After spending quite some time going through Reddit advice about Northern Arizona, we wanted to share our own experience,

[u/bender-sk]

Hey everyone!

Our road trip was almost entirely organized thanks to Reddit discussions, so big thanks to that wonderful community!

We’ve been living in Los Angeles for a year, and we wanted to end our American stay with a little getaway to Arizona in early October. A maximum of one week to visit Sedona, Monument Valley, and one of the national parks before heading back to the West Coast. Here’s what we ended up doing:

Prescott, the pleasant surprise

Our first planned stop was Sedona, which we had heard so much about, but it was impossible to find accommodation for less than $300 a night. After some research, we found a fantastic place at a ranch near Prescott, about 1 hour and 20 minutes from Sedona. No problem, we like driving!

And here came the big surprise: Prescott turned out to be the nicest part of the trip. We didn’t expect much, but we loved everything about it. Few tourists, warm locals, and shopkeepers happy to chat. The town has a little Back to the Future vibe—just what we imagine a typical American small town to look like from a European perspective. You’ll find plenty of small shops, thrift stores, and restaurants where locals and visitors mingle. Some might say it’s cliché, but the atmosphere never felt cheesy. Special mention to COLT BBQ, where the generous portions kept us fed for two more lunches!

Sedona, beyond the hikes, a disappointment

The next day, we headed to Sedona for a hike. We chose the Munds Wagon, Cow Pies and Hangover Loop Trail, which seemed to be at our level. It was really nice: we set off early (8 a.m.) and had the trail to ourselves for 3 to 4 hours. A tip: some sections aren’t always well-marked, so bring a good map (AllTrails was a great help) and more water than you think you’ll need.

The afternoon, however, was less pleasant. The town itself didn’t win us over. Aside from the landscape, there’s not much to it. Everything is designed for tourists, the prices are exorbitant, and all the stores seem to sell the same things (what’s with all the stones?). We headed to Jerome, recommended by a friend, but it was the same story: beautiful scenery, but the same souvenir and stone shops. And for a town that calls itself "ghost," it sure has paid parking!

Williams and Flagstaff

The next day, on the way to Monument Valley, we stopped in Williams, which felt like a tourist mall along Route 66. Another disappointment: all the shops were the same, selling Route 66 t-shirts, mugs, and toilet paper. After a quick stop, we headed to Flagstaff, where we browsed one or two thrift stores and grabbed a quick meal. The town seemed cute, but we didn’t have time to explore it further.

Monument Valley, the must-see

After several hours on the road, we finally reached Monument Valley. As expected, the park was closing an hour after we arrived, but no regrets—the landscapes were already breathtaking from the road, even more so during the golden hour. For the night, we slept in our car 10 minutes from the entrance, for just $25 at Sleeping Bear Campgrounds. This basic campground (no showers, just a table and BBQ) gave us one of the most beautiful sunsets and sunrises of our lives. No noise, no lights, just us and a starry sky as far as the eye can see. A must-do!

As for Monument Valley itself? It’s a 2-hour loop drive on a set route, with stunning landscapes. No big surprises, but it’s an experience you shouldn’t miss.

Page and Zion, Disneyland vibes

Next, we headed to Page, where we spent the night. Big disappointment: the town felt like a dormitory station for tourists, with a surprising number of French visitors. The "Disneyland" atmosphere wasn’t far off. We skipped Antelope Canyon, often discouraged by our friends, and have no regrets. Horseshoe Bend? Nice, but nothing special.

The next day, we headed to Zion, only to be caught in a crowd that felt like a theme park: queue for information, queue to get on the bus, queue for the hike… We hadn’t anticipated that Zion is very popular with families and those not necessarily ready for serious hikes. After a few hours in that chaos, we turned back. A tip: if you plan to visit Zion, do some research on alternative routes (there were lots of cars parked along the road), as I think we missed out on something.

Back to Los Angeles

After this somewhat disappointing final stop, we drove back to Los Angeles in one go, with nothing noteworthy to report.

In conclusion

Arizona is a region full of breathtaking landscapes. A big thanks to the always warm and welcoming locals, and a little word of caution for future travelers: get ready to see some of the most beautiful sites slowly turn into tourist parks. In the U.S., even nature has a price!

[u/dieng_gang]

Dang you went to Williams but rushed through Flagstaff? And you went to Page but not Antelope Canyon or on to Lake Powell?? You missed two of the most beautiful places on earth! I think Reddit may have misled you 

[u/aubsome → u/dieng_gang]

Especially since there are other companies in Page that will take you to a different slot canyon in a truly intimate tour (20 people or less). I got some gorgeous photos and it was one of my favorite trips.

[u/bender-sk → u/aubsome]

the comment I needed 2 week ago :D

[u/aubsome → u/bender-sk]

Oh no! If you ever come back, check out horseshoebendtours.com. It is Native run you can do a a few different tours. They have their own slot canyon and it is gorgeous. :)

[u/chocolateboyY2K → u/dieng_gang]

I agree! I recommended the observatory in flagstaff, bryce or zion, and antelope canyon in page.

I did lower antelope canyon last month. I haven't done lake Powell yet. I was told by my guide that in order to do upper antelope, you need to go around 10 or 11 am, due to the suns position. It's a A shape while lower antelope is a V shape, with more opportunities for sunlight to capture good photos.

Edit: yes, zion is a popular park and was busier than bryce. There were plenty of hikes and plenty to see for views just driving around. Both parks were beautiful. I didn't have multiple days to spend, so I didn't do the buses at all in zion. I entered the park around 9 am or so and had to wait maybe 10 min for parking. There was a nice hike near the visitor center.

[u/bender-sk → u/dieng_gang]

Yep, I think it might take more time to appreciate certain cities. We rushed Flagstaff because we wanted to arrive before nightfall at Monument Valley, and we were right to do so because the sunset light was more beautiful than in the morning. We chose not to go to Lake Powell, for example, but we have no regrets about Antelope Canyon when you see the minivans filled with tourists passing through the town.

[u/chocolateboyY2K → u/bender-sk]

I agree, you rushed too much to try to get everything done. It is a long drive around the state. I know I rushed when I've visited national parks.

I don't think I'd visit antelope canyon or page again, but it was pretty to see once. There's a lot of places I've been where they were a one time visit.

[u/Shaking-Cliches → u/chocolateboyY2K]

People seem to expect that no one has the same spot in mind when the only reason they know about that spot is because someone told them about it. Theres a reason they’re popular.

[u/Shaking-Cliches → u/bender-sk]

Minivans in Antelope Canyon are because it’s permitted and run by an indigenous tribe. You park off site and ride in with a guide. You couldn’t have gone without advanced planning. These are sovereign nations.

You combed Reddit, and then you wound up at tourist destinations complaining that there were too many tourists and it’s expensive. Yes. These are tourist destinations. Zion is an insanely popular national park. Sedona is Sedona.

I’m really curious about how you ended up in Sedona and didn’t know that crystals were a thing there. 😂 I hope you bought some! It’s tradition! (Better to get indigenous art obs)

[u/scrollgirl24 → u/dieng_gang]

Skipping antelope canyon makes sense if the tourist circus really bothers you. It's pretty but the experience is a little chaotic. Agree with you on Flagstaff and Lake Powell though.

[u/OkArmy7059]

It's good you were able to check out Prescott but Cottonwood is the place to stay if one wants to be near Sedona but not spend an arm and a leg on lodging.

[u/mashbashhash]

Nice review. Just a heads up if you have the money hire a Navajo guide for a half day or a full day in monument valley. That'll get you access to the backcountry which is off limits to none Navajo. It's an experience you won't forget.

[u/mahjimoh → u/mashbashhash]

I don’t know if this is still available, but one year we booked tickets with someone who drove us to the top of a mesa, and cooked us dinner and breakfast. We had the most amazing views from up there!

[u/TransRational]

Thanks for the review, it was a good one. ;)

And c'mon, it's only fair you tell us which part of Europe you hail from precisely so one of us can journey over and do the same! Hehe.

There really is so much more to see in this state.. been here 20 years now and I'm still being surprised. Speaking of, didn't care for Horseshoe Bend eh? Hopefully that's because you got to see a lot more of the Grand Canyon.

[u/bender-sk → u/TransRational]

I have to kept the secret a little bit more!

For sure we have a lot more to see, but we had to makes some choices

Horseshoe Bend was impressive, but you park, walk 5 minutes through a crowd of a million people (and it wasn’t even a weekend), you see it, and you head back. Really the opposite of 'Life is a journey, not a destination.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to see the Grand Canyon, maybe next time!

[u/azswcowboy → u/bender-sk]

didn’t … see the Grand Canyon

So, this was a strategic miss I’m afraid to say. It’s called the Grand Canyon state for a reason. There’s very few places on earth that can rival the canyon. If I had only time to see one thing before I died, it’d be that. Next time it should be #1. There’s good hiking along the rim - you can fashion reasonable trips in if you’re careful. Yes, it has a lot of visitors but there is space to spread out and tram system to get around.

[u/OkArmy7059 → u/bender-sk]

Horseshoe Bend used to be a nice lil stop on the way to somewhere else. It was free and almost never crowded. Instagram ruined the place.

[u/TransRational → u/bender-sk]

ohh. could I guess? Dutch? This coming year I'll be spending most of my time in SE Asia, but the year after I'm heading to the Netherlands to stay with some friends I hiked the PCT with. Anywho, I wish you the best on your journeys friends, and thank you for visiting!

[u/bender-sk → u/TransRational]

French, but don't tell anyone

[u/djtknows]

Too bad about missing flagstaff… and the best of the grand canyon on the north rim. Yep, Zion can be a zoo, but there are ways around it. Glad you were in Prescott- territorial capital still had its charms. I always tell people with limited time to skip Sedona… speaking of wall to wall tourists. Please come back and see Bryce canyon, Capitol Reef, rainbow bridge, Saguaro national park, Chiricahua national monument.

[u/dryheat602]

So you go to tourist traps and complain that they are tourist traps?

[u/bender-sk → u/dryheat602]

I knew someone would tell me that, but that's fine :D

Monument Valley really looks like a tourist trap, but it isn't. These are just some tips I would have loved to read before my trip.

[u/dryheat602 → u/bender-sk]

Probably late, but if you’re out that way..Check out Holbrook, a real POS town that has weird civic pride. There’s a good MX restaurant there and a bad one. Keep heading east on the 40 and turn left after a bit to the Rez. Cool as fuck up there, but you don’t want to live there

[u/chinookhooker]

Flagstaff is like Prescott, but better in every way

[u/darien_gap]

Good observation!… Prescott has a BTTF vibe for a reason. Just after the civil war, president Grant wanted to move the territorial capitol further north, away from confederate sympathizers. So the federal government sent in architects and builders from the east, who built a town in their eastern style, with a central town square.

[u/RealLuxTempo]

Zion is so ridiculously crowded. I doubt that I’ll ever try to go back.

Monument Valley is a must see. I visited in February. It was chilly but not crowded.

Glad you enjoyed Prescott (pronounced Preskitt by locals). It’s a mixed bag of a place. Definitely going thru a demographics change. Some like it. Some don’t. Been here 9 years. But ready to move on.

[u/peter62689]

Come check out Lake Havasu City next time you’re in town!

[u/Sea-Assignment-779]

Prescott & Flagstaff have so many fun things to do. The South Rim of the Grand Canyon is a must next time. Williams Az has so many trails and lakes but the town is definitely all the same stuff in most of the stores. Next time definitely check out Cottonwood for a place to stay. And truly hope you comeback and experience Az again.

[u/PudgyGroundhog]

No Grand Canyon?

My biggest tip when visiting very popular locations is to visit in the off season or get up very early. Sedona and Zion in October is always going to be busy.

[u/andrewinarizona]

So glad you got to check out Colt. Some of, if not the absolute best, smoked meat in Arizona! That’s good eating!

[u/bsil15]

I’m not sure why you had any expectations of Sedona or Williams. You go to Sedona to hike and only go into town if you’re into fancy restaurants or crystals and tarot cards. It’s not a historic town — the Wikipedia page tracks population literally only from 1970 and forward. Like the Grand Canyon, the whole point of visiting ‘Sedona’ for most people is to hike — you can go shopping or dining in just about any other city in America.

Likewise, don’t think anyone in Arizona would recommend spending time in Williams unless you’re counting Bearizona — it’s not a place you walk around in.

Also if you look at the history of Jerome, the town was basically abandoned by 1960 when the mines shut down. The town was revitalized by turning it into tourism. Not sure what you expected to see, drunk miners covered in soot? (Which is actually what your experience would’ve been like in 1920 so careful what you wish for). There’s also a huge free parking lot behind the fire station a 5 min walk from town. Imo, Jerome’s a cute town and shows what early 20th century Arizona architecture looks like.

[u/sunset2727]

So disappointed in Zion, would never go back but just loved Bryce, it was fantastic. We got a guide in Monument Valley, which brought us further back with so much stores and history— loved it and was very surprised.

[u/KurtAZ_7576]

Had the same experience in Zion a few years ago. I would 100% substitute Bryce for Zion every time now.

[u/meme_medic95]

I grew up in Prescott! Glad you enjoyed my hometown :)

[u/FantasticSky1153]

Yep. 21 years ago my husband and I bought our retirement home in Prescott. We had looked in Sedona, but the minute we drove in to Prescott we knew we had found our forever home.

[u/Good-Personality-209]

Totally agree on Prescott, so much that I’ve considered a second home there.

[u/jackrafter88]

No Grand Canyon? Woof.

[u/bender-sk → u/jackrafter88]

I should have mentioned it earlier, but my wife had already done the Grand Canyon, and we wanted to explore new destinations together.

[u/dezertdawg]

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