The 7 most incredible road trips in Arizona

14.09.2023 - 11:07 / lonelyplanet.com

The sheer size (it’s the sixth-largest state) and scope of Arizona make it tempting to try to explore this wonderland on a seven-day road trip around the American Southwest. But from the vastness of the Grand Canyon in its northern reaches to its gunslinging history in Tombstone near the border with Mexico, Arizona has hundreds of miles to cover.

It’s best to stake out some routes, relax and explore deeper. To see everything from Indigenous cliff dwellings to quirky towns on Route 66, here are the 7 best road trips in Arizona.

Best road trip for Americana
Kingman—Seligman; 87 miles 

This road trip on Route 66, the longest stretch still in use, is the perfect wind-down if you’ve been partying it up in nearby Vegas. Check out sights like the Arizona Route 66 Museum in Kingman, which hosts street drag-racing, then hit the historic “Mother Road” that threads through the sagebrush and villages to Seligman.

Those quirky red signs planted roadside? They’re an homage to the historic Burma-Shave ad campaigns. From Seligman, you’ll still see Route 66 signposts pointing to Ash Fork. But purists take note – although the Mother Road technically continues to Williams, a buzzy town that’s the departure point for the Grand Canyon Railway, most of the original road is buried under I-40. 

Planning tip: Kingman Visitor Center, in the Powerhouse Building in the center of Kingman, has lots of information about Route 66 attractions. The building also houses the Arizona Route 66 Museum and gift shop.

Best road trip for wine country 
Prescott—Sedona; 60 miles 

Find your brand of relaxation in the mile-high city of Prescott, famed for its Gold Rush-era saloons on Whiskey Row (look for the locally distilled Bloody Basin Bourbon) and Watson Lake’s granite dells. This route switchbacks up Mingus Mountain into Jerome, a cliffside village best known for its ghosts, which is also part of the Verde Valley Wine Trail, with five wine-tasting rooms.

Continue through the pines down to the historic towns of Clarkdale (Tuzigoot National Monument is worth a stop), Cottonwood and Cornville, which have a dozen wineries between them, on the way to Sedona. 

Best road trip for historic sites 
Sedona—Wupatki National Monument; 88 miles 

From Sedona’s red rock canyons, this route climbs through forests to almost 7000ft in Flagstaff, the gateway to the area’s geological and cultural past. Distinguished by its numerous historic sites and monuments, this road trip heads to Walnut Canyon, home to 25 cave dwellings built by the pre-Columbian Sinagua people, then skirts over to Winona – its namesake bridge is a picturesque relic from Route 66.

Continue north to stand by the rim of a cinder cone at Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. After an eruption