Need help planning our big trip

[Emily in FL]

We will soon be driving to Tucson and the Grand Canyon. I have a few ideas for places to visit while we are there, but would love to have suggestions for places to eat or sights to see at our stops. We won't have very long at each stop, but want to get as much out of our trip as possible. Here are our planned stops.

 

Baton Rouge, LA

Katy, TX

Fort Stockton, TX

Deming, NM

Tucson,AZ

Williams, AZ

Gallup, NM

Tucumcari, NM

Lawton, OK

Prescott, AR

Vicksburg, MS

Spanish Fort, AL

 

I would appreciate any suggestions you have. If you know any allergy friendly restaurants in these towns, I would love to know that also. TIA!

:001_smile:

[TheCoffeeChick]

We went to Williams AZ last march and took the train up to the Grand Canyon from there...it was a blast. The dc loved the staged "hold-up", my ds even spoke to the robbers and the sheriff that came through the train. Also the show before the train ride was pretty fun. I would definitely recommend doing this!

[Emily in FL]

We went to Williams AZ last march and took the train up to the Grand Canyon from there...it was a blast. The dc loved the staged "hold-up", my ds even spoke to the robbers and the sheriff that came through the train. Also the show before the train ride was pretty fun. I would definitely recommend doing this!

 

I just saw this option in a travel guide today. How long does it take? We have only one day to see the canyon. It sounds like a lot of fun though! Thanks for the input!

[DIY-DY]

Here are our planned stops.

 

Baton Rouge, LA

Katy, TX

Fort Stockton, TX

Deming, NM

Tucson,AZ

Williams, AZ

Gallup, NM

Tucumcari, NM

Lawton, OK

Prescott, AR

Vicksburg, MS

Spanish Fort, AL

 

I would appreciate any suggestions you have. If you know any allergy friendly restaurants in these towns, I would love to know that also. TIA!

:001_smile:

 

This is going to sound weird, and I certainly don't mean any offense to anyone who lives in these towns, but may I ask why you chose them as you did? Almost any town in the west or southwest has attractions and *something* to see, somewhere, so it's a great place to travel. But it does seem that some of your stopping points aren't where the "good stuff" is for sight-seeing and visiting. (Just my Very Humble Opinion - and I do stress that!!!)

 

Gallup - There are some neat events that take place, and you might catch some of them, depending on your timing. You could also hit the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest on I-40 before you hit the NM border. And there's Shiprock, also. (You can get menudo and fry bread at the KFC in Shiprock!)

 

Did you pick Deming b/c of distance? Or does it have some actual appeal for you? We only stop there for more coffee and a pit stop, and I think the only thing to do or see there is their annual duck race. But if you don't mind stopping in Las Cruces, the NM Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum is *fantastic*!! Stahmann's Farms is also fun, as the largest pecan farm in the US. Deming is only an hour or so from Cruces, so you could still hit Deming by nightfall, if you needed to.

 

I think Lawton has a military museum of some sort, but don't quote me on that. The last time I was there was for a basic training graduation, and I remember being struck by the fact that it wasn't a tourism hot-spot, so to speak.

 

The Tucson area brings you near the Sonoran Desert Museum (it's really great, particularly if you're not from the area and would like to see the variety of plants and animals in the desert region), as well as San Xavier del Bac - very cool stuff. There's a pioneer museum just north of Phoenix, by Deer Valley (going north on I-17, so it would be on your way) that has a lot of hands on exhibits and such. Very fun, but check with them on their schedule ahead of time, as the hours are wonky.

 

There's plenty to see/do along I-40 between Gallup and Albuquerque, before you go through the pass toward Tucumcari. Tucumcari has a dinosaur museum. It's been ages since I've been there, though, so I don't know how it is. There are scads of things to see/do in NM, in general. The pueblos are interesting, and Chama, if you're interested in Native American history and culture.

 

Oh, and Arizona has a very lively alternative culture, so finding healthy markets and allergy-friendly menus won't be too much of a challenge, there. I'm not familiar with the towns you listed, but I know that Flagstaff and Prescott (AZ, not AR) both have a wonderful selection - and since Tucson is larger, it's probably got even more to offer.

 

That's about all I can help with. I do think you'll have a fantastic time, no matter where you stop, or what you do. The locals are great. The scenery is striking. The weather is pretty fantastic. And the food can be to die for!

[Donna]

Some of our stops will be Santa Fe for the Children's Museum, food, and farmer's market. Along the way between Santa Fe and Grand Canyon...Petrified Forest, Painted Desert, Meteor Crater, and pueblos.

 

We won't be going any further south into AZ than I-40. Thanks Dy for all the other great ideas.

[Emily in FL]

This is going to sound weird, and I certainly don't mean any offense to anyone who lives in these towns, but may I ask why you chose them as you did? Almost any town in the west or southwest has attractions and *something* to see, somewhere, so it's a great place to travel. But it does seem that some of your stopping points aren't where the "good stuff" is for sight-seeing and visiting. (Just my Very Humble Opinion - and I do stress that!!!)

 

 

No offense taken! :) Actually, we did pick these places because of distance. We estimated at what times we would need to stop for lunch and for the night as we travel. We really won't have time to see everything anyways, but would like to see as much as we can when we do stop. Even in our very little town that I would describe as full of nothing, has a nice little pioneer settlement to tour.

 

We are taking I-10 on the way to Tucson. Our stop in Prescott, AR is because we have friends that live there.

 

Thank you so much for the suggestions. I'm sure that we will have to have plenty of potty breaks in between our official stops since we are traveling with our children. So any other suggestions for stops along the way are greatly appreciated as well.

:001_smile:

[Brindee]

Are you including going to Four Corners while around the Gallup, NM area? It's pretty cool to be in 4 states at once! That can be a 5 minute thing if you want it to be, or it can last longer. We went in the winter (I was living in the Farmington area of NM then), cuz that's when my sister could come. It was kind of nice, because there weren't a lot of people there. Problem was, though, that there were also no booths with Native crafts and foods open then either.

[Rhonda in TX]

We were there back in September. The train trip was so much fun. Our kids got a lot of attention since they were some of the few kids on the train (since public school was in session). My only advice is to take a sack lunch rather than eating at a restaurant at the canyon. It took too long and we felt very rushed seeing the canyon.

 

It can be a day trip. We went up that morning and came back that night.

 

You'll see lots of signs on I-10 west of Katy to stop at Buckey's. If you need to stop for a break, it's a great place. You can get a quick bite (deli style, I believe), and the bathrooms are very clean. We were impressed.

 

We went to Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. From there, we went to Albuquerque, so I think our route differs from yours.

 

Don't miss Sedona, AZ. Beautiful!

 

Between Albuquerque and Flagstaff is the Meteor Crater and the Painted Desert. Probably out of your way, but I thought I'd mention them.

 

We had a wonderful trip. We were gone for a week and want to do another.

[Emily in FL]

Are you including going to Four Corners while around the Gallup, NM area? It's pretty cool to be in 4 states at once!

 

I had thought about Four Corners, but ruled it out because it is too far out of the way for us. Thanks for the suggestion though!