Sedona, Arizona is a spectacular red rock wonderland that is just bursting with incredible hikes! And with so many great Sedona hikes to choose from, it can be really hard to figure out which hikes will be easy enough for kids, yet exciting enough for your whole family. This is where I’d like to help.
Listed below are our family’s 5 favorite easy to moderate hikes in Sedona. These 5 hikes were easy enough for our 6 year old and they were all incredibly fun for our whole family. For each hike, I listed the trail’s length, difficulty, average hiking time, the number of trailhead parking spaces and even if there are any toilets at the trailhead! (Personally I think every trail should readily list if there are toilets at the trailhead & if there are any toilets along the trail itself!)
In this list, there are several different kinds of trails that your family might like. You may be looking for a family-friendly climb to the top of a small mountain for awe inspiring views and breathtaking sunsets or for a hike that lets you frolic across a creek 13 times through a gorgeous canyon. Or perhaps your family prefers to meander among the towering red rock formations that have made Sedona a famous worldwide hiking destination? These are just a few of the outstanding hikes your family can choose from in Sedona. Read on to find out more about our 5 Favorite Amazingly Easy Hikes in Sedona for Your Family’s “Traveling Feet!”
Fees:
Most hikes in Sedona require a Red Rocks Pass ($5 day pass/ $15 week pass) or accept the America the Beautiful Pass (& the Free Every 4th Grader in a Park Pass) displayed in your car when you park at the trailhead. (The West Fork Trail is an exception. Here you pay when you enter the gated area.)
Fay Canyon Trail is an easy and beautiful hike in Sedona with a stunning finish! (see picture above) With very little elevation change and lots of opportunity for shade, this is a great trail that can be enjoyed by all ages and all year-round.
Trail Details:
Trail Length: 2.4 mile Out-and-Back
Elevation Change: Relatively Flat Main Trail (383′ if hiking the to the Arch & the rock scramble addition at the end.)
Trail Difficulty: Easy (Moderate if hiking the optional side trail to an Arch & the rock scramble addition at the end)
Hiking Time: ~1 hour 30 mins (not including the optional side trail to an arch)
Parking at Trailhead: 30 spaces
Toilets at Trailhead: Yes
Fay Canyon Sunset Hike
Our family loved hiking Fay Canyon Trail. We chose to hike this trail in the evening and we recommend doing this to experience the vibrant colors that come alive near sunset upon these red rocks. For our family, we began our hike about 2.5 hours before sunset. This helped us avoid the heat of the day and have some extra shade. It also allowed us plenty of time to walk out of the canyon before the sun completely set.
If you are looking to try this as a sunset hike as well, make sure you have a good flashlight or headlamp with you just in case you find yourself enjoying the spectacular view at the end of the trail a little bit longer than you were originally anticipating.
The Arch Side Trail:
Keep an eye out for the Arch Side Trail, off to the right at just under 1 mile in. This spur trail takes you up a hill to an arch which is pretty unique.
(Unfortunately this trail can be hard to find. And even knowing it was there, our family was unable to locate it.) Hopefully your family has better luck!
The Awesome Rock Scramble at the End (Optional)
At the end of Fay Canyon Trail there is a short (optional) rock scramble to a breathtaking elevated viewpoint. (See the first photo of Fay Canyon for this fantastic view.) This short rock scramble begins at the end of the main, flat trail so if any party members don’t want to go up it, they can just wait at the bottom here.
Family Tip: This rock scramble looks scarier than it was. In fact this was our children’s favorite part of the trail!
(Our youngest was 6 (almost 7 years old) and he had no problem hiking this. But we were only able to go 3/4 of the way up because the sun was starting to set and I was a little paranoid about getting out of the canyon before it got dark. I hope this helps in your family hiking planning.)
Important Bear Information
Fay Canyon is said to be frequented by bears so make sure you keep an eye out for them along this trail. Personally, we did not see any bears, but we have heard of reports that they like to wander through this area.
Trail Summary
If you are looking for an easy, family hike in Sedona that offers some shade from the hot Sedona sun and a great view at the end; or for an easy sunset hike, then Fay Canyon Trail is a perfect choice!
Doe Mountain Trail is a fantastic family hike in the Sedona Red Rock Wilderness! The scenery is breathtaking, the trail itself is fun and if you time it right, the sunset here is spectacular!
Trail Details:
Trail Length: 1.5 miles Out-and-Back
Elevation Change: 492′
Trail Difficulty: Moderate
Location: Only 20 minutes from Sedona
Hiking Time: 1 hour 30 mins
Parking at Trail: 21 spaces
Toilet at Trailhead: Yes
Our family absolutely loved hiking Doe Mountain Trail. This short and dramatic trail not only seriously impressed our children (who asked several times along the trail to just stop and admire the scenery), but it also seriously impressed me with the utter sense of peace I felt while gazing out over this incredible landscape. The view here is simply breathtaking! And sitting on top of Doe Mountain, watching the sunset and the colors burst from the rocks, was a moment where I completely understood the quote,
“Life is not Measured by the Number of Breaths You Take, but by the Moments that Take Your Breath Away.”
Hiking Tips for Families
Doe Mountain is considered a moderate hike in Sedona, but it is only 0.7 miles to the Mesa top. But in this 0.7 miles you climb over 400 feet. It is short, but steep. This should be no problem for kids, but you made need to stop and rest a couple of times along the way.
Cacti Warning!
There are several species of cacti that line Doe Mountain trail. And although I’m sure you and your children are not planning on touching or falling into them, it’s good to warn your kids about cacti dangers before you set out. It’s also good to have a good set of tweezers with you just in case.
(Unfortunately, this was necessary for our family. Here on Doe Mountain Trail, my poor husband took a wrong step and fell right on top of a cactus! Ouch! Let’s just say, we were very thankful that he had his favorite Swiss Army Pocket Knife with him and that it had a good set of tweezers in it!)
Trail Summary
If you are looking to hike a short family-friendly trail that highlights Sedona’s extraordinary scenery, especially at sunrise or sunset, and you don’t mind a short but steep climb, then Doe Mountain Trail would be my top pick!
Courthouse Butte Loop Trail is a great family-friendly hike that takes you through the heart of Sedona’s most famous Red Rock formations. Embrace the chance to walk up close to these towering structures. Feel their energy and stand in awe of their beauty on Courthouse Butte Loop Trail.
Trail Details:
Trail Length: 4.2 Mile Loop
Elevation Change: 449′
Trail Difficulty: Easy/ Moderate
Hiking Time: 2 hours 30 min
Parking at Trailhead: 55 spaces
Toilets at Trailhead: Yes
Sedona Vortex Energy
Sedona is believed by many to contain a powerful vortex energy. At specific spots this energy is supposed to be more intensely felt. Bell Rock, found along Courthouse Butte Loop, is one of these spots. At Bell Rock, the energy here is considered to be “masculine” (energy coming out of the earth). And it is said that this energy will bring feelings of joy and freedom. Hike near Bell Rock to see if you can feel this energy too!
Hiking Tip for Sedona in the Summer
The temperature variation in Sedona when hiking Courthouse Butte Loop completely surprised us. It was 54 degrees, when we started our hike on a July morning at 6:30am and yet it was 90 degrees just 2 hours later at 8:30am!
For us, having a light-weight packable hiking bag stuffed into our main hiking bag was extremely useful. (See the blue bag in the picture below.) As the morning warmed up, we just pulled out this packable hiking bag and had plenty of extra room to easily carry all 5 of our long sleeved shirts/ light weight jackets. (This bag is also light enough/ small enough that all of our kids could easily take turns carrying it. An added bonus that I’m sure any hiking family would appreciate!)
Courthouse Butte Loop – Beautiful but little shade
Bring plenty of water for your whole family when hiking this trail. Courthouse Butte Loop can get very hot in the summer, even when you start early. Good water bottles and sun hats can make all the difference in your experience on this trail.
For our family, my husband also carried a 3 liter hydration bladder in his backpack. This was so we could easily refill our kids’ water bottles as we hike. We really like this Hydration Bladder by Gregory the best out of the many bladders we’ve owned. This is because it has a great design that lies flat against your back, a convenient handle that makes it easy to pour (when refilling our kids’ water bottles on the trail) and it has a convenient built in hanger that lets us dry it easily after use.
And what’s crazy is that in just 2.5 hours on this trail, starting at 6:30am when it was cool, we drank every bit of water we brought! I didn’t realize how much water we would go through (over 1 liter per person), but the hot Arizona sun is relentless! In hind sight, a small hydration backpack for our kids as well could have been really useful on this trail.
Hiking Alternative
If you do not want to hike this long of a trail or you are visiting in the summer and are worried about the heat, then a great alternative is to simply stop at the parking lot south of Bell Rock (see picture above) and at the busy Courthouse Vista parking lot just north of Bell Rock for some great views.
Trail Summary
If you are looking for a slightly longer family-friendly hike that gets you out into the heart of some completely massive red rock formations and away from the crowds, then Courthouse Butte Loop/ Bell Rock would be a great choice to hike in Sedona.
West Fork Trail is a spectacular trail in Sedona’s Red Rock Country and it’s one of my favorite hikes! Breathtaking scenery, incredible formations and you get to hop across a creek 13 times along this amazing trail!
Trail Details:
Trail Length: 6.9 miles Out & Back
(but you don’t have to go to the end)
Elevation Change: ~230′
Trail Difficulty: Easy/ Moderate
Location: Oak Creek Canyon (less than 30 minutes from Sedona)
Hiking Time: ~4 hours
Parking at Trailhead: 30 spaces
Toilets at Trailhead: Yes
Fee: $10 per vehicle
Access: Parking lot is blocked until it opens (for us this was 8am)
Parking at West Fork Trail
West Fork Trail is extremely popular and the parking lot is really small. This means you’ll need to get to the parking lot early in order to hike this incredible trail. At West Fork Trail there is a gate in front of the parking lot that remains closed until the designated opening time. For us, this was 8am. And when the gates opened for us, there were already 11 cars in line just waiting to go in! Remember, this parking lot only has 30 spots, so I think you get the picture.
Gorgeous Red Rock Walls & Wave-like Sculpted Features
Before visiting West Fork Trail, I kept seeing images of these incredible rock formations along the trail (as shown above) but I couldn’t find online where they were located or how far we had to hike to get to them. So I’d like to share that here. The amazing rock formations, shown above, are located just to the right of the trail, approximately 1 mile in. You can’t see them from the main trail, but you will see a bunch of paths heading down to the river. Take a couple of these short paths, because these gorgeous red rock walls and wave-like sculpted features are spectacular!
13 Creek Crossings!
On West Fork Trail you will be crossing a creek 13 times! For our visit (in June) the creek was low on the majority of the trail, but our feet/ shoes still got a little wet as we crossed. (See picture below.) As you hike further in, the water does get deeper. Therefore hiking in comfortable water shoes is a good idea. These are my favorite water shoes, and the ones I wore on this hike. And these are our favorite water shoes for kids, if you are searching for a pair. Whatever type of water shoe you do get, make sure that it has good toe coverage (in case you accidentally kick a rock), good tread (the rocks can be slippery in spots) and that it has lots of support for walking this almost 7 mile trail.
Hiking Tip for Families
West Fork Trail is an out-and-back trail where you don’t actually have to hike all the way to the end for an incredible experience. If you have little kids or just don’t want to walk the entire 7 miles, then you can easily shorten this hike and turn around whenever you want. This makes West Fork Trail a perfect easy hike in Sedona for families!
Trail Summary
If you are looking for a trail that your family will talk about for years to come, filled with beautiful scenery, lots of shade and fun creek crossings, then West Fork Trail is the perfect trail for your family to hike in Sedona!
Discover miles of breathtaking red rock views on Broken Arrow Trail!
From Submarine Rock to Chicken Point to the unique Devil’s Dining Room sinkhole, spectacular scenery is everywhere you turn along this fantastic trail.
Trail Details
Trail Length: 3.4 miles
Elevation Change: 426″
Trail Difficulty: Easy/ Moderate
Hiking Time: ~2 – 2.5 hours
Parking at Trailhead: 12 spaces
Alternative: Pink Jeep Tours – for an off-road adventure
Hiking Tip:
There is no shade along Broken Arrow Trail so make sure you bring plenty of water and have a good sun hat. This is a necessity when hiking in Arizona in the summer.
A Great Alternative to Hiking Broken Arrow Trail
A great alternative to hiking Broken Arrow Trail is to go on an off-road Broken Arrow Trail adventure with Pink Jeep Tours! This is what we did and we absolutely loved it! Taking this tour is the perfect way to see more when it is just too hot outside to hike. It’s also great for families when your kid’s legs need a little break from walking. (Not to mention the insane smiles that will fill your faces as you ride off-road across this incredible rocky terrain!)
On the 2 hour Broken Arrow Tour our family saw all of the sights along the Broken Arrow Trail, walked around and explored at the top viewpoints and even learned a bunch of fun facts about the area from our guide. This tour was spectacular and we highly recommend it!
Jeep Tour Information:
Children age 2 and older are allowed to go on on the Broken Arrow – Pink Jeep Tour. And although this tour is an expensive family adventure and I, myself, hesitated when I first looked into it, in the end I’m so glad we chose to go with Pink Jeep Tours! To me the smiles on my children’s faces (like in the picture above) are priceless and I know this fantastic off road experience will be talked about in our family for years to come! So for our family, it was definitely worth it!
Trail Summary
If your are looking for great easy to moderate family hikes in Sedona with spectacular sweeping views of the Sedona Red Rock Country then Broken Arrow Trail is a fantastic choice. And if you are able to, Pink Jeep Tours turns this trail into an incredible off-road adventure that your family will remember forever!
Where We Stayed
We stayed at the Sky Rock Inn of Sedona which was not only a great hotel that was family friendly but it also had an absolutely amazing view! This picture was taken off of the balcony right outside our room. This hotel is also perfect if you want to see the sunrise or sunset over Sedona’s gorgeous red rocks. Just sit on the balcony right outside your room! We loved it!
Know Before You Go
Where is Sedona Located?
The city of Sedona is located in central Arizona. It is 2 hours north of Phoenix and 50 minutes south of Flagstaff, Arizona. If you are flying, we recommend flying into Phoenix. The rates will be cheaper and the drive to Sedona on the Red Rock Highway SR179 is spectacular!
How Long to Stay in Sedona?
That depends on how much you want to hike. We think 2-3 days is great if you are wanting to hike several trails and take the Pink Jeep tour. You could easily spend more time here though.
When is it to Best Hike in Sedona?
We hiked in the summer in Sedona and by 10am it was really hot. So, if you plan on hiking in the summer we recommend timing your hike to end by 10am, rest mid-day (or take Pink Jeep Tours) and then hike again after 5pm to see the sunset. Please note that in the summer it gets quite cool at night so make sure you bring a jacket.
From October to March Sedona is much cooler and so mid-day hikes would be possible. In December and January, you might get lucky enough to even see snow.
To avoid crowds, we recommend hiking early or in the late afternoon. Not only will you have a better chance at easily finding parking but you will also have more of the trail to yourself!
Top Gear for Hiking in Sedona with Kids
Are you wondering what type of gear you should have when hiking in Sedona? Below is a list of our family’s favorite and most useful hiking gear to help you better prepare for your upcoming easy hikes in Sedona.
10 Traveling Feet is a participant of Amazon Associates which means means we may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. Please note that I will only recommend products that I have found useful and love because I want you to have the best gear possible!
Stay Hydrated:
Available in 7 Colors
Available in 16 Colors
Kid’s Hiking Clothes We Love for Summer Hikes:
Available in 24 Colors
Columbia Sportswear Boys’ Silver Ridge II Convertible Pant
Available in 6 Colors
Smartwool Unisex Light Hike Crew (Toddler/Little Kid/ Big Kid)
Available in 12 Colors
Don’t forget to bring a light-weight packable jacket, even in the summer, for the cool mornings and evenings.
Our Favorite Sun Hats:
Our Favorite When We Don’t Need a Full-Brimmed Sun Hat
Available in 20+ Colors
TOP TOURS NEAR SEDONA
Please let me know in the comments sections below if you have any favorite easy to moderate family hikes in Sedona that I missed? I’d love to hear about it!
Have a Great Time Hiking in Sedona with Your Traveling Feet!
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2 comments
YES!!! So glad I came across your website. First trip with the kids to AZ and I am getting a great list with all of your knowledge. Thanks for sharing!!
I’m so happy that I could help you. Arizona is such an amazing state. Have a great trip! Jenny