I realized that the strategy for pulling off the best American Southwest road trip is to start off by flying into your first destination and flying out of your last destination. Of course, feel free to drive to and from your home state. This was a fantastic option to cut on some driving time since we were coming from California! I think the ideal time for this road trip is during Autumn – we did it from mid to the end of October. We didn’t do any hiking on this trip, but you can plan that into any stage of this itinerary very easily!

The best American Southwest road trip • Fly into & stay in Denver, CO • Day 1 – 4

Southwest has some great flights from my local airports, so yours might too! I’ve been to Denver a couple times before this trip so I knew it was a great starting point. We also had a concert at Red Rocks to plan this part of the trip around. We stayed for 3 nights in the Highlands neighborhood in this house. If you’d like Denver recommendations, I have a bunch here!

Drive time: 3 hr 41 min, Miles: 232

Stop in Palisade, CO

This tiny town was a perfect stop on our way to our next stay! They have a handful of wine tasting options, a brewery, a distillery, a thrift shop and we found a delicious restaurant downtown. We did a wine tasting at The Ordinary Fellow, stopped at The Community Thrift Shop for a bit of secondhand shopping then grabbed lunch at Fidel’s.

The good folks from the winery suggested we drive the 128 towards Moab. It’s one of the most beautiful drives and worth the detour. Honestly I don’t think it adds on much (if any) time or mileage. Of course take your time in this area and do some exploration if you would like to. Arches National Park is in this area as well.

Tip: I had a hard time getting the map to suggest this as a route. I found that if I added Dewey as a location, it worked!

Drive time: 3 hr, Miles: 170

The best American Southwest road trip • Stay in Monticello, UT • Day 4 – 5

Monticello was a good stop to rest for a night on the way to our next, longer stop. Here is the house we stayed in. It was very nice, clean and had some horses as neighbors.

To eat: The Over Bite

Drive time: 1 hr 36 min, Miles: 91.5

Stop at Four Corners Monument

You can feel free to skip this stop because it does add on some drive time. Honestly I am not usually one to stop at typical tourist attractions, but I highly recommend this one. It is a quick and interesting stop, unlike anything else. Four Corners Monument is a quadripoint where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet. This is the only point in the United States shared by four states! We obviously had to take advantage of each of us standing in a separate state at the same time. We also browsed the shops of handmade items by the local Native Americans. I met a wonderful Navajo woman named Yolanda who makes beautiful pottery, who was also selling the jewelry that her mom makes. I went home with a beautiful turquoise bracelet and ring.

Note: There is a small fee to get in.

Drive time: 4 hr 6 min, Miles: 260

The best American Southwest road trip • Stay in Williams, AZ • Day 5 – 8

After quite a lot of research, I decided on staying in Williams because it is only about 40 minutes from the South Rim entrance of the Grand Canyon. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend the house we stayed. It is a fantastic location and very peaceful, but a lot of the house needed better cleaning and maintenance. There were also some kitchen essentials missing. They may have fixed these things since our stay, because overall the other reviews are raving, so here’s the link if you’d like to consider.

Visit The Grand Canyon

We headed into the park in the morning on a week day. Of course there is a fee here as well! We parked near the visitor’s center and joined a tour with one of the park rangers. It seems these are done periodocially throughout the day and start near the flag pole by the visitor’s center. Of course feel free to get more information inside the building. There is also a wonderful bookstore in this area! Next, we drove towards Bright Angel Lodge and parked nearby. We enjoyed lunch at Arizona Steakhouse, then explored a bit, taking in the sunset before heading out of the park. Of course there is so much more you can do at the Grand Canyon, so fill in this time as you would like!

Note: the accommodations inside of the park (hotels and campsites) fill up super far in advance, so plan ahead if you would like to go that route.

Visit Flagstaff, AZ (optional) • 33 miles

We drove into Flagstaff one of the days because it isn’t far and I wanted to do a bit of thrifting. There is also another portion of the trip below where you can visit instead! We really enjoyed dinner at Pizzicletta (both the pizzas and gelato were phenomenal), recommended by some friends who went to NAU.

Coffee shop: Macy’s European coffee house & bakery

Used bookstore: Bookmans • Thrift stores: Sharon’s Attic, Savers, Goodwill, St. Vincent de Paul

Explore Williams, AZ

We had dinner at Historic Barrel + Bottle House the first night we arrived. We loved their beer and the food was decent. Fiesta Mexican Grill was a delicious spot for lunch!

Thrift shop: Chizonaka • Honestly aside from this shop and the restaurants above, we found that the downtown area of Williams wasn’t really for us, but the area is a fantastic home base near the Grand Canyon.

Drive time: 1 hr 11 min, Miles: 60

The best American Southwest road trip • Stay in Sedona, AZ • Day 8 – 11

We stayed at Briar Patch Inn, a magical place where my mom had stayed before. It’s is comprised of a bunch of separate cabins and a main lodge where they provide breakfast every morning. You can also feel free to hang out here and it’s the only spot where there is wifi on property. Located along a creek, you immediately feel the calming ambiance of Sedona. If you’re interested in a massage, it is done just beside the creek. I had a woman named Lara do mine and was such a wonderful rejuvenating experience.

We walked around the downtown area (which is pretty touristy for my taste), but we did go into Sedona Crystal Vortex where I got a beautiful ring some crystals. It wouldn’t be a Sedona trip without that experience, right?

We enjoyed dinner at Saltrock, located at Amara Resort and Spa. The setting outside was absolutely breathtaking and the food was fantastic.

Visit Jerome, AZ • 27 miles from Sedona

We met up with some friends in Jerome for lunch, about 40 minutes from Sedona. Perched above Arizona’s grandest copper mine, the town has transformed into a vibrant haven for tourists and artists.

We enjoyed lunch at The Clinkscale, then wandered around the main street and into some of the shops.

Visit Flagstaff (other option) • 30 miles from Sedona

You can also conveniently stop in Flagstaff at this stage of the trip!

Stand on the corner in Winslow, AZ • 86 miles from Sedona

Yes, that Winslow, Arizona. We had a wonderful lunch at The Turquoise Room, located in La Posada Hotel. We also stopped in their gift shop. They had an amazing assortment of Native American jewelry and art. I got a beautiful pair of turquoise earrings.

Drive time: 6 hr, Miles: 349

The best American Southwest road trip • Stay in Silver City, NM • Day 11 – 13

This stop of the trip was one I knew we had to do. We got to visit family friends who we hadn’t seen in I don’t know how long. Little did we know this would be the last time we saw one of them. When her daughter called me a couple months after our visit to tell me of her mom’s passing, I was so shocked, but also infinitely grateful we had reconnected. Regardless, Silver City is such a special slice of the Southwest! We grabbed some cocktails and got a tour of their local Saloon and Opera House by (now) our late friend. I will always treasure that day. We stayed in this gem of a house, walking distance from the downtown.

(some of the best thrifting of the trip!) Thrift stores: Single Socks, Our Paws’ Cause

To eat: Little Toad Creek Brewery & Distillery, Adobe Springs Cafe

Drive time: 4 hr 8 min, Miles: 236

Drive to Albuquerque, NM & fly home

We grabbed lunch at Sawmill Market before dropping our rental car off at the airport.

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I hope this inspires you to explore this area of the vast United States! Please feel free to share any of your favorite spots in the American Southwest down in the comments or always feel free to reach out via email or on Instagram!

Happy travels,