Traveling and seeing new places is really important to me, and sometimes we forget that we live in a country that has some pretty awesome things to offer and see right in our backyards.

Part of my family normally goes on a vacation before the school year starts and this year I decided to go along with them, because of this the only place that really fit everyone comfortably was Phoenix, Arizona.

Weather

It is HOT! I was prepared for the weather and for it to be hot and for the sun to be beaming but…this was different. Two minutes standing outside and you’re tanned and sweating like you’ve been running a marathon.

The one thing I was thankful for was the amount of dresses I ended up packing, they ended up being the most comfortable thing to put on and I was so happy. Anything that can be constricting or you can get hot in easily is not the way.

It’s extremely hot, so just be mindful of what makes you feel comfortable in that type of weather.

Where I stayed

We stayed at J.W. Marriott Canyon Villas in Phoenix.

Since there’s no beach, we had the pool access and the pool access to the main hotel, which was very nice.

There were activities that the hotel had set up for each day of the week if you wanted to join, like work out classes, yoga classes, aerobics, things like that.

All in all, though, our villa was really nice and we could walk right out of our villa to the pool. I’m not sure what other options there are in Phoenix but the hotel was really lovely.

What I did

There’s a lot of nature and outdoor activities that you can do and we did the best we could to cover what we really wanted to do. These were things that were on my bucket list to do and I am so grateful I got the opportunity to do them. I was there from Sunday through the week and left on Saturday morning, just for some context. I’ll be linking the sites of where we booked our activities out of. Here’s what we did:

The Grand Canyon

We were a long way from the Canyon, almost a 4 hour drive from where we were located. The best solution we found was this railway ride that rode us into the Canyon. We drove roughly 2 hours to the railway and the ride was actually fun. It was an hour and half long into the Canyon on the railway, they told us some history about the railway, they had performers and a snack car too.

The tour of the Canyon was so beautiful, it was insanely humbling. It’s nice to be reminded of some of the beauty in this world. There’s a lot that you can do there as well, they have cabins that you can stay in and tours that go down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. There’s A LOT you can get into while you’re there.

Going here was on my bucket list of places to visit, so I was really excited to get to do this.

The company that we used for the railway ride can be found here. Through the same website we were able to book the bus tour for when we arrived to the Grand Canyon on the railway. The tour was called Motorcoach Rim Tour: The Grand Tour.

Hot Air Balloon

This was my FAVORITE thing I got to do, I recommend everyone to try it once. No matter where in the world you are, just do it. It was the most relaxing and beautiful experience I had while I was there.

The company that we used for the hot air balloon ride was called Hot Air Expeditions, you guys can check them out here. They were super sweet and professional, they even had a nice little breakfast for us when we got back down from our ride.

When you’re going up, you truly do not feel anything. You only realize you are thousands of feet above ground when you look out or below the basket. I was scared, no lie, for 5 seconds and once that feeling exited my body, I honestly felt this instant feeling of calmness come over me. Watching the sunrise from a hot air balloon was such a different experience and it was amazing.

I also completely understand why it’s called a HOT air balloon..that shit is no joke. If you can somehow avoid standing directly underneath it, please do so. It felt like the flame was right on me lol. But it was totally worth it and I would do it again and again wherever and whenever I can.

This was also on my bucket list of things to do.

Hole-In-The-Rock

This place was something our aunt found while searching places to hike during the day that were kid friendly.

It was a short ride from our hotel and the climb up was pretty easy and quick but the view was so beautiful. There’s literally a hole in the rock that you can see through and it was really nice and something fun and quick to do on our last days there.

We went in the morning so that we could enjoy the rest of our day at the resort by the pool.

Eats

The food in Arizona wasn’t that different than the food here in New York, so it wasn’t a huge change from what I’m used to. There were a couple places that were new for me or new ways to eat them. Here are some spots I ate at:

• Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen - The food here was AMAZING…the garlic bread was out of this world, I have no idea what they put on that bread but it was delicious. Everything on their menu was delicious. I can’t find what I had but I’ll definitely put a picture up.

• Cuban Foods - Bakery and Restaurant - The food here was so authentic and delicious. It was a spot that we found when I googled Spanish food to eat. It doesn’t look fancy or anything, but the food was good and the people that were working there were sooo sweet. Also…the flan was AMAZING.

• Sushi on Tatum - Revolving Sushi Bar - I’ve never eaten at a revolving sushi bar, it was really fun and actually really helpful to see the roles before ordering them.

Everything else I had were things that we’ve all had; Olive Garden, Cold Stone Ice Cream, pizza, etc.

Experience

Arizona was really hot and really beautiful. There is A LOT to do while you’re there and if you’re someone that likes to do a lot of adventurous things and outdoorsy activities, this is definitely somewhere you’d want to visit.

I got to cross some things off my bucket list which was awesome and I really enjoyed my time at the resort that we stayed at.

This trip, for me, was to take a break from work and take a break from the noise here in NYC. I wanted to create some new memories and cross some things off my list. I was able to relax, enjoy my goddaughter and enjoy my family. I

Have you visited Arizona? What did I miss while I was there?

Let me know in the comments below!