Flagstaff, AZ

Flagstaff is a vibrant, fascinating city that's always on the move. Recent developments have made it a tourism haven filled with many things to do.

Historic Downtown/Railroad District Downtown Flagstaff is presently undergoing a renaissance. Turn-of-the-century buildings are being renovated, new cafes and jewelry stores extend onto recently bricked sidewalks and narrow alleys are turned into arcades. For any visitor new to town, the first stop should be the Flagstaff Visitor Center, located inside the 1926 train depot at the Historic Railroad District. Flagstaff Historic Downtown is filled with unique, historic buildings, such as the Hotel Monte Vista. It's worth a stop to admire the nostalgic decor commemorating the times when Gary Cooper, Spencer Tracey, Jane Russell and other Hollywood stars of yesteryear lodged here.

University Area

Across the railroad crossing downtown, you'll find the Northern Arizona University campus. The area immediately south of the railroad is dominated by bars, cafes, hostels and shops catering to the student crowd, with Macy's European Coffee House being the favorite hangout for both locals and visitors. The University supports various arts and crafts exhibits as well as theater and music performances both on and off campus.

Adjacent to the campus, Riordan State Historic Park marks an interesting sight for history buffs. The park is actually two homes that were once occupied by lumber tycoons Michael and Timothy Riordan, furnished in appropriate 19th Century style with several exhibits detailing the lifestyle of the period.

Westside

Lowell Observatory sits about a mile west of downtown atop a pine-covered mesa. This is where, in 1902, amateur astronomer Percival Lowell determined that there must be another planet beyond Uranus and Neptune. In 1930, the planet was later actually detected and named Pluto. The Visitor Center features an interactive astronomy exhibit as well as a multimedia presentation. Evening visits are particularly interesting, as one of the telescopes is open for nighttime stargazing.

Fort Valley/North

The Coconino Center for the Arts and the Arts Barn, one of the focal points of cultural activity in Flagstaff, can be found north of the city. The Center houses a fine arts gallery, a bookshop and an auditorium for special events, while the Arts Barn next door contains a very good collection of Indian arts and crafts, including silver and turquoise jewelry. A little further up the road, surrounded by shady Ponderosa Pines, the Museum of Northern Arizona offers an excellent display of the geology and anthropology of the Colorado Plateau.

Northern Arizona

A 14-mile drive from downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180 will take you to the alpine meadows of Coconino National Forest. The dizzying heights of the San Francisco Peaks are reachable by taking the sky ride or hiking from the 9,500-foot base to the peak at 11,500 feet. While climbing, admire the awesome vistas of the Colorado Plateau and the volcanic cones jutting out from the plain. Although the Arizona Snow Bowl and the Flagstaff Nordic Center are primarily winter ski areas, the mountain is certainly worth a visit any time of the year, but particularly in the fall when nature turns the forest into a glorious symphony of colors.

Eastside

The Colorado Plateau is rich with remnants of the people that populated northern Arizona long before the arrival of European settlers. Just seven miles east of Flagstaff on I-40, lie the cliff dwellings of Walnut Canyon, the long-abandoned home for a band of Sinagua Indians who found shelter in its limestone caves some 800 years ago. The caves may be reached via a rather strenuous step trail, or the impressive view of the Canyon can be seen from a half-mile rim trail.

Nearby Sunset Crater Volcanic National Monument is also worth a visit. Tinged orange-red by iron oxide, this cinder cone is an impressive reminder of the area's violent geological past. Although Sunset Crater last erupted about 900 years ago, the jagged lava fields look as though they were created just yesterday. To the north, you'll see Wupatki National Monument, the Southwest's largest Indian ruin. The Wupatki Pueblo is a four-story village created from sandstone, with a ball court and an amphitheater whose function still puzzles anthropologists and archeologists.