will be flying in to phoenix from england next july.driving to sedona, then to grand canyon,monument valley,cinle.not sure about the next leg. want to end up in tucson for a few days, is it too far to drive in one, or is a stop around showlow advisable.

Adrian, Mapquest.com says Chinle to Tucson is a 10.5-hour, 361-mile drive. (Sounds kind of long for that amount of distance, but maybe there are lots of low-speed-limit roads on the route.)

Chinle to Show Low is a 4.5-hour, 170-mile drive.

If the Chinle-Tucson drive takes as long as Mapquest says, that sounds like a pretty long day's driving to me. But you can be the judge of whether that's something you'd want to do. It'll be blazingly hot in July, if that factors into your decision.

But Tucson's a neat place--we were there just two weeks ago. Make sure you see the Sonoran Desert Museum just west of town.

Hope this helps. Good luck planning your trip--sounds like you'll see lots of great stuff...

From Chinle to Tucson is no 10 hours unless you try driving in low gear and stop every time you want to sneeze!!
I have driven quite a bit in Arizona and never took 10 hours to go less than 400 miles. I think 7 to 8 hours is a conservative estimate, and I would expect that I would make it in 7.
There are not very many people out there, except around Phoenix and Tucson, so you should not have to contend with a lot of traffic.

I was born and raised in tucson. It is very hot in July and people stay indoors and run the air conditioning. Phoenix will also be very hot, but Sedona and the Grand Canyon will be better. I would skip Tucson and only stay in Phoenix for a short time, unless you are ready for temps of 112 or more.

You are going to be hitting very hot weather, only cooling off somewhat at night in the north. As long as you are doing Monument Valley, you certainly should not miss Canyon de Chelly(shay)...they really comnpliment each other. If you do nothing other than the Canyon, Sedona, MV and Canyon de Chelly, you will have one terrific trip...the tours into the latter two are in the a.m. which will help somewhat with the heat, but it will, no doubt, still be dusty, but worth the trip. I would also skip Tucson for this trip. I would be surprised if you don't find the heat quite oppressive and wearing on you and may not want to be outside as much as you might think.

2 ideas
1. St. Johns to Eagar, alpine, Clifton, Safford (stop), Willcox, Bisbee (stop), Tombstone, Tucson

2. Show Low to Globe (stop) Superior, Florence, Tucson

I have met lots of English who enjoy the hot weather of the Arizona summer

Thanks everyone for the info. July is the only time we can come,my wife works at the local school,so we are restricted to school holidays.Anyway we dont get many hot summers in England,probably 2/3 days here and there, so 21 days in a row will be great. I hear its a nice kind of heat. Thinking of stopping off at either Pinetop or Eager, whats the drive like between Eager and Clifton? Fodors suggests it may be a bit hazardous,but scenic.Will there be any snow around?

Hi Adrian. I live in the southeast where we get days around 100 - 104 upon occasion. Usually the heat index, which factors in the humidity, puts the perceived temperature up around 110 or so. In the southwest the humidity is much lower, and I have heard people say that 107 is not bad because it is a dry heat. Well, I have been to Phoenix and Tucson, too, when it was 105 to 110 degrees. I don't care if it is dry heat or not, it is still bloody hot!!
My big suggestions are two fold:
1. use a sunscreen because you can cook to a lovely red very quickly.
2. drink lots of water, and lay off caffeine. Caffeine is a mild diuretic and actually takes moisture out of the system.
I also wear a broad brimmed hat to help keep the sun off.
Let's face it, my skin type evolved north of 52 degrees north latitude and it does not like these intense UV rays.
Over a lifetime of being exposed to the sun, I have had my share of skin problems. It does not happen overnight, but for a person from the UK, I think that you would sunburn badly with only brief exposure. Get a sunscreen with a SPF value of at least 25. I use one that claims it has a SPF of 48.
I doubt if you will find much snow in Arizona in July. It is too far south and the elevations are mostly too low for snow to endure the hot summer sun very long. You will find snow in the Rockies on the north faces of some slopes. But even at 14,000 feet, the snow is usally gone by August unless it is sheltered from the sun. (I know I have climbed to the top of some of the fourteeners in Colorado in July, and the sun had melted the snow.)

Have not driven between Eagar and Clifton, but a friend of mine did it last summer and highly recommends it