Returned on Saturday from a wonderful trip-of-a-lifetime experience. We landed a little late in Phoenix on Sat. June 19 and, after stopping for lunch, headed to Sedona. We stopped at Montezuma Castle, which we all thought was great and very interesting. It is amazing how well the ruins are preserved after all these years.

After stopping at every wide place for a picture on our way into Sedona (an incredibly beautiful place!), we checked into the Orchards Inn. We, at one time or another had had reservations at Enchantment and at the Sky Ranch Lodge, but chose the Orchards on the recommendation of a friend who had stayed there--when I told them on the phone that I was canceling my reservation at Enchantment to stay there, she cut the rate by $40. I was concerned at first because it does seem to be just a motel in a touristy section, but my family loved the location and the room was very nice and exceptionally clean--my biggest concern anytime. We had a second floor room and the views were incredible. The people there were very nice and extremely helpful. The main reason for choosing the Orchards was that my husband and older son were going to be fly fishing Sunday morning for 4 hours and my younger son and I would be without a car. It was nice to be able to spend the time in the many quaint shops instead of having to sit in the room and wait for them to return. Also,we liked not having to drive every time we wanted to go somewhere. BTW, L'Auberge (sister property to the Orchards) is gorgeous. If you can afford to stay there and don't mind having a creek view instead of the rock views, don't miss it. The two boys and I hiked a ways up the creek below L'Auberge that afternoon.

Back to day 1. We booked a Pink Jeep Tour for 5 p.m and it was great. I told the guide that I wanted it to be really wild and wooly and it was! He took us to some amazing places--I thought surely we would turn over, but somehow we remained upright. It definitely was one of the highlights of our trip. The older son was really impressed--which is not an easy thing when you're 22. BTW, the temp. was perfect. Even cool and breezy in spots.

Ate dinner at the Orchards Inn Bar and Grille; very good meal. My older son and I are steak eaters, my husband almost always eats fish, and the young one eats nothing but chicken tenders, pizza, or hot dogs. We all enjoyed our meal.

Husband and son went fly fishing in Oak Creek Canyon with a guide--Jim McInnis--at 6 a.m. on Sunday. Although they didn't catch any fish, they had a great time. Both are novices and Mr. McInnis gave them many pointers. After breakfast at the Orchards--super!--we tried out Red Rock State Park which was extremely crowded and then Slide Rock State Park, which also was very crowded--probably because it was a Sunday. So, we parked at a wide spot, climbed down the hill to the creek and literally hiked up the creek. Cool, fun and extremely beautiful.

Ate dinner at the Cowboy Club--good meal but not as good as The Orchards.

Day 3: Left at 6 a.m. to drive to the GC by way of Oak Creek Canyon and Flagstaff (stopped there to eat breakfast). We chose to drive route 180 to 64 rather than to Williams on 40. Good decision, as the scenery was beautiful and we were one of only a handful of cars on the road. We arrived at the GC around 9:30 and I burst into tears at my first look into the Canyon. It is so amazing, so awesome, that there are no words to describe it.

After making reservations at the El Tovar for dinner, we began our tour of the Canyon. We hiked a short time on the Rim and then hiked a mile down Bright Angel Trail. We would have gone farther, but the younger one was kind of scared and didn't think he'd be able to make it back up. Although we were told to allow twice the time for coming back up, it took us only 50 min. to come back and we spent an hour going down. Ate lunch at the Bright Angel Cafe.

We then took the shuttle to the second stop, and hiked to Hopi Point. Amazing!!!!

Stayed at Kachina in a second floor room that overlooked the canyon. A beautiful view and a very clean, nice room. Ate dinner at El Tovar. A super meal! Great food!

Day 4: Younger son and I got up for sunrise: no words to describe this. There were 9 deer eating breakfast right outside our building. Took many pictures as we followed them to the front of the building.

Went to Tusayan to eat breakfast and to see the IMAX film; very good. Left through the eastern part of the GC and stopped at Lipan Point and Desert View; also one other but I can't remember which. Gorgeous views of the Colorado River. Stopped at Cameron Trading Post for lunch on the way to Lake Powell. Wonderful Fry Bread with honey!!

Arrived in Page late afternoon and, after a stop at Wal Mart and the John Wesley Powell Museum, went on to Lake Powell Resort. Had a clean, second floor room overlooking the lake, but I would probably choose the Courtyard by Marriott the next time. The water level is now 120 feet below normal but as we were only going to be on the river, it did not hamper our good time. Ate dinner at the Rainbow Room at the resort. The wait staff was very friendly and nice and the meal good, but couldn't begin to measure up to the meal at the El Tovar.

Day 5: Boys and husband ate the breakfast buffet at LP Resort; thought the food was o.k. but not worth the $9 price.

Husband, young son and I did the the 9:30 Antelope Canyon tour with Antelope Canyon Tours. (Older one had ear and sinus infection and had to visit the walk-in clinic in Page, which was a good experience in case someone needs this service). Loved the tour. Antelope canyon is simply amazing and shouldn't be missed if you have the opportunity. We were fortunate to find a photo shop next door to the Safeway in town that downloaded the pictures from my digital camera onto CDs so that I could take more pictures (there also is a shop in Sedona right across from The Orchards Bar and Grill where we did the same).

Next, we did the afternoon float trip with Wilderness River Adventures (in the same strip complex as Antelope Canyon Tours). The people there are extremely nice and very helpful. Our superb guide and pilot, Lon Mason, was very knowledgeable, funny and informative. I am indebted to Utahtea for telling me about this trip. We absolutely loved it.

Ate dinner at the Damn Bar and Grill and really enjoyed our meal. Older son and I switched to shrimp and they were delicious. Good atmosphere and good food.

Day 6: Ate breakfast at the Jack In the Box on highway 89 before making way to Scottsdale. Took the loop off of 89 that leads to Wupatki Ruins and Sunset Crater Volcano National Park. The volcano was neat, especially all of the lava flow. I would suggest, if you are going in this direction, to take a picture of the mountain as you are driving in; it is much more impressive and "pointed" from that side.

Continued on and stopped at the Anthem Outlet Mall for older son. Ate lunch here.
Arrived at the Phoenician in Scottsdale and am still amazed at the beauty and level of service it offers. We are from an area that boasts two, 5-star resorts and they don't begin to compare to The Phoenician. Large room with a foyer, large balcony--although it was too hot for us to spend much time outside--huge bathroom with a sunken tub and separate, glassed-in shower. Also a 31" plasma t.v.

Sons went for a swim in the Oasis pool (one of 9, all of which are open 24 hours per day) while dad and I looked around. Magnificent! Ate dinner in the Terrace Dining Room; very expensive but definitely worth a one-time splurge. Absolutely scrumptious! And it didn't bother them that we only had shorts and cropped pants to wear!

Had planned to go to the dog races the next afternoon, but we rented a cabana instead and spent the day beside the pool. Super! Had our own private waiter and they provided Evian Misters, water, a fruit bowl, towels, umbrella, lounge chairs in addition to granite topped tables and super comfortable chairs inside the cabana, and cookies in the afternoon. Oh, and a ceiling fan.

Also a great waterslide. Took a break in the afternoon for a homemade ice cream cone in the ice cream parlor.

Our original plan had been to go to Rawhide Western Town but at 110 degrees, it was just too hot. Started to go to Rustler's Roost, but decided to stay in and order room service. Wonderful decision.

This was the best vacation we've ever had. Although it was very hot in the Phoenix area, temps. in Sedona, the Grand Canyon and Page were not bad at all. And, like everyone says, it IS a dry heat.

I apologize for this being so long; but I just can't say enough good things about this trip. Again, thanks to Utahtea and others who were so patient in answering all my questions.

Lynda

Wow, Lynda, great report! I think those of us who live close enough to go to Grand Canyon every year sometimes forget how amazing it really is. Although it's only a 4 1/2 hr drive, your report wanted me to fly into Phoenix and pretend I've never been there before and re-create your entire trip. Thanks for reminding me of how amazing our own backyard can be.

Lynda,

Great trip report!!!!

Utahtea

Ditto, Lynda. Really enjoyed your story telling and details. One thing - in Sedona, you sounded a little hestitant or apologetic for staying at the Orchard Inn, though you mentioned how it seemed to fit your situation well. From a fresh viewpoint, do you think you'd stay somewhere else, and if so, what would be your candidates? Thanks for your views.

Lyntom, can you make the arrangements for our next vacation? WOW. You guys made the most of every minute. I was wondering if you were ever gonna slow down. You know, when you stay at a beautiful resort, it is so nice to kick back and just enjoy the atmosphere and service. You are paying for it, might as well enjoy it, right?

A few questions: Can you tell me more about the Grand Canyon experience. Where did you stay? How much and how did you book it? What kind of food does the El Tovar have?

Thanks for the wonderful report. Can't wait until we go on vacation. We are ready...

Wow, great report Lynda! I'd love to hear more about your Antelope Canyon Tour. Everything I read says mid-afternoon is the best time, but since you said you loved it, I gather taking a morning tour wasn't a liability? Morning is the only time we can fit it in on our trip next month, so that was my main concern. Thanks again for the report - sounds like you had a wonderful trip!

Glad my report was of help to some of you. We stayed in a second-floor room of the Kachina Lodge, with a view that looked right into the canyon. I peered into a couple of rooms at the El Tovar and truly thought our room was just as large if not larger--although the ones I looked in were not canyon view. I booked it online and paid $143 including tax. We thought the price was definitely worth it. The Bright Angel Cabins were really cute and my older son says he would want to stay at El Tovar if we ever went back. I'd be perfectly happy at Kachina again as long as we could have close to the same room. We were in the building directly adjacent to El Tovar. Only drawback is the parking. We were lucky that we only had to drive around the lot about 4 times before someone left, but I saw several people in despair of ever finding a place later in the day. Arriving between 9:30 - 10:00 a.m. is definitely a good time to get a close parking space.

The meal at El Tovar was scrumptious. I can't really remember much of what they had; steak, prime rib, several kinds of fish, venison--about what you'd find at any good restaurant that serves American food. They do have a children's menu and a booklet of activities to keep the kids entertained. I believe that they may have a sampling of their menus on their website. I looked at so many sites for so long that I can't remember where I saw what!

Sedona: Yes, we definitely would stay at The Orchards Inn again. I didn't mean to sound apologetic; I guess I thought, since it doesn't get as many mentions on the board as Enchantment and Sky Ranch Lodge, that people would wonder why we chose there. But it was lovely with super views; not a huge room but in the words of my older son (who is very picky, "I loved it there; it was so cozy." Also has a nice pool with a wonderful view. The staff went out of their way to make our stay as pleasant as possible. Be sure to take a walk down the many steps to the creek; it is SO pretty and peacful. Or,you can ride the hillevator, although I chose to walk back up and was glad to do it. Older one thought I was silly. As I said before, we loved being able to walk anywhere we wanted. The Orchards Bar and Grill is across the parking lot and the Cowboy Club and Silver Saddle are across the street. Loved the little shops and the people are so very nice.

Not having been there and from things I had read, I had expected the uptown area to be really crowded, but we didn't think it was. Not that it was anywhere near deserted, but it is just so quaint and friendly--we loved it.

Antelope Canyon: I had read that one had to be there at noon to get a picture of the light; however we got really good pictures on our morning visit. If you send me your email address I'll email them to you as I don't have a website to post them on. Be sure to tell the guide that you want pictures of the light--they throw up the sand so that the light really shows up. We did get a late start so it was about 10:40 when I took the pictures of the light, so you might consider the 10:00 tour. It is a 15- 20 minute drive to the Canyon from town. BTW, you can go there yourself and hire a guide right outside the gate, but when we were leaving there were a LOT of people waiting in the heat for the trucks to come back. I would rather pay a few dollars more and reserve a trip. There is a Pizza Hut and KFC very close to both Antelope Canyon Tours and Wilderness River Adventures.
I believe that our company, Antelope Canyon Tours is the one owned and operated by the Navajo. We had a really nice and informative guide. Although the canyon itself is about 15 degrees cooler than the outside, it would be really hot to ride out there in the afternoon. We rode in open trucks but I think they take you in air conditioned vehicles in the afternoon. It was a great, awe-inspiring experience. My 10 year-old had really wanted to see it and he was not disappointed.

Going in the morning worked really well since we were able to do that then eat lunch and change our clothes (at WR Adventures) before going on the raft trip. I wouldn't pass that up if you have the time. It definitely is worth the money. You can take any snacks you want with you and they supply water, lemonade and soft drinks.
Although we looked "worse for wear", the Damn Bar and Grill was more than happy to have us eat with them.

If you have any other questions, please ask; as you can probably tell, I love talking about our trip.

Lynda

We took a very similar trip for Spring Break a couple of years ago. Temps ranged from snowing when we left Flagstaff to 80s in Phoenix (all on the same day). We did some great hiking.

In case anyone cares, Phoenix has terrific antique malls. We didn't leave much time for antiquing, but I want to go back to do that. It makes sense - folks retire down there and move into a diferent style house and get rid of stuff, or they pass on and their heirs get rid of stuff.

Lynda,

I'd love to see your pictures of Antelope Canyon too! There are places like at Yahoo where you can put your pictures online for free.

I was told that different times of the day, light comes into the canyon at different points.

Utahtea

thanks, lyn, I'd like to see the pictures, also.

Bravo Lynda, what a good and eventful trip!!!! I am a native of Phoenix, 66 years young, give alot of advice and you did almost every single thing I suggest, including Kachina Lodge, 2nd floor and The Orchards.....both places we always use and take visitors(three times this winter, thought they were all going to start calling us by our first names!) Good job executing your plans and come back, but don't move here, too many people already!!!!!!

Lynda....
Loved your trip report. We're doing similar trip beginning of August and you're making me salivate!

My question....How did you get the second floor room at Kachina? We have reservations there for a canyon side room, but I don't remember them saying what floor we would be on. Did you request that at check-in?

Also, thanks for the tip about getting to Kachina early to get parking spot. Is El Tovar close enough to walk and check in and leave luggage in car?

What was the name of your driver/guide for the Pink Jeep Tour? We are considering doing that, but wanted to be sure we got someone who would make it fun and interesting for the kids (two girls age 13 and 11) and not talk about plant life the whole time.

You mentioned your younger child was a bit scared on the Bright Angel Trail down into the canyon. Was this because of a fear of heights or because he thought he'd be too tired to make it back out? Is it a narrow trail with steep drop offs? Trying to decide if we want to do a bit of that trail or not. We're not experienced hikers.
Thanks lots for your advice and help!

Lynda - thanks for the additional info about your Antelope Canyon Tour. I was also wondering about your comment regarding staying at the Courtyard by Marriott next time rather than the Lake Powell Resort. I've read good things about the Marriott and its location, but of course also great things about being on the lake at Powell Resort. Would love to hear more on why you'd choose the Marriott. Was it mainly the low lake level, or maybe price related? I mention that because I know my current reservation at Powell Resort is more than my night at the Bellagio Thanks!

MWESSEL: Jesse was our Pink Jeep driver. He was a little slow getting started (in telling us about the area), but I'm sure that was because the other couple in the jeep happened to live 50 miles away from us and we knew some of the same people, so we talked a lot among ourselves at first. He did tell us a lot about the plants, etc., but both of my boys, 22 & almost 11, really enjoyed it. Once he got going, he was funny. He really gave us a great ride and even took us over the rocks that are pictured on the front of their brochure. He didn't take the previous group there because they were too squeamish.

Since I made the reservations online, I was not able to request a 2nd floor room, so I guess we just got lucky. You can call them, however, and make the reservations directly. If I remember correctly, there are 3(maybe only 2) Kachina buildings and we were in the one closest to El Tovar--right next door. It was an easy walk out the back door and down the walk. There is a small paking lot right behind Kachina, which we didn't discover until after we had checked in, but we left the car in the lot in front of El Tovar. They have a bellman who will go with you to your car and take your luggage to your room. When we checked out,(around 9) we moved the car to the Kachina lot long enough to load the luggage. I'm sure the bellman would have come back, had we called him.

JV827: I can't really put my finger on why I would go to the Courtyard in Page next time. It was just a feeling. I was not as happy with the LPR as the rest of my family. There really wasn't anything wrong with it; I think I just expected more since it is called a resort. For one thing, the Courtyrard has a guest laundry and the LPR doesn't unless you want to use the one up the road at the campground. I don't usually wash clothes, but didn't bring as much since we flew. Also, there was no iron and board in the room, although they brought me one and left it for the duration of our stay. The Courtyard would have been more convenient for changing clothes between the Antelope Canyon tour and the Col. River float, but, truly, there really was nothing "wrong" with the LPR. My family really enjoyed our stay there. Our rate was $129 and I didn't think it was over-priced.

Hope this helps.
Lynda

Lynda, as a nonhiker with arthritic knees, I am interested in the degree of difficulty in hiking at the Grand Canyon, Sunset Crater & Wupatki. I can walk OK and do steps OK, just prefer not to do huge amounts of steep climbing or I will be in pain later!

Hiking along the rim at GC without going down a trail: is this fairly level?
Sunset Crater, can you see enough without doing the 1-mi loop or the 1 mi up the cinder cone?
Wupatki's website shows 4 trails, the first 3 not steep. Did you do any of them? Is this accurate?
Thanks for any input.

MWESSEL: I forgot to tell you that my son is afraid of heights and falling over the edge was defintely a major concern of his. The trail is narrow and kind of steep in places but I was surprised to see many older people on it(my husband is 63 and he thought it was a breeze). My son didn't have any problem, he just didn't like being near the edge. There are lots of places you can stop to rest. My older son and I took a detour and climbed up another trail. I loved it and hope to go back to the bottom some day. There is a rest stop about 1 1/2 miles down with water and restrooms. We took snacks and water. The best thing to do would be to go early in the morning if you can work it out. We started down at 10:30, hiked for an hour and it took only 50 minutes to get back; however, we had been warned by many that it would take twice as long. You definitely can feel the heat has you progress downwards.

SUSANP: Although we do try to walk 2-3 miles (and include hills), we are not hikers. The bright angel trail has some logs that have been built into the trail that do necessitate some stepping up and down. There are places to rest. I think I read somewhere that the Kaibab Trail is a good walking trail and not as steep as the Bright Angel. You would have no problem at all with the rim trail. Take the shuttle, get off and walk as you want to other lookouts and then get back on and ride some more. We did that after the Bright Angel and it was really easy.

We did not hike the trails at Wupatki--I got voted down!! We only walked the .3 mile trail at Sunset Crater (voted down again)but it was really pretty and super easy. I'm going to try to post my pictures at Yahoo, but I'll be glad to email them to you if you send me your email address. Mine is [email protected]

Hope all of you have as fabulous a trip as we did.

Lynda

O.K., the pictures are at Yahoo.com, but being new to the digital camera experience, I don't know how you all are going to see them without me emailing the link to you. If there is another way, please let me know.

Lynda - I just emailed you directly, but wanted to reiterate here how much trip reports like yours are appreciated. Also the time you've taken to answer questions. Between you and utahtea, you've been such a help in my trip planning. Thanks again!

Lynda, Thanks for that information. We'll probably just walk the rim at the Grand Canyon. It's good to know you enjoyed Sunset Crater without hiking, I think I'll save my energy that day for one of the .5-mile hikes at Wupatki.

o what a great trip report...I am too excited for this next month!! Thanks for the details...only unknown is whether to risk the Yavapai lodge with no AC in late July...hubby would never forgive me if it is unbearable...thank you lyntom