Tucked right in the heart of historic downtown, the Old Trails Museum is a small stop that packs a…read moresurprising amount of Route 66 and local history into one building. Housed in a former bank from the early 1900s, the museum tells the story of Winslow's railroad roots, the famous Mother Road, and the people who helped shape the area. You'll find vintage photos, Native American artifacts, railroad memorabilia, and exhibits that bring northern Arizona's past to life. It's not a huge museum, but if you enjoy uncovering the stories behind the places you visit, it's well worth spending a little time there. Sometimes the smallest museums have the biggest personalities, and this one is a nice reminder that Winslow is much more than just a famous corner to stand on.

Very small museum but packed with an amazing collection of Winslow history! Employees were…read morefantastic and very knowledgeable, so willing to share their experiences!

My family and I were doing a West Coast road trip and the last leg of the trip had us coming…read morethrough Arizona. As soon as I saw this was on our route, I had to make it happen. It is located just a short distance from Flagstaff and right off the interstate in Winslow, AZ. It was a random weekday when we came so there wasn't a huge crowd and parking was readily available. We also waited to get our tickets once we arrived. I subtract a point for the cost of general admission. It's pretty steep at about 29 dollars for an adult. This gets you access to I believe all of the attractions on site. Walking in, you immediately get to see the Holsinger Meteorite which doesn't look insanely big, but it weighs in at almost a ton. Most of the rest of the meteor dissipated upon impact. The impact created is what you came here to see, the meteor crater. It's definitely very cool to see something like this in person because the only other thing I've ever seen about meteor and craters were in books or movies. The crater is almost a mile wide and 750 deep. You gotta see it to believe it. They have multiple lookout points around the crater. Keep in mind, if you come in the summer like us, you're going to get the hot, dessert heart with not lots of shade. They have telescopes if you want to get a better look. There is also an indoor observation area in the Discovery Center. They also have guided tours if you want to walk to walk the rim of the crater. I believe there also also opportunities on certain days to hike the meteor floor. There are also things to see inside. They have the Blast Zone for interactive fun for the kids. There is a museum inside with all kinds of cool information about the meteor and space things. If you want to get off your feet for a little bit, they have a theater that plays a very informative film about the history of Meteor Crater. One of my favorite parts was the 4D theater. It was cheesy, but fun. Another cool thing they have here is an actual Apollo 11 space capsule used for training the likes of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin when they trained at the Meteor Crater. I love museums and things like this alot and will always stop when nearby. This will most likely be a one and done for me, but I highly suggest stopping by to see it atleast once in your life.

Stop #1: Meteor Crater…read more Some attractions are hard to describe until you're standing on the edge of them. Meteor Crater is one of those places. About 50,000 years ago, a meteor traveling at incredible speed slammed into the Arizona desert, leaving behind a crater that's nearly a mile across and over 550 feet deep. Pictures don't quite capture the scale. Standing at the rim, it's one of those moments that makes you feel wonderfully tiny. The visitor center does a great job explaining the science, and seeing actual meteorite fragments was a nice bonus. It's amazing to think that a few seconds of cosmic chaos created something people are still coming to see thousands of years later. Definitely a stop that's worth taking... even if it's technically the oldest "pothole" in Arizona.

As a native Phoenician who's been visiting Flagstaff my whole life, I can't believe this was my…read morefirst visit to the Museum of Northern Arizona. I genuinely loved it. The exhibits are fascinating, covering everything from the geology of Northern Arizona to the region's wildlife and the rich history and cultures of the Native peoples. The museum sits on beautiful natural grounds that are worth walking through as well. We brought our 18-month-old, 3-year-old, and 5-year-old, and all of them had a great time while actually learning a lot. There are so many interactive elements, including an animal scavenger hunt, pull-out drawers throughout the exhibits, videos, and hands-on displays you can touch. There's also a discovery area with books and toys that our kids absolutely loved. We spent about two hours here, and it was time well spent. If you're visiting Flagstaff, or even if you've been coming here for years like I have, don't make the mistake of overlooking this gem. I'd absolutely recommend it for families and anyone interested in the natural and cultural history of Northern Arizona.

This is definitely a must-do in N. Arizona…read more A rich display of the history of the Hopi, Navajo, Zuni and more Tribes of the Southwest. Excellent displays. Truly worthy of Five Stars. I highly, highly recommend a visit here. The building itself is magnificent and the walking trails around the building are beautiful!

We came here on a recent trip to Flagstaff and found a few spots in town we wanted to visit. The…read moreCenter was free to visit, though a small donation was recommended. There were two collections on display, in two separate rooms. The center was essentially empty so we enjoyed the displays in almost perfect silence. It's a little ways out from downtown, but worth the few mile drive. There is also a historical museum directly in front, if you're interested in both.

Very disappointed. An organizational disaster. People working the event must have all been…read morevolunteers who had ZERO idea on how to run a event. We were very excited to see "Sailing into Oblivion". The tickets stated that you must arrive on time and should you arrive late you would not be seated until intermission. The stated time was 6:30. We arrived at 6PM, it was total chaos. Nothing had been set up and depending on who you spoke with there were several opinions as to when the event would start - 7:30, 8:00, nobody seemed to know. We took a look around the very limited items on display and decided to leave rather that wait an hour and 1/2 or 2 hours. Surprise we were locked in. It took several minutes to find someone with the keys to let us out. We will read the book and watch the uTube videos. I suspect the Center for the Arts operates on an extremely small budget, but considering the fairly large number of artists in the county I was stunned at the extremely limited items on display. Most of questionable quality compared to what I have seen around town. This could be an exciting and valuable art space in Flagstaff. I just question if the people running this venue know what they are doing. Too bad and very sad. As new Flagstaff residents we had hoped this would be somewhere we could enjoy art on a regular basis. Maybe in the future if it improves. Mike

Real contemporary art in an old logging town…read more The museum is located in Old Main (the one old looking building) on the campus of NAU. For free parking, drive to the south side of Old Main to Lot P3, walk to the museum to acquire a parking permit, and return to place the permit in the car. Admission was also free. The museum has two levels of galleries with rotating contemporary art on the second floor and tiny permanent collection of oil paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts on the third floor. The second floor was the main reason to visit with smart conceptual art. The temporary exhibits during our visit were Karen Baldner's artwork and painted aerial shots of Nazi concentration camps. Okay, it doesn't sound fun, but they were impressive pieces. The permanent collection was skipable. NAU was previously called the Northern Arizona Normal School. Normal? As opposed to what? The Paranormal School? In truth, a normal school was a school for teachers, but there were plans for Old Main to be an insane asylum which could have been the Northern Arizona Abnormal School.

Brenden did an EXCEPTIONAL job giving us a private tour of the mansion. He was full of facts and…read morestories. The artifacts & history packed into this mansion are so cool! You really got a sense of who these people were and how well they lived. The grounds are stunning and we really enjoyed the outside self guided tour. We were there two hours and I'd go back in a heartbeat!

First off, some of the signs pointing to the entrance of this place are flat out incorrect. Second…read moreoff, it's not worth it to buy a $5 pass. The main attraction really is the mansion so just buy a $18 pass which gives you access to the mansion tour as well as the outside grounds (which is what the $5 pass gives you access to). As for as museum goes, the subject material isn't that interesting: it's about a random wealthy family. Imagine a 100 years into the future we have a museum about a random millionaire. Our tour guide, Marco, was fantastic and great at answering questions for our little group of 4. The mansion really is just a showcase of how a wealthy person's home from the early 1900's. You get a glimpse into their business and personal lives as well as the type of furniture employed in the household. The tour was interactive and nice. The self guided tour is just literally walking around the mansion so there isn't too much to see but it makes for a nice, short walk. Overall, I think that there are more interesting museums out there. But if you're looking for a super quiet museum to browse, this would be the place.

We are a family of 5, and I wanted to give the kids a unique experience while we were in Flagstaff…read morefor a few days to see snow. Finding Joshua was such a blessing! We did a 2-hour class with him and learned so much about the blacksmith world, especially that it's much harder than it looks. We each made a unique coat hook and a memory that we'll never forget. Joshua was incredible, he gave us each one-on-one lessons on how to make our hooks look just the way we wanted them. I definitely recommend it for a group looking to experience something truly unique and rewarding. Book the longer class if you want to make something bigger than a coat hook, it takes time. Thank you, Joshua, for this experience. We loved it!

Josh is wonderful! I bought my husband and daughter a package to try it all out. It has been over a…read moreweek and they are still talking about it. He was professional and worked with them, as well as taught them the art. His packages are a perfect gift! Highly, highly recommended.

Great selection of items and friendly staff. I've found Native American jewelry, art and sports…read morememorabilia. Jack is the man!

What a nice place! Flagstaff finally has a discretionary antique store paired with an art gallery!…read more Jack introduced himself to us and allowed us to browse the store without pressure. Lots of regional jewelry and collectables. If you want that one of a kind gift then look no further. He also does trades. Not your run of the mill antique store! Will be back.

We stopped at Noleys in Payson recently. While there, I enjoyed a delicious chai drink, as well as…read morea delicious gluten-free brownie. I also purchased a book, a hand painted sunflower card, and a necklace. This cute shop has a coffee shop, bookstore, and gift shop. They also offer live music on Friday evenings and have watercolor painting classes. It's a fun shop with lots to see.

I learned about this place before taking a trip to Payson recently and as a lover of bookstores and…read morecoffee shops, I knew I had to go. It did not disappoint. I loved everything about it! Local artists have works for sale. There's a farm stand with fresh produce, bread, and local eggs. They serve excellent quality food, coffees, and although I didn't have one, they even had beer, wine, and cocktails. Unfortunately I live in Goodyear and don't get to Payson nearly as often as I would like, but it's the kind of place I may make a special trip up there for. This is exactly what the world needs more of - especially the gathering place.

This was my first visit to the Verde Valley archaeology center, and I was truly amazed! I was…read morehoping to see artifacts from the immediate vicinity at this location and was not disappointed! The center has been here for 15 years and exists primarily to display artifacts recovered from a single site in the area. This is extremely rare as most sites have been pillaged by pot hunters over the last 100+ years, and this site was privately owned and protected for many decades. I was honored to received what was basically a private tour of the facility by the executive director Monica Buckle. She took her time and provided much detail to give an excellent overview of this facility. Thank you so much Monica! The entire Verde Valley area is a much overlooked archaeology gem in the history of our country & this facility champions the learning and understanding of this unique place. If you're ever in the area, I strongly recommend a visit. Please note the visiting hours change for the summer season so be sure to research this first.

This spotless well appointed museum is user friendly and can be completed quickly under 1/2 hour if…read moreyou breezed through. We chose the guided free tour which lasted about an hour and was quite thorough. I really enjoyed the quality of items on display and learning about the artifacts. If one is lucky the libraries in Scottsdale have a free pass for 2 people to enter. We paid but it was worth the $5 entry fee each.