Let’s Travel to Arizona 

Hey! Arizona is expensive. Between the flights, hotel, and food, you are easily looking at spending at least $1,000. 

But there’s a way to see the best of Arizona in just 3 days – and save a lot of money. 

So pack your bags; we are headed to the Grand Canyon State. 

Whenever I have a short vacation planned I like to prep my vacation by breaking it down into days and deciding what to do on what day. 

My hubby and I went to Arizona for three days during Memorial Day weekend and had a blast. 

Here’s what we did and how we did it!

Day 1: Grand Canyon

How to plan for the Grand Canyon

1. Plan what time of the year you want to visit the Grand Canyon. Summer is HAWT in Arizona so if you decide to go in the Summer, visit the park in the morning. If you want to hike The Canyon go between 5am – 10am & 2pm – 5pm. Also, don’t count Winter in Arizona off. Less people and you get to see a completely different side of the park. Whenever you go make sure you are prepare and you wear the appropriate clothes.
2. Get your tickets to enter the Grand Canyon and the National Park Entrance Fees. Typically is $30 per vehicle for 7 days. You can find out more about pricing here.
3. Pick which side of the park you want to visit. The North Rim is open between May & Oct. The South Rim is open all year. If you are traveling during COVID – check the website. Due to the pandemic certain parts of the park is closed due to social distancing. 
4. Choose how you want to see The Grand Canyon. There are 4 options: hike, bike, bus or water rafting. There are many trails to hike that are appropriately marked throughout your hike. 

So you like hiking?

Wanna bike?

• You can choose to bike the Grand Canyon – which is the best way to view the Canyon – you can reserve your bike with Bright Angel Bicycle.
• This is located in the park. They provide a helmet, bike, and lunch (if you pay for the lunch option). You can choose to rent the bike for an hour, half a day, or an entire day.

Does taking a bus sounds more so your speed?

• Lucky for you, The Grand Canyon has its own transit system that takes you to each viewpoint of The Grand Canyon.
• It’s also a guided tour. The bus drivers are super knowledgeable of the area and they are quite funny.
• This is a great way to beat the heat if you’re traveling to the Grand Canyon in the summer.

How about Water Rafting?

• While we were walking the canyon we met a couple who water raft the Colorado River in the Canyon and had a blast! Hatch River Expeditions is a great company to look into.

What did we do?

Hubby and I chose to rent a bike – but we couldn’t actually get the bike because my Husband has a big head and Bright Angel didn’t have his helmet size lol.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t do the bike ride, but we were able to get our money back. The staff was super nice and they let us keep our lunch. We wound up walking the canyon and taking the bus to see all of the viewpoints. 

We had just as much fun.

Day 2: Sedona Arizona Day Trip

Sedona is a beautiful little town that's known for its Red Rock formations. This town is about 1hr 30 mins south from The Grand Canyon. 

1. Go ATV Touring in the Sedona Mountains with Arizona ATV Adventures.

• We did a 3 hour guided tour through the West Sedona Canyon and it was so EXHILARATING. Definitely worth the money. Our tour was rough, fast, and beautiful. Our tour guide was so knowledgeable of the area and was attentive. 
• They provide the ATVs, snacks, safety training guide and safety gear (helmet, gloves and goggles)

After the ATV Tour – if you have energy consider hiking The Devil’s Bridge. 

• The Devil’s Bridge is 10 mins away from Arizona ATV Adventures and is the most Instagrammable location. Very popular. 

HOWEVER, the signs about the length of the “trail” are inaccurate. Loved the place – but I legit almost died trying to get to the bridge. 

• There is a big difference between a 3 mile round trip trail and 6 mile hike. Which is what the sign said prior to the hike. So be prepared.
• There’s a point where you are legit rock climbing up a mountain.
• You may get lost due to not enough markings throughout the hike.
• There’s a part in the hike where you are about 20 mins away from the actual bridge where the elevation increases tremendously. 

Not to scare you off, but just be prepared.

• Make sure you have 3 gallons of water, hiking boots and you walk with a group of people because again – its easy to get lost. We did, with a group of people.
• Also- bring a flashlight because it gets dark quickly out in the open.

Overall – it took us 21/2 hours to walk Devil’s Bridge and we took the easy route. We made friends, got lost, and took photos that lasted a lifetime. 

Day 3: Phoenix: 

Food Day!! 

• Typically whenever my Hubby and I plan a vacation we dedicate a day to food.
• We went to Scottsdale, Tempe, and Phoenix to try the best of Central Arizona.

If you want more details check out this link – that takes you to Presh Eats.

• We stayed in The Canopy Hotel in Tempe which is next to the campus of Arizona State University. Downtown Tempe is everything. It’s a hip, young, thriving town. 

• There’s Tempe Town Lake where you can go paddleboarding, kayaking, and paddleboat. 

At the end of the day – Arizona itself is beautiful. And we didn’t even talk about South Arizona. 

If you love the outdoors and you are searching for a sense of adventure – Arizona is the place for you.