Stranger than fiction

Wacky hotels and bizarre attractions

To say Arizona is unique is an understatement. While there is no standard gauge for weirdness, this southwestern U.S. state just seems to ooze strangeness and peculiarities. Where else can you find festivals paying homage to lettuce (Yuma Lettuce Days) or to ostriches (Ostrich Festival in Chandler)?

Bed down in a cave-hotel room, completely devoid of natural light or life forms at Grand Canyon Caverns, or get your sleep in a restored vintage aluminum trailer outfitted with leopard print carpet, a record player and diner-style breakfast booth at Shady Dell in Bisbee.

Best to get your rest—you’ll need it to see the two-headed squirrel…

Don’t miss…

The Titan Missile Museum is housed in an authentic missile silo, one of three left in existence in the world, dating from the Cold War.

Book an off-the-beaten track jeep tour in Sedona. It's the best way to see the desert landscape and red rock formations that change colour at every new angel of the sun.

Tombstone, a town caught in a time warp, rewinds life back to the Old West. Some original buildings even have old bullet holes from gunfights.

Discover the Arizona landscape from a hot air balloon at 3,000 feet above ground. Scottsdale and Arizona are popular areas for hot air balloon enthusiasts.

Bisbee Mini Museum of the Bizarre is home to oddities like a two-headed squirrel and a chicken, a mould of Bigfoot’s foot and dirt from Jim Morrison’s grave.

Hauntingly cool

Explore Jerome’s quirky and creepy side

Located two hours from Phoenix, the former mining town of Jerome, perched on a mountain, knows plenty about boom and bust. In the late 1880s, it was flush with cash and prosperity as the mines churned out more than $1 billion worth (in today’s dollars) of gold, silver and copper. Jerome’s population peaked in the 1920s at 15,000; when the mine closed in 1953, it left a near-ghost town with 50 to 100 residents behind.

More than a decade later, artists, restaurateurs and musicians moved into former bordellos and set up shop in abandoned stores. Jerome’s historical

beginnings and contemporary artsy vibe has since made it one of the state’s most popular day-trip destinations.

Don’t miss…

Stroll around town and get acquainted with local artists including glass-blowers, potters and painters during Jerome Art Walk, held on the first Saturday of each month.

Tour the Douglas Mansion, the former residence of Canadian-born mining executive James Douglas. Built in 1916, his home was considered über-posh in its day with modern amenities like a central vacuum system. It’s the largest adobe structure in Arizona and is filled with mining artifacts and a 3-D model showing the underground mines that still snake under the town.

Take a haunted tour of Jerome with a paranormal investigator. Visit the notorious hangouts of the undead, like that of beautiful call girl Sammie Dean, whose murder in 1931 remains unsolved. You’re given an EMF meter to monitor electromagnetic fields, which is believed to indicate paranormal activity.

Stay and play

Book a night at the Jerome Grand Hotel, if you dare. The former insane asylum and hospital is a spooky place. Some guests come specifically to spot ghosts. The hotel offers a package that includes a room and the use of ghost-hunting equipment. Watch for the apparition of a nurse carrying a clipboard and listen for the sounds of coughing and laboured breathing.

Vine line

Sip hip Arizona wines

Here’s a newsflash—Arizona grows plenty of grapes and makes great wine (the red is especially good). The high desert area has produced wine since the 1700s, thanks to conditions similar to top wine-producing regions in Argentina. Cork dorks will love the state’s 45 wineries, luscious vineyards and inviting tasting rooms that put their best vintages forward. Sizzling, daytime temperatures and cool nights mean happy grapes and yummy wines.

Don’t miss…

In northern Arizona, the best vineyards are dotted along the Verde Valley Wine Trail, stretching from Sedona to Cottonwood and Camp Verde through red rock landscapes and seemingly bottomless canyons. Save room in your suitcase for bottles of Javelina Leap’s Zinfandel and Arizona Stronghold’s Mangus (a big red with strawberry and cherry notes).

Book the Water to Wine Tour with Sedona Adventure Tours. Take a leisurely paddle down the Verde River, banked by cottonwood trees, in an inflatable kayak. As you navigate the slow-moving current, you may spot a golden or a bald eagle or two. In an hour, you will arrive at Alcantara Vineyards, a Tuscan-style winery with a picturesque patio, perfect for tasting buttery chardonnays, syrahs and robust reds with hints of raspberry and pepper.

Get a history lesson at the Montezuma Castle National Monument, a 1,000-year-old cliff dwelling in the Verde Valley with 20 rooms over five levels. It is from a time when the ancient Sinagua people roamed the land. When it was rediscovered in the 1860s, the cliff house was wrongly believed to have been built by the Aztecs. It’s a peaceful place where only chirping birds break the silence.

Stay and play

The Cliff Castle Casino-Hotel is a great starting point from which to explore the surrounding wineries and Montezuma. Nab a table at Storytellers for dinner and nibble on yummy fare like southwest crab cakes, a mesquite smoked pork chop or a Kobe beef burger. Then, strike out for Shake, Rattle and Bowl, a family-friendly bowling alley on site.

The inn crowd

Get away from it all at hidden hotels

Without a map, it’s unlikely you’ll stumble upon some of Arizona’s best hotels. They’re tucked away among red rock cliffs, cacti-dotted desert and behind lush greenery. Properties, such as the 34-room Hermosa Inn near Paradise Valley, serve as temporary sanctuaries for travellers wanting to withdraw from the world. That’s not to say there isn’t plenty to do—you have your choice of spas, great southwest cuisine (try buffalo, prickly pear juice and even rattlesnake) and nature walks to enjoy.

Don’t miss…

Hotel Valley Ho’s Magical Mystery Tour dishes out celebrity gossip (on stars like Bing Crosby and Natalie Wood) and behind-the-scenes architectural secrets about this legendary property that opened in 1956. Its mid-century design was almost lost to a wrecking ball in 2003, but after a US$80-million makeover, this hotel is a hot spot once again.

Bliss out at L’auberge de Sedona and its spa villa, complete with outdoor cedar shower, Jacuzzi tub, and gas fireplace. Dine next to Oak Creek and nibble on Mediterranean-influenced cuisine such as braised short ribs with mascarpone polenta while the water babbles just an olive’s throw away from your table.

If you love nature, bed down for a night at the Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired Arizona Biltmore. It has gardens, eight pools, a full-service spa and an 18-hole putting course for golfers.

Saddle up to the bar at The Last Drop. It's décor channels cowboy cool with a southwest colour palette, ironwork and a famous painting of a cowboy giving his last drop of water to his horse--hence, the bar's name. The painting is by artist Lon Megargee, who is also the original owner of the Hermosa Inn. Take in views of Camelback Mountain from the patio while you sip on a briar patch martini made with blackberry puree.



Stay and play

With nature just outside the lobby door at Enchantment Resort, hiking, trekking, bird watching and Jeep tours are all on tap. Head to its Mii amo Spa and leave your cares at the door before trying a treatment like blue corn body polish, or stone crop sensitive facial that incorporates Native American practices and desert-sourced ingredients.

Can’t get enough of Arizona’s wild and wacky side? Look for more activities to try at upmagazine.com.

Don’t miss… Saddle up to the bar at The Last Drop. Its décor channels cowboy cool with a southwest colour palette, ironwork and a famous painting of a cowboy giving his last drop of water to his horse—hence, the bar’s name. The painting is by artist Lon Megargee, who is also the original owner of the Hermosa Inn. Take in views of Camelback Mountain from the patio while you sip on a briar patch martini made with blackberry puree.

 

Related links:

The New Staycation

Top Tips for Buying a Home Abroad

Tucson's 100-Mile Diet

Life and Death Traditions Festival