8 days in Arizona!
 

I am very excited, as we will be spending 8 days in Arizona during the week of Thanksgiving. We are travelers who like to see as much as possible and have set an ambitious agenda that takes us in a circle around Arizona. We arrive in Phoenix and will spend the night in Prescott. <BR> <BR>From Prescott we will work our way through Flagstaff to probably Williams, where we will spend the next night. Then we will do the South Rim of the Canyon and spend the night in Cameron. <BR> <BR>From Cameron it’s off to Page, then Kayenta and finally a night’s rest in Mexican Hat. From there, we will venture to Four Corners for a quick photo op. From Four Corners, it’s down to Mexican Water and then on to Gallup for the evening. <BR> <BR>We move from Gallup to the Petrified Forest and then down to the Coronado Trail to a resting point near Clinton. The next morning it’s down to Tombstone and the OK Corral! We will spend the night in Tucson. <BR> <BR>Next day is spent around Tucson and the Saguaro Nat’l Park. We will venture back to Phoenix for the night. <BR> <BR>We know this is ambitious. Is it too ambitious? What weather problems will we encounter this time of year? I am concerned about the Coronado Trail and snow. <BR> <BR>At this time of year what is the temp at the Grand Canyon? Do they raft this time of year? We just started planning and I am getting ready to look into lodging. I am hoping hotels will be cheaper this time of year. We are aiming for $50-60/night if we can! <BR> <BR>Any tips, suggestions would be welcome! <BR> <BR> <BR>Thanks!!!!

I just got back from a three week trip out west. We camped most of the time, so I can't really help you with lodging. . .I know in Page (well, actually Lake Powell), there's a really nice hotel on the lake called Waweap Lodge. We stayed at the campground affiliated w/it, so we were able to use the hotel's facilities. They had two swimming pools, a gym, a really good restaurant called the Rainbow Room, and a lot of other stuff. We really enjoyed the lake itself, and another thing to do is take a float tour at the bottem of Glen Canyon Dam. We took the three hour tour down the Colorade and really enjoyed it. <BR> Flagstaff is a nice little college town, with a lot of good shops. A really cool, funky one was Blackhound (I think that's the name!) with a lot of kitchy stuff. <BR> I don't know if the Grand Canyon still has raft tours or not in Nov, but I do know that at least in July reservations are very hard to get. That might change in nov, but if you can't make reservations I would do the float tour in Page. The only caveat is that there is no whitewater there. <BR> Hope this helps!

I don't know how you would do it, but I would include a stop in Sedona. It's between Phoenix and the Grand Canyon. It's well worth the stop over. <BR> <BR>We were at the Grand Canyon over Christmas a few years ago and the weather was in the high 30's to mid 40's. <BR> <BR>Have a great trip.

We most definetly plan on stopping in Sedona. We will take highway 89-A from Prescott to Flagstaff, which will take us through Sedona. We are excited to see the Red Rocks! <BR> <BR>Thanks for your help!

I wouldn't want to miss Montezuma's Castle either. <BR> <BR>([email protected])

At that time of year, it is possible, not probable, that you will have inclimate weather, too cold, windy, hail in northeast AZ. and Gallup. However, more likely to be briskly cool with cold weather at night. Just keep that in mind in case you need to reconfigure the tour. Monument Valley and Canyon de Chelly are at the top of my list for our visitors...either one or both. The tours leave from the hotels and are conducted by the Indians and are simply fantastic...if you have time and are in the area, this is a must.

Hi, <BR> <BR>Definitely plan on seeing the Arizona Desert Museum, on your morning in Tucson. Since the weather is cooler around Thanksgiving, all the desert dwellers will be up and around and fun to see, if you've never experienced the Sonoran desert before! <BR> <BR>I also preferred Bisbee to Tombstone/OK Corral, but it might be a little too far from your pathway as you are already travelling pretty far each day. Tombstone is pretty touristy, and fun for an hour or two, especially with kids. Bisbee is an old mining town where you can take a tour down an the Copper Queen mine, which was very nifty! <BR> <BR>Have fun and feel free to email me if you have any questions about Tucson.

I appreciate the information! <BR> <BR>Keep it coming!

Alex, I live in Arizona and have driven to all the places you mention and I will tell you that it is much too ambitious, unless you like to drive to sightsee. Arizona is one of the largest states in size and you will be spending ALOT of time on the road. I suggest that you cut out the Cameron to Page to 4 Corners to Gallop section (hugh area - less scenic bang for the buck) and concentrate more time in the Sedona, Flagstaff, Grand Canyon and Tucson areas - spend some quality time there, hike, see more areas, it is well worth it! Heck, even splurge and spend one night in a fancy Scottsdale resort - they are great! I can guarantee that if you stick with the agenda you suggest, you will need another vacation when you get back!