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El Tovar at night
In Arizona

Experiencing Grand Canyon Village at Night

When we visit national parks, we often stay on-site in a national park lodge if it makes sense for that visit.  For our first visit to the Grand Canyon, we knew we wanted to check out the Grand Canyon Village, so why not stay the night there? Located at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon in the northwest corner of Arizona, Grand Canyon Village features lodging, shopping, and dining options right along the canyon. There are several benefits to staying right on property at a national park lodge; one of our favorites is to see park features at different times of the day. We hoped that during our Grand Canyon visit that we could see the light changes at sunset and sunrise. Another benefit is that often the day visitors thin out as dusk approaches and you may get to experience the park with fewer people. And often, national…

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Monument Valley
In Arizona

Our Evening In Monument Valley on the Dreamcatcher Tour

We’d been dreaming of visiting Monument Valley for years, and as we planned a trip out west, I discovered the Monument Valley Dreamcatcher Evening Tour by Simpson’s Trailhandler Tours. We loved the idea of getting up close to the monuments, and we also wanted to experience the area through the lens of the Navajo people. Since this tour is in the evening, the temperatures promised to be better during our summer trip. And when we discovered that the tour would share Navajo culture through storytelling, dance, and food, we knew this was the tour for us. This trip was actually our second attempt at experiencing Monument Valley. Our first visit to the area was during Covid, and restrictions kept visitors out of Navajo Nation, and rightly so. We did get a picture from the Forrest Gump Viewpoint, though. This time, we had the opportunity to stay in the cabins at…

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Wigwam Motel Holbrook, Arizona
In Arizona

Stay at the Wigwam Motel on Historic Route 66

My family tends to look for the interesting and quirky when we travel. When we started planning a road trip that included the U. S. Southwest and some national parks, I knew we should try to snag a reservation at the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, Arizona. We were lucky to get one, and I do recommend a reservation. They don’t have a lot of rooms. So sit back and relax, and I’ll tell you the story of our night in Holbrook. The History of the Wigwam Motel I’d always wanted to stay in one of the Wigwam Motels. At one time, the United States was home to seven Wigwam Motels with the location in Holbrook known as Village 6. Besides the one in Holbrook, only two others remain in operation: Cave City, Kentucky, and San Bernadino, California. Frank Redford built the first one, located in Cave City, in 1933.  He…

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Petrified Forest National Park
In Arizona

Exploring Petrified Forest National Park

If you’re road tripping in the Southwest, be sure to make some time for Petrified Forest National Park. This unique park offers amazing views of the Painted Desert, and you won’t believe all the petrified wood you’ll see throughout the park. This national park has two entrances. Since we’d spent the night at Tucumcari, New Mexico, the night before, we planned to begin exploring the park in the afternoon when we arrived. For this first day, we entered from the north at the Painted Desert Visitor’s Center, just off of I-40. You may be wondering, was it really hot in July at about 3:00 p.m.? Yes, yes it was. Still, it was manageable when you weren’t in the direct sun. And the wind was much stronger than I would’ve imagined, so that helped with cooling. We didn’t do any long hiking trails. We stayed close to the beaten path and…

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