Planning for 3 week trip to south west

Im planning a 3 week tour of the south west in August. I%26#39;d be very grateful for advice/suggestions on the following itinery. We are 2 adults and 1 child.

Day 1 Arrive Las Vegas, drive to Zion area

Day 2 Tour Zion NP then to Page

Day 3 Page area attractions then to GCNP in time for sunset

Day 4 GCNP then to Sedona by nightfall

Day 5 Sedona

Day 6 Sedona and then to Phoenix

Day 7 Phoenix and then to Tuscan area

Day 8 Tuscon sights then to Tombstone

Day 9 Tombstone and Bisbee

Day 10 Maybe visit Mexico and then to Silver city NM

Day 11 Silver City then on to Alberquque

Day 12 see city then to Santa Fe

Day 13 Santa Fe

Day 14 Santa Fe to Durango CO

Day 15 Rail trip to Silverton then on to Monument Valley

Day 16 Monument Valley tour then onto Moab

Day 17 Moab area for Arches NP etc

Day 18 Moab to Bryce Canyon NP

Day 19 See Bryce Canyon NP then to Las Vegas

Days 20 and 21 LV

Planning for 3 week trip to south west

You have a decent plan and lots of driving to do. During the summer I would consider spending more time away from the hot desert areas of southern AZ! Grand Canyon, Flagstaff, Durango. Also do not go into Mexican border towns, there is a drug war going on and it is very dangerous.

I also would recommend visiting Mesa Verde National Park after Durango and before going to Monument Valley.

Planning for 3 week trip to south west

I agree with CA that your trip is very ambitious. I%26#39;d try to spend more time at each destination, especially in Utah and northern AZ on the front end of the trip. I%26#39;d avoid Mexico and sacrifice southern AZ at that time of year due to the extreme heat in the lower desert. Plus, it will be easier to move on to your destinations in northern NM and Colorado. But it%26#39;s still a lot of driving. I%26#39;d even consider skipping New Mexico to focus on western CO and Moab etc. You%26#39;ll be covering an area that is larger than all of western Europe.

Forget Mexico. None of the border towns you could visit are safe right now.

Spend more time at GCNP. Unless you have plans to see something in Phoenix and Tucson (not Tuscan), there%26#39;s little point in spending one night each.

Tucson has the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, which is a zoo of desert wildlife and a botanical garden. During the heat of summer, it is necessary to get there very early as the animals will not be active during the heat of the day. It opens at 7 AM. You could drive from Sedona to Tucson, spend the night, go as early as possible to Desert Museum, and then continue on.

Backing up, however, I would agree with RedRox on dropping Southern Arizona and Southern New Mexico and spend more time in the northern areas of the states. You will become quite tired of the heat very quickly. It%26#39;s much hotter than you experience in London. Your trip is a ';drive by'; vacation as you have it. Relax and enjoy what you will be seeing.

Many thanks for those helpful suggestions. I hadn%26#39;t reckoned on the heat being so bad in southern Az. Is it completely out of the question (it%26#39;s just we may not get back to this part of the world)and is Phoenix really not worth a day?

If you were in Bath (Sedona), would you think it was worthwhile to drive to London (Phoenix) for a day? London is much more interesting IMO but I still wouldn%26#39;t bother for a day. And the afternoon temperature in PHX in August will be 115.

The beauty of the southwest will be found at the destinations, not in the drives to get there. Plan to spend more time at the places you pick to see. On a trip like yours, less is more. Time is the best thing you can spend in the parks and places like Sedona.

Wow, I%26#39;m exhausted just reading your itinerary! You are trying to cover an area in 3 weeks, that we have divided into at least five 2-3 week trips. And we go to AZ in Oct/Nov when it%26#39;s not so darned hot.

I know you want to see as much as possible while you are in the area, but the desert (Phoenix/Southern AZ) is just unbelievably hot in August. I would suggest that you cut back on the driving somewhat and concentrate on Northern AZ and the mountains of NM.

Here%26#39;s an example:

Drive from Las Vegas to Sedona

Sedona to Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon to Page (be sure to visit Antelope Canyon)

Page to Monument Valley

Monument Valley to Albuquerque

Albuquerque to Santa Fe

Santa Fe to Durango

Durango to Mesa Verde

Mesa Verde to Moab (Arches and Canyonlands NP)

Moab to Bryce and Zion Natl Parks

Zion to Las Vegas

Yes, you will miss some interesting places by eliminating the southern portion of your itinerary, but IMO you might enjoy the trip a great deal more if you can spend a little more time in each of these areas. These places are all quite doable in August too. While it will be plenty warm, it won%26#39;t be just unbearably HOT.

I agree, it is just too hot to do much in southern Arizona in the summer. Phoenix is great (I live here!) but it really is just a big city. There%26#39;s great hiking, but you have to be up and out the door by 6 am. Unless you like fancy shopping... then this is the place for you. From your itinerary, I%26#39;d guess you are more of the outdoorsy types!

There are some great spots in northern Arizona (aside from the Grand Canyon, of course!). Be sure to hike Oak Creek Canyon while in Sedona. It%26#39;s beautiful, and nice and cool (relatively speaking). Flagstaff is also lovely.

The drive from Sedona to Tucson is not the greatest, but you can get to Bisbee in one day%26#39;s drive. Bisbee is a great eccentric art town. We stayed at the Sleepy Dog Guest House. It%26#39;s high up on a hill with a gorgeous view of the town. Portal is also a good stop. There%26#39;s not much of a town, but it%26#39;s apparently a great bird watching area, and has a really lovely state park that might be worth the drive.

Unfortunately, I would also recommend staying away from the border, which is a shame because there is a great Mexican restaurant in Douglas.

And don%26#39;t miss Canyonlands National Park while in Moab - it%26#39;s amazingly gorgeous. I love that town, and there is so much to see and do right in that little corner of Utah.

Have a great trip, it sounds like a lot of fun!

Instead of Southern AZ/NM why not go west to California and visit Sequoia national park and Yosemite national park? Temperature wise it%26#39;ll be cooler and the scenery is unbelievable.....

Can%26#39;t thank you guys enough for all the input. I will certainly rethink the southern portion of our trip.

Hi Bob,

We%26#39;re (2 adults and 15 year old boy) also going to SW USA later in the year (July) for 3 weeks and I have been planning the trip for a while with the help of TA!

You might (or might not!) find our itinery of interest (although we are flying in/out of Phoenix rather than LV)

Arrive Phoenix. First night near airport.

Phoenix - Sedona (3 nights/2 full days Sedona)

Sedona - GCSR (2 nights/days at GCSR)

GCSR - PAGE (2 nights in Page)

Page - Monument Valley (1 night)

MV - Moab (3 nights in Moab)

Moab - Torrey (1 night Torrey)

Torrey - Bryce Canyon via scenic route 12 )2 nights Bryce)

Bryce - Zion (2 nights Zion)

Zion - LV (3 nights LV)

LV - Phoenix/Scottsdal for final 2 nights (rest!!)

Hope this helps.

recipes cream