Roadtrip to the Grand Canyon Tips and Suggestions

first and last days of the road trip will be uneventful there’s not much to see or do.
you could stop in San Antonio in either direction and do something fun

I’ve mapped that trip a couple times and you have the right idea...from Ft Stockton you could go to Marfa or Guadalupe/Carlsbad areas, then cut across southern NM and then catch saguaro and petrified forest on the way to the canyon. You might save one of those for the trip back

next year I think I will fly to PHX or LV and then rent a car and make that drive home

Frankly, I recommend staying in Sedona and just doing a day trip to the GC. One day is plenty of time.

Drive up 89 north from Flagstaff then cut back west along 64 and enter the park at Desert View. The drive along 64 is pretty cool and Desert View is much less crowded. Great views of the canyon and a really cool observation tower. Then, you can drive along the South Rim to the main visitors’ area which is a beautiful drive with plenty of stops along the way to view the Canyon. Parking may be more difficult at the main visitors’ area. That area is much more “touristy” but you should definitely spend some time there.

We drove up that way by mistake and we were so glad the universe guided us in from that direction. We had a much better experience.

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first and last days of the road trip will be uneventful there’s not much to see or do.
you could stop in San Antonio in either direction and do something fun

I’ve mapped that trip a couple times and you have the right idea...from Ft Stockton you could go to Marfa or Guadalupe/Carlsbad areas, then cut across southern NM and then catch saguaro and petrified forest on the way to the canyon. You might save one of those for the trip back

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if flagstaff is the final destination, then taking 49 to 20 to 40 might make more sense than taking 10. it would open a few more sightseeing options too.

Thanks everyone for the advise, here is what I have come up with so far:
Day 1: NOLA to San Antonio
Day 2: San Antonio to Roswell (Stopping at Carlsbad caverns, White Sands)
Day 3: Roswell to Flagstaff
Tour GC, Zion, Antelope Canyon (3days)

Day 7: Flagstaff to Wichita Falls
Day 8: Witchita Falls to NOLA

Travel days are all under 9 hrs with the exception of the Flagstaff\Wichita leg. Any must see attractions I am missing or better routes? I definitely would like to fit in a Cactus League game if possible.

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Day 2: San Antonio to Roswell (Stopping at Carlsbad caverns, White Sands)

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Instead of Roswell (which has nothing to do there), I would check out Cloudcroft. It’s a ski resort halfway between Carlsbad and White Sands.
Roswell has a winery and that’s about it. All the “Alien” stuff is closed down except a few gift shops and a museum.

We actually did Carlsbad and made it to White Sands in time for sunset, we drove through Cloudcroft.

It’s a drive from San Antonio to the Carlsbad/White Sands area, so I would even recommend going from SA to Carlsbad on day two and visiting the caverns. Then on day 3, go to White Sands in the morning, and then start heading west after lunch.

White Sands is amazing, but there is not much to do there but relax, enjoy a picnic, and take in the sight.

As a photographer, I say WS is a must at sunrise or sunset. When you go to WS, drive all the way to the back as far as you can. It is less crowded. If you have kids, buy a disk sled at the ranger station.

Carlsbad can be done in less than three hours if you take the elevator. You may run into about a 30 minute wait to go back up in the after noon.

Edit:
I just looked, it’s a 7 hour drive from SA to Carlsbad. You will gain an hour due to time zone, but I’m guessing you will stop at least once in seven hours. So, in order for you to do the caverns, you would need to leave SA about 5am to be there around noon.

It’s three hours from Carlsbad to White Sands, you will not be able to do both the caverns and White Sands in the same day if you are leaving SA the same day.

This is just me, but if I had to choose one or the other, I would by pass Carlsbad and go straight to Alamordo (White Sands). If you have young kids, I think they will enjoy WS better, especially if you get some sleds. I have one if you want to borrow it.

I just asked my daughter, who was 13 when we went two years ago, she says WS is a lot more fun than Carlsbad.

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Antelope Canyon

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Have you reserved the tour yet? I am hoping to go there this summer, but every tour is full in the three week window I’m wanting to go.

Or are there other tour companies that give tours?

Edit:
I found a couple more tour companies. AntelopeCanyon .com had no openings within the three weeks I’m planning the trip.

I called them, she told me about two others:
Antelope slot tours and navajotours.

I looked at slot tours, they have a lot still avail.

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Sedona

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Yeah you HAVE to visit Sedona. Most visited place in AZ after the Grand Canyon.