You Need to Visit These Top 3 Places in Arizona Before You Die

Arizona is known for having awesome destinations every single traveler will love. It boasts a lot of vast, magnificent, and inarguably beautiful landmarks recognized by the whole world.

Pack your bags and be ready for an awesome adventure! No trip can ever get wasted here. This is probably more of a fact than a reminder: You should visit these top 3 places in Arizona before you die.

1. Monument Valley

No doubt, you need to plan a trip and see one of the most breathtaking and most photographed points on earth.

Think towering sandstone buttes at heights of 400 to 1,000 feet, miles of mesas, shrubs, and trees, and a red-sand desert. What you’ll get is the famous Monument Valley with a landscape that overwhelms anyone who sees it.

Long ago, the park was once a lowland basin. As time passed by, the materials that eroded from the early Rock Mountains for hundreds of millions of years deposited layer upon layer of sediments, and it created a slow and gentle uplift. The basin became a beautiful plateau after the horizontal stratum was elevated.

The defining characteristics

Check out the graceful rock formations of the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park! Some visitors frequent overlooks such as John Ford’s Point for the best spot. On the other hand, some tourists prefer to view it from the road. And what do you know? The valley is visible thanks to its distinct and steeply sloped Mittens buttes.

The buttes are sometimes referred to as the “Totem Pole.” They have already become iconic and that explains why it’s featured in many Western films. The other iconic feature of the Monument Valley is the Ear of the Wind arch, and it also has its fair share of screentime as it’s also seen in commercials, television programs, and other Hollywood movies.

2. Grand Canyon National Park

The Grand Canyon National Park has a sure spot in the Top 3 places in Arizona because it is home to the tourist favorite Grand Canyon. The canyon is recognized for its layered bands of red rock crafted by millions of years of geological history.

There are millions of visitors to the canyon each year, and it is one of the most visited destinations in the world. It has also been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. Do we really need to explain why it’s part of the 3 places in Arizona before you die list?

Some of the famous viewpoints of Grand Canyon are:

• Yavapai Observation Station
• Mather Point
• Mary Colter’s Lookout Studio
• Lipan Point

3. Saguaro National Park

This natural wonder is home to the large saguaro cactus, a native plant, and a symbol of the American West. The saguaro cactus is the largest cactus in the United States. Another amazing fact is that it can even live up to 200 years or even longer!

Here are some ideas if you plan to visit the Saguaro National Park:

• You can take the Signal Hill Trail in the western Tucson Mountain District if you want to see the petroglyphs of the ancient Hohokam people.
• If you like road trips, you can also take the Cactus Forest Drive to see the stunning views of the desert landscape.
• Saguaro National Park attracts a lot of hardy hikers and horseback riders. You can join a group if you want to.
• Visit from mid-May through early June if you want to see the Saguaro cactus flowers.

Visitor Reminder: There are a lot of rattlesnakes and scorpions in the park because of its desert environment. Beware of these animals as it may slither or walk across the sidewalk or under rocks.

Remember, you only live once! Be an explorer and visit these Top 3 places in Arizona before you die.