The Forgotten Parks of the American West

Phoenix
Arrival at Phoenix airport, starting point of your itinerary at the heart of the unexplored national parks of the American West. Pick up your rental vehicle and check in at your hotel. To ease into the trip, visit Arizona’s capital.

Wupatki National Monument
This first leg takes you toward a site of both cultural significance and natural beauty, Wupatki National Monument. On the way to Flagstaff, where you’ll spend the night, the landscapes typical of the American West unfold, with roads lined with cacti and rock formations in shades of red and orange. Along the way, you can visit Agua Fria National Monument or Prescott National Forest.
The next day, visit Wupatki National Monument. This archaeological site brings together, amid red rock formations, the well-preserved ruins of homes built starting in the 12th century by the Sinagua people. Nearby, Sunset Crater Volcano also offers lunar-like landscapes.

Mesa Verde National Park
Shortly after leaving Flagstaff, continue on toward Mesa Verde National Park. Check in at your hotel in Cortez for 2 nights.
Full day exploring Mesa Verde National Park. Like Wupatki, Mesa Verde combines wild nature with cultural remains. From the 7th to the 14th century, the inhabitants of this area settled into cliffside dwellings. Today, more than 5,000 archaeological sites bear witness to the life of these ancestral Pueblo peoples.

Great Sand Dunes National Park
Heading deeper into Colorado, you continue along another natural wonder, San Juan National Forest. Home to a wide diversity of ecosystems, this reserve shelters snow-capped peaks and desert plains. You’ll then reach Great Sand Dunes National Park, with its striking dunes, the tallest on the American continent. Night in Alamosa.
This morning, visit Great Sand Dunes, venturing into these vast stretches of golden sand, where you can roll down the dunes or even try sandboarding! Then head north toward Aspen, where you’ll spend the night. The road winds through a valley flanked by numerous peaks easily exceeding 4,000 meters in elevation.

Dinosaur National Monument
Continue on toward Dinosaur National Monument. As the name suggests, this park holds an impressive number of dinosaur fossils. But it is also a place of incomparable natural beauty. You’ll spend the night in Vernal, close to the park’s western entrance.

Arches and Canyonlands National Parks
Finish your visit with a hike in Dinosaur National Monument before heading to Moab, where you’ll spend the next three nights. Along the way, a stop at Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area is well worth it, for splendid views over the Colorado River and the surrounding rock formations.
Moab is an ideal base for discovering two of the region’s most spectacular parks. Arches National Park lies just a few kilometers north of town. More than 2,000 rock arches are scattered across the park, including Landscape Arch, the longest in the world, and the famous Delicate Arch. Numerous hiking options let you explore these otherworldly landscapes.
Another highlight near Moab, Canyonlands distills the diversity of the American West’s landscapes: a crater, arches, Native American ruins, and sweeping views over the canyons carved by the Green and Colorado Rivers. If you have time left today, you can take a loop through La Sal Forest, which offers panoramic views over the region.

Cedar Breaks National Monument
Set off early this morning, as it’s a long drive to Cedar City, where you’ll spend the night for the next leg of the trip. Leave the main road early enough to detour to Capitol Reef National Park, which fully deserves a few hours of your time.
Similar to Bryce Canyon but with far fewer crowds, Cedar Breaks is a natural amphitheater nearly 5 km wide and over 600 meters deep. Stunning viewpoints over the glowing red surroundings offer plenty of opportunities to take it all in. Once you’ve had your fill of color, head toward Las Vegas, and spend the night in Boulder City, on the shores of Lake Mead.

Joshua Tree National Park
Lake Mead is a body of water offering numerous watersports activities. You can also head directly to one of California’s most spectacular parks, Joshua Tree. The park shelters two distinct ecosystems: the Colorado Desert at lower elevation, and the Mojave Desert higher up, habitat of the Joshua tree, endemic to the region. Night in Twentynine Palms.

Los Angeles
Drive west toward the Pacific and the sprawling city of Los Angeles. Depending on your preferences, enjoy the beaches of Santa Monica, visit the Hollywood studios, or walk along the Walk of Fame.

Sequoia National Park
Finish your visit of Los Angeles this morning, or relax on the beach, before heading to the last park of your journey, Sequoia National Park. You’ll spend two nights near the park, in the small town of Three Rivers.
As its name suggests, the park is known for its giant sequoias. Discovered shortly after the Civil War, some of these trees bear the names of famous figures from that conflict. The climate conditions here are ideal for the growth of these giant trees, which explains their abundance. The adjoining Kings Canyon National Park is also well worth a visit.

San Francisco
Today, head to San Francisco, and end your journey facing the Pacific Ocean. By adding at least one extra night to your itinerary, you can also visit Yosemite National Park, which lies along the way. Arrival in San Francisco, and check-in at your hotel downtown.
Visit San Francisco, with its hills lined with colorful houses, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the famous former island prison of Alcatraz. Return the vehicle to the rental center at the airport and fly back to France.