Expert: Mindy Mendelsohn - 12/29/2011

Question
Hi Mindy,
My husband and I would like to visit sedona, go to the grand canyon and then go to Las vegas. Where would we fly into? Could we rent a car in wherever we fly into and drop it off in vegas to fly out of vegas. How far away is vegas from sedona? Is it close enough to drive back to fly back from AZ? We were thinking of coming in mid april. We don't want it to be too hot but not too cold either. What is it like in March? I have asthma. Will I get elevation sickness at the canyon? Where do you recommend for us to stay. Not to expensive but nice. If there was an inside pool that would be a plus. We are really into scenery and views. What would you suggest for us to do in Sedona? How long should we stay. We only want to go to vegas for a couple nights to see vegas and to visit a friend and see the hoover dam. I have food allergies. Will that be a problem? Thanks so much ahead of time Mindy. Can't wait to hear from you.     Linda

Answer
Hi Linda,


Sedona is beautiful in both April and March - the weather should be perfect.  Most likely in the mid-70's to 80 degrees in April mid 60's - 70's in March.  That being said we are in the mountains so our weather is very different from Phoenix.  I grew up in Michigan and it was hotter there last summer than it was here.

Occasionally we have been known to have snow in April ( which would mean the Grand Canyon would as well).  Bring a jacket, we get chilly at night ( no humidity even in the summer the nights really cool off).

Las Vegas is about 4 hours from Sedona by car, Phoenix is two hours from Sedona.  You would have to check with the car rental companies about pick-up in one city and drop off in another.  

I don't think you will have elevation sickness - you may find your self winded a little more easily as there is less oxygen in the air but there shouldn't be any sickness.  This is true here in Sedona as well we are at 4500 feet.

Food allergies shouldn't be a problem as well most of the restaurants are pretty accommodating around here. We also have a great health food store New Frontiers.  

I would stay at least 3 days here.  There are a lot of outdoors trails if you like to hike, Jeep tours are great.  Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village ( www.tlaq.com) and the Chapel of the Holy Cross fro a start. There are also several places to get a great massage.  

I honestly can't think of anyplace with an indoor pool.  Sedona Real or Sedona Rouge are good places.  An off beat one that people don't think about is Sky Ranch Lodge.  It is an old hotel but they just redid all their rooms and have new beds.  They also have the best views in Sedona as they are up on the mesa by the airport ( we have a tiny airport to big planes) and they are inexpensive.  To a certain degree I feel like this is one of Sedona's secrets.  

There are a ton of places to stay here.

All of these places have an outdoor pool.  


I hope this answers your questions - for fun I am attaching a picture that I took in December when we had an unexpected storm. The image was taken standing right next to Sky Ranch lodge to give you an idea of the views;)


Happy New Year!

Mindy