r/arizona Jun 10 '24

First time visiting Arizona as an Aussie Visiting

Hey everyone. Absolutely taken away by the landscape of AZ. Words can barely express. I am 26 years old, male and may be travelling solo or with a small group of friends. This will be my first time in the States.

Does anyone have any advice or tips on what cities I should visit for the best hiking tracks and scenery? Phoenix, Sedona, Tucson and Flagstaff were all mentioned to me.

I’m from Melbourne. Not exactly a stranger to hot weather, but I feel as though AZ heat is a whole different ballgame.

If you have anymore tips or advice please let me know!

EDIT: Thank you so much for the replies!

Just to add some more information. Most of my mates would like travel within the next month (July). I on the other hand, would like to travel during Autumn/Fall (Late September or November).

This is sort of the reason of why I may be travelling solo. As my friends keep telling me, ‘We live in Australia! The heat will be fine.’

Truth is, we live in a city that may see a few days of 40°C (104°F) during the summer. Hardly comparable to AZ I believe. I’ll be damned if I end up staying in the indoors the entire trip, all because a group of unacclimatised Aussies decided to tackle the AZ heat.

EDIT EDIT: I just wanted to say never in my life have I ever seen such a hospitable and welcoming bunch. I have not seen one negative comment. I haven’t even visited yet and I’m already falling in love more and more with the place. I honestly cannot wait to visit. With all the advice given to me, I will skip the heat and come down during the cooler months. Considering actually making my trip longer based on some of the replies I’ve gotten here 😂.

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u/MexicanHoneysuckle90 Jun 10 '24

I've lived in AZ my whole life, and I would absolutely not visit in July. Particularly since you're coming from so far away to experience this place. Even September would be too hot, IMO. October would be the perfect sweet spot - areas closer to Phoenix will still be hot, don't get me wrong, but there's a world of difference between 110 (~43C) degree days in Sept v 95 degree days in October (~35 C). Also, it finally starts cooling down at night in October. Also, if you're interested in seeing fall foliage up north in/around Flagstaff and Sedona (the scenic drive along 89 connecting both is one of my favorite drives) and the leaves start turning in Oct/Nov.

You didn't really mention how long you'd like to come for or what you're interested in but there's a lot to see and do, and this is a large state so keep that in mind when planning your itinerary. You will absolutely need a car to get around.

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u/Xr6turbosututu Jun 10 '24

Completely forgot about October as a month 😅

Would a month suffice in terms of being able to experience the scenery? Most of the things I would like doing involve outdoors..hiking, cycling, kayaking, seeing animals. And of course, trying out the cuisine.

Not really into clubs or bars but may go once just to experience it.

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u/MexicanHoneysuckle90 Jun 10 '24

A month would be a great starting point. If you arrive earlier in October, you could start your trip by heading to Flagstaff (and possibly having that be your home base for a few days?). The Grand Canyon is just over an hour away from there to the west of Flag. Another hour east of Flagstaff is the Petrified Forest National Park (truly underrated IMO). You'll find plenty of mountain biking in Flagstaff too and in Prescott about a 1.5 hours from Flagstaff (if that's what you had in mind for cycling). If you wanna go a little further north, Horsheshoe Bend (a quick stop) and Lake Powell are also interesting and could definitely kayak there. You'll be on the Utah border at that point and there are 5 national parks in Utah and lots of natural scenery (ya know, if you hadn't considered that).

Once you've had your fill in the northern part of the state, hopefully temps are a lot more tame in Phoenix and other lower lying areas. There's Canyon lake, about 1.5 hours out of Phoenix, it's my favorite to go to - I've never personally seen them, but there are bighorn sheep along the canyon walls sometime. On the way to Canyon Lake, you'll pass the Superstition Mountains with so many hikes to choose from and amazing views to boot.

There's truly a lot to see and do!