The Southwest by Road

Nine nights by car from Phoenix to Page, between spring and autumn, through the red rock country of Arizona and Utah. Sedona's canyons by day and its sky through a telescope on the roof at night, the Colorado River and the sandstone fins of Arches, then slot canyons with a Navajo guide and a via ferrata on the mesas at Amangiri.

Length: Nine nights
Pace: Three stays
Style: Self-drive, national parks, hiking, rafting
Route: Sedona to Moab to Lake Powell

SedonaThree nights
MoabThree nights
Lake PowellThree nights

A wide valley of green scrub between red sandstone cliffs and buttes.

Days 1 to 4 · three nights

Sedona

A car from Phoenix and the drive north to Sedona. A hike with a naturalist from a quieter trailhead among the red rocks, and a free day for the canyons, perhaps by private Jeep through Soldiers Pass, or by helicopter from Sedona to the Grand Canyon for a private guided hike and lunch. One clear night, a private stargazing session on the hotel roof, with high-powered telescopes and an expert guide to find the planets and deep-sky objects.

Where you stay

Ambiente, A Landscape Hotel

Ambiente is an adults-only hotel of 40 glass-walled atrium suites among the red rocks of Sedona, each with a rooftop fire pit. Views run to Brins Mesa, restored waterways run through the grounds, and the hotel has Forty1 for dinner and the Velvet Spa.

A tall red sandstone arch on bare rock, with snow-capped mountains far behind.

Days 4 to 7 · three nights

Moab

A long day's drive north-east to Moab. A day of motorised whitewater rafting on the Colorado River, and a private guided hike in Arches up to Delicate Arch. On request, a private plane into Utah's remote backcountry for a day canyoneering in slot canyons that no road reaches. If you wish, the Fiery Furnace, a maze of sandstone fins entered only on a ranger-guided walk or with a permit from the visitor centre, issued up to seven days ahead.

Where you stay

ULUM Moab

ULUM Moab is a tented resort of 50 suite tents in Utah's canyon country, facing Looking Glass Arch. The restaurant cooks Southwestern dishes such as sage-rubbed bison and juniper trout with sustainably sourced produce, and each evening ends with s'mores around the fire pit.

Smooth, curving orange sandstone walls of a narrow slot canyon in deep shadow.

Days 7 to 10 · three nights

Lake Powell

South-west to Canyon Point by way of Monument Valley, where a guided tour can be arranged, with time learning about Navajo ways and private performances. Upper Antelope, Rattlesnake and Owl canyons on foot with a Navajo guide, and a morning on the via ferrata routes across the resort's own sandstone mesas, led by its guides and set for every ability. A private boat with a local captain into the quiet side canyons of Lake Powell and on to Rainbow Bridge, the largest natural bridge in the world, can be arranged. A day at leisure, then a short drive to Page for the flight home.

Where you stay

Amangiri

Amangiri covers more than 900 acres of the Colorado Plateau at Canyon Point, about 25 minutes from Page. Its 34 modernist suites share a pool built around the mesa and an Aman Spa, and its sister camp, Camp Sarika, has 10 tented pavilions with private plunge pools.

Arranged on request

Rooftop telescopes in Sedona

A private stargazing session on the roof at Ambiente, with high-powered telescopes and an expert guide to the constellations, planets and deep-sky objects.

The Fiery Furnace

A maze of sandstone fins in Arches entered only with a ranger or on a permit from the visitor centre, issued up to seven days in advance.

Slot canyons by private plane

A flight from Moab into Utah's remote backcountry for a private day canyoneering in slot canyons that cannot be reached by road. Arranged on request.

Three slot canyons with a Navajo guide

An easy walk through Upper Antelope, Rattlesnake and Owl canyons, led by a Navajo guide.

A via ferrata on the mesas

Climbing routes across Amangiri's own sandstone mesas, led by expert guides and designed for all abilities.

Rainbow Bridge by private boat

A private boat on Lake Powell with a local captain, into quiet side canyons and to Rainbow Bridge, the largest natural bridge in the world. Arranged on request.

Subject to availability.

Ways to make it yours

Two nights in Springdale for Zion National Park, with a canyoneering day.
A slow paddle through Lake Powell's sandstone canyons.
A private plane from Amangiri over the national parks nearby.

This is a sample. The hotels, the pace and the order are where we start, not where we finish: every journey is designed around the people taking it.

Made around you

Most travel is bought. This is designed.

Before anything is booked, we talk: who is travelling, how you like to spend a morning, and the hotel preferences below the obvious, from the kind of bath you like to the time you wake and how much daylight you need in a room. You see options where options matter and clean recommendations where they don't.

The same person remains your point of contact from the first reply to the trip after next. No handovers. No team.