ARIZONA ROADTRIP 🏜️ Grand Canyon, Antelope Canyon, Horseshoe Bend, & Flagstaff

Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh, whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh. This is the good life, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh. This is the good life, oh-oh-oh-oh. Out in the sunshine, nothing but good times. This is the good life, this is the good life. What's up, guys? What's up? We're in Arizona. We're so pumped to be here. Yes. This is our first time in Arizona since 2017, which was actually our first road trip that sparked all of this. Yeah. When we came here, it literally sparked all of our interest in going to see the national parks, to exploring the country and everything. So it's so good to be back. And what's funny is that the last time that we were in Arizona, Megan and I weren't even engaged. We were just dating at that point. Yeah. I was actually planning an engagement, but she didn't know that. That was a really fun trip. We had so much fun then, and so it kind of inspired us to come back and see things that we hadn't seen in a while. Yes. Different time of year. That was in the fall. Yep. End of summer, early fall, right? Mm-hmm. This time, it's springtime, and the weather feels amazing. It's like mid-70s, low-70s, so it feels perfect outside. Yes, it's beautiful. We're all bundled right now, but that's just because we are in Flagstaff, which does get a little colder than most of the area in Arizona. Mm-hmm. They even get snow here pretty regularly. We're actually full on matching, too. We are. That's not intended. We have a lot in store for our week in Arizona. We are starting off the first part of this trip here in Flagstaff. We're going to be exploring the Grand Canyon. We're going to go to Williams. We're going to go up to Page, where they have all the cool, iconic things that you see on social media. Very excited about that. We're very pumped. We have never done that before, so we're excited to go up there. Mm-hmm. Also, I want to mention, we are staying in a really cool hotel. It's super cool. I don't know how much you can see it in the background right now, but it is a retro hotel inspired by the 60s, because that was when it first was created. They actually remodeled this hotel. Someone out of California took it over and fully renovated it and decided to keep that 60s theme going. They killed it. This is the coolest hotel. It's brand new, 60s vibe, retro all the way. Fully renovated. It is so cool, guys. It's beautiful. We love it so much. It's got a space theme, so there's actually a spaceman that's out front. It's really cool. Lots of theme. Everything is just very 60s. We've got the wood paneling. Well, it's not really paneling. I don't know what you call that, but wood walls. Yeah. It's really, really cool. As you can see, the retro colors, it's just super, super cool. It's called the Americana Motor Hotel, and even the lobby is just insane. It's so sick. They've got a really cool pool. Lots of fun amenities. Yeah. It just opened last year, July 2023. Yeah. Everything is very new and very beautiful. What's also really cool is that they have fiesta Fridays, pool day Sundays. They have DJs. They have an on-site restaurant. They have bikes that you can rent. They even have a telescope that you can go check out the stars at night. Yeah, because we're actually a little less than 10 minutes from downtown, so you can ride the bikes to downtown, which is really great. Yeah. It's just really cool. I know. We're so excited. Yeah. We're going to actually get ready here and go hit up downtown Flagstaff, maybe do some shopping and get some dinner, and we'll show you what we get into. Yep. Let's do it. Take me to a river. Take me to a mountain. Take me to a blue sky. Take me to a garden. Just tell me when we're going. New day here in Arizona. Updating you on last night, Megan and I ended up heading downtown and shopping around, going in and out of a couple of shops. One of our favorite shopping spots is the Old Town Shops. They have a bunch of different style shops, mainly shops for women and girls, and they've converted this kind of like an industrial space and created a bunch of different shops. I believe it's all one owner, so he owns a bunch of different stores, but they're all targeted to different age ranges or styles and things like that, and it's actually a really cool spot. Megan found a really awesome outfit there last time, so we had to go back because she was hoping to get a good steal this time too. She actually did find a bunch of really good stuff, some sweatshirts and T-shirts and things. She didn't end up snagging one, but she probably will before we leave. Got to wait until also, yes, I'm putting on my makeup. I look crazy. But got to wait and check out all the other shops before I make a decision on something. I know. It's hard to make a commitment right off the jump because you want to make sure you're making the right choice. After that, we ended up walking around downtown a little bit. The sun was setting and it was so beautiful. Flagstaff is so historical. It's got so much history there. They were doing a walking tour as we were walking around, and I guess they do ghost tours there. The tour guide was telling all these ghost stories, which kind of makes sense. Yeah, it kind of makes sense. We are on Route 66, very historical highway to the West. Who knows all the things and stories that have happened coming to the West on Route 66. The town is very beautiful though. It's got a bunch of really beautiful old-timey buildings and hotels that they've converted into restaurants and things like that. So cute, beautiful spot. After that, we ended up walking over to a suggestion from one of the retail store workers. She suggested that we go to this place downtown called Pizzacletta, which there are two locations. There is a downtown location that's a part of Dark Sky Brewing Company, and they kind of work as like separate little entities. So we had a Dark Sky Brewing waiter, and we also had a Pizzacletta server as well. So they were kind of both running the show there. Highly recommend it. The pizza was incredible. We ended up starting off though with some roasted olives. Similar to roasted peanuts, but it's roasted olives. And holy cow, delicious. They were a little spicy, but they actually were really good. Megan liked them, surprisingly, because she's not a spice girl, but I really liked them. And I hate olives, but those were pretty good. I liked the spice on them. And we ended up getting a salad, which the salad was massive. And it was only $10, and honestly, we could have just eaten that. It was so big. And then we ordered a margarita pizza. It was so good. The rumor from the girl that suggested it said that they actually import the dough from Italy. I didn't confirm that, but that's what she said. And she was saying the dough is so light, and she was so right. The dough is very light, and it was amazing. We ended up getting a couple of beers from the place there. Can't remember what they were called, but do recommend it. It was very cheap. We ended up both getting two 5-ounce drinks, and they only cost $3. Very affordable and very good. The whole deal was very affordable. It only cost us $45 total to eat there, which was incredible. So today we woke up. We went to Dutch Bros to start off, got some drinks, and made our way down the road 30 minutes away to Williams, Arizona. So this is a very popular historical town on Route 66. Megan's finishing getting ready here, and we're going to hop out and explore the town, and we'll show what we get into. I want to know from the king. I'm the king of rock and roll, and I have some words of wisdom to bring you much happiness as you travel through this life. Remember this. If you think you can or you think you can't, you're right. Was that it? Yeah. What'd you get? Your fortune? Yeah. You got to say what it is. I will read it out. Okay. What's it say? All right. A wise old owl sat on an oak. The more he sat, the less he spoke. The less he spoke, the more he heard. Why can't you be like that, wise old bird? Yes, my friend. Your greatest fault is that you talk too much. How did they know? I learned to keep a secret. However, your other golden qualities make up for your talkativeness, your anxiety to help others, and your consideration of other people's wishes has earned you many friends. Bro, Elvis really is wise. He knows you. So we've made it up to the Grand Canyon from Williams, Arizona. Guys, Williams is really cool. It is super cool. It's definitely not a place I'd recommend spending the whole day. It's a place you could probably just drop in. Stop in, see. Kind of like we did. Yeah, walk around, go to the shops. We were honestly only there for about an hour. Walked through the shops, got some good photos and stuff. And it is really cool to see because there's such rich history of things there. Oh yeah, absolutely. And also it's kind of beautiful with like the Route 66 signs. And we actually ended up meeting this guy. His name was Buck Williams and he was such a character. Yeah. He had so many stories. He was one of the robbers for like, how long did he say? Like 15 years, 20 years? One of the robbers in the show that they do in Williams. Yeah, so they do like a cowboy show during Memorial Day to Labor Day, which is really popular. And they also do, if you take the train from Williams to the Grand Canyon, which is also very popular. We didn't do it, but they have guys on horses and they like ride along the train and they like stop the train and they come on and like try to take people's money and stuff. Which is ironic that he was a robber for that because he was in the police force for like 20 years. That was so funny. But yes, so, so cool. It's such an interesting place. And if you do have time and the money to do it, the train does look really cool and it ends up spending like three or four hours up here and then you take the train back, which is cool. So we picked up some lunch. We're actually going to go try to, we're going to find, we're going to go find a spot to picnic and we'll show you what we end up. So we found our lunch spot. Cheers. We're just finishing up here. Look at this view guys. Absolutely beautiful. It's stunning. There's a lot of really great like lookout points that you can have to yourself and have some quiet time and peaceful just enjoying the views. Yeah, a lot of little spots off the trail. We're on the rim, the rim trail and it's so nice. Yeah. We're near Mather point, I believe it's called. It's perfect. There are a lot of other spots along the South Rim where you can actually drive to and kind of pull off. We have not done that before, but I have seen where other people would do that. We're just finishing up here. We're going to go explore the Grand Canyon a little more and maybe go on a little trail and show what we get into. Let's do it. So we're on the Bright Angel Trail. We really haven't walked very far, maybe like a quarter of a mile. This is actually considered one of the most dangerous trails in the park because it is very steep and if you keep going down, it can be really hard to get back up. People need a lot of water and it gets really, really hot as you go down into the canyon and you can get really sick. This is a really beautiful trail though. They have an awesome spot where there's like a doorway that's cut through and the sun shines through and it's just so beautiful. There's a great spot for photos. It is so beautiful right here. What do you think about it, Mae? I think it's so stunning and it's even prettier than I remember from the first time. When we were here in 2017, we walked much further than we anticipated and the trek back up really got us. So we're not making that mistake this time, but it's a beautiful trail just to stroll down the first little, like not even a mile, and get some really great shots here. We actually shot our photos the last time on like an iPhone 6 and whatever iPhone was the first portrait mode, we shot that on our iPhones here and those photos were so beautiful. If I can find them, we'll throw them in here because they are so pretty. We were just so impressed that we got those photos. So now we're taking some to have some new ones. Yeah, I know. It's so awesome kind of like reliving some of the stuff that we did back in 2017. It's so fun and like a lot of the memories are like really coming back and it's so fun and so cool. But yes, this is a really cool one. They actually have mule rides, I believe, down this trail. We've actually run into some mule poop as we were coming down. Yeah, and there's a lot of signs about it. Actually, you're supposed to stay on the inside of the trail when the mules pass by, which is crazy. That means the mules are on the edge. I know. It is crazy. This is beautiful. This part of the park is gorgeous. They've got a really cool gift shop. They've got a really cool store, a bunch of really awesome lookouts. We got some photos up there earlier. We'll throw them in right here. We're going to head our way back up and get some more videos and photos and we're going to try to catch the sunset. We'll see you up there. It's so cold right now, guys. But it is also so beautiful. It is so beautiful. The sunset's here, man. I remember the last time we were here, it just looked like cotton candy in the sky and it does again. Yes. It's so gorgeous. Cotton candy on the rocks. I know. It brings out all of the purples and blues in the rocks. And I love this time of day because you can see all the layers and all their different colors. Yeah. Whereas when the sun's overhead, it's a little more harsh, so you don't get to see all of that variation in color. For sure. And it's so pretty. It's gorgeous. It is really cold. The wind is blowing pretty hard. It's cold. But yes, we love this sunset. We got some really good pictures up here. We'll throw them in right here. But yeah, I guess we're going to go find some food. Yeah. I'm hungry. We'll see you back at the place. New day here. We are actually on our way up to Page today. We're going to be exploring Page and seeing all the things that Page has to offer. The last time that we were in Arizona, we didn't come up to Page because it was a little far. It is about a two hour drive. Yes. And you do have to have reservations for some of the things that you want to do here. We got those reservations and we're going to be exploring. Last night, we ended up watching the sunset and it was so beautiful. It was so beautiful. So beautiful. We didn't get to see any elk like we did last time. No. So that made me sad. Yeah. Surprisingly. But it was still so gorgeous. That sunset right there is amazing. We ended up meeting a couple from Georgia that's literally just maybe 45 minutes from where we are. They took our photo and then we took theirs. We're like, where are you from? And they're like, just down the road basically. Yeah. Which is insane. Those moments make the world feel small for sure. Yes. Definitely. The Grand Canyon, we love it so much. It's so beautiful. It's definitely worth the drive up there. And I definitely recommend doing a mule ride. We did that last time and it was one of the most memorable experiences for us on any trip that we've done. Absolutely. Yes. And it was just really, really cool. And it's an affordable excursion and it's booked through the National Park. Definitely worth it. More than worth it. Yeah. We actually met a couple before dinner and they were doing it today and we were telling them how amazing it is. Yes. And so they were really hyped up about it. It's just a really unique experience too. So definitely one you should add to your bucket list. Yeah. The last time we did it, the mules were like coming all the way to the edge of the canyon, literally dropping off. If we have any video, I think we might do. Oh, we do. So we'll have to add it in. We'll throw them in here for sure. And yeah, but they walk right up to the canyon and they're like eating and stuff and it's just so crazy. We were so scared. Yeah, we were scared. It was only our mules. Yeah. Of course. We had the crazy ones. We were at the very end of the line. So the tour guide was like way ahead and our mules kept going right up to the edge of the canyon and was eating the shrubs on the side and they were just doing it together. They were doing everything together. It was so crazy. It was. Yeah. They said that we had the most stubborn ones. They did. They really did. Yeah. They said that. Megan and I always end up with the stubborn mules or horses. Yeah. I don't know why, but it's fine. We handle it. I loved them though. They were great. They were so sweet. You definitely do that. If you're able to do it. But yeah, after that, we ended up getting some dinner last night at the Grand Canyon. Yeah, I think it was called El Topar or something. Something like that. El Topar. I don't know. Something like that. We ended up just waiting in the lounge area and you just basically just wait to be seated there. You don't put your name down or anything. You just wait in line and they'll sit you. And it's actually, if you get there at a good time, they have a window that you can actually see the sunset. Yeah. So it's actually, it's the cocktail lounge just to specify. From the lounge. Yeah. It was great. I ended up getting a vegetarian chili and Megan ended up getting a lobster roll. Yes. I got the lobster roll. El Topar. Yep. And we ended up getting some truffle fries and they were really good. And I got a prickly pear margarita and Megan got. I got the Moscato Dioste. So just sparkling Moscato. And it was so good. They've got a lot of great restaurants, a lot of great shopping, museums and all those kinds of things. Yeah. There was actually about 10 restaurants you could choose from that was all around the area, right? That's what that was on that sheet of paper. Yeah. They've got a lot of great museums and things like that for you to hop in and see. And it's a great spot. We've never been to any other part of the Grand Canyon but the South Rim. Yeah. And the architecture is really cool up there too. All of the little buildings that are on the side of the canyon, which is. It's kind of crazy. Just blows our minds to think about. It's really, really cool looking too. One last thing before we sign off here. I wanted to mention that we saw some condors. Yeah, two. Two condors, which is so rare. They're such a rare thing to see. And as soon as we got to the canyon yesterday, they were sitting on the edge of the cliff and it was so cool. And then we got to see them take flight from where they were sitting. So it was really, really neat. What a special moment. Yeah. But yeah, so we're going to head into Page and go explore for the day and we'll show what we get into. Yep. So we just stopped off at the cave behind the Shell gas station. I honestly don't know what it's actually called, but that's why people are calling it on social media. It is so random that you don't have to pay anything. You just drive behind the Shell gas station and walk up. It's like maybe a quarter of a mile, if even that. Meg's getting us set up for some shots. It is super epic here, right? Yes. Oh my gosh. It's so cool. What the heck? Yeah. So random. And it's not crowded, or at least from our experience. So very cool. Super cool. It's immediately as you come into Page, so a great time just to kind of just pull off, maybe fill up with gas, get you a snack, and then come up here and get some pictures and stuff. But yeah, Meg's going to get us set up. We're going to get some shots and we'll show what they look like. So we just got done with Antelope Canyon. Highly recommend. That was sick. It was totally worth the money. We ended up spending, I think it was, we did the upper Antelope Canyon and it was like $100 a person, basically. Totally worth it. It was awesome. The tour guide was amazing. She takes all your photos. Yeah, she was wonderful. She gives you tips on how to make sure you're getting the right shot and stuff, which I loved so much. That was really clutch and cool. Because people aren't just going willy nilly in there, just shooting like crazy. She's telling you what to do and getting the- Yeah, that was so nice. She kind of kept it organized, the shots organized for everyone. For sure. So that was really, really nice. Kind of like cycling the group through to get their pictures and stuff, which was really One thing we were nervous about that we didn't know they did was she literally sits there and takes photos of each person in the group in the picturesque spots. So that was super nice. That was awesome. Loved it. Yeah, it was so beautiful just learning about the canyon. And what's really crazy is that they haven't had a flash flood in a while and they haven't been having them as frequently. And so the sand is really building up within the canyon. And supposedly it's about 20 to 30 feet higher than it's supposed to be because they're getting a flash flood maybe once every year, every year and a half maybe. And that's pretty crazy. Especially because she showed us photos of the before and after. And where we were standing for a lot of the shots today, a few years ago, people were looking up at those spaces, which was nuts. Yes. Yeah. She said like 20 feet almost of sand that has like come through and piled up. So it was insane. Because the flash flood basically cleans it all out and it just kind of keeps it moving and stuff like that. But yeah, very cool. Loved it so much. Highly recommend it. Now we are getting ready to go hike towards the Horseshoe Bend, the iconic spot. Iconic? Iconic spot. And we're going to go check the sunset out over there. Yes, I'm so glad we're here for sunset. He said it's about a 15 minute walk in and then we're about 30 minutes, 45 minutes out from sunset. So hopefully the timing is just right. I think it's going to be perfect. Yeah. All right, we'll show you guys what it looks like. So new day here in Arizona. Last night, guys, the Horseshoe Bend was epic. Yes. Totally worth going there for sunset. Sunset. It is so beautiful. Yeah. It was so worth it. Highly recommend doing that. And it was honestly really crowded and a bit scary. Yes. Yeah. It was definitely more dangerous than I ever knew just because the overlook is literally like the edge of the, I don't know, what do you call it? Canyon? I don't know. There's only just a really short space that is fenced off and everything else is just open and it's a straight drop off. And you know, a lot of times it's more of an illusion with photos at like iconic spots like that. So it's not like a straight drop off. This one is a straight drop off. It is extremely intense and we were just not expecting that. And there were so many kids running around and the wind was blowing so strong. So we were genuinely nervous and like nervous for other people and the kids. Definitely if you're going there with kids, make sure that you have them in sight. Yes. Because there's definitely some parts where the canyon kind of cuts in and it just drops straight down. Yeah. There's like divots in the rock where you walk and it's like fully straight down to the bottom. But outside of that, very beautiful. Very cool. Oh yeah. So worth it. Absolutely worth it. It was about a half a mile walk from the parking lot. Easy walk. It's on a trail, but you know, it's, and it's out in the open. Yeah. Nothing too strenuous, but it was longer than we expected. We got some pictures right there. We'll throw them in right here. So the sunset was beautiful. So perfect. Horseshoe Bend is also just so wonderful because in all the pictures, it looks like everyone gets the same shot and you're like having to wait on the one spot. And I just want to point out that it's actually all around the Horseshoe Bend where you can actually get good photos. So it was super crowded when we went for sunset, but that didn't keep us from getting some really good shots because there are a lot of different like photo opportunities all around it. Yeah. And it's so big and vast that honestly you can't even tell like what's the center because it's so big. Yes. So yeah, that's, that's definitely a key there with that is that you can really just walk around the whole area and end up getting a good shot. Yeah. But yeah. So after that we ended up going over to Big John's Barbecue and we wanted to go there because we drove by the first time it was like so busy. Yeah. It was, it looked like the place to be. So we understood why they had really cool music. This, these older guys were up there playing country music, which is cool. We sat outside and we ended up getting a brisket plate with a rack of ribs. We weren't like super hungry. So we decided to share their barbecue plate that had a little bit of everything. So we got ribs, a brisket sandwich, potato salad, and baked beans. And then we also got a side salad and a side of the cornbread muffins. Ooh, you guys, it was so good. It was really good. Yeah. That place was packed and it was so good. And it was like nine o'clock when we were there. So yeah, it was really good. Yesterday, the drive up from Flagstaff was actually really cool. We saw a really crazy mural on the way up. We didn't end up telling you guys about this, but there was this crazy mural where it was It was on the way to Cameron, like probably 15 minutes out, right? So there's actually an artist we found out after the fact. There's an artist that does murals on the side of abandoned buildings. And it's all really beautiful, really incredible meanings and messages behind his murals. And so we like loved that and were drawn to it. And then this like audio started playing out of the intercom. And so it was, it actually scared us so much. Yeah. I was like, how does anyone know that we're even here? Like it wasn't playing. And then you walk up to it and it starts playing. So it must have some type of sensor. And we were like loving the message and like loving it all and taking it all in. And then all of a sudden it was like this water dropping sound that echoes around the building. That was so crazy. Super creepy. Yeah, it was. It was honestly so crazy. It like threw us off. But it was really cool. There's a lot of cool things to see on the drive up. There's really not much going on, but the views are still really pretty. There's like a really cool like little shopping space and Cameron with a really cool trading post with a bridge and stuff like that. And there's some wild horses all the way throughout, which was really cool. Horses and cows. Yeah. The drive is really beautiful up from Flagstaff to Page. It is. A lot of really pretty views and just like really unique views. Like some of it, you look like you're on a different planet. It looks like you're on Mars. Yeah. Oh my gosh. Yeah, for sure. It was really cool. But yeah, overall, we had a great time exploring the Northern Arizona, Page, Grand Canyon, Williams, all the things. Flagstaff, it was also wonderful. Yeah, highly recommend staying in Flagstaff. It's a cool spot and it's such a cool town. They've got a lot to do and it's kind of convenient to all the things that you'd want to see with like Sedona and Page and Grand Canyon and all that stuff. And every time we come, we wish we would have had longer to explore all the areas. You could really spend a full week here and not see all the things you want to see. Yeah. But yeah, that's going to wrap our time up in Northern Arizona. Next stop is Sedona. As you see here, we are going to be exploring Sedona. Yeah, this morning we're in Sedona, so stay tuned for that vlog. Yep. Remember to like, subscribe, follow us on Instagram, TikTok. All the things. All right, we'll see you guys in Sedona. This is where I want to stay. I could do this every day.