Arizona Trip 2018

WOW! Let's just say after day 1 of our trip in Arizona, I could have gone home and been content. But of course we kept on exploring!

From the beginning, this trip was amazing. It started off when we made it to the shuttle from the hotel in Chicago to the airport, our flight arriving a half hour early, a smooth process with retrieving our rental car, and getting on the road for our 4.5 hour drive north to Page, AZ! Everything could not have gone better, thank God!

Flagstaff, AZ

Our half way point to Page was Flagstaff. It's crazy how many different terrain/weather there is on the drive north. Phoenix was HOT (97 for a high that day) and of course, desert everywhere. While Flagstaff was kind of chilly (65 when we were there) with pine trees and snow on the mountains. We stopped here for about an hour to get lunch and walk around the really cute town. Totally forgot the name of the restaurant but probably because it wasn't very good lol. I would definitely recommend stopping here for some good vibes and shops! And I'm sure there are better restaurants!

Page, AZ

We loved this little town! It's a touristy town because of Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend, but it really didn't feel like it. We stayed at Wingate by Wyndham hotel and boy was it NICE! It was practically brand new, friendly staff, and good complementary breakfast. Also in a great location for the two activities we had planned for the day.

We ate at Big Johns Texas BBQ and boy was that some good food! It all tasted like homemade food from my family cookouts or something! It's a fun atmosphere, too. We didn't go inside, but the outdoor seating is all picnic tables pushed together so you are sitting with strangers, but it's totally not weird at all! There was also a live band on a stage!

FYI - between Flagstaff and Page is practically nothing! There's not many gas stations and you feel like you're in the middle of nowhere, yet it's still breathtaking all around you! Make sure to have enough gas, though.

Lower Antelope Canyon

This was way cooler than I thought it would be. Because it started getting so touristy, you can only view the canyon by a tour guide. Our tour guide was so intelligent and knew everything about the history to the types of rocks that are in the canyon. He even pointed out so many great photo ops in the canyon that looked like certain objects, people, animals, etc. We went with Dixie's Ellis Lower Antelope Canyon Tours. I highly recommend.

When we first arrived, we were like where the heck is it!? In the picture below, you can see a crack in the rocks. Yup, that's where we were! 120 feet down. This is where we came up out of. You start on the opposite side and work your way here.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures I got down there. Pictures obviously don't do it justice whatsoever. You will be blown away by seeing it up close and in person!!

Can you see the lion, sea horse, and wavy hair lady?! These are just a few of the hidden images down in the canyon.

Horseshoe Bend

THIS WILL LITERALLY TAKE YOUR BREATH AWAY. These are my all time favorite pictures I took on this trip and my favorite place we got to experience. So glad to check it off my bucket list! Horseshoe Bend is also in Page and is only a very short walk from the parks parking lot. There were SO many people there so be prepared for that. I don't have much to say about this besides SEE IT FOR YOURSELF. I didn't want to leave. We got there right before the sun started to set and it was kind of bad lighting for pictures. But if you're there when the sun is setting, I'm sure it is a gorgeous sunset! It's so massive!!

>>These two beautiful places should definitely be on everyones bucket lists. You will be AMAZED. Like I said before, we could have ended the trip after this first day and been happy. But of course we had an amazing time for the next 7 days, too.

Sedona, AZ

We had to drive just a little out of the way on our way to Scottsdale. Sedona is also amazing. The red rock is incredible and the town made up of shops and restaurants is fun! We came here last year, too, and knew we had to go back. The drive from Page to Sedona was in the middle of know where at first but once we started getting closer to Sedona, it was amazing!! The trees and the mountains were something else. In Sedona, we ate at Cowboy Club Grille & Spirits, it was really good! Sit outside, you get the Sedona vibe of the red rock views!

Crescent Moon Ranch

After lunch we got some ice cream then headed to Crescent Moon Ranch for a light hike along a stream and red rock views in the background. There are SO many trails to hike in Sedona (Bell Rock Loop is fun, we did that last year), but we were so exhausted from the day before up north, that we wanted something more relaxing. This place was SO peaceful. It is known to be a vortex is certain areas. I really did feel a sense of well-being and peace while I took in the nature around me. Click here to learn more about what a vortex is in Sedona. They explain it much better than I could! I loved seeing people meditate, swim in the creek, and take in the nature that was around them. It made me appreciate where we were and how lucky we were to be there.

Buddha Beach: This was part of Crescent Moon Ranch and I felt like I should do some yoga there. It's made up of stacked rocks EVERYWHERE. It's amazing. It probably went on for a quarter of a mile!

It was really hard to get a good picture.

Here are some pictures from our walk. We tried going in the water but it was a little too cold for us! We did put our feet in though! If I could go back, I would suck it up and go in just to say I did! (and also bring towels)

SCOTTSDALE, AZ

Josh is more of a relaxer and I like to GO GO GO! So the beginning of our trip was a ton of site seeing and exploring! While this leg of the trip was much MUCH more relaxing. (Not that I don't like relaxing and Josh doesn't like adventuring, we'd just prefer one over the other.) Anyways, we LOVE Scottsdale. Everything about it! There's so much to do, places to hike, beautiful scenery, and we just get a really good feeling there.

Old Town

If you're in Scottsdale, you will definitely go to Old Town. There's an "old west" type side and then there's a more modern side. Both are awesome with great restaurants and shops! So much to see and do here. Bars are really fun and there's something for everyone it seems like!

Some of our favorite restaurants were:

>Olive and Ivy: we went here for my birthday dinner and it was AMAZING. I had Rosé, we shared bacon wrapped dates for an appetizer, Josh got a steak I believe while I got their scallops. And for dessert I got a free strawberry shortcake which was also AMAZING. Our waiter was great and everything was perfect.

>Farm and Craft: we went here for my birthday brunch and it was also AMAZING. I loved their vibe and the avocado toast was to die for! We went here after our couples massage (Josh is the best) and we got mimosas with our brunch. I had a great birthday if you couldn't tell!

>Breakfast Club: we met one of Josh's friends here and it was really good! It was SUPER busy but we put our name in online and showed up right when our table was ready. I got the Smoked Salmon Lox Bene (Benedict) and it was yummy!

A couple restaurants that are not in Old Town but still in Scottsdale:

>Flower Child: This is our all time favorite. Whenever I'm out west, I make it a goal to find a Flower Child and go to it! Everything on the menu is great!

>True Food Kitchen: I love this restaurant because everything on the menu is made with healthy ingredients! It's so unique and delicious.

>And of course IN-N-OUT!!! If you didn't know this before, you can get fries called Animal Style and it comes with cheese, their sauce, and onions on top. You'll never eat normal fries again! Promise!

Are you hungry yet???

Hiking in Scottsdale

We went for a few hikes here. Everyday we tried to get some exercise in. Hiking is a perfect way to explore while getting your heart rate way up!

Pinnacle Peak had awesome views.

Tom's Thumb Trail but take the left trail to Marcus Landslide Trail for an easier hike. This hike was gorgeous and easy. Very peaceful and there was not many people on the trail when we were there. It's part of McDowell Sonoran Conservancy.

Camelback Mountain is a pretty hard hike and then it's like rock climbing basically to the top! I almost gave up but Josh pushed me to reach the very top of the mountain and I am so glad I did! We did this one last year when we went, and decided not to do it this year. It's pretty rewarding though when you get to the top!!

Phoenix Zoo and Top Golf were really fun, too! There is just so much to see and do here! I feel like I need to be there for a couple months to see and do everything! Or maybe live there :)

Check out my Arizona Album on my site to see more pictures from this awesome trip!

I'm sure I'm missing something in here but, I hope this gives you some ideas for your next trip to Arizona!!

Harleigh