curiousgirl964

My husband and I are planning a last minute trip to AZ in early November and could use some help with our itinerary. We are planning to fly into PHX and will have 7-9 days to travel. Possible stops are Sedona, Grand Canyon, Canyon De Chelley, Monument Valley and Antelope Canyon. We are looking for good hiking, scenery and cute towns. Any advice on which stops are worthwhile, how much time to spend in each place and towns/places to stay along the way would be appreciated. We are used to driving distances but do not want to over extend ourselves and not have enough time at each spot.

emalloy

I have visited all the stops you mention and all are worthwhile.

As to time in each area:

Grand Canyon - one night if your hiking consists of a couple of hours along the rim trail and a couple of hours hiking down into the canyon. This would allow for nice sunrise and sunset views and stops at the viewpoints along the rim if you arrived fairly early on before your night. Two nights if you want to do more hiking there.

Canyon de Chelley, Antelope Canyon and Monument Valley are Navajo National Parks and you must be with a Navajo guide to go on more that very limited areas in them.

Canyon de Chelley - we spent half a day on the rim a night at the lodge near the base and a day driving in with a Navajo guide. The only hiking you can do without a guide would be from the rim down to White House Ruin and back.

Page/Antelope Canyon - we walked out over to view Horseshoe Bend and back over pretty flat sand less than an hour including picture time the first afternoon. We spent the night and took a half day smooth water raft trip and also took the tour of Antelope Canyon with a Navajo guide. We spend one night in Page.

Monument Valley - we spent one night near by and took a tour with a Navajo guide which was less than two hours. We have been through the area and stopped for pictures other times also but arriving before sunset, seeing that and seeing sunrise and a tour would do it.

Sedona - I find the town not my cup of tea, but the area is beautiful and there is good hiking and some nice ancient Native American sites that are interesting to explore nearby.

MikePinTucson

emqlloy gave you a pretty good overview. We have done a similar trip,

Here is how I would do it with 9 days:

Sedona --3 days. The town isn't much, unless you like browsing shops. But there are over 200 named hiking trails in the area and some fantastic views.

From Sedona to the GCNP. 2 days will do easily, unless you plan on a lot of hiking below the rim.

Page -- 1 or 2 days. You can visit Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyons in one day. If you want to add something on Lake Powell or a half day river float trip, add the second day.

Monument Valley is the logical next stop. Drive over from Page and either drive the loop road or take a Navajo guided tour. Stay overnight there (at The View or Gouldings, if you can find a room, otherwise in Mexican Hat or Kayents). I think one day at MV would be enough.

From MV, drive to Canyon de Chelly. Drive the north and south rim roads the first day, then stay overnight and take a Navajo guided tour into the canyon the second day. wE have used Atelope Hose tours and they were fantastic.

mlgb

Can't stand Sedona.

Book Monument Valley first as it's the most limited and worth staying neargy, and Do try NOT to stay in Tuba City or Kayenta.If you have a sturdy car you CAN drive into the park when it first opens and it's worthwhile to avoid the tour trucks and the vendors, plus the morning light is gorgeous.

I'd look at your map and see if you can do Lee's Ferry and stop at the Navajo Bridgeacross the Colorado (Cliffdweller's has an amazing restaurant that provides a welcome break from NPS vendor food. Then if you head west along the Vermillion Cliffs and go north you can reach
Kanab which is one of those cute small towns, it has Best Friends/Angel Canyon which if you can get one o their motel units I'd pick over Page/Antelope Canyon. Worth doing a volunteer stint if you love animals. Their restaurant has a lovely deck..we had a Golden Eaqgle fly-by.

LuxuryTravelExpert

Did a road trip this summer Grand Canyon, Page, etc...
Bryce Canyon may be a bit too north for you, but it is my favorite, great for hiking, but may have snow in November... but spectacular..

The jeep tour and hike through Antelope Canyon is also a must, amazing.. Even though the sign in the store window said the tour was sold out, it wasn't, they said they don't want to keep changing the sign..so best to inquire inside..
http://www.antelopecanyon.com/upper_antelope.html

curiousgirl964

Thanks for everyone's input. It is really helpful. We have been to Bryce before -- it is wonderful -- so we don't need to try and squeeze that in this time.

We typically keep our itinerary fairly loose. Will we need to book tours in advance at Canyon de Chelley or Antelope Canyon or will we be able to do that day of?

MikePinTucson

You should be OK with Antelope Canyon in November. I would book CdC in advance. I highly recommend Antelope House Tours.

http://www.canyondechelly.net/

If you are going before November 6, be aware of time differences, because the reservation is on daylight savings time.

curiousgirl964

Thanks for the heads up about the difference on the reservation. I would have had no idea.

MikePinTucson

Seems like AC, even though it is on the reservation, goes by AZ time for booking tours. Probably because some of the tours originate in Page.

If you book a tour in Monument Valley, that is definitely on daylight savings time. Same with Canyon de Chelly.

If your trip is after November 6, no worries, there will not be any time differences.

RVvagabond

Antelope Canyon is a crowded mass of people. It is on Navajo land so there is no limit to how many people they can stuff in that narrow slot. And they do stuff them in that slot.

Anyway, if you go to Page:
> Take the Glen Canyon Dam tour and see their movies on construction of that dam - free
> Best BBQ is Big John's on the main street in town.

Vaga
PS. Rubber raft trip from the Dam to Lees Ferry is certainly worth your consideriation

curiousgirl964

Thanks everyone, much appreciated. Here is our current itinerary for 10 days/9 nights flying in and out of PHX (largely as MikePinTucson suggested):

2 nights in Sedona, 2 nights in GC (south rim), 2 nights in Antelope Canyon vicinity, and 2 nights for Monument Valley and Canyon de Chelly. We will have 1 extra night in one of those places or somewhere else along the way but do not know where yet. We plan to stay very flexible so can adjust as needed. Here are a few more questions:

1. North Rim? We know that the North Rim facilities are closed but, absent a major snowfall, will the road to the North Rim (Rte 67) still be open? If so, since we’re going to be in the area en route to AC, we’re thinking about driving to the North Rim and doing a very short hike (1/2 mile round trip to Bright Angel Point). Any thoughts, pro or con? Also, if we have time while we’re there, does anyone know whether the road to Point Imperial and/or Cape Royal will be open (again, assuming Rte 67 is not closed for snow) and worthwhile?

2. Plan B? We are wondering if are we stretching ourselves too thin by including MV and CdC and would be better off sticking with the Sedona-GC-AC corridor, with little detours along the way (e.g., Kanab, Jerome, Prescott, Flagstaff, Sunset Crater, Wupatki Nat’l Mon., Navajo Bridge near Lees Ferry, Glen Canyon Dam). Given the natural beauty we’ll be seeing on the Sedona-GC-AC corridor (and since we’ve already done the Utah national parks), are we better off skipping MV and CdC in favor of a more relaxed pace?

3. Vermilion Cliffs National Monument – Is this just a pretty area we’ll ooh and ah at along the way (similar to views of Painted Desert and Echo Cliffs along Rte 89), or is there hiking or other activities to be done there?

4. If we do make it out to CdC, looks like we have at least 2 options for heading back to PHX – 1) head back thru Flagstaff (either on Rte 264 or I-40), or 2) travel thru Petrified Forest and back to PHX on either Rtes 260 and 87 or Rte 60 all of which look to be scenic. Any advice?

Thanks for all the help.

MikePinTucson

Plan B, sort of.

If you want to visit Jerome, add a day in Sedona to do that. Actually, with an early start, you could visit Prescott and Jerome in a day.

Visit Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monument on the way to the Grand Canyon and enter GCNP through the east entrance.

With two nights in Page, you will be able to drive along the base of the Vermillion cliffs and stop at Navajo Bridge. Get an early start from the GC and you can do these, plus the dam, in one day. Skip Kanab, that would be trying to do too much.

On the way to Phoenix, I would go through Holbrook and Payson. You could take a little detour and visit Petrified Forest/ Painted Desert. If you want to do that, just take 191 to I-40 at Chambers, then I-40 west to the entrance. Dirve through and take 180 back to Holbrook, then on down to Payson and Phoenix.

mlgb

I would skip Senset Crater. Wupatki is worthwhile if you have time, but often it isn't possible. can't include Hovenweep near MOnument Valley.

I would not skip Lee's Ferry, which is just a little bit beyond Navajo Bridge. YOu can get down to the river there.

I would try for Monument Valley. I don't like the town of Sedona much at all, I would blast through and save those nights and days.

Kanab, I don't see it as a detour, but rather a place to stay (eg instead of Sedona), as you mentioned liking small towns with characgter.

MikePinTucson

Sedona really isn't at all about the town, unless you really enjoy browsing shops and galleries. It is about the beautiful scenery.

Based on your current tentative itinerary, Kanab is definitely a detour.

Driving from Sedona to the GCNP, you would have plenty of time for Sunset and Wupatki unless you leave late in the morning. The loop road, off 89 a bit north of Flagstaff will take you to both. I would not skip Sunset Crater. It is quite interesting and you can take a nice walk through a lava field there. Then just continue along the same road to Wupatki National Monument, then along the same road, which takes you back to 89.

I would not skip either Monument Valley or Canyon de Chelly.