land owners back then were terrified, some random balloon falling from the sky on their property, so the land owners would destroy the hot air balloons. So pilots started taking champagne and once they landed, they would hand the champagne to the owners as a peace greeting. (This is the story from our pilot). I love this story so cheers to hot air ballooning!
We then went home and took a nap, worked a bit, and then went out for a short hike at Piestewa Peak. This is a steep and difficult hike, there’s also no shelter, so we only hiked for 45 minutes, I saw a couple cool lookouts and was satisfied after that. The whole hike is 2.3 miles round trip, I’d recommend coming in the morning so it’s not as hot. You have views of Phoenix and lots of cool rock formations on this trail.
Later this day we met my friend from high school who lives in AZ out for dinner at Chico Malo in Downtown Phoenix. This place was very trendy and cute, great food, and great margaritas. Definitely recommend coming here!
Sedona
I was considering not doing Sedona but after hearing so many other people rave about it, I decided to add a day into our trip for it and I’m so glad I did. Sedona is gorgeous. It’s about a 2.5 hour easy drive from Phoenix, you go through a lot of elevation which was really cool to experience. The red rock formations are so beautiful and awesome.
We had enough time for a hike before checking into our airbnb. We were planning on hiking the birthing cave but once we got to the parking lot, I had no cell phone reception and there was no routes that I could see to take us there. And I did not take notes from the video I saw about how to get to the birthing cave. So if you are wanting to do a specific hike that may not be as common, make sure to take notes before you go, because you’ll often not have reception while hiking.
Instead of the birthing cave, we hiked to Subway Cave along the Boynton Canyon. The entire hike was about 5 miles and took us almost 3 hours. It’s an easy but kinda long hike (if you aren’t an experienced hiker). The trail is gorgeous, there’s parts that are shaded too. Once you get up to Subway Cave you have to hike up this short but steep part, definitely requires all fours but it’s worth it. You can walk around the side of subway cave and have beautiful views of the red rock formations. This was a nice hike, I probably wouldn’t hike it again but it’s worth adding into your hike list.
Make sure to bring lots of water and food, or eat shortly before you come. We started this hike around 1pm but hadn’t ate since 9:30am, so once we were finished it was almost 4pm and I was starving, I actually felt like I was going to faint. The other hike we were planning on doing was a lot shorter so I thought I’d be fine and eat afterwards, but plans changed and we ended up on a 3 hour hike.
We ate at Picazzo’s, it’s a healthy Italian Restaurant. The pizza was great but the pasta was just decent. I’d recommend checking out this place if you’re looking for great pizza. We were pretty tired from the hike so we relaxed for the rest of the evening. We stayed at a really cute and affordable airbnb in the perfect location, we were a minutes walk to restaurants and shopping. It’s perfect for a short stay for a couple or solo traveler.
The next day we had breakfast at Wildcraft Kitchen, it was literally a 2 minute walk from our airbnb. It’s a cute healthy cafe, I got the acai bowl and Evan got avocado toast, both were delicious. Definitely recommend. Then we checked out of our airbnb and we headed to Cathedral Rock. This was my favorite hike throughout the whole trip and probably one of my favorite hikes I’ve ever done. It’s a short and somewhat steep hike, less than 1.5 miles and there are parts you have to get on all fours. I like the short and strenuous hikes. The views are absolutely beautiful here from all points of the hike.
Once you get to the “end trail” sign, make sure to take a left and hike up only a few minutes more so you can get this view. The red rock formations you can see from up here are so beautiful, it feels like you’re on top of the world. I absolutely loved this hike, it’s a must add to your list in Sedona. We spent a good half hour at the top taking in the views and getting photos, the hike part took us only about an hour though round trip. I LOVED this hike, 10/10 recommend.
1 day is enough to see Sedona but there’s much more to do and more hikes to adventure on, I’d recommend maybe 2 nights to be able to do more here. The vibes were really cool, almost witchcraft/spiritual vibes, I loved it. You’ll find tarot readings, tons of crystals, meditation spots, spa retreats, yoga, and lots of spiritual stuff so if you’re into some of that like me, you’ll love it here.
Grand Canyon
After the hike we grabbed food and then headed to Clear Sky Resorts 30 miles out from the Grand Canyon. The drive was about an hour and a half from Sedona. Clear Sky Resorts offers a glamping experience where you’re sleeping in a dome. It’s very comfortable, you have a full bathroom, heat, and AC. Some domes are larger than others with different themes, there’s some really unique and super cool domes here, we just went with the basic one to save money. The front of the dome is clear but has curtains and there’s also a clear hole in the top so you can watch the stars while laying in bed, this can be covered up as well.
The resort also has dining on site, breakfast and dinner, a welcome center with a bar, games, live music, a park, movie area, star gazing, they offer a lot of cool stuff here. We were hit with a small storm when we first arrived, it started raining and then snowing! The weather near the grand canyon is very versatile. Be sure to pack warm clothes for this part of the trip.
It did end up clearing before night and so we were able to experience a clear night sky. I absolutely love star gazing and find so much fascination by the universe so I LOVED this stay. We left the curtains open all night and then woke up to the sunrise. Definitely check out this place if you want a unique experience on your trip here. They have a few different locations as well.
We then checked out and headed to the Grand Canyon, about 30-40 minutes away. You need a car pass to get there and I recommend stopping at a gas station that sells the tickets before hand, we did that the night prior at a Chevron gas station by us, this way you don’t have to wait in the long line to purchase tickets.
We went to two overlooks, Matterhorn and Mary Colter. We started with Matterhorn and walked around the rim for a while. It’s not very busy but if you walk around you’ll find spots that are much more private to look out from. We got back in our car and drove 5 minutes down the road to Mary Colter lookout point. We grabbed some food before so we could setup a little picnic. It was very nice and not super busy. Both of these points you don’t have to hike to or even walk very far to get to. You can hike down in the grand canyon but we decided not to do this. The overlooks were so beautiful, you really get the best views from the top anyway. It almost looks fake. The Grand Canyon is definitely one of my top favorite nature sites I’ve seen.
Page
After a few hours at the Grand Canyon, we drove 2.5 hours to Page. We stopped at Horseshoe bend before checking into our airbnb. You only need about 30 minutes at Horseshoe bend, it takes roughly 10 minutes to walk down, then you get your pics, take in the view, and walk back up. It’s a must see when stopping in Page, it did cost us $10 to park our car though.
Our airbnb was very cute and quaint, had everything we needed, really great for solo travelers or couples. We settled in and then had dinner at Big John’s Texas BBQ, some of the BEST BBQ I’ve ever had. I got the ribs and they were cooked to perfection, they had three different bbq sauces and all were great. 10/10 recommend this place! Page is a very small town so there’s not much to eat here anyway so you might as well try it lol.
The next morning we headed off to our tour at the lower antelope canyon, the main reason we came to Page. It’s a mars like landscape that really makes you feel like you’re on another planet. It’s so stunning and you’ll get some of the most iconic pictures. This place was on my vision board for this year. It’s totally worth the visit.
You have to book through a company to visit because it’s apart of the Indian reservation, there’s many to choose from, I booked through Ken’s tours. Our tour guide was great, funny and knowledgeable, we were in a group with 10 other people, you walk in the desert for a few minutes and then you’re there. Side note: they did not allow us to take videos so I only got photos. The whole tour was about 45 minutes, they allow you to stop frequently for photos too. The only thing I did not appreciate was that they made us get there 45 minutes before our time slot, and we just had to sit there… I did not see any need or reason for this. 45 minutes is a bit excessive.
Someone asked when is the best time to go to antelope canyon and our tour guide said all day, he said the lighting hits in many different places at all points throughout the day so I wouldn’t stress too much about the timing. I do recommend trying to get in the front of your group, kind of easier to get head and take uninterrupted photos.
We stopped to get lunch at the local Mexican restaurant which was very good, their mango margarita was amazing, then we drove 2.5 hours to Zion National Park where we ended our trip.
Zion National Park
We actually stayed in Hurricane, which is about 30 minutes out from Zion, we stayed at a cute, comfortable, and affordable airbnb. A lot of the places to stay closer to Zion are much more expensive. We spent our last 2 days in Zion, we were pretty tired by this time so we didn’t do too much hiking. Our first full day we did the emerald pools hike, we parked down the street from the entrance, you do have to pay for parking and a pass in Zion.
In my opinion, the emerald pools hike was overrated. There’s 3 waterfalls, the lower, middle, and upper. The upper was supposed to be the coolest, it’s a tall, narrow, and powerful waterfall, but it was not falling today lol. The whole hike was 3 miles round trip and it took us about 2 hours with stops, pretty easy hike. The kayenta trail itself was absolutely gorgeous, there’s this part that was a breathtaking view.
To get to most of the trails in Zion you have to take the shuttle (it’s free) which picks you up after you enter in Zion, you take stop 6 to go to the emerald pools hike as well as angels landing, I really wanted to do this hike but I was too scared, lol, if you are interested and not scared make sure you apply for a permit because you will need one to hike angels landing.
After hiking, we had lunch at the Thai restaurant right outside the park. We got crab ragoons (don’t recommend) but the pad thai was really good! We then headed back to Hurricane, worked a bit, and relaxed the rest of the night. We had dinner at Main St cafe, we ate here multiple times for breakfast and dinner while we stayed in Hurricane. The breakfast was good, the place is decently priced and very quick, they have a lot of pasta dishes for dinner but I did not like the pasta here, I’d recommend getting something else, like the burger. This cafe was just a few minutes walk from our airbnb so it was an easy spot for us.
Our last day we drove to Zion and hiked the Canyon Overlook trail. You drive past the regular park entrance and drive to Mount Carmel Highway, you’ll have to pay for a vehicle pass. The mount carmel highway drive is awesome, windy roads, mountain views, you’re going to love it. After you pass through the tunnel, try to find parking, it’s fine to park on the side of the road, plus it’s free.
Canyon overlook trail is a must hike while you’re in Zion, especially if you aren’t doing angels landing. The hike was very quick and easy, it was a mile round trip and took us 35 minutes to complete. The views at the end of the trail are breathtaking. Definitely recommend!
You can fit more hikes in these 2 days but we were pretty tired so we stopped at that and headed back to Hurricane. Zion national park is very pretty, there’s lots of people there though. For some reason, my fiancé and I got pretty weird vibes here, we were ready to leave at this point. I can’t pin point my finger on it, but it was just an energy thing I picked up on. And it’s weird because I wasn’t the only one that felt it. I wouldn’t let this stop you on your trip to Zion though! Each different location you travel to has an energy to it, and each of our experiences are different.
The next day we left for the airport, we flew out of Las Vegas, about 2 hours from where we were.
Summary
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Summary ~
Arizona is a beautiful and diverse state! I can’t believe that you can drive a few hours away and have 30 degree weather and snow when you just came from sunshine and 80 degrees. You go from desert landscapes to beautiful pine tree winter landscapes within hours. We loved hiking here, the food was very good, and people were nice too. My favorite parts of the trip were the hot air balloon ride, cathedral rock hike, grand canyon, and antelope canyon.
I think we went for the perfect amount of time too, however we were a bit tired for Zion, but granted I had just gotten back from London and Amsterdam a few days before we left for Arizona. I would have liked to have an extra day or two in Sedona to do more hikes, the trails here are awesome. Other than that the amount of time we spent in each other city was perfect.
I hope this helps you on your roadtrip to Arizona, thanks for reading!