Top Things to do in Arizona
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What to do and see in Arizona, United States: The Best National Parks
The state of Arizona is one that features a fantastic diversity of landscapes and areas of geological interest. North Arizona is famous for the Grand Canyon, a colorful chasm with steep rocky walls more than a mile deep and stretching some 277 miles alongside the Colorado River. Other notable destinations in North Arizona include Flagstaff set alongside the San Francisco Peaks which has the largest ponderosa pine forest, Museum of Northern Arizona, and is close to a number of national parks and monuments. On the south side of Arizona lies the city of Phoenix, the largest in Arizona. Notable day trips in Phoenix include the Heard Museum which is one of America's largest collections of Native American art, Phoenix Museum of History, as well as the Desert Botanical garden which has a great collection of desert plants.
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1. Grand Canyon National Park
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 758 reviews
Reviewed By allisonhelene - Brownsburg, United States
Drove here from Phoenix to the south rim, and this is a great park!! Plenty of wildlife outside in natural habitat and the views of the canyon are amazing!!! $35 gets you in and can come back for one week with receipt. Would definitely come back to see north rim in the future!!
2. Grand Canyon Parashant National Monument.Twin Point
3. Walnut Canyon National Monument
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,639 reviews
See millions of years of history unraveled in the geology of the rocks at this popular scenic and historic hiking area, once populated by the Sinagua Indians.
Reviewed By potatofisher - Rapid City, United States
I debated actually stopping here, as we had had a long day of travels already, but I'm so glad we did. The canyon dwellings are amazing. The museum is closed, but the gift shop is open, and you can get your passport stamp there. There are 2 trails: the rim trail, which is paved and flat and follows the canyon rim, and the island trail, which goes down and then back up 180 steps into the canyon to get you up close to the cliff dwellings. If you can manage it, I highly recommend the Island Trail. The steps are almost all at the beginning/end (it's a loop trail), and the entire middle is a really nice stroll right along the ledge where the dwellings are. Many of the dwellings are open for you to enter as well! It's like walking through another world. Please note: since the park closes at 4:30, they will not allow you to start the Island Trail after 3:30pm, so make sure to arrive before then if you want to do it.
4. Tonto National Forest
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 123 reviews
This forest occupies approximately three million acres of wilderness for exploration via hiking, backpacking and horseback riding.
Reviewed By 859heidij - Seville, United States
If you're in the Phoenix/Tucson area and are looking for a day trip, drive through here. Lost Dutchman State Park is on 88. Then follow it north. Due to a landslide, 88 does not go all the way to Roosevelt. But the drive to Tortilla Flat is amazing. We drove until the road ended then got out and walked around. We flew the drone for some amazing videos. It's stunning - we definitely were not expecting to find the scenery this drive offers. The pull offs always offer beautiful view. We saw many people camping through the area and would love to do the same someday.
5. Wupatki National Monument
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,009 reviews
Explore this fascinating ancient pueblo, located near the San Francisco Peaks, which once housed almost 100 members of the Anasazi and Sinagua tribes.
Reviewed By kevingW5482NQ
Come in from the Sunset Crater side and stop at the first set of ruins. Perched atop a gigantic boulder, you’ll be able to get breathtaking views of the painted desert, the mountains, plains... stop next at the visitor center and walk down to the ruins there for more amazing scenery. There are other ruins on the way out toward the Grand Canyon, and they are all worth the stop and hike as well. This is amazing, American history and you won’t regret taking the time to contrast this monument with Sunset Crater, Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, Petrified Forest, Walnut Canyon... every place we stopped, my wife said, “I didn’t think anything could compete with the last place we were...”
6. Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest
7. Coconino National Forest
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 422 reviews
Named after the Coho Native American people, this forest is two million acres of recreational, lumber, and mining land.
Reviewed By 5cindy - Fort Myers Beach, United States
We did the oak creek scenic drive through Coconino National Forest and it was absolutely beautiful. There are lots of trees in this area.
8. Kitt Peak National Observatory
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 416 reviews
Located 56 miles southwest of Tucson on the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation, the observatory is a working research station situated high above on Kitt Peak.
Reviewed By MerelyATourist
My wife and I visited here in early November last year during a two-night stay in Tucson. Visiting this observatory was an essential activity in our Arizona vacation, which was astronomy-themed as much as possible. Although there are a large number of telescopes on the summit of Kitt Peak - 22 optical telescopes and two radio telescopes - only a few of them are accessible to the public (or would be if not for the current pandemic). The best way to see them is to take the guided tours, of which there are three: one for the McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope, one for the 2.1-meter telescope and one for the Mayall 4-meter telescope, the latter being the largest telescope on the peak. You can choose individual tours but you get a discounted rate for all three, which is what we did. Each of the tours normally runs only once per day. There are also daytime VIP tours that happen one day each month, and the Nightly Observing Program. We attended only the regular daytime tours. Going on a guided tour provides access to the inside of the telescope buildings that presumably would not otherwise happen, at least for some of them. For instance, in the case of the solar telescope, we were shown a view down the main shaft as well as a view back up the shaft from the control room at the bottom. In the case of the Mayall telescope, we would have seen the telescope from a visitor's viewing room through windows. "Would have" because during our time there the interior of the dome beyond the windows was pitch black. Apparently, observatory staff were testing out a new scientific instrument for the telescope and needed complete darkness. It is unfortunate that the staff chose the time of a public tour for that activity, given the importance of public outreach to the observatory (it is funded largely by taxpayers). However, that was the only disappointment during our time on the summit.
9. Bill Williams River National Wildlife Refuge
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 25 reviews
A large wildlife refuge located between Parker and Lake Havasu City.
Reviewed By clucumber
beautiful place to visit, enjoyed the vistas and scenery, great history here. good for all family members
10. Montezuma Well National Monument include directions to get there.
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 587 reviews
Located in the Verde Valley area, this mysterious crater-lake supported an ancient community of Sinagua Indians.
Reviewed By LisaR293 - Cottonwood, United States
My pug and I visited this site recently. We were pleasantly surprised how we were able to walk down to the water level, see caves that had been visited throughout the ages as well as some cliff dwellings. Also we walked down to the canals that were made almost 1000 years ago and that diverted water to crops. We saw Arizona’s oldest sycamore tree and some fossils pointed out by a friendly park ranger. There are informative signs throughout. Made for an enjoyable outing.
