Sedona and the Enchantment resort have everything a family needs for a multigenerational vacation, and the location and amenities are perfect.
Sedona, Arizona, is two hours north of Phoenix airport, and coming from different areas of the United States, our multigenerational family was able to coordinate arrival between 9 and 10 am, pick up two rental vans and be on our way by 11 am. The holiday traffic up Route 17 North was bumper to bumper on Saturday morning of Memorial Day weekend. Fortunately, the restaurant where we planned lunch had warned us to make late lunch reservations. When traveling to a locale during a holiday weekend, use the expertise of the locals to help you planning timing and travel.
Sedona is one of the most beautiful locations in America. Many of our old western movies were filmed in Sedona. It does have a honky tonk downtown in North Sedona where you can find as many t shirt shops as on Fort Lauderdale beach. But, it has many outdoor activities, and tours galore, for every age group.
THE DESERT, THE ALTITUDE AND WHAT IT MEANS
First, a priority for many of us multi-generational families potentially traveling with pregnant mothers and fathers and children under age twenty four months, it is Zika free, being in a desert.
A desert is a challenge for children not used to it. We stopped at the supermarket on the way to the Resort to pick up bottles of water, snacks, and more.
We constantly encouraged the grandchildren to keep drinking to hydrate, and made sure to have extra water on our hikes and adventures. We also had to keep the grandchildren covered in sun screen. We had to remember to reapply the sun screen, as they were in the pool for hours. The Enchantment Resort provides sun screen at the pool and constantly refills their drinking cold water container and cups.
We had to also be concerned with allergies. The spring in Sedona has lots of blooming plants, including Juniper. If there are allergies in your family, come prepared. The altitude did not seem to affect the younger members of the family as it affected this Grandma, who lives at sea level. Know that you are up about 5,000 feet.
The temperatures vary greatly in the desert from day to night. During the day, we had temperatures in the 80’s and at night in the 60’s. In the mornings, it was in the 60’s and it warmed up faster than we expected, by 9 am. We hiked at 7:30 am to avoid the heat. Yes, there were lots of cacti and some of us had needles to remove after hiking or mountain biking. Bring a first aid kit. The nine and ten year old insist they saw a rattle snake, but none of the rest of us did. The rattle snakes will not bother you; however, “teenagers” might, so avoid the smaller rattle snakes. Grandpa and I saw a huge rattle snake in Southern Arizona and it ran from us. Just be alert on the hiking trails, and hopefully you will see some animals you want to see.
THE ENCHANTMENT AND HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF IT
The Enchantment Resort is located at 525 Boynton Canyon Road, Sedona, about twenty minutes from the city itself. The ride to the Resort is beautiful, and can be dark at night. Check out the website. The picture you open will show you the magnificent 360 degree view.
Some of the tips in the first post already answer the question why we chose the Enchantment Resort and Sedona, but nothing this Grandma could say could be enough to describe this most beautiful location in the United States. Sedona is a spiritual as well as physically beautiful location. It has vortexes, areas of energy, unique to the area. Yes, to increase anticipation, this Grandma did a special email about vortexes to everyone with a vortex map showing where they were in Sedona. Even the six year old now understands vortexes. The Enchantment Resort is rated as one of the best resorts on many lists, listed as the best resort in the United States on some lists. This Grandma agrees. The Enchantment Resort, for so many reasons, in this Grandma’s opinion, is one of the best luxury family resorts in the United States for a multigenerational vacation. We were not the only multigenerational family there for the Memorial Day weekend.
The Enchantment Resort is located in Boynton Canyon, and the canyon surrounds you on three sides with amazing red rock that changes color during the day as the angle of the sun hits it. Sunsets are gorgeous and we got to experience a double rainbow over the red rocks. The fourth view is of the exquisite surrounding buttes and scenery.
Sedona is spiritually important as a vortex center and Boynton Canyon is the most important vortex area in Sedona. Vortexes (or vortices) are found at sacred sites throughout the world – the Great Pyramid in Egypt, Machu Picchu in Peru, Bali, Stonehenge, Ayers Rock in Australia, etc. A vortex is a place in nature where the earth is exceptionally alive with energy. Although all of Sedona is considered to be a vortex, there are special spots that have been identified where the energy is more intense and where you are more likely to actually feel the energy. These vortexes have been further categorized into “feminine” (energy entering the earth) and “masculine” (energy coming out of the earth). Boynton Canyon combines all of the most intense energies, and is the most important as Boynton Canyon is the home of the “Mother Vortex,” the most spiritual place in all Sedona, and considered by the native American Indians asthe most sacred of the “sacred ground” in North America. So, wherever you stand, wherever you look, the beauty is breathtaking and the aura of the Enchantment. . . well, consider the resort’s name.
The Enchantment Resort itself is beautiful and luxurious. Rooms are in individual casitas, which each have three rooms, with the center room reserved separately (containing a living room with a murphy bed and single sofa bed, a kitchen and dining area, and full bathroom), and the rooms on either side having two queen beds or one king bed. The individual casitas of the Enchantment are as luxurious as the surroundings, fit into the mountainside and seem hidden. The best location, in this Grandma’s opinion, is near the clubhouse up the hill. We had a king in Casita building 33; the other room has two queens. Our grandchildren and their parents had all of Casita building 37, with two queens on either side of the living room. Our son had Casita building 32, king room. There are other types of accommodations in the Enchantment to choose from.
The Enchantment Resort is self contained, with the best food in Sedona, the best activities for the entire family, and special events during the holiday weekend. The resort’s amenities are extensive and wonderful. We missed the animal encounters, but the grandchildren got to experience the star gazing, face and hand painting, and the make your own sundae bar with more choice of toppings that you can imagine open for free for four hours. There are free to use mountain bikes and regular bikes, tennis courts, huge pool and secondary pools, activities room with board games and giant television screens showing children’s movies, outdoor ping pong table, outdoor foozball table, boce court, fitness room, teepee, and lounging rooms that are also gorgeous. The spa is considered one of the best in the United States as well, and is physically beautiful as well. They guide hikes and mountain biking excursions, and also provide maps of hiking trails, bicycle trails and more. . . and even more in the next post with the itinerary.
Yes, it is expensive, but sometimes there is a miraculous place that deserves to be experienced. If you cannot afford more than one night or two nights for your family, arrive in Sedona and stay in a moderate lodging for a day, doing the best of Sedona itinerary in blog post III; next, experience the Enchantment for one night arrival early for twelve noon check-in (enjoying the amenities until your room is ready) to four pm the next day booking with American Express travel, never leaving the resort, or even better two nights if you can. After the holiday weekend, prices drop significantly. You are in the best vortex in the best canyon in Sedona and do not have to leave for your 28 or 52 hours of heaven to know Sedona’s magic and arguably the best resort in the United States. The next post will give you an itinerary, what to do at the Enchantment, the best two Sedona activities outside the resort to experience, and restaurants nearby. Then, to be more economical, drive the two or so hours north after check out and stay near the Grand Canyon for the remainder of the trip, in more modest accommodations for one to two nights. This Grandma justifies such luxurious expenditure by adding the cost of all four nights, then dividing by four to get an average night spent!
Yes, it is worth skipping a year and saving an extra year for those nights at the Enchantment Resort in Sedona, Arizona. After experiencing it, I think that all of our adult children and grandchildren agree that it is an enchanting experience.
Joy,
Mema
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