Visiting Sedona With Kids

Sedona is a resort town in Arizona known for its stunning red rock canyon and spiritual vortexes.  USA Weekend has rated it as the most beautiful place in America.  Located at the mouth of the Oak Creek Canyon about two hours from the Grand Canyon and Phoenix, Sedona is considered Arizona’s second most popular tourist attraction behind the Grand Canyon.  Its climate is often cooler than Phoenix and warmer than the Grand Canyon, and its beautiful landscapes were the setting for many Western movies, and there are fantastic hiking opportunities.  Our visit to Sedona with kids was an idyllic weekend destination.

Visiting Sedona, Arizona

Sedona has recently become a New Age mecca.  In 1981, Page Bryant, a psychic and writer, identified seven vortexes in Sedona.  Vortexes are cosmic energy fields that are believed to exude high-octane spiritual energy ideal for facilitating prayer, meditation and healing.  Vortexes have been identified at Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock, Boynton Canyon and Airport Mesa.  While the New Age vortexes were not what drew us to Sedona, the beautiful rock buttes, mesas and spires are so beautiful that our visit there was definitely spiritual.

Cathedral Rock

Our family visited Sedona in February as part of a trip to the Southwest that also included Las Vegas and Grand Canyon.  For our four and seven year old boys, our visit to Sedona served as an extension of the geology and biology lessons that we began during our “field trip” to the Grand Canyon.  They were fascinated to learn that high concentrations of iron-oxide (aka rust) cause the rock formation’s red coloring and were also excited to explore the desert plant life.  Our six month old daughter was already a seasoned traveler and spent most of her time exploring Sedona relaxed in her carrier.

Sunset at Airport Mesa, Sedona

After watching a beautiful sunrise and sunset at the Grand Canyon, we wanted to make sure we had a great view of sunset in Sedona.  We chose to view sunset from Airport Mesa, one of the four vortexes.  This is a very popular sunset location, and there is convenient parking right near the knoll vista.  The short walk to the viewpoint was kid-friendly, and I carried our infant in her carrier.  Because of the popularity of this location at sunset, we were definitely not alone.

We loved the view of Coffee Pot Rock, which resembles a percolator style pot and even has a spout.

Coffee Pot Rock

There was a drone with a camera taking pictures of sunset.  Drone photography was still pretty novel (at least to me) in 2015, and I would have liked to see those shots.

Sunset from Airport Mesa was beautiful not only because of the changing colors and shadows on the rock faces and the panoramic view of the Sedona area but also because of the fantastic silhouettes created.  This helicopter was a special treat, even though it was noisy.

The view from Airport Mesa would be spectacular at any time of day and likely less crowded when the sun is not rising or setting.  However, we didn’t mind the crowd and definitely stayed longer than we expected.

Fay Canyon Trail, Sedona

Sedona is known for its fabulous hiking opportunities.  We definitely wanted to do some exploring but also knew we were limited traveling with both grandparents and an infant in addition to our two young boys.  We chose the Fay Canyon Trail, an easy 2.2 mile loop with 150 foot elevation and were not disappointed.  The boys were especially enthusiastic to check out all the desert plant life along with the red rocks, and my daughter enjoyed her view from her carrier until my hiking lulled her to sleep.  It was a perfect day for hiking with a brilliant blue sky.

Although the plant life was very beautiful, the main attractions of the Fay Canyon Trail are the red rocks and the arch.  We missed the turn off to the Fay Canyon Arch trail, which is a moderate trail with 300 feet elevation (some scrambling required) that forks from the main trail about .6 mile from the parking lot and leads to a natural arch.  Although the pictures look amazing, this side hike was really beyond the capabilities of our group.

At the turn around point of the hike, my husband scaled the rock for an amazing view of the valley.

Panoramic view

The rest of our group waited while my husband explored.  The boys particularly enjoyed some “rock climbing” of their own.

Rock climbing, four year old style

The Fay Canyon Trail was particularly family friendly and worthwhile.  Next time, we’ll definitely check out the arch.

Chapel of the Holy Cross, Sedona

Our last stop in Sedona was the Chapel of the Holy Cross, a cross-faced chapel built into the red rock that is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix.  The Chapel was commissioned by Marguerite Brunwig Staude, a local rancher and sculptor, and completed in 1957.  We parked in the parking lot and followed the winding path to the Chapel and were amazed by the view.

Chapel of the Holy Cross

The Chapel is part of the St. John Vianney parish, where we attended Sunday Mass, but there are no Masses (and no weddings) celebrated at the tiny Chapel.

The Chapel is located near Eagle Head Rock, Twin Nuns and Mother and Child Rock, and we were ecstatic to locate the Twin Nuns.

Two Nuns

Sedona is also known for its vibrant art community, star-gazing tours, New Age shops and spas and Pink Jeep tours, but these were not part of our brief visit.  Even without fully experiencing all Sedona has to offer, it is a fantastic add-on destination to a family trip to the Grand Canyon or Phoenix.  Our visit to Sedona gave our boys a chance to really explore desert plant life and geology while enjoying brilliant views of a red rock canyon that is quite different from the nearby Grand Canyon.  When traveling to Sedona with kids, make sure to check out our other favorite Arizona and Nevada destinations.