Sedona AZ, NM

Old Jun 8th, 2015, 08:47 AM
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Sedona AZ, NM

We have made reservations for 5 night/6 day stay in Sedona at different hotels/resorts. first 2-3 days of trip would like to focus on hiking as primary task of day. we are not advanced hikers but do enjoy it. Would put as Intermediate stage. Staying I believe in Oak Creek area...10 mins from Sedona and would like to know some preferred hiking trails in area. I understand there are some very close by to where we are staying. And any other activities to do in that area. Other 2 nights will be in Sedona at one of the Resorts--Amara ? and what if any nightlife in Sedona....live music, etc. Any nice restaurants...Italian, Mexican, American would be helpful as well. As you can see for the first part of trip we want to exercise...anything goes and last part we want do maybe wine tour or something more relaxing and calm. Hopefully not asking too much.
Last leg home of trip --we arefrom Houston Tx suburbs would be 1-1.5 days in NM. Open to suggestions but maybe leaning toward White Sands//Carlsbad Caverns...never been to either or could go to Sante Fe . Either of these areas or possibly other parts of NM would work on way back to Tx. I appreciate any advice in advance.

p.s. oh forgot will be going July 2nd --10th or 11th including driving time.
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 02:32 PM
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Carlsbad Caverns is NOT to be missed. Unlike anything I had ever seen! !

We stayed at Amara over New Years 2013- 2014. I love Kimpton hotels. This is a hotel they took over. It's a great location but it's not as " Kimpton" as, most of others. Nothing wrong, just kind Of motel-ish
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 02:52 PM
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Elote Cafe in Sedona is excellent, but you have to get in line early...no reservations. Worth the wait, though, at least for us. We also liked L'Auberge on Oak Creek, Silver Saddle at the Cowboy Club and Cucina Rustica (in Oak Creek). Sounds Bites Grill was good, but the main attraction is live music, which you mentioned. Picazzo's has good pizza.

We enjoyed the hiking trails in the Oak Creek State Park, but there are many others in the area. Hopefully someone who lives nearby can provide more trail names, because most of them I can't remember.
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 03:18 PM
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Debit/voyager, ty for the replies. I'm sure Amara will be fine on 2nd part of Sedona stay. Great info on places to eat in Oak Creek ...just what we were looking for. I think first part of stay is Inn's View --Oak Creek so these should work. plan on not being in hotel much at all first few days so as long as it was clean which reviews were very consistent that it was we went for it. Very reasonable in price. Amara was of course pricier but we were definitely wanting more upscale at that point in trip. Deb....do you feel like we will be disappointed with our stay at Amara ?
thks again to both of you !!
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 04:11 PM
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If you want nice, clea, comfortable accommodations, a lovely free wine hour each night; Amara will fill the bill. The pool was nice, great views of Snoop rock and we had s'mores.

It's just not a "resort" as the name suggests. Enchantment is a resort, but then the price is likely much higher.

I agree with L'Auberge for dinner; you might need reservation. We had lunch at Enchatment and that was very nice. There is also a nice trail adjacent to the resort that is open to the public.

Keep in mind it's going to be hot, so be sure to stay hydrated; drink Way MORE than youthinkyou need. It is easy to get dehydrated in the southwest.
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 04:39 PM
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Join Kimpton's free loyalty program for good perks. They have a sale on, use code SUMMR for 15% discount.
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 04:45 PM
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Just to clarify, of the restaurants I named, only Cucina Rustica is in the town of Oak Creek...the others are in Sedona, but it's only a 10 to 15 minute drive between the two, so not difficult even for dinner. Have a good trip.
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 04:55 PM
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Understood on the restaurants...we will back n forth between first 3 days then mostly Sedona last 2+.

Debit....Was going to sign up for membership on Kimpton as Reservation person suggested. where does or what does 15% come into play for. thanks !!
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Old Jun 8th, 2015, 04:57 PM
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I just rechecked, that rate is for their Scottsdale hotel. They often have specials for members only, so I encourage you to sign up, it also gives you free wi-fi.

IF that rate was valid you would enter it where is says promo code when you are searching.
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Old Jun 10th, 2015, 10:51 AM
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In the Village of Oak Creek, definitely try the Schoolhouse restaurant. Great food.

Our "go to" restaurants in Sedona are Dahl & DiLuca (sister restaurant of Cucina Rustica) and the Silver Saddle Room at the Cowboy Club. We prefer Dahl & DiLuca over Cucina Rustica for the atmosphere. Plus it isn't as noisy.

We didn't care that much for Elote, particularly after a wait of over an hour. I haven't tried too many of the Mexican Restaurants in Sedona, but haven't found any that were very good. I would avoid Oaxaca and Javelina Cantina.

For hiking trails around Sedona, check this website:

http://hikearizona.com/traildex.php?ID=42&RID=9

From the Village of Oak Creek, a longish, but not difficult hike is around Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte. And if you drive out Verde Valle School Road all the way to the end, you can pick up the Baldwin Trail and hike to Cathedral Rock. In Sedona, Boynton Canyon and Fay Canyon are nice hikes, not too difficult.

At the Grand Canyon, El Tovar would be the best restaurant, followed by The Arizona Room, then Bright Angel Restaurant.
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Old Jun 10th, 2015, 04:03 PM
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great info Mike. we have added some of your suggestions to our list. much appreciated. J.R.
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Old Jun 11th, 2015, 07:38 AM
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I can't believe I forgot this, but probably the top hike in the Sedona area is the West Fork Trail. It is several miles up in Oak Creek Canyon, crosses the creek several times, and has much different scenery than the trails at lower elevations.
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Old Jun 11th, 2015, 01:59 PM
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We also live in a suburb of Houston and made the trip to Sedona in April.

We aren't into "resorts" so we stayed at the Hampton Inn in Sedona. It had everything we needed in a room.

We had reservations for a Pink Jeep tour which we really enjoyed.

We saw Esteban perform at a dinner show at Sound Bites which I think someone already mentioned. The food was very good and Esteban put on an amazing show.

Another place that we enjoyed was lunch at the Oak Creek Brewery in Tlaquepaque Village. Good food and service.

We were suppose to stop in Santa Fe for a couple of days on this trip, but DH got sick so we headed home. Had been to SF on another trip, however, and had a great time. But, after Sedona, it might seem to be too much sameness, so maybe Carlsbad Caverns would be a better fit. It is definitely something worth seeing as well.
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Old Jun 11th, 2015, 04:52 PM
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Mike
Thank you. I think we are covered with hikes with your suggestions. Probably do the 2 you mentioned previously and then include the West Fork trail on 3rd day of hiking. After that we want to shift gears and do more relaxing things on trip.

Betty
great info....your suggestions are exactly things we enjoy. I like going to brewery set ups etc and definitely hope to go to Sound Bites. We live in Cypress btw and looking frwd to our trip.
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 03:47 PM
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We have pretty much finalized our stay for Sedona area. Staying 4 nights in Oak Creek area....close to hiking trails and 2 nights @ Amare Resort . have listed several of restaurants & hikes from responses..thank you!. We are wanting to do Pink Jeep Tour---Broken Arrow as it seems there are several to choose from....has anyone been on the Broken Arrow particular Jeep tour. Any other advice is welcomed but very much looking forward to coming to Sedona. J.R.
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 04:08 PM
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I have been on 3 of the Pink Jeep tours and one Red Rock Jeep tour. Hands down, the PJ Broken Arrow tour is the best. We have done it 6 or 7 times by now.

Have a wonderful time. If we are staying at least 5 or 6 days, we also visit Jerome and do the Verde Canyon Railroad.
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 04:32 PM
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You hadn't mentioned other things you plan on doing, but Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well are very interesting. At the well, walk down to the bottom and also walk down the outside to where the water flows back out of the well.

Someone else mentioned Tlaquepaque. Very interesting to browse, most of the things in the galleries and shops are quite expensive. Maybe that's why it is called "lock your pockets".

If you are interested, there are also three wineries close together on Page Springs Road.

Do not miss going to Red Rock Crossing, you can get the iconic picture of Cathedral Rock with Oak Creek in the foreground.

Another place to not miss is the Chapel of the Holy Cross. Even for non-religious people like me, it is a powerful place if you go in, sit down and open your mind.
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 05:26 PM
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Mike, thanks for feedback on PJ Broken Arrow...will not miss. have some of things you just mentioned already on list but not all....so many thanks. You have been tremendous help. We took better part of day had to change dates etc....but all set. Staying July 3-7th at a Inn in Oak Creek where we wont be in room much at all. Then night of 7&8th be staying @Amare Resort. Don't know much about Jerome or Canyon Railroad if you want to let us know but I know I can look up....just worn out from being on for many hours. Big TY again !!
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Old Jun 14th, 2015, 09:40 PM
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We enjoyed dinner at Dahl and Diluca. Great service, nice atmosphere if you enjoy Italian.
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Old Jun 15th, 2015, 09:23 AM
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Verde Canyon RR http://verdecanyonrr.com/ Two hours through Verde canyon, then 2 hours back. Starts at 1 PM. If you take it, just do coach, first class isn't worth it.

Jerome, an old mining town reborn as an artist enclave. Lunch at the Asylum Restaurant or Haunted Hamburger. I like to have a beer or two while my wife shops.

http://www.azjerome.com/jerome/
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