Things to do in Sedona
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Sedona
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best months overall, prime hiking weather in spring and October, with everything open.
Late September is close behind, still warm with monsoon tapering and a good rates to weather balance.
Winter highs 55 to 65F, thinnest crowds and lowest rates outside holidays, and crisp stargazing.
Peak heat and the driest month, often over 100F, so hike at dawn or not at all.
Monsoon afternoons bring storms and flash flood risk, plus lower prices and full Slide Rock season.
Cools to the 60s and 70s, crowds thin, and fall colour reaches Oak Creek Canyon.
What's on
- Sedona Marathon early February
Marathon weekend books the town out on a smaller scale than the film festival.
- Sedona International Film Festival 21 February to 1 March
The winter pick event with 160 plus films, so reserve early or avoid the dates.
- Sedona WineFest September
A September wine festival in the nearby Cornville and Verde Valley orbit.
- Sedona Arts Festival Usually the second weekend of October
More than 125 juried artists in West Sedona.
- Día de los Muertos at Tlaquepaque late October
Day of the Dead celebrations at Tlaquepaque in late October.
- Sedona Hummingbird Festival late July to early August
A hummingbird festival in the late July to early August monsoon season.
- Festival of Lights at Tlaquepaque December
Thousands of luminarias at Tlaquepaque close the year in December.
Best things to do in Sedona
Cathedral Rock Trail
Sedona's one essential hike, a steep slickrock scramble to a saddle with the town's most photographed view.
Devil's Bridge Trail
Walk out onto the largest natural sandstone arch in the Sedona area, best before the photo queue builds.
Chapel of the Holy Cross
A modernist chapel built into a red rock butte, free to enter and striking even for non religious visitors.
West Fork Trail
A shaded creek side walk through a towering canyon, cooler than the desert and famous for fall colour.
Soldier Pass Trail
Sedona's most feature dense hike, with a sinkhole, the Seven Sacred Pools and a hidden cave spur.
Slide Rock State Park
A natural sandstone water slide in Oak Creek, the top summer swim and picnic stop for families.
Airport Mesa
The panoramic sunset perch with 360 degree views over town and the western red rock formations.
Amitabha Stupa and Peace Park
A quiet Buddhist stupa in pinon forest at the base of Thunder Mountain, the calmest half hour in Sedona.
Where to stay in Sedona
West Sedona
first trip, all-round base
Locals live and eat here, west side trailheads are close, and rooms run well below Uptown prices.
Uptown Sedona
1-2 nights, no car, maximum walkability
Walk to dinner and to a Jeep tour, but it has the priciest beds, traffic and tour bus noise.
Village of Oak Creek
hikers and golfers who want quiet
Calmer and cheaper than in city Sedona, with Bell Rock trails and both golf resorts behind the hotels.
Oak Creek Canyon
romance and seclusion
Creekside cabins under pines with fall colour, but a narrow winding drive to town and sparse dining.
Boynton Canyon
luxury satellite base
A destination enclave for spa, golf access and canyon trails from the door, not a town base.
Cottonwood
budget base
Old Town hotels stay cheap even in peak season and Verde Valley food is good, but you commute to Sedona.
Think twice about
- Deep Oak Creek Canyon as a base
Beautiful but isolating, with night driving on a narrow road, winter ice and periodic wildfire, flood and rockfall closures.
- Far SR-179 and I-17 fringe listings in Rimrock and Camp Verde
Marketed as Sedona but 25 to 60 minutes from the trailheads, adding a daily commute you did not budget for.
- Directly on the Uptown 89A strip for light sleepers
Tour traffic and early Jeep departures pass the window, a noise cost rather than a safety problem.
Best restaurants in Sedona
Cress on Oak Creek
Seasonal prix fixe dining on the banks of Oak Creek under sycamores, Sedona's most romantic room.
Mariposa - Latin Inspired Grill
Lisa Dahl's hilltop Latin grill with empanadas, steaks and a patio built for the sunset moment.
Dahl & Di Luca Ristorante Italiano
Sedona's fine dining original, handmade seasonal Italian in West Sedona for anniversary dinners.
René at Tlaquepaque
Casually elegant Continental dining in a Tlaquepaque courtyard, the quiet classic special occasion room.
Elote Cafe
Modern Mexican and Southwestern cooking with smoked meats and a serious agave list, the one dinner pick.
The Hudson
Modern American with a big deck and red rock views, the best all rounder for groups with mixed tastes.
Hideaway House
Rustic country Italian above Oak Creek near Tlaquepaque, with wood fired pizzas and a great casual terrace.
Creekside American Bistro
Locally owned for 18 years, best for breakfast and brunch on the terrace over the creek before a hike.
Best bars in Sedona
Page Springs Cellars
Rhone style wines in a creekside tasting room on Page Springs Road near Cottonwood.
Javelina Leap Vineyard, Winery & Bistro
A Page Springs Road tasting room locals converge on for Verde Valley wine afternoons.
D.A. Ranch
A Page Springs Road winery name locals and wine trail guides converge on for Verde Valley tasting.
Outdoor things to do in Sedona
Seven Canyons
A private Tom Weiskopf course threaded through red rock canyon, Sedona's bucket list round.
Oakcreek Country Club
Sedona's best public access championship round, a Robert Trent Jones Sr and Jr design with lakes.
Sedona Golf Resort
The views round, famous for the par 3 10th played straight at Cathedral Rock.
Canyon Mesa Country Club
A charming nine hole executive course for about 30 dollars, ideal for mixed ability groups.
Pink Jeep Tours
The Broken Arrow tour rock crawls over slickrock to Chicken Point and Submarine Rock in open air Jeeps.
Red Rock Balloons
A sunrise balloon flight over Boynton and Long Canyons and the Coconino forest at dawn.
Northern Light Balloon Expeditions
A dawn balloon flight over red rock canyons, best booked for the first morning in case weather cancels.
Guided ATV Tour in Sedona
A four hour guided ATV tour through western red rock backcountry and the Outlaw Trail near Honanki.
Best hotels in Sedona
Enchantment Resort
Adobe casitas in a red rock box canyon with Mii amo spa, trail access and the key to Seven Canyons golf.
L'Auberge de Sedona
Creekside cottages below the Uptown strip, combining walkability with a sycamore shaded creek retreat.
Ambiente A Landscape Hotel
Adults only glass and steel cubes oriented to the view, the design forward honeymoon pick.
Amara Resort & Spa
Value luxury on the creek by Uptown, with a zero edge infinity pool and a strong spa.
Arabella Hotel Sedona
A renovated boutique hotel with fire pits, loaner bikes and a trailhead viewpoint, walkable to Tlaquepaque.
Sky Rock Sedona
A mesa top lodge with a big view terrace, live music and playful programming for groups and couples.
Hilton Sedona Resort at Bell Rock
The reliable full service VOC fixture with spa, golf next door and space for families and groups.
Arroyo Pinion Hotel
A smaller West Sedona hotel named for local feel value, clean, quiet and close to trails.
Is Sedona expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $120 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $250 a person |
| Splurge | $650 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Mii amo: a few days ahead
- L'Apothecary Spa: a few days ahead
- Amara Resort & Spa: a few days ahead
- Palatki Heritage Site: a few days ahead
- Honanki Heritage Site: a few days ahead
- Pink Jeep Tours: a few days ahead
- Grand Canyon South Rim: weeks ahead
- Enchantment Resort: months ahead
- Hotels 2 to 3 months ahead for March to May and October, longer for premium properties.
- Dinners 2 to 4 weeks ahead in season for Elote, Mariposa, Cress and Dahl and Di Luca.
- Pink Jeep Broken Arrow days ahead, balloons for your first morning, and Palatki and Honanki before you arrive.
- Grand Canyon guided tours a week or more ahead in season.
- Slide Rock at opening time on hot weekends before the park reaches capacity.
Is Sedona safe?
- Carry double the water you expect, about a litre an hour hiking, plus electrolytes, sunscreen and a hat.
- Never enter slot canyons, creek crossings or Slide Rock during or after monsoon storms.
- Watch for rattlesnakes on warm rock, javelina at dawn and dusk, and scorpions in shoes left outside.
- Leave nothing visible in the car at trailheads because smash and grab theft is the realistic crime risk.
- Check AZ511 before using 89A through Oak Creek Canyon, which is prone to rockfall and flood closures.
Sedona travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Paid vortex tours, when the vortex sites are free, public and self explanatory.
- The Uptown souvenir strip is marked up, so buy art at Tlaquepaque or Gallery Row instead.
- The Sedona trolley gives only an overview, so able bodied visitors do better on the shuttle and on foot.
- Devil's Bridge at 11am, Cathedral Rock at sunset in March and Slide Rock at noon in June are timing traps.
- Listings in Rimrock, Cornville, Camp Verde and Flagstaff marketed as Sedona are not in Sedona.
Getting around Sedona: public transport and more
- You need a car unless you are Uptown based and tour only, as rideshare supply is thin.
- Use the free Sedona Shuttle Thursday to Sunday for Cathedral Rock, Soldier Pass and other trailheads.
- Buy a Red Rock Pass on day one, 5 dollars a day or 15 a week, and note concession sites charge separately.
- Schedule cross town moves before 9am or after 4pm to avoid the Y and SR-179 bottlenecks.
- Avoid rural northern Arizona roads at night where elk, deer and cattle use unlit highways.
Who Sedona suits
| Solo travellers | Great |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Good |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Great |
Make Sedona your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
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