I knew we needed to get away for spring break this year. We are all going a million different directions all of the time and we needed rest and togetherness. I’m still not sure if those go hand-in-hand…

I also knew after our Nashville flying fiasco (flight home was canceled and we had to drive) and the fact that air travel would be heavy this time of year, I opted for a driveable trip.

I’ll pause here. I live in the midwest. Sedona is not in the midwest. Travel time without stopping one time is approximately 20 hours and 14 minutes. And traveling with three kids you know there will be many stops. So this “driveable” trip also included a hotel stay on the way there and back. This is how much I did NOT want to fly.

Also, I’ll bet you are curious when hearing that we drove what gas prices were (since two weeks before our trip gas prices went through the roof, ugh). Here are the prices in a few of the cities we drove through and stopped at:

Des Moines: $3.89

Wichita: $3.79

Albuquerque: $4.12

20 miles from the Grand Canyon in the middle of nowhere: $5.29

Sedona: $4.19

Jerome: $4.39

Scottsdale: $4.79

Topeka $3.89

Amarillo $3.79

Oklahoma City $3.69

On our way to Sedona, we chose the route that landed us in Albuquerque, New Mexico for our overnight stay. Anyone who is obsessed with Breaking Bad (my husband) knows that finding Walter’s house when you’re visiting Albuquerque is a must.

So we googled the address and found the house. I’d be interested to hear if any of you have ever been by the house. It’s an…experience. There are signs all over the property threatening us if we get out of our car. The owner of the house saw us approaching (driving on a public street mind you – pretty sure that’s still legal), and stood in front of her house and videotaped us driving by the entire time. So, of course, we took a photo.

What we found out later is that they had problems in the past with people throwing pizzas on the roof of their house. I have no clue what this means (I’ve never seen the show), but my husband knew right away what that was all about.

Wow, I wrote a lot about the Breaking Bad house. Now, on to Sedona.

Day 1

We reached Sedona about two hours before our Airbnb was available so we decided to check out the Scenic Airport Overlook. This decision had nothing to do with the back seat navigation we were getting from one of the kids that put us in the entirely wrong neighborhood from our Airbnb. Oh wait, it had everything to do with it.

Regardless, it was a fun mistake because it was a perfect introduction to the beautiful views Sedona has to offer. What we didn’t realize (because this was an unresearched detour from my itinerary) is that the Loop trail takes approximately two hours and 20 minutes after we started the hike we were notified that our house was ready for check-in. So we turned around and decided to do the hike again at sunset (we never did). If you wander this way, know that if there is parking at the small parking lot before you get to the scenic overlook paid parking lot, the Overlook hike takes minutes and has incredible sunset and sunrise views. Again, I’m assuming. We didn’t make it back.

If you are planning to go the house route versus hotel route, email me immediately for information about our Airbnb. I think my husband said it best, “I’m almost more comfortable here than at my own house!”. The location was perfect (more on that later) and it had a heated pool and hot tub and a gorgeous view of the mountains.

Needless to say, after a day of driving the kids just wanted to relax in the pool.

It also wasn’t a bad place to watch the Iowa Hawkeyes win the Big Ten tournament (we won’t talk about the NCAA loss a few days later).

Day one is a wrap.

Day 2

I knew that this would be the coolest day in Sedona so I made it our Grand Canyon day. The south entrance of the Grand Canyon is a two-hour one-way drive from Sedona. How can you pass up a chance to see it when you’re that close? Plus, the drive from Sedona to Flagstaff is breathtaking. (Sidenote: If you have children that get carsick it might not be as breathtaking. Be warned. Thankfully, my kids were good to go.)

I recommend getting to the park as early as possible. We only waited in line a few minutes to get into the park but when we left around 11:30am the line was substantially longer.

Now please don’t judge me when I share our experience at the Grand Canyon. Keep in mind it was 50 degrees, overcast, and windy at the GC and we had a pool and sunshine waiting for us back in Sedona.

Our experience was to stay long enough to snap a few photos, have a moment of deep reflection and contemplation (mostly when watching teenage girls who were precariously perched on a death-ledge to get a perfect selfie…where were their mothers???), and then we were out of there. In total, I’d say we were there an hour and a half. I know, I know, but it was cold and we had no plans to take mule rides down into the canyon so we were satisfied.

Back in Sedona at our house my husband and I took a quick hike (yes – this house was so awesome there were hikes down the street from our house!!), ordered a pizza, and went swimming. Bliss.

Day 3

Day three was our busy day. I packed a lot into day three so we could relax on day four. Our house was just down the street from the Chapel of the Holy Cross. We could actually see the cross from our living room!

The chapel is a must-see in Sedona. It’s not a hike, you drive to it and park. It is a Roman Catholic church (they have actual services!) and is situated on a 200-foot red rock with a 90-foot tall cross. Inside the church, you can sit in the pews and light candles for loved ones. It is a very powerful place.

After visiting the church (and waking up one teenager who couldn’t quite wake up to see the church), we set out for the Cathedral Rock hike. This was a controversial situation in our family. The hike has mixed reviews on the difficulty. It’s hard to understand a review that says: most kids can do this hike although at times it is straight up on a smooth rock with nothing to hold on to. So…yeah, some of us were hesitant.

Turns out, this was by far our favorite hike. Was it easy? Not really. Was it hard? Not really. Was it scary? Sometimes. Clear as mud, right? Take my word for it, do this hike. If it gets to a point where you’re second-guessing your life decisions, there are several flat rock areas you can hang out and wait. Also – and trust me when I say this – the way down is easier. It won’t seem like it should be when you’re on the way up, but it is.

And finally to end day three, was the Pink Jeep tour. Not a cheap activity to do, but well worth the money. We did the Scenic Rim 2.5 hour ride with a bumpy rating of 10/10. Our guide was Brandon and he was awesome! He’s an Alaska-born Arizona transplant who has a gift for storytelling and driving a pink jeep up rugged terrain. He kept us entertained from start to finish – he even didn’t mind when my eleven-year-old hammered him with questions about Alaska! The tour itself was breathtaking, and we finally had someone to take our photo so my husband was able to take a break from selfies!

Day three ended with more swimming and grilling at the house.

Day 4

Like I said, I reserved our final day in Sedona as a day of rest. We relaxed in the pool most of the day and had to make an “emergency” trip to Cold Stone Creamery late afternoon when the natives got restless.

Days 5-7

Since this post is focused on Sedona I won’t get into the details of the rest of our trip. We had a day and a half in Scottsdale with a brief stop in Jerome (it’s a ghost town!) on the way.

It was an amazing trip filled with quality family time which was exactly what we needed!

When I asked my family their favorite part of Sedona (excluding the pool LOL) they said:

• Eleven-year-old: Pink Jeep tour
• Thirteen-year-old: Pink Jeep tour
• Sixteen-year-old: Pink Jeep tour
• Dad: Cathedral Rock hike
• Mom: Cathedral Rock hike

Have you ever visited Sedona? What was your favorite part?

Until Next Time,

Neko

P.S. Go to Sedonuts. Best donuts ever.

The end.