I am planning an eight day trip to Arizona. I will be flying into Phoenix. I plan to see the Grand Canyon and Sedona. Does anybody have any other must-sees? Any recommendations on where to stay or where to eat? My plans as of now are kind of wide open. Thanks.

Phoenix has a nice botantical garden that you might want to visit. Also consider a daytrip to Jerome, an old mining town in the hills that now is inhabited as an artist colony. Carefree is also a good daytrip. Make sure to stop and try the chili pepper beer.

There is tons of info on this forum if you do a search. I would recommend Montezuma's Castle and Prescott and Jerome. Eight days should give you plenty of time to explore.

Ned,
we just moved to AZ and live outside of phoenix, we took a drive to sedona from phoenix, but wanted to stop by prescott, we went on hwy 89A and passed a strange town called Jerome it was founded in 1886 and is on a high mountain side very narrow streets, very interesting, you can see the web site at www.azjerome.com hope this helps, looks like some neat hotels there, but I have never stayed there so I don't know. Montezuma Castle national monument is close to the area in Camp Verde, it was built between 1100-1400ad. I have never seen it but it sounds neat.It is five story 20 room cliff dwelling. have a great trip~ Lynne

The must sees in the area are Monoument Valley, Zion and Bryce National Parks. In my opinion Bryce is an absolute must see. I rate it as the #1 national park and I have visited most of them. Sedona is red rock country but it doesn't compare to the red rocks you see approaching Bryce and in Bryce. Again my opinion. If you decide you want to visit these places 1 1/2 days would do it for the places mentioned above with the exception of Monument Valley - can be done in one day or less.

You have a couple of good choices and, like the other posts, I would recommend adding Jerome to your trip. As stated, it is a very unique artist community and a good place to spend a day. I remember one artist studio, in particular, that had an awesome canyon view. Also, haven't been..but heard Prescott is pretty nice.

You don't mention when your heading or your age...but if it is before end of Sept you should go tubing down the Salt River. It's $10 and you can do 1 hr, 2 hrs or 4hrs. Great fun, I even took my parents and it was a highlight of their trip

Prescott is a quaint town and should be visited for atleast a lunch break if you're driving in the general area.

Bryce and Zion are in UTAH, not Arizona, and it's a long, arid drive to reach them from Arizona. If you want to visit Bryce and Zion, fly to Las Vegas. If you want to visit Arizona, stick to Arizona. If you want to go beyond the fine suggestions already mentioned, you could drive east of Phoenix into the White Mountain area, Showlow and Pinetop. It might be a cooler interlude in your trip.

This may be out of the way, but if it of interest it could be done at the end of the trip; i'm referring to driving about 3-3 and a half hours south of Phoenix to Tombstone, Bisbee, with a stop at the Karchner caverns. (Karchner is suppose to be spectacular and requires advanced reservations)All that can be done in about a day and a half time without rushing. In the same general area is Patagonia, a wonderful bird sanctuary (if that is of interest) Southern Arizona has a lot to offer, and is quite often ignored....Enjoy your visit.

When you drive from Phoenix to Flagstaff /Sedona, be sure to stop at the Rock Springs Cafe in Black Canyon City for the world's most wonderful pie! It's about the only thing in the town, and doesn't look like much from the freeway, but it's not to be missed. I think Jerome is a lunch stop. It's funky and perched on the side of a mountain, but that's about it. In Flagstaff, try Little America hotel. The rooms are very ornately (almost garishly) decorated, but it's a great place. And Phoenix, there are so many suggestions on places to stay. I just moved away after living there 5 years. The Pointe Hilton resorts are very nice (there are three of them). We also like the Buttes in Tempe, although some of the rooms have freeway noise. And we had our wedding reception at the Mission Palms Hotel in old-town Tempe. It's very nice and great location right off Mill Ave. There also are tons of recreational opportunities... climb Squaw Peak or Camelback Mountain (both are easy day hikes and offer great views of the city). Mountain biking is great at South Mountain Park. Enjoy!