With only a short amount of time to explore the Southwest, I was forced to limit my to-do list in Arizona & Utah. It is mind boggling how many awesome attractions are in this part of the U.S. Although there was a ton I wasn’t fortunate enough to see during my 5 day trip, everything I was able to see was absolutely breathtaking & I didn’t regret the planning of our itinerary for one second.
Day 1
We flew into Phoenix Airport (PHX) from Philadelphia. Then we spent the day getting the rental car prepared, settling in, and exploring a bit of the city before embarking north for our road trip the next morning.
Alternative Options: You can also fly into Las Vegas airport to be closer to the National Parks/Utah boarder. I wanted to check out Phoenix and Sedona, therefore we chose the PHX airport.
Day 2
Drove 2 hours from Phoenix to Sedona, Arizona for our excursion with Pink Jeep Tours. We did their Scenic Rim tour & loved it. When they call it “off roading” they’re not lying.. the ride was bumpy as hell, but so much fun. After the tour we headed across the street to the Cowboy Club for some drinks and to try some local cuisine. I highly recommend the sampler of cactus fries, bison skewers, and rattle snake sausage.. *chef’s kiss*
There is plenty more to explore in Sedona. Whether you are into hiking or just want to roam around the Tlaquepaque arts village, there is something for everyone in this cute little town.
If you plan to stay in Sedona longer than us, check out my friend Brit’s blog on the Best things to do in Sedona.
From Sedona, we drove 4 hours north towards Fredonia, AZ to check into our airbnb. For the next two nights we stayed at the Coral Pink Ranch. The ranch was a great stay, for a great price, hosted by great people. Head to Don & Cindy’s airbnb listing to see for yourself!
Day 3
We packed up bright and early for the one hour drive (+ 1 hour mountain time change) to Zion National Park. We then headed to Zion Outfitters to pick up our rental gear, pulled up our pre-booked ticket on Recreation.gov & hopped onto the shuttle to make our way to hike The Narrows.
The Narrows hike exceeding all of my expectations. Every twist & turn leads you to even more breathtaking views than the last. They’re the type of views that give you that physical feeling of just “wow.” It’s as if your entire being can feel how unreal the landscape you’re looking at is.
Day 4
We packed up our things, said goodbye to the ranch, & started the 1.5 hour drive (+ 1 hour time change) to Bryce Canyon National Park. The drive itself, from the ranch to Bryce Canyon, is absolutely beautiful.
At Bryce we did the Navajo Loop + Queen’s Garden trails. I was definitely winded half way through, the hike proved to be much more challenging, especially once the heat hit… but the views were out of this world & completely worth it.
After Bryce Canyon we made our way to BaseCamp37° to start a night of treating ourselves to Glamping!
The Base Camp was an absolute dream. We spent our entire next 24 hours relaxing & unwinding at this amazing glamp site. From check in to check out we soaked in the cowboy tub, ate smores by the campfire, and enjoyed drinks on our tent patio underneath the stars like I’ve never seen before.
I booked our stay through Glamping Hub or you can head right to BaseCamp’s website to book yours!
Day 5
After soaking up every last second of our time at the Base Camp, we started our 6 hour drive back to Phoenix to catch our flight home the following morning. We stopped at a few scenic lookouts & explored the Marble Canyon area.
We were torn on whether or not we had enough time to stop at The Grand Canyon along the drive.
If you have more time I highly suggest adding this stop into the trip
Once we were back in Phoenix we enjoyed an unreal dinner at Postino Wine Cafe, a Phoenix born chain of restaurants with amazing wine & unique but delicious bruschettas.
Devin, what an awesome post! I am so glad you had such a great time on your trip! You took some fantastic photos. I still haven’t visited Zion & Bryce Canyon. I need to make it up there! The BaseCamp looks like a ton of fun. I would love to stay there. P.S. Thank you for linking my blog! 🙂