Flagstaff, Arizona

Flagstaff is close the one of the Wonders of the Natural World, the Grand Canyon. If you visit Flagstaff on your way to the Grand Canyon, and many tourists do because it's right on the way for many travelers, you also get the bonus of staying near six other natural wonders of the world. The most well-known of these is Oak Creek Canyon. The other five of the Seven Wonders of Flagstaff are:

1. Meteor Crater
2. Walnut Canyon
3. San Francisco Peaks
4. Sunset Crater
5. Wupatki National Monument

A bird's eye view, or if you go up in a helicopter, or if you get to the top of the San Francisco Peaks, you will notice that Flagstaff is a city set in an island of trees. There are ponderosa pine forests as far as you can see in every direction branching out from the city. Flagstaff is on an elevation of 7,000 feet, which means its climate is cooler than all other cities in Arizona. This makes it a popular place to visit and live. It's also near some very high peaks, like Agassiz Peak, so it's one of the most popular ski resort areas in the area, and definitely the best one in all of Arizona.

What to See in Flagstaff

Begin your day in Flagstaff at the Flagstaff Visitors Center, where you can get all sorts of information on things to do. It's downtown, which is also a good place to start your tour of Flagstaff. The old downtown area is typical old west style architecture, with buildings from the 1800s, made of brick and with a frontier aspect to them. The shops are interesting and practical, with lots of students from Northern Arizona University creating lots of foot traffic in the area. The old downtown is definitely not suffering from any sort of decay or neglect. Neither is it suffering from gentrification, yuppification, or an overabundance of expensive boutiques.

The old Victorian homes just off from the main downtown business area are beautiful to gaze at so you might want to work in a stroll down some side streets in your day. Some of the houses are made from volcanic lava rock! Also, take a look at the Weatherford Hotel, which was built of sandstone just before the turn of the twentieth century. It's listed on the National Register of Historic Places. You can stay here, as it's still a functioning hotel. Other interesting historical architecture include the McMillan Building, built in 1888. It's now an art gallery. There's also the Hotel Monte Vista, which is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It's not quite as old as the other buildings, built in the 1920s, but it has a fascinating history as a popular hangout for movie stars in the 1930s and 1940s. Even Northern Arizona University is historically interesting, and tourists can take tours of the Campus. While you're on campus, go to the Northern Arizona University Campus Observatory, which has public viewings on Friday nights. Climb up into the observatory for a look at the skies during the clearest part of the night, from 7:30pm to 10pm.

If you really like looking at the stars, also make sure to go to Lowell Observatory which is just a mile west of downtown. It dates back to 1894, when wealthy stargazer Percival Lowell built it and "discovered" canals on Mars. Real discoveries were eventually made from Lowell Observatory, such as the discovery of the planet Pluto. Because of Flagstaff's high elevation and clean air, Lowell Observatory continues to be a top spot for astronomers and students of astronomy for viewing the skies and the galaxy beyond.

Visit the Arboretum at Flagstaff, a 200-acre park with greenhouse and wetlands, nature trail, all sorts of gardens, and butterflies. You can spend an entire morning or afternoon here, perhaps the whole day if you love nature. Bring lunch and make use of the picnic area. There are herb gardens with a stunning variety of herb species here, as well as rare plants, and native wildflowers.