Sedona Family Adventure Guide

Does your family love to explore the outdoors? Are you always ready for a new adventure? A trip to Sedona is perfect for you bucket list of adventures! Follow along for our family adventure guide to Sedona, Arizona.

After leaving Montezuma Castle NP, we drove a few more miles and watched the scenery drastically changed from white sand mountains to red sandstone as we neared Sedona.

At first glance, Sedona is a charming town with new age spas, art galleries, and adventure outfitters surrounded by red-rock buttes, forests, and trailheads. The buildings blend nicely with the natural scenery giving off an overall sense of serenity.

First Stop ... Food

With only fry bread in our bellies since leaving Phoenix, our first order of business was picking one of the many restaurant options for a quick meal. We drove through the town and decided to try Picazzo's Healthy Italian Kitchen, a "fusion approach to a modern-Italian cuisine that sprinkles in the bold flavors of Asian, Mediterranean and even Mexican ingredients, into [their] menu of salads, entrees, pasta and pizza". All-in-all, it was hit and miss for our meal choices. I had the Bianca and Dustin had the cheese bread, both were great. The girls had the linguine with house-made marinara and they couldn't stomach any of it. After trying it, we quickly gave them a pass at finishing their meal ... it was awful!

Later we were looking for authentic Mexican, so we decided to try Tortas de Fue. The parking lot is tiny and there is very limited seating, but the portions are huge (we could have split a couple dishes) and the prices are reasonable. I would have loved a margarita at the end of our busy day, but an ice cold Coke and excellent food did the trick. We would definitely return.

Family Lodging

Lodging in Sedona can get pricey, which can be tricky when you traveling for almost 2 weeks. Based on the reviews, we opted for the Hampton Inn Sedona.

Pros: The room and hotel were clean, plus they provided breakfast and had a pool (a big plus with the girls). The beds were comfortable and we had two great nights of sleep there.

Cons: Breakfast started at 6:30 am (different than on the posted sign) and they were strict about making everyone wait until then. This caught me as a little odd, since the food was put out earlier and everyone was made to stand around until the clock struck 6:30. The pool was outdoors and looked nothing like the photos. Clean enough to swim in, but was definitely showing wear and tear.

All things considered, I would stay there again and found it to be a good value for the area.

Our Family Adventures in Sedona

After checking into the hotel, we swam and relaxed after our long flight and day of traveling.

Hot Air Balloon Ride

I had scheduled a hot air balloon ride over the Sedona landscape with Northern Lights Balloon Expedition for our first morning! There are multiple hot air balloon companies in the area, but Northern Lights was one of only two companies permitted by the US Forestry Service to take off and land in Sedona -- plus they are a family-owned company with an outstanding safety record.

Our scheduled pick-up was 4:50 am (no problem since we were still functioning on eastern time). Pick up ran smoothly. The weather was a little chilly, so the girls and I dressed in layers. The van took us and 8 other guests into the desert where we got our first glimpse of the basket. Spider Monkey was very concerned about how we were all going to fit, but the guides explained how the 100 foot balloon raises up into the air and picks up the metal burner system, leaving the entire basket open for all of us.

Upon arrival at the departure location, the company tests the winds before launching by releasing a black helium balloon and watching it react to the winds high in the air.

Unfortunately, my bucket list hot air balloon ride will have to wait until another day, because the winds did not want to cooperate today. So we packed back into the van and returned to the hotel before breakfast started. This is a perfect example of why I always have back-up adventure options!

Cons: I need the ability to control the winds and weather.

Pros: Viewing Sedona's beautiful landscape from the serenity of a hot air balloon sounds amazing!! So we are keeping this one on our bucket list.

Coconino National Forest & Oak Creek Canyon

Since it was still pretty early, we drove through Sedona to explore some of the overlooks mentioned on our audio tour (I use the GuideAlong tours). We explored the Oak Creek Visitor Center area (the hours listed on their website were wrong and it was not open a 8:30 am when we visited).

We took a short hike around the pull-off for Midgley Bridge, which spans over Oak Creek Canyon. Buttercup spotted a nest of Ravens under the bridge, while Spider Monkey found rocks to climb and pose for photos.

The girls had been working on their Coconino National Forest Junior Ranger activity books, so we ventured to the Red Rock Ranger Station.

4x4 Panoramic Jeep Tour

Then it was time for our back-up adventure that I was able to book over breakfast ... a 4x4 Jeep adventure with Red Rock Western Jeep Tours! We drove to their office to meet our guide before our scheduled tour. They asked us to check in 30 minutes before our tour time. Checking in took maybe 5 minutes, and then we waited around for the other 25 minutes. I'm not a huge fan of ideal time standing around listening to the girls tell me how bored they are -- especially since we had a private tour and did not need to wait on other families to arrive.

Our guide, Salt, was the last guide to arrive (several other groups had already left), but she had a great personality, was very easy to talk to, and went out of her way to make sure the girls had fun. So she gets an overall thumbs up in my book. After we loaded into the red jeep, Salt took us on a panoramic tour of the mesa and a close-up view of Doe Mesa. The girls loved the “roller coaster-like” bumpy off-road adventure. Buttercup and Salt found Mountain Lion tracks, coyote scat, and lots of wildflowers.

We also learned about Sedona’s “Vortex’s” – Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock, Airport Mesa, and Boynton Canyon, the “merging dimensions” portals at Bradshaw Ranch (and the now “secret governmental presence there”, and all the crazy paranormal/inter-dimensional activity that occurs in the area (all an interesting side note that explains the endless spiritual crystal shops and vortex tours offered in Sedona). The Bradshaw Ranch will be featured on “Beyond Skinwalker Ranch” on the History Channel.

Cons: Cost-wise, the tour was a little over half the price of our hot air balloon ride (so a little pricey) and felt like we were rushed, then waited ideally, only to be rushed again.

Pros: The girls loved Salt and had an amazing time! So, I would do it again, especially in a pinch like today.

The Family Verdict

We thought Sedona was an action-packed outdoor wonderland! So much to do, see and experience!

If you loved this family adventure guide, check out my review of nearby Montezuma Castle and follow along on our road trip through the American Southwest!

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