We decided to do a very random road trip during spring break. I always had Antelope Canyon on my bucket list but didn't think we would get to do it. So when Frankie suggested we do the Grand Canyon and Four Corners I mapped our the distance to each, and included Antelope Canyon as well as Monument Valley - which were all actually pretty close to each other. In total, I think the entire drive to and from El Paso was about 12-13 hours.
We drove directly to Four Corners, which was a quick 10 minute stop to get out, stretch our legs and snap a quick pic. They do charge $8/person (FYI).
After we left, we made our way to Monument Valley aka Forrest Gump Point. We didn't actually explore Monument Valley, we just did the scenic road for photos. By the way, be careful with pedestrians! There will be people in the middle of the road trying to take the same photos as well as re-enacting the Forrest Gump movie. This was beautiful, and I definitely recommend adding this spot to your road trip list if possible.
After Monument Valley we made our way to our hotel for the night. We grabbed some Texas bbq from this place two mins down the road from our hotel. There was about an hour wait, but the food was great.
The next day we woke up early and booked our tickets for Antelope Canyon, which was about a 10 minute drive from our hotel. I was really hoping to do a tour of the upper canyon because that one is known to be a better option for photography but none of the upper canyon tours allowed kids under 8 (Natalia is 2). Therefore we went with the lower canyon tour, but still got great photos. We used Ken's tours which was an hour long and had no complaints. TIP - If you are doing this with younger kids, you are not allowed to take bags, purses (unless clear), strollers, etc with you. Your little ones will need to be carried on the way down and up, which will require going up/down super steep ladders. Overall, Antelope Canyon was worth it. It's beautiful and definitely worth a trip. I am so glad we were able to get to do this.
After Antelope Canyon we checked out of our hotel and drove to our next hotel in Flagstaff. We wanted a closer room to the Grand Canyon which we did the next day. The drive from Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon was about an hour and a half. We spent maybe 3-4 hours there and walked about 5 miles of the Grand Canyon. The trails on the rim were stroller friendly. We didn't have any issues. The view is amazing. We've spent the last six years in the midwest, traveling to Vegas, and California but never made the stop to the Grand Canyon. I am glad we were able to get to do this too. And another tip, admission is free for Military. Normally it's $35 I think but you do need to show your military ID.
The next morning we packed up and made the drive back to Texas, which was about 8 hours from the GC. If you find yourself in El Paso (all my Military people!) add this to your travel list. When we leave El Paso in a few months I'd like to do another road trip and see Zion National park, Horseshoe bend, the wave, and a few other places that we didn't get to. There are a lot of road trip opportunities here, definitely take advantage.
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