Day Trips From Sedona

Sedona Pickler is a single-level home in West Sedona, and State Route 89A runs past the neighborhood in both directions. To the southwest it drops into the Verde Valley, with Cottonwood about 20 minutes away and Jerome, Clarkdale and Camp Verde a little farther. To the northeast it runs through town and up Oak Creek Canyon to Flagstaff, the gateway to the Grand Canyon, the volcanic country north of town and the road to Page. State Route 179 leads south from town to Interstate 17, the main highway between Flagstaff and Phoenix.

The Verde Valley trips take a morning or an afternoon. Flagstaff and its monuments take a day at an easy pace, and the Grand Canyon and Page are full days that start early. Every evening ends back at the house, where the group can plan the next day around the round dining table.

Four bedrooms sleep eight, and the driveway fits four cars. The bedrooms are two king rooms, one with its own bath, a queen room and a bunk room with twin-over-twin bunks, and the house has two baths. With two cars, the group can split up on day-trip days: the Grand Canyon crew leaves at 7, the late risers head to Jerome at 10, and everyone meets again for dinner. The kitchen has a refrigerator and freezer for cooler packs and a coffee maker with coffee for the early starts, and the washer and dryer take care of dusty trail clothes. The person booking needs to be 25 or older, and the house is smoke-free, pet-free and hosts no parties or events.

If you have three or four days in all, our three-day Sedona itinerary shows how a day trip fits beside the hikes close to home.

“The deck bathtubs were a fun addition and the house was in a great location for various activities around Sedona.”

Victoria from Corona, California, June 2026

The table below lists each trip with the drive from the house and the time we suggest giving the place itself. Count the drive both ways, add the visit, and you know when to leave and when you will be back.

The Verde Valley and the heritage sites make half days. Jerome, Tuzigoot, Old Town Cottonwood, Montezuma Castle, Out of Africa and Palatki are all within about 45 minutes, so you can leave after breakfast, be back for a late lunch and still have the afternoon for the court or a short hike. Flagstaff with one of its monuments, the Sunset Crater and Wupatki loop, the Verde Canyon Railroad and Prescott each fill a day at an easy pace, with room for a sit-down lunch. The Grand Canyon and Page are the big days out: start early, pack the cooler and share the driving.

Stops on the same road pair well. Jerome, Tuzigoot, Old Town Cottonwood and the train depot in Clarkdale are within a few miles of each other on or near 89A. Montezuma Castle, Montezuma Well and Out of Africa are all near Camp Verde. Walnut Canyon and Meteor Crater are both off Interstate 40 east of Flagstaff, and Sunset Crater and Wupatki share a loop road and an entrance pass north of town.

Several stops keep the walking short and level for anyone who wants an easy day on the knees: the paved loop at Montezuma Castle, the Verde Canyon Railroad, the safari tour and shuttle at Out of Africa, the accessible overlook at Walnut Canyon, the paved path at Sunset Crater and the short path at Oak Creek Vista.

Fees and hours throughout this guide are as listed in October 2026.

The South Rim of the Grand Canyon is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year, and Grand Canyon Village is about 2 hours 15 minutes from the house by way of Flagstaff. The canyon is a mile deep, up to 18 miles wide and 277 river miles long. Mather Point, beside the main visitor center, is where most people get their first look over the rail.

A private vehicle pays $35, which covers everyone in the car for seven days, so a second visit later in the week costs nothing more at the gate. Guests visiting from outside the U.S. add $100 per person, age 16 and up, unless they hold an annual or America the Beautiful pass. Get to the South Entrance before 9:30 and you'll usually drive right in; leaving the house by 7 gets you there in time. The East Entrance at Desert View usually has shorter lines all day, one reason we like the Desert View loop in the next chapter.

If your week includes the Grand Canyon and the Flagstaff monuments, do the math on an America the Beautiful pass. It is $80 a year for U.S. residents and covers one car at federal sites, while the Grand Canyon, Walnut Canyon and the Sunset Crater and Wupatki pass come to $85 at the gate. The same pass also covers parking at Palatki and entry at Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot for up to four adults.

Inside, leave the car at the Grand Canyon Visitor Center. A paved stretch of the Rim Trail runs west from Mather Point along the edge to Yavapai Geology Museum, and this fall a ranger gives a free 30-minute Geology Talk in front of the museum at 2 p.m. every day. The visitor center theater shows two 24-minute films: We Are Grand Canyon, told by the canyon's 11 tribal communities, on the hour, and Grand Canyon, a Journey of Wonder, on the half hour.

Free shuttles cover the rest. Through November 30, 2026, the Village route runs from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., the Kaibab Rim route from 6 a.m. to an hour after sunset, and the Hermits Rest route from 8 a.m. to an hour after sunset. Hermit Road, the string of overlooks west of the village, is shuttle-only from March 1 to November 30, so in those months you ride the red bus out and hop off at the viewpoints; from December through February you can drive it in your own car. Paintings from the 2026 Celebration of Art hang at Kolb Studio, in the historic village, through March 31, 2027.

Give the rim five to six hours, as in the timeline below, and you are back at the house by about 5. If nobody wants to drive, several Sedona companies run full-day guided trips to the South Rim, and our Grand Canyon day trip guide describes one, along with the viewpoints, the trails below the rim and what to pack.

1. 7 a.m.Leave the house with a full tank and a cooler
2. 9:15 a.m.In at the South Entrance
3. 9:30 a.m.Mather Point and a film at the visitor center
4. 11 a.m.Rim Trail walk to Yavapai Geology Museum
5. 12:30 p.m.Picnic lunch
6. 1:15 p.m.Hermits Rest shuttle, or Hermit Road by car in winter
7. 3 p.m.Start home, back at the house about 5:15

Most visitors drive out through Flagstaff and come back the same way. Two other routes add the eastern rim or a ride on a historic train.

The Desert View loop

From the village, Desert View Drive follows the rim east for 23 miles on State Route 64 to Desert View, with pullouts at the eastern overlooks. The drive is open to all vehicles all year, and the East Entrance closes only for a while after heavy snow. At Desert View, the stone Watchtower has a ground-level View Room open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; to climb the upper floors, pick up a free timed ticket, which admits 25 people at a time for 20 minutes, with the last tickets handed out at 3:40 p.m. Leave the park by the East Entrance, drive 25 miles to Cameron, and take US 89 south to Flagstaff and home. The loop adds some miles and a few more overlooks, and it suits an early start: in at the South Entrance before 9:30, out by the east gate in the afternoon. The Desert View gas pumps run around the clock, and the market and trading post there were closed for the winter season as of mid-October 2026, so pack lunch for a winter loop.

Home by Williams, or by train

Leave the park to the south on State Route 64 and you reach Williams, a Route 66 town, for an early dinner before the drive home on Interstate 40. Williams is also the start of the Grand Canyon Railway, which runs 65 miles to the Grand Canyon Depot in 2 hours and 15 minutes each way. From January 1 to October 31 the train leaves Williams at 9:30 a.m., reaches the rim at 11:45 and leaves at 3:30, back in Williams at 5:45. From November 1 to December 31 everything runs an hour earlier, 8:30 a.m. out and 4:45 p.m. back, with no train on Christmas Day. Each morning before departure, a Wild West show plays out at the Williams depot.

Williams is about 1 hour 20 minutes from the house, so for an 8:30 train, leave by about 6:45 to park and see the show. A train day gives you about 3 hours and 45 minutes at the rim, enough for a walk along the Rim Trail from the village and lunch, and nobody has to drive the canyon roads. The railway also runs the Polar Express from the same depot on winter evenings; our holiday guide has the dates.

Flagstaff is about 55 minutes from the house up Oak Creek Canyon. The city sits at about 7,000 feet in ponderosa pine forest, with a university, a historic downtown on Route 66 and the San Francisco Peaks behind it. Summer days there run cooler than in Sedona, and the city averages more than 100 inches of snow a year.

Downtown is compact. Leave the car near Heritage Square and walk the old brick blocks of shops, cafes and breweries along the railroad and Route 66, where freight trains still roll through. A couple of hours covers the center with coffee and an early lunch.

The Museum of Northern Arizona, at 3101 North Fort Valley Road on the way toward the peaks, covers the natural and cultural history of the Colorado Plateau. It is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with last admission at 4, and admission is $18 for adults, $16 for 65 and over, $13 for ages 10 to 17, and free for children 9 and under. Farther up the same road, Arizona Snowbowl runs scenic gondola and chairlift rides in the fall, and its winter season is scheduled to open on Friday, November 20, 2026. Snowbowl averages about 260 inches of snow a year, and from late fall its runs and the snow-play areas around town draw families up the hill for a snow day.

Downtown and the museum make a half day. For a full day, add Lowell Observatory on Mars Hill just west of downtown, Walnut Canyon to the east or the Sunset Crater and Wupatki loop to the north, each with its own chapter below. Our Flagstaff day trip guide covers downtown, the breweries and the museums, and our page for Flagstaff guests covers the drive from the other direction. In summer, our comparison of Sedona and Flagstaff in summer shows how the two towns split the season.

The canyon road makes the prettier drive up, with an overlook at the top of the switchbacks, and Interstate 17 makes the quicker drive home.

Lowell Observatory, on Mars Hill just west of downtown Flagstaff, is where Pluto was discovered. Percival Lowell founded the observatory in 1894, and on February 18, 1930, Clyde Tombaugh found Pluto there. The 24-inch Clark Telescope, built in 1896 by Alvan Clark and Sons, is now used for public viewing every evening but Tuesday, and the Marley Foundation Astronomy Discovery Center, a 40,000-square-foot building, opened on the campus in November 2024.

Flagstaff became the world's first International Dark Sky City on October 24, 2001. Lowell is open from noon to 10 p.m. every day except Tuesday, and telescope viewing usually starts around sunset, as early as 4:30 in winter and as late as 8 in summer, and the Clark Telescope's viewing runs from dusk to 9:30 p.m., weather permitting. General admission covers the campus, guided tours, exhibits and the telescopes after dark, with no reservation needed, and it is good all day with re-entry. Some planetarium and theater shows are a $5 add-on. The observatory closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

Lowell is about an hour from the house. After dark, Interstate 17 is the easier road back, wider and straighter than the Oak Creek switchbacks. Bring warm layers in any season, since the night air at 7,000 feet cools quickly and you will be standing still at the eyepiece.

A Flagstaff evening can start with Walnut Canyon or downtown in the afternoon, then an early dinner, Lowell at sunset and the drive home by about 10. Back at the house, turn off the deck lights and sit by the fire table a while longer; our stargazing guide covers Sedona's own night sky.

Walnut Canyon and Meteor Crater both sit off Interstate 40 east of Flagstaff, which makes them an easy pair for one day.

Walnut Canyon National Monument

Walnut Canyon National Monument, about 1 hour 10 minutes from the house, protects cliff dwellings tucked under the ledges of the canyon walls, where people lived from about 1100 to 1250. The Island Trail, a loop of a little under a mile, goes down a long flight of stairs into the canyon and passes right by the rooms before climbing back up; give it about an hour and take the climb out slowly at nearly 7,000 feet. The flatter Rim Trail, three-quarters of a mile, passes an excavated pithouse and pueblo, and an accessible overlook 150 feet from the visitor center looks across at the cliff dwellings.

The monument is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, except December 25 and January 1. Island Trail access closes at 4 p.m., so arrive by 3, and start the Rim Trail by 4:30. Entry is $25 per vehicle, good for seven days. Kids can earn a Junior Ranger badge here, and again at Sunset Crater and Wupatki.

Meteor Crater

Meteor Crater is farther east at Exit 233, about 1 hour 45 minutes from the house. About 50,000 years ago a meteorite roughly 150 feet across struck here and left a crater a mile wide and 550 feet deep. The crater is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and online general admission is $29 for adults 14 to 59, $27 for 60 and over, and $25 for juniors 6 to 13 and for veterans. Online tickets can be used on any date. The visitor center has a 4D theater and a discovery center, and the view from the rim is the reason to come.

For the pair, see Walnut Canyon at 9, reach Meteor Crater by late morning, and stop in Flagstaff for a late lunch on the way back.

Sunset Crater Volcano and Wupatki national monuments share a loop road north of Flagstaff and a single $25 vehicle pass, good for seven days. Sunset Crater is about 1 hour 20 minutes from the house.

At Sunset Crater, the cinder cone rises above the pines, and the Lava Flow Trail at its base crosses the dark, rough lava; a paved, accessible path leads a few hundred feet from the parking lot to an amphitheater facing the volcano. The visitor center is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day, and the scenic drive and trails are open day and night all year unless heavy snow closes the road. Picnic tables stand under the ponderosa pines by the visitor center and at the Lava Flow trailhead.

North of Sunset Crater, the loop drops out of the forest into open grassland, where the Wupatki pueblos stand. Wupatki Pueblo, behind the visitor center, is the largest free-standing pueblo in northern Arizona; see it from the overlook or walk the half-mile trail around it. Wukoki is an eight-room pueblo built on top of a sandstone pedestal. Lomaki, Beautiful House in the Hopi language, had nine rooms of limestone and sandstone, and the Citadel and Nalakihu pueblos were the center of a farming community from the early 1100s to the mid-1200s. Each is a short walk from its own parking area.

The pueblo trails are open from sunrise to sunset. The Wupatki visitor center is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. from March 8 to November 1; from November 2 to March 7 it is open Friday through Monday, and it closes on December 25 and January 1.

The two monuments take about four hours, so with the drive the loop fills a day. Wupatki sits lower than Sunset Crater and is warmer and more open, so carry water and hats in summer. Our Flagstaff guide has more on both monuments.

1. 9 a.m.Leave the house for Flagstaff
2. 10:30 a.m.Sunset Crater visitor center and the Lava Flow Trail
3. 12 p.m.Picnic in the pines
4. 1 p.m.Wukoki and Wupatki Pueblo
5. 2:30 p.m.Lomaki and the Citadel
6. 3:30 p.m.Head back through Flagstaff

Jerome is a former copper-mining town built up the side of Cleopatra Hill above the Verde Valley, about 40 to 45 minutes from the house: southwest on 89A through Cottonwood and Clarkdale, then up a winding climb into town. Its streets stack one above another, with galleries, tasting rooms, restaurants and old hotels in buildings from the mining days, and the views run across the valley to the red rocks around Sedona. Jerome makes a half day on its own, or a full day with Tuzigoot and Old Town Cottonwood.

Jerome State Historic Park, at 100 Douglas Road below the center of town, tells the mining story in the Douglas Mansion. Inside are photographs, artifacts, minerals, a short video and a 3-D model of Jerome with the mine tunnels under it, which shows how much of the hill is hollow. The park is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily, and admission is $10 for adults 14 and over, $5 for youth 7 to 13 and free for children 6 and under. It has its own parking and a picnic area with valley views.

In town, leave the car in one spot and walk. Jerome is a vertical place, with staircases between streets and shops on every level, so wear shoes with good grip and take your time. Caduceus Cellars, the tasting room at 158 Main Street, is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 7 on Friday and Saturday. The galleries sell paintings, jewelry and gifts.

On a weekend, arriving by mid-morning makes parking easy; see the museum first and the shops and tasting room after lunch. For the town's history, its hotels and its ghost stories, see our Jerome day trip guide.

Tuzigoot National Monument, about 30 minutes from the house on the edge of Clarkdale, is a 1,000-year-old, 110-room pueblo the Sinagua built on a low hilltop above good farmland in the Verde Valley. Some of its rooms were rebuilt in the 1930s, and visitors can step inside one of them. Nearby, Tavasci Marsh is a year-round wetland that draws birders and photographers.

Tuzigoot is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., except Thanksgiving, December 25 and January 1, so arrive by 3:45 for an easy hour. Entry is $10 per adult 16 and over, and the pass is good for seven days at Tuzigoot and at Montezuma Castle, so keep the receipt if both are on your list.

Old Town Cottonwood, a few minutes away and about 25 to 30 minutes from the house, is the historic district on Main Street with more than 60 businesses, among them tasting rooms, cafes, restaurants and boutiques. The street is flat and easy to walk. Arizona Stronghold's tasting room, at 1023 North Main Street, pours tastings and serves tapas from noon, until 6 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday, 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, and 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Old Town holds events through the year, and the holiday one is the Chocolate Walk on Saturday, December 5, 2026, when shops, tasting rooms and restaurants hand out chocolates and holiday treats and Old Town lights its tree. Our Old Town Cottonwood guide covers the street in more detail.

For a half day, see Tuzigoot at 9, walk Old Town at 10:30 and eat an early lunch on Main Street. For a full day with the train, see Tuzigoot at 9, be at the Clarkdale depot by 11:30 for lunch at the cafe and the 1 p.m. departure, and save Old Town for an early dinner on the way home.

The Verde Valley's wineries and tasting rooms are in three places, all 20 to 45 minutes from the house: the vineyards along Oak Creek at Page Springs and Cornville, the tasting rooms of Old Town Cottonwood and the hillside rooms of Jerome. A tasting afternoon fits easily after a morning hike.

Page Springs Cellars, at 1500 North Page Springs Road in Cornville and about 20 minutes from the house, is open every day of the year. Its Tasting Room and Bistro serves French-inspired food, guests can picnic on the estate with dishes from the bistro menu, and estate, harvest and cellar tours follow the wine from grape to bottle. From May 1 to October 1, a conservation wristband for creek access is $10 per adult and $5 per child, with the money going to Friends of the Verde River. Other wineries sit along the same road, and our Verde Valley wineries guide names them and lays out a route.

In Old Town Cottonwood, the tasting rooms are a short walk apart on Main Street; Arizona Stronghold, in the chapter above, is one of them. Up the hill in Jerome, Caduceus Cellars pours from 11 a.m. daily on Main Street.

Choose a driver for the day or book one of the guided wine tours that pick up in Sedona and Cottonwood, and keep the day to three or four stops with a real lunch in the middle.

A cooler in the car keeps the bottles you buy out of the sun on the way home. The house has wine glasses and a round dining table, so the best bottle of the day can go with dinner there, and the last glass with a seat at the fire table.

The Verde Canyon Railroad leaves its depot at 300 North Broadway in Clarkdale, about 30 minutes from the house, and follows the Verde River into a canyon no road reaches, to Perkinsville and back. The round trip covers 40 miles in three and a half to four hours. Climate-controlled cars carry you there, and open-air viewing cars let you stand at the rail with the river below. It is an easy day for anyone who would rather sit than hike.

Trains run all year on a varied schedule, usually at 1 p.m. The railroad asks riders to arrive 90 minutes before departure, so get to the depot early for lunch at the cafe; seats are assigned. For 2026, a regular ride is $139 for anyone 1 year old and up, and infants under 1 ride free on a lap. Bring hats and sunscreen for the open-air cars, and a jacket in the cooler months.

The holiday train is the Christmas Journey, a one-hour round trip to a North Pole along the line, from November 27 through Christmas Eve, 2026. The shorter ride comes with a lower fare: $60 for adults and $40 for children 2 to 10 through December 23, and $70 and $50 on December 24. Elves and Princess Noel greet families at the depot, the train passes through a lit tunnel to Santa's Workshop and Mrs. Claus' Bakery, and Santa boards for the ride back with a small gift for each child. Saturday Starlight Adventures run from March through December for an evening on the rails. For groups of adults, the 2026 calendar also lists Ales on Rails from September and Grape Train Escape rides on select Saturday evenings, both for ages 21 and up, and the Chocolate Lovers' Festival runs from February 12 to 15.

For the regular train, leave the house by 10:30 and you will be at the depot by 11:30 for lunch before boarding. The train is back between about 4:30 and 5, and the drive home takes about 30 minutes. Our Verde Canyon Railroad guide covers the cars and the canyon, and our guide to Sedona for non-hikers has more easy days like this one.

Montezuma Castle, near Camp Verde and about 40 minutes from the house, is a five-story, 20-room dwelling the Sinagua built into an alcove about 90 feet up a limestone cliff above Beaver Creek. It became a national monument on December 8, 1906. A paved, level loop through the sycamores along the creek leads to the viewing area below the dwelling, an easy walk for the whole family, strollers and wheelchairs included, and the visit takes about an hour.

The monument is open from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. daily, except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. The park gate is a mile before the visitor center and closes at 4:45, so arrive by 3:30 for an unhurried visit. Entry is $10 per adult 16 and over, and children 15 and under are free. The pass is good for seven days and covers Tuzigoot too, and a $35 annual pass covers both monuments for a year.

Montezuma Well, a separate part of the monument about 20 minutes away, has no entrance fee. The Well is a blue sinkhole ringed with reeds and cattails in the desert, and it gave the Sinagua a steady source of water. Dwellings sit in the walls above the water, and an overlook takes in the whole scene. It keeps the same hours as the Castle.

The Castle is the easiest of the ancient sites to reach from the house, on paved roads all the way. Pair it with Out of Africa, about 20 minutes away, for a Camp Verde day, or with Tuzigoot for two Sinagua sites on one pass. The Castle and Out of Africa are both a short drive from Interstate 17, so they also make good stops on checkout day on the way to Phoenix: checkout is before 10 a.m., the Castle opens at 9 and Out of Africa at 9:30. Our guide to stops on the drive from Phoenix has more, and our Montezuma Castle guide covers the Well, the trails and the history.

Out of Africa Wildlife Park, on State Route 260 in Camp Verde and about 35 minutes from the house, is home to lions, tigers, giraffes and many other animals. Its safari tours carry guests out through the pastures, where a guide supervises as you hand food to the animals. Tiger Splash, the park's signature show, has keepers playing with tigers in a pool, and add-ons such as Feed a Tiger bring guests closer still.

The park is open every day from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the admissions window closes at 4; it closes only on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Ticket prices change through the year, so check the park's own site for the current rate and buy online once you know your date. Give it three to four hours for the safari, Tiger Splash and a feeding, and check the day's show schedule when you arrive.

It suits a group that spans ages, since the safari tour and the park's free shuttle mean nobody has to hike. In the warm months, go at opening, when the morning is more comfortable for you and for the animals.

A Camp Verde day can run Out of Africa at 9:30, lunch, Montezuma Castle in the early afternoon and Montezuma Well on the way back. Our Out of Africa guide has the shows and the encounters in more detail.

1. 8:50 a.m.Leave the house
2. 9:30 a.m.Out of Africa opens, safari first
3. Late morningThe shows and the walking exhibits
4. 12:30 p.m.Lunch in Camp Verde
5. 2 p.m.Montezuma Castle
6. 3:15 p.m.Montezuma Well
7. 4:30 p.m.Back at the house

“The house was so comfortable for all 8 of us.”

Erin, a guest in July 2026

Palatki Heritage Site, in a red-rock canyon northwest of Sedona and about 35 to 45 minutes from the house, holds Sinagua cliff dwellings and the Grotto, a sheltered alcove where pictographs and petroglyphs were painted and carved over thousands of years. Guides lead every visit and point out figures you would walk right past on your own.

Visits run on timed tickets from Recreation.gov, released 120 days ahead on a rolling daily basis, and each car also needs a Red Rock Pass or a federal interagency pass; a Red Rock Pass is $5 a day, $15 a week or $20 a year and is sold at the site. Tours last about an hour and start every half hour, covering the dwellings and the Grotto, with about 70 steps along the way, so wear good shoes. From October through May the site is open from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the last tour at 2, and on Wednesdays from 9:30 to noon. From June through September it opens Wednesday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to noon. It closes on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The last stretch is gravel forest road; take it easy and a regular car does fine. The Forest Service suggests leaving Sedona an hour and a quarter before your tour time, which allows for the gravel and for checking in 15 minutes early. Your ticket is refunded if weather changes the day's plans.

Honanki, farther out on the same forest road, is the larger of the two pueblos, with a long run of rooms along the base of a cliff and its own rock art. Check the Coconino National Forest's page for its current hours before you go.

Two of the west side's favorite trails, Boynton Canyon and Fay Canyon, are in the same corner of the red rocks, so a morning tour and an afternoon walk make a full day near home. Our Palatki and Honanki guide covers the rock art, the drive and how to visit with care.

Prescott is about 1 hour 30 minutes from the house on 89A, through Cottonwood, up the switchbacks into Jerome and over Mingus Mountain at 7,023 feet. Jerome makes a natural stop on the way out or back.

The city sits at about 5,400 feet among pines and granite and calls itself everybody's hometown. Downtown centers on the Courthouse Plaza, ringed with history plaques, and Whiskey Row beside it, the block named for the saloons that once filled it and now home to restaurants, bars and shops. Two blocks west of the plaza, the Sharlot Hall Museum, at 415 West Gurley Street, keeps eleven exhibit buildings, eight of them historic, including the Old Governor's Mansion, with gardens between them.

From October through April the museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4, and from May through September until 5 on Tuesday through Saturday. It is closed Mondays. Admission is $17 for adults, $15 for seniors 65 and over, $9 for youth 10 to 17 and free for children 9 and under, and a ticket covers two days in a row.

Watson Lake sits among the granite boulders of the Granite Dells, with fishing, boating, a disc golf course and trails for an easy afternoon walk.

A Prescott loop runs Jerome on the way out, Prescott for lunch and the museum, and Watson Lake in the afternoon, with the drive home over the mountain in daylight or by the lower road on a winter day. Our page for Prescott guests covers the drive in both directions, and our comparison of Sedona and Prescott in summer shows how the two towns differ.

Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend are both near Page, a town close to the Utah line about 3 hours from the house, up through Flagstaff and north on US 89 past the Echo Cliffs. It is the longest day trip in this guide.

Book the canyon tour before anything else. Antelope Canyon is on Navajo Nation land, a guide is required for every visit, and tours are arranged with the local operators listed by Navajo Nation Parks. The Navajo entry fee is $15 per person, per entry, and the tour is priced separately. Upper Antelope has a little more room to walk; Lower Antelope is narrower, with stairs, and suits people who are comfortable in tight spaces.

Arizona stays on Mountain Standard Time all year, while the Navajo Nation changes its clocks for daylight saving time from March to November, and phones near Page can switch on their own. The Park Service suggests setting your phone by hand to Arizona time for tours at Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon or in the City of Page.

Horseshoe Bend, just south of Page off US 89, is a 1.5-mile round-trip walk on a hardened path to an overlook above a full bend of the Colorado River. The trailhead parking lot is run by the City of Page and has its own fee, separate from park passes. Bring water and hats, and in summer go in the morning.

Leave the house at 6, stop in Flagstaff for coffee, and you will reach Horseshoe Bend about 9:30, then take a late-morning canyon tour and start home after lunch, back by late afternoon. Plan a slow day at the house after it, with a late breakfast and a morning on the court. Our Antelope Canyon day trip guide covers the tours, the sections of the canyon and the photography tips.

State Route 89A leaves Uptown Sedona and follows Oak Creek north between canyon walls, under sycamores, cottonwoods, maples and pines, then climbs a set of switchbacks to the rim near Flagstaff. It is the closest scenic drive to the house. Oak Creek Vista, the overlook at the top, is about 40 minutes away without stops and looks back down the length of the canyon. The drive is free, and some stops charge for parking.

Slide Rock State Park, about 25 minutes from the house at 6871 North Highway 89A, is where Oak Creek has worn a natural rock slide into the sandstone. The park keeps the Pendley Homestead, a 43-acre historic apple farm, with cabins built in 1933 and an Apple Packing Shed open for tours on weekends from 10 a.m. to noon. Until November 20 the park is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with entry and the swim area closing at 5; from November 21 to January 30 it is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with entry closing at 4. Entry is $20 per vehicle for up to four people through April 2027, plus $5 for each extra person, and children under 6 are free.

Farther up, the West Fork Trail follows a side canyon of Oak Creek from the Call of the Canyon day-use area, the classic fall-color walk in the canyon, with creek crossings along the way and its own parking fee. At the top of the switchbacks, Oak Creek Vista has free parking, restrooms and Native American makers selling jewelry and pottery, and its short path from the lot makes it the easiest viewpoint on the road.

On weekends and in October, when the leaves turn, the lots at Slide Rock and West Fork fill by mid-morning, so start up the canyon by 8. Walk West Fork first and stop at Slide Rock on the way down, and you are back in West Sedona by lunch. Our Oak Creek Canyon drive guide lists the stops in order, and our guides to Slide Rock and the West Fork Trail cover each one.

From December through February, Hermit Road at the Grand Canyon is open to private cars, and the Grand Canyon Railway leaves Williams at 8:30 a.m. through December 31, then at 9:30 from January 1. The market and trading post at Desert View close for the winter season, so pack lunch for the rim. On a snowy morning, check ADOT's AZ511 site or dial 511 before you drive north, and take Interstate 17 rather than the Oak Creek switchbacks. The East Entrance at Desert View and the Sunset Crater road can close for a while after heavy snow, and the Park Service posts it when they do. The Verde Valley, lower and milder, is the easy choice when it snows up north, and Arizona Snowbowl is the choice when you want the snow.

The Hermit Road shuttle season is expected to return on March 1, and the Wupatki visitor center is expected back on daily hours from March 8. Oak Creek runs high in spring and the hillsides turn green. Spring weekends are busy across northern Arizona, so book Palatki, the train and the Antelope Canyon tour as soon as your dates are set.

In summer, leave by 7 for the Grand Canyon and by 6 for Page. In July and August, afternoon rain often builds over the high country, so plan the rim walks for the morning and start home from the rim around 1. The afternoons suit somewhere cool: Flagstaff at 7,000 feet, the shade of Oak Creek Canyon or the air-conditioned court at the house. Palatki keeps summer hours, Wednesday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

October brings fall color along Oak Creek and harvest to the Verde Valley vineyards, and as the evenings shorten, Lowell's telescopes come out earlier. A few places keep set days, and the table below matches each to the days that work. Our guide to the best time to visit covers the months in more detail.

After a day at the rim or a morning on the stairs at Walnut Canyon, most groups end up on the covered deck: a pergola overhead, a gas fire table in the middle and two freestanding soaking tubs with plenty of hot water. Recent guests mention the tubs and the fire table, and a family from Kentucky summed it up in one line.

“After hiking or pickleball, the outdoor tubs and firepit remain big hits.”

Hannah from La Grange, Kentucky, May 2026

The private indoor pickleball court sits in its own steel building on the property. It is air-conditioned, heated and lit, so you can play at any hour in any season, and paddles and balls are provided; court shoes are the one thing to pack. Kids can run off the drive on the court while dinner comes together, and a group of friends can fit in a short round-robin; our guide to running a round-robin for eight has the rotation.

The BBQ grill handles a quick dinner after a long drive, and the bunk game room, with its foosball table and TV, gives the kids their own space while the adults plan the next trip at the round table.

A week of day trips goes best when the long days and short days alternate: a drive to the rim, then a morning on the court and an afternoon in Old Town. The house is about 10 to 15 minutes from town and about a mile from the free Sedona Shuttle stop at the high school park-and-ride, so the red-rock trailheads fill the days in between. Our getting around guide covers the shuttle and the trailhead passes.

Here is one way a group of eight might lay out a week. Check in after 4 on the first day and settle in with a game on the court. Spend the next morning at Tuzigoot and Old Town Cottonwood, then give the third day to the Grand Canyon. Keep the fourth day close, with a Palatki tour in the morning and the trails or the court in the afternoon. Make day five Flagstaff, with Walnut Canyon in the afternoon and Lowell after dark, on any day but Tuesday, and day six the Camp Verde day at Out of Africa and Montezuma Castle. Checkout is before 10 on the last morning, which leaves time for Montezuma Well, open from 9 with no entrance fee, on the way to Phoenix.

1. Day 1Check in after 4 p.m. and a first game on the court
2. Day 2Tuzigoot and Old Town Cottonwood
3. Day 3The Grand Canyon South Rim
4. Day 4Palatki in the morning, a slow afternoon
5. Day 5Flagstaff, Walnut Canyon and Lowell after dark
6. Day 6Out of Africa and Montezuma Castle
7. Day 7Checkout before 10 a.m. and Montezuma Well on the way south

“Leave the house and drive a mile or so on 89A to a free shuttle at the high school to take us on hikes.”

Mark, a guest in May 2026