One of our favourite parts about travel nursing is the ability to explore not just the city where you’re stationed, but also the surrounding states and cities. So far while we’ve been in Arizona, we’ve made it to Prescott and Sedona. Next on the list is Tucson for Dan’s birthday next month!

On our way to Sedona, we had multiple people recommend that we make a stop in Jerome, an old copper-mining town that boomed in the early 1900s. We got a bit of a late start to our day, but decided to still make a quick stop at least to take some pictures. The drive there was absolutely beautiful as we climbed in elevation to reach the mountain-side town. Houses stand on stilts along the edge of the mountain and though there seem to be many business, it gave off a kind of “ghost-town” feel.

what was on our list

DRIVES

• Jerome
• Red Rock Scenic Byway
• Red Rock Loop Road

HIKING

• Devil’s Bridge (2-4 miles)
• Bell Rock & the Courthouse Butte Loop (4 miles)
• Cathedral Rock (1.2 miles)

FOOD & DRINK

• Verde Valley Wine Trail
• the Hudson

OTHER

• Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village
• Chapel of the Holy Cross

what we made it to

We’re definitely hoping to make it back to Sedona to do some hiking before we finish up Dan’s contract in Phoenix. This time around we only made it to a few things on our list, but it was nice taking the day slow and not rushing to do and see as much as we could. Next time around I think our visit will center more around hiking some of the trails we had hoped to check out.

As I said, we stopped in Jerome along the way to Sedona. I think we’d both say that it’s worth at least a quick stop; it only adds about 30 minutes on to the drive from Phoenix to Sedona. On our way to the Hudson for lunch, we drove the Red Rock Loop Road which was beautiful. We stopped near the end where there’s space to park and an incredible view you can walk out to. We got another amazing view at the Hudson which we would definitely recommend as a great lunch or dinner spot in Sedona.

After lunch, we headed to Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village to walk around and window shop. The galleries were all unique and fun to browse through and the chai tea we got from the Chai Spot was delicious. On our way back to Phoenix, we found ourselves on the Red Rock Scenic Byway which made for some great views as the sun was just starting to set when we left. All in all it was a very relaxed day with a beautiful drive to and from Sedona. I’m sure we’ll be back!

Check out our video of the sunset on our drive back to Phoenix.

what are your favourite spots in Sedona?