I’ve traveled the majority of my life and yet, I’ve never hated anything more than feeling like a tourist. Obviously, it’s inevitable — you can’t visit Washington DC without seeing the Mall or London without riding on the Eye or Cleveland without visiting the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. However, I think there’s something to be said for trying the local (or at least more unknown) places.
So, that’s my mission, to bring the local flavor of a city to your visit (which arguably should still include all the museums and sight-seeing you want). This week, I’m focusing on Sedona, Arizona.
1. First fun fact: Sedona was named after the wife of the first postmaster, Sedona Arabella Miller Schnebly! Her name was made-up by her mother, who thought it sounded “pretty.”
2. Sedona is known for being a place of spiritual healing and restorative powers because there are four main “energy vortexes” around town. If you’re feeling in need of some extra help from the universe, you can get a map and tour them all! You can also buy crystals or attend a psychic reading to re-center your energy.
3. Fast food lover or not, make sure to at least drive past the first McDonald’s “turquoise arches” due to the building codes in Sedona!
4. The locals are very secretive about their favorite hiking paths and swimming holes, mostly because Sedona is a very touristy town. However, if a local swimming hole is what you need to beat the dry Arizona heat, try Grasshopper Point, where the pools are deep and cliff-jumping is required.
5. Casual and hiking attire is acceptable pretty much everywhere, and if it isn’t, it will be made abundantly clear.
6. If you’re willing to make the drive, about an hour from Sedona, is Bedrock City, a Flintstone theme park. Featuring a camp-site, restaurant and several shops, make sure to slide down the dinosaur!
7. Try Navajo fry bread, a traditional cuisine for generations of Native Americans. It can be eaten plain, but most people top it with honey or hot beef, depending on whether they’re in a sweet or savory mood!
8. Although it is “tourist-y,” make sure to visit all the local beauty that Sedona has to offer — the multitude of canyons and valleys, the Red Rocks, Slide Rock State Park and the Sacred Mountains!
9. July 25th is National Cowboy Day and Sedona uses it as an excuse to party hard, with day-long demonstrations of gunfights, bull-roping and historical reenactments.
10. Take a Pink Jeep Tour, a guided off-roading adventure through the canyons and mountains of Sedona. If you like that, try Arizona ATV Adventures, where you drive the off-roading vehicles yourself!
11. Originally developed as an “alternative religious retreat,” The House of Apache Fire is a precariously perched house in the Red Rocks, which can be visited for its stunning views and odd local history. (i.e., the apparent curse of its various owners).
12. Another touristy but necessary component of visiting Sedona is to take a helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon. It offers spectacular views of not only Sedona’s amazing topography but of the entire Grand Canyon! Try to go at either dawn or dusk for the ideal photo-snapping session, but above all, avoid a midday flight!
13. Indian Gardens Cafe & Market, established in 1947 and located in Oak Creek Canyon, is the ideal breakfast and lunch spot — it’s casual, but delicious! It prides itself on being a resting place for weary travelers.
14. Sedona is located in the beautiful Verde Valley and as such, Verde River is a major attraction — do a float tour, kayak or whitewater raft. If you decide on a float trip and are over 21, think about trying “the booze cruise” where mimosas are included!
15. The V Bar V Heritage site is located in Red Rock Country and has the largest archaeological sites in the area — check out all the petroglyphs (a Native American version of hieroglyphics)! You can also visit pueblos or Montezuma’s Castle, an amazing cliff-dwelling site, or Montezuma’s Well, which was a sacred spot as well as a place of irrigation and farming for Native Americans.
If you love your hometown or have a city you’re particularly familiar with, and want to show tourists what the locals love, please contact me at hewittr@kenyon.edu and I’ll happily sit down with you to work out an article that showcases your love for your city.
Image credits: AOL.com, Thewandererschuckandkate