Sedona is one of the most popular destinations in the Southwest, with dozens of hotels and motels around town. However, across-the-board, accommodations here tend to be overpriced for what you get. (Blame it on the incomparable views.) My advice is to save money elsewhere on your trip and make Sedona the place where you splurge on a room with a view.
Campgrounds -- Within Oak Creek Canyon along Arizona 89A, there are five National Forest Service campgrounds. Manzanita, 6 miles north of town, is both the largest and the most pleasant (and the only one open in winter). Other Oak Creek Canyon campgrounds include Bootlegger, 9 miles north of town; Cave Springs, 13 miles north of town; and Pine Flat, 12 miles north of town. All of these campgrounds charge $18 per night. The Beaver Creek Campground, 3 miles east of I-17 on Forest Road 618, which is an extension of Arizona 179 (take Exit 298 off I-17), is a pleasant spot near the V Bar V Heritage petroglyph site. Campsites here are $14 per night. For more information on area campgrounds, contact the Coconino National Forest's Red Rock Ranger Station (tel. 928/282-4119; www.fs.fed.us/r3/coconino), which, at press time, was in a temporary space 2 miles east of I-17 at Exit 298 (Beaver Creek Rd.). The ranger district has plans to relocate to a site on Arizona 179 south of the Village of Oak Creek. Reservations can be made for Manzanita, Pine Flat, and Cave Springs campgrounds by contacting the National Recreation Reservation Center (tel. 877/444-6777 or 518/885-3639; www.reserveusa.com).
