Arizona Round-Up by Gregory McNamee
Featured Hotel in Arizona
Amara Resort and Spa
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Embracing some of the most varied landscapes on the planet and some of the largest cities in the Mountain West, Arizona defies easy characterization. It covers more than 113,909 square miles of rugged desert and mountain terrain, it also resists the usual package-tour approach to travel; it can take years to cover all that ground. Even if you have only a few days to spend there you can still get out of Phoenix and cover a lot of ground by car. Here’s how:
Day 1: On arrival in Phoenix, book a room at the historic Arizona Biltmore in the shadow of Camelback Mountain, where the mansions of Arizona's old-time elite stand. Take a meal at the Restaurant Mexico in nearby Tempe, then stroll through Papago Park, a maze of red boulders and palm groves. From Hole-in-the-Rock, a wind- and water-carved natural window, you can see some of the ancient Hohokam Indian canals that prompted a 19th-century English immigrant, in a whisky-inspired reverie, to declare that one day a new city would rise from the ashes of a long-dead one, like the desert bird of myth. His prophecy came true: Phoenix is now the eighth-largest city in the United States. In the evening, take in a baseball game or wander through Scottsdale, where modern kitsch and the Wild West collide, and where some of the best restaurants in Arizona can be found.
Day 2: Check out first thing in the morning, leave the asphalt behind and drive three hours north to the Grand Canyon, still one of the world's great wonders. Find a place to park--not always easy, given that more than 5 million visitors try the same thing each year--and take the mile-long walk from the visitor center to the El Tovar Hotel, the park's best lodging. Nearby is the entrance to the Bright Angel Trail; follow it for a mile or two down into the Canyon to take in a view of the Colorado River far below. Be sure to take water and snacks. And remember - the hard part is walking back up.
Day 3: Rise early - again - and catch the sun coming up over the Grand Canyon atone of the national park's many overlooks. Then drive two hours south along Oak Creek to Sedona, the world capital of the crystal-and-good-vibes New Age movement. Find lunch at Tlaquepaque, a complex of Mexican-style shops and restaurants. Then drive across the Verde River up the winding mountain road to the hippie hamlet of Jerome, where the Sixties never ended, and on to Prescott, a tidy Victorian town that seems out of place in the wilds of Arizona - it's as if a New England village got drunk one night and wound up out West the next morning. Stay at the St Michaels Hotel, where ghosts walk the halls, and have a steak dinner at the Cadillac Grill if you like meat.
Day 4: In the morning, make your way to Arcosanti, outside the hamlet of Cordes Junction, where the Italian architect Paolo Soleri has been laboring for three decades to build a weird anthill-like city of the future. Two hours south lies Arcosanti's ancient cousin, Casa Grande, the ruins of a four-story "big house" built by the Hohokam Indians around 1350. Another hour's drive south will take you to the outskirts of Arizona's junior metropolis, Tucson. With a bohemian feel that makes it a favorite of visiting and resident writers and musicians, Tucson boasts some of the best Mexican restaurants in the country. Find one--the El Minuto Café near downtown and Mi Nidito on South Fourth Avenue are local favorites--and fill your belly with fiery delicacies. If you habitually dress in black and enjoy electronic music, spend the night at the hip Hotel Congress downtown; if you're looking for something more luxurious, book into the splendid, and surprisingly inexpensive, Arizona Inn near the University of Arizona campus.
Day 5: If you're taking a late afternoon flight out of Phoenix, you'll have time to visit the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum in the cactus forest west of Tucson, or, if modern art is more to your taste, the internationally renowned Center for Creative Photography. The drive along the decidedly unpicturesque interstate highway north to Phoenix will take about two hours. Driving the back road, Arizona Highway 87, adds an hour to the trip but takes you through much more interesting terrain. Head to the airport bar and have a drink. You deserve one.