Arizona RV Destinations
RV Destinations and Adventures in Arizona – The Grand Canyon State!
In the southwest United States, the 6th largest and 14th most populous state in the Union also happens to be one of the Big Four states for RV sales and service, with more individuals and families every year discovering the fun and thrills of RVing across the desert landscape.
Arizona has a fascinating and storied history, from the native tribes like the Hopi, Navajo and Mohave who call it home to the early visitations by European explorers such as Niza and Coronado, and down through the fractious Mexican-American War.
Contemporary Arizona is a motorhome traveler’s dream, with well-kept highways and turnpikes allowing adventures to all points north, south, east and west within its borders. Large cities like Phoenix, Tempe, Scottsdale and Tucson compete with colorful towns such as Yuma, Nogales and Flagstaff for the attention of visitors.
National parks and monuments like the awe-inspiring Grand Canyon as well as Meteor Crater and Vermillion Cliffs await nature enthusiasts. There’s simply so much to see and do in Arizona that we wanted to provide some helpful information on some of its more colorful and popular destinations, as well as some of its obscure gems too.
Below are some points of interest as covered by various RV lifestyle bloggers who have traveled Arizona and sampled its many beautiful, interesting and curious destinations. We’re grateful for their coverage so please check-out their blogs.
The Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest National Parks
Gone with the Wynns features the adventures of Jason and Nikki Wynn as they travel America and the world seeking life lessons, learning and exploration. Their reporting and photographs of Petrified Forest National Park really makes this “stone-age” naturescape sound and look amazing.
According to the Wynns, you’ll see more petrified wood in this national park then you will anywhere else in the world, as well as one of the largest petrified trees in the world and the marbled Agate House – a structure actually built out of petrified wood!
The Painted Desert in Arizona turns out to not be a desert at all but the largest intact Grassland in the southwest USA. This national park is expansive, relatively unvisited by the masses, and incredibly beautiful at sunrise and sunset as sunlight strikes rock deposits and they are illuminated in colors from lavender and pink to orange and red gorgeously. Nature lovers will not want to miss these two national parks and your RV can get you there easily.
Quartzsite – The Largest RV Gathering in the World
Roadtreking, Technomadia and Long Long Honeymoon all pay special attention to Quartzsite, Arizona and the annual RV gathering there in January and February that can attract up to 100,000 snowbirds and lifestyle RVers!
Hailed as a kind of recreational vehicle Woodstock or Burning Man Festival, it is considered the largest RV gathering on the planet and a must-attend event for serious RV campers.
Boondocking, flea markets and shopping at the Big Tent, and RV displays make this happening a totally “insiders only” extravaganza for well-traveled RVers in-the-know. It’s also a great opportunity to meet fellow enthusiasts from all over the country and even the world who come to this part of Arizona to share in the joy of the RV lifestyle and the freedom of the road.
Mystical – or Material – Sedona, Arizona
There’s been a lot of talk regarding Sedona, Arizona over the years – especially amongst New Age-type individuals who are interested in Reiki, auras, energy nexus and so forth. Tales of healings and mysterious “energy encounters” are not out of the ordinary for visitors and tourists to this city. Regardless of the veracity of these stories, the magnificent red rocks on the outskirts of the city are definitely worth a view – such as the famed Cathedral Rock and even the Chapel of the Holy Cross. Both RV Wanderlust and Outside Our Bubble chronicle their travels in and around Sedona, with the former blog highlighting nice eateries and cafes such as Cowboy Club, Java Love and Elote, while the latter blog finds Sedona far too “touristy” and prefers Jerome, Arizona instead – a former copper mining town nestled inside a mountainside that is being marketed as a ghost town to visitors. Since both towns are within 28 miles of each other, you can drive your motorhome to both locales and decide for yourself what you think of each destination!
Tucson’s Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
Besides being Arizona’s second largest city and the home of the University of Arizona, Tucson is home to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum – a forward-thinking zoo that caters to a largely rehabilitated population of animals that can no longer survive in the wilds. Featuring 21 acres of open desert terrain and very spacious enclosures for all their creatures, the ASDM also highlights the marvels of nature via their twice-daily Raptor Flight – a presentation of desert-born raptor species that fly untethered in the open desert for the attending audience. Truly not to be missed, we’re grateful to Wheeling It for spotlighting this wonderful animal attraction within Tucson.
We hope these locales and excursions in Arizona will inspire you to visit the Grand Canyon State on your next westward RV adventure. While you are motoring across Arizona, if you are concerned about the state of your RV windshield, feel free to contact us to repair or replace your motorhome windshield anywhere in the state. Custom Glass Solutions offers speedy and professional service, always, in cities and towns like Phoenix, Tucson, Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Sedona, Flagstaff, Glendale, Yuma, Prescott, Peoria, Gilbert, Casa Grande and more.
Written by Matt Eder
