Ultimate Road Trip: One-Week in the American Southwest
Without a doubt, taking a road trip is one of the best ways to explore the American Southwest! But with so many national parks, stargazing, and hiking opportunities, it can be a bit overwhelming to plan a road trip to this part of the country. To really explore the American Southwest, you need several weeks - or months - to see it all.
Since I only had one week of vacation time, I had to diligently plan a packed itinerary to hit all of the major landmarks. My mom had never been to this part of the country so I had to bring her along too! I kept costs low by using my Chase Reserve credit card points to pay for all of our flights and hotels (if you want more tips on how to travel for free, you can check out my blog post on Beginner's Guide to Traveling for Free). Here is my one-week road trip itinerary, with a map highlighting each pitstop below!
Since I only had one week of vacation time, I had to diligently plan a packed itinerary to hit all of the major landmarks. My mom had never been to this part of the country so I had to bring her along too! I kept costs low by using my Chase Reserve credit card points to pay for all of our flights and hotels (if you want more tips on how to travel for free, you can check out my blog post on Beginner's Guide to Traveling for Free). Here is my one-week road trip itinerary, with a map highlighting each pitstop below!
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Day 1: Arrive in Phoenix and drive to Monument Valley
After flying into Phoenix, Arizona, we picked up a rental car at the airport and drove approximately five hours to Monument Valley, which is located on the Arizona-Utah border. Monument Valley is one of the most iconic landmarks of the American Southwest and a sacred place for the Navajo Nation. We checked into The View Hotel - the only hotel located inside Monument Valley - and settled in for the evening in our cabin. I highly recommend that anyone visiting Monument Valley book one of the premium cabins overlooking the valley. The room rate is not significantly higher than the average hotel room and the views from these secluded cabins are beyond spectacular! If you bring along a tent, you can also book one of the campsites, which has the same unobstructed views for a small fraction of the price. Alcohol is prohibited on Navajo land so don't be surprised when you find only non-alcoholic chardonnay and Becks sold at the on-site restaurant and nearby grocery store!
The view from the premium balcony
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The view from inside the cabin
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Sunrise view from our private balcony
Day 2: Monument Valley / Page, Arizona
In the morning, we watched the sunrise over Monument Valley from our cabin and then we set out to explore the valley. There is a 17-mile scenic drive, which starts at The View Hotel and loops around Monument Valley. We spent the earlier part of the afternoon hiking along the nearby Wildcat Trail, which starts at The View Hotel, and then we took a short horseback trail ride at the iconic John Ford's Point. As many of the trails and off-the-beaten paths are not open to the public without a Navajo guide, we decided to keep costs low and mainly hike nearby the hotel. There were plenty of great hiking trails around our cabin!
The iconic John Ford's Point
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The welcome sign is right before the turnoff to Monument Valley
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If you have a smaller car, you should avoid driving along the 17-mile scenic drive. The road conditions may damage your vehicle.
After some hiking and horseback riding, we checked out of the hotel and headed to the nearby Mile Marker 13 on Highway 163 - the infamous spot where Forrest Gump decided to stop running! From there, we drove two hours west to Page, Arizona. Hotel options in Page are limited, but we stayed at La Quinta, which was highly rated and ended up being perfect for our next pitstop.
Surprisingly, there are many cars on this road, so be careful when taking pictures on Mile Marker 13!
Day 3: Horseshoe Bend and Upper Antelope Canyon
Page is a located in north-central Arizona and its primarily known for Horseshoe Bend and Glen Canyon Dam as well as the Upper and Lower Antelope Canyons. We took the 10AM tour of Upper Antelope Canyon with Antelope Slot Canyon Tours. This is the canyon that is known for its radiating light beams. In contrast, Lower Antelope Canyon is more narrow and has fewer beams, but it's also worth visiting as it is less crowded. As you can't get into either canyon without a Navajo tour guide, I highly recommend that you try to book the 10AM tour. The light beams radiate across Upper Antelope Canyon during this time of day. But be warned, the canyon can get extremely crowded during peak periods. Taking unobstructed pictures of the canyon was a bit of a nightmare. Towards the end of the tour, we had a brief moment where the other tour groups exited and we had the canyon all to ourselves. We were able to take some stunning shots, but it was truly a matter of luck.
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After the tour, we headed to the Horseshoe Bend overlook. The overlook is about a 15-minute walk from the parking lot. Similar to Antelope Canyon, it was extremely crowded, but it offered incredible views of the canyon and the Colorado River. I would advise against bringing young children to the overlook. There are no guardrails and tourists have been known to accidentally fall from the 700-foot cliff. Warning signs from the U.S. National Park Service also indicate that the sandstone at the edge of the cliff is not very secure.
My mom is afraid of heights so she wasn't a fan of standing this close, but my GoPro was perfect for capturing the entire landscape!
Day 4: South Rim, Grand Canyon / Sedona, Arizona
From Page, we drove 2.5 hours south to the South Rim, one of the most popular viewpoints of the Grand Canyon. There are many different overlook points across the South Rim, but our favorites included Yavapai Point and Mather Point. We would have loved to stay longer and do some hiking, but after soaking in the views, we continued driving 1.5 hours south towards Sedona. We checked into the Lantern Light Inn, an adults-only bed and breakfast in the heart of Sedona. Along the way, we also stopped through Williams, Arizona, one of the historic towns along Route 66.
Yavapai Point
We also mailed some postcards!
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Mather Point
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Williams, AZ - The "Gateway to the Grand Canyon"
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Day 5: Sedona, Arizona
Sedona is a small desert town known for its red-rock buttes, steep canyon walls, and countless hiking trails! Its night skies are also exceptionally clear, making it one of the best destinations in the world for stargazing. If you only have time for one hike, you have to check out Devil's Bridge Trail. This relatively easy four-mile hike ends at Devil's Bridge, a natural sandstone arch. You can carefully walk across the bridge and take in the spectacular views of the valley below.
**Mom yelling at me to be careful on Devil's Bridge**
Sedona also has many cute cafes, relaxing spas, and boutique stores. After our hike, we explored the town and had lunch at Hideaway House, a quaint Italian restaurant that offered scenic canyon views. In the evening, we did a 9PM tour with Sedona Stargazing where we got to look through powerful telescopes and view Saturn, star clusters, and different constellations. The one hour and thirty minute tour was $70/person - it was a fun and unique experience!
Hideaway House was a great place to relax after a long hike
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Who doesn't love caprese salad?
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Day 6: Phoenix, Arizona
From Sedona, we drove two hours south to Phoenix, Arizona. Along the way, we stopped at Out of Africa, a wildlife park in the middle of the desert where we got to feed giraffes and tour the safari in a Unimog off-road vehicle. Once we arrived in Phoenix, we checked into Found Re, a boutique hotel in the downtown area. After lots of hiking and exploring, it was great to relax by the hotel pool and grab a cold drink.
Out of Africa wildlife park
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We also fed the zebras!
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Found Re Hotel: Our home for the night
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Images courtesy of Booking.com
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Day 7: Phoenix / Fly Home
Phoenix is the fifth largest city in the United States and there are tons of restaurants, cafes, and shops to explore across the city. As my mom recently had a new book published by Disney - a children's book known as Charlie & Frog - we spent part of the day at a bookstore in the nearby town of Tempe where she gave a presentation and did a book signing. We also checked out some of the murals found across the city. If we had more time, I would have loved to visit the Desert Botanical Garden - it's definitely on the list for my next visit!
Downtown Phoenix is filled with fun backdrops for your Instagram feed
Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden
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Images courtesy of Experience Scottsdale
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For a one-week road trip, we checked out a lot of the landmarks across the American Southwest. If we had an extra week, I would have added on a visit to Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, and Arches National Park in Southern Utah, but we had to work with what we got! It just gives us a reason to come back soon.
Map Legend: (A) Phoenix, (B) Monument Valley, (C) Page, (D) South Rim, (E) Sedona, (F) Phoenix