Arizona

I’m the kind of traveler who actively roots for the underdog. Fancy resorts and crowded beaches? Hard pass. Give me a creaky wooden floor, a crackling campfire, and a town…

I’ll never forget the weekend I packed up my battered cooler, tied my favorite neon-pink floatie to the roof rack, and headed out for what I assumed would be a…

I used to think I knew good Mexican food. Then I moved to Arizona, gained ten pounds in my first month, and realized I was a mere amateur. Seriously, finding…

Arizona has a reputation for long highways and even longer drives, but I keep finding towns where the car can nap in a parking spot all afternoon. I am talking…

A good steak can make me forgive quite a lot, including a long drive, an empty stretch of highway, and the moment when my navigation makes me wonder if I…

My neighbors probably think I’m losing it. Every weekend, I stand in my yard staring at empty patches of dirt, sighing like a tragic poet longing for shade. If you’re…

I learned a hard lesson last August: never challenge a desert tomato to a staring contest. You will lose, and it will probably judge you. But seriously, finding truly great…

Arizona has a talent for hiding practical things inside places that look far too peaceful to be working. This park is a perfect example. You can hear water moving, find…

Keeping a beautiful little town secret was probably easier before everyone carried a camera and a map in their pocket. Arizona has learned that lesson more than once. This community…

My friends stage interventions whenever I mention the word “omakase.” They claim I have a problem, but I call it dedication. Living in Arizona means trading ocean breezes for brutal…

Arizona is very good at hiding green surprises in places that look far too dry to support them. That is what makes this trail so memorable. I started out expecting…

Grocery shopping has become the kind of errand where I check the receipt twice and wonder when a bag of basics started feeling like a major purchase. That is why…

I have made plenty of questionable breakfast decisions in Arizona, but ordering a cinnamon roll nearly as big as the plate would rank pretty high on the list. This café…

Some mornings call for plans. Others call for coffee, a hot breakfast, and absolutely nowhere to be afterward. This diner in Arizona is made for the second kind. This longtime…

Late summer has a way of making fruit pie seem like a perfectly reasonable life choice. When peaches, berries, cherries, and rhubarb are at their best, saying no to a…

If my apartment had even half the charm of this 1899 home, I would probably stop making excuses to redecorate it. Instead, I found myself sitting down for dinner inside…

I am notoriously terrible at grocery shopping on an empty stomach. Last week, that character flaw led me into a massive, 63,000-square-foot wonderland that completely rewired my brain. Let’s be…

Thursday used to be the least exciting day of my week. Then I found out Arizona had a once-a-week buffet that gives people an actual reason to look forward to…

The phrase “affordable retirement” usually comes with a catch, like sharing a studio apartment with a family of raccoons or living an hour away from the nearest human. So, when…

My husband thinks I’m clinically obsessed with finding hidden gems, but I prefer to call it a dedicated community service. So, when a friend swore up and down that I…

There is a very distinct threshold of desperation you reach when you’ve been driving through the desert long enough to start debating whether cactus water is a viable beverage. Mine…

I still remember the moment my sandals hit that granite and my brain refused to cooperate. Behind me sat palm trees, boat trailers, and desert heat shimmering off the pavement….

I’ll be honest, my house is dangerously close to becoming an uncontrolled rainforest. My significant other recently staged an intervention, threatening to evict me if I brought home one more…

If my waistline had a Yelp review, it would probably beg me to stop visiting this place. But honestly? Some temptations are just too good to resist. There is something…

I’ll be honest, the last thing I expected while strolling through a historic 19th-century farm was to be aggressively judged by a bird with a better wardrobe than me. But…

Look, I love a good taco as much as the next person, but sometimes my soul just craves carbs smothered in gravy. So, picture my sheer delight when I discovered…

My garage looks like a dragon’s hoard, and my spouse has officially threatened to evict my growing pile of “pretty rocks.” But can you really blame me? There’s an addictive,…

My husband officially banned me from bringing home any more throw pillows, but I am fully prepared to risk our marriage for this. Let me set the scene: I spent…

Have you ever tried eating a burger outside in August and immediately regretted every life choice that led you there? Yeah, me too. But fear not, my sun-baked friends, because…

Boarding the Southwest Chief in Arizona makes the Southwest feel suddenly much bigger and much easier to explore. One minute you are settling into a window seat, and before long…

I’ve always considered myself a responsible adult. I pay my taxes, I floss, and I generally follow the rules. But put me in control of a gravity-powered cart hurtling down…

Growing up, my relationship with citrus was strictly transactional: I peeled an orange, I ate the orange, I felt mildly annoyed by the sticky fingers. That was until I wandered…

I am a responsible adult with incredible self-control. At least, that’s what I told myself right up until the moment I walked past the front window of the ultimate crafter’s…

I’ll admit it, my idea of roughing it usually involves a hotel with slow Wi-Fi. But when my buddy swore up and down that a desert oasis with a swimmable…

My doctor says I should eat more fish for my health, but I’m pretty sure deep-fried perfection drenched in zesty chipotle crema isn’t quite what they had in mind. Still,…

There are two types of people in this world. Those who wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for a sunrise hike, and those of us who need three eggs, a mountain…

By the time August rolls around, my kids are feral, my vacation budget is weeping, and I am surviving entirely on iced coffee and denial. To rescue what was left…

This Arizona adventures one starts with animals deciding you look interesting. Just outside the bustle of Scottsdale, a working ranch hides a walk-in petting zoo where visitors can meet farm…

Arizona summer has a talent for making a swimming pool look like the greatest invention in human history. Add an adults-only rule, and suddenly the idea gets even better. This…

We all know waterslides give you a gentle push and a few seconds to settle in. This Arizona ride has a different idea. You step into a capsule, stand over…

Buying one plant sounds like a perfectly reasonable weekend activity. The problem begins when the garden center behind that plant has acres and acres of growing fields feeding your imagination….

Some bookstores are made for a quick stop. These Arizona shops are the kind that can quietly steal an entire afternoon. I always tell myself I am going in for…

Some grocery stores are built for speed. These Arizona markets seem determined to make you forget what decade you are in. Think creaky floors, handwritten signs, old-fashioned counters, shelves packed…

My road trip planning usually revolves around one important question: where am I stopping for snacks? But a drive along Historic Route 66 in Arizona delivered something far more memorable…

My husband knows the rule: never take me grocery shopping when I’m hungry, and never, under any circumstances, hide the pastries. I have a massive soft spot for old-school bakeries,…

My wife recently threatened to ban me from the backyard because my rock collection has officially started competing with the flower beds. In Arizona, that is an easy problem to…

I used to think my hometown was a well-kept secret, the kind of lakeside paradise where you could actually hear yourself think over a cold drink. Then summer arrived. If…

I’ll be honest, my bank account and my wanderlust rarely get along. Every time I see a picture of a breathtaking canyon or a lush green forest, I hear my…

My friends know I’m a bit obsessed with finding the ultimate roadside diner. So, when a buddy whispered about a tiny, family-run spot in northern Arizona that apparently serves pancakes…

High on a rugged mountainside, a 75-foot Celtic cross rises above the landscape and commands attention from miles away. Beside it, a 31-foot statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary stands…