6-Nights America's Great Desert National Parks End Phoenix

6 nights from: $3,525

America's Great Desert National Parks End Phoenix
Chart a course through the deserts of America, basking in the photographer's dream of Death Valley, Badwater Basin’s salt flats, iconic Joshua Tree National Park and Red Rock Canyon’s towering cliffs. Find yourself tucking into gastronomic delights and sipping local brews with a Head Brewer in Tucson.


Dining Summary

• 3 Dinner (D)
• 9 Breakfast (B)
• 1 Lunch (L)

• Tucson: Unlock the best of the flavors of Tucson on a visit and tour of Borderlands Brewing Company, a local secret that boasts an all-women production facility. Learn about the beer making process from Head Brewer Ayla Kapahi, who is passionate about empowering women and minorities in the craft beer industry and co-founded Pink Boots of Southern Arizona, a non-profit that supports women in alcohol fermentation sciences. After your tour, sip on a flight of four of their best brews guided by Ayla and her team. Afterward, sit down to a southwest inspired lunch of a loaded tachos appetizer, salad and a tacos platter including carne asada, shrimp and veggie tacos with a side of beans - with vegetarian options available.

• Red Rock Canyon: Admire the towering red cliffs and sandstone peaks of the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.
• Death Valley: You’ll truly feel the solitude and vastness of Death Valley today as you head out on a guided tour of the park’s most famous sites. You’ll discover the unique geological features of Death Valley, a land of sand dunes and volcanic craters, intriguing weather-patterns, and the highest-recorded temperatures in the United States.
• Los Angeles: Calico is an old West mining town that has been around since 1881 and was abandoned in the mid-1890s after silver lost its value. The town that once gave miners a good living lost its hustle and became a "ghost town." Walter Knott purchased Calico in the 1950’s architecturally restoring all but the five original buildings to look as they did in the 1880’s. Calico received State Historical Landmark 782 and in 2005 was proclaimed by then Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to be California’s Silver Rush Ghost Town.
• Palm Springs: Enjoy a celebrity and lifestyle tour of Palm Springs shedding light on the city's unique mid-century architecture, featuring an amazing collection of custom homes.
• Joshua Tree National Park: Visit Joshua Tree National Park, which shares the name of the iconic desert plant. The twisted branches and jagged leaves of the Joshua Tree is like something out of a fairy tale. Learn how two distinct ecosystems, the Mojave and the Colorado deserts come together in Joshua Tree. Many animals, such as the desert tortoise, the jackrabbit and the desert bighorn sheep, call this vast wilderness home. With a keen eye, perhaps spot some yourself.
• Salton Sea: Surrounded by sand, the Salton Sea glistens like a jewel in California’s crown. Less than an hour’s drive from Greater Palm Springs, this huge body of water was born accidentally in 1905. It was even once meant to be the Riviera of the Americas, but Mother Nature had other plans. Start your visit to the area at the Visitor Center in Mecca. You'll find a fascinating interpretive center with plenty of history (including old posters and advertisements from the Salton Sea’s past as a vacation destination).
• Yuma: Visit The Yuma Territorial Prison, a living museum of the Old West with structures over a century old, you will be transported to the past. Now one of the territory’s most recognizable historic landmarks.
• Saguaro National Park: Saguaro National Park consists of two separate areas-the Tucson Mountain District about 10 miles (16 km) west of Tucson, and the Rincon Mountain District, about 10 miles (16 km) east of the city. Today we visit the Rincon Mountain District to better understand how both districts preserve Sonoran Desert landscapes, fauna, and flora, including the giant saguaro cactus.

• Palm Springs: Welcome to the first operating wind farm in Southern California! The Palm Springs Windmill Tours take you on a journey in which you will learn about wind energy, how wind turbines work and the history of the wind farm. Your expert guide describes the inner workings of wind turbines and their contributions to our energy grid. This Make Travel Matter Experience addresses United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7 Affordable and Clean Energy and Goal 13 Climate Action. From the novice participant to engineer-types, everyone will leave the tour with a better understanding of how this renewable energy is fast becoming part of our energy solution.

• Visit Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Death Valley National Park, Calico Ghost Town, Joshua Tree National Park, Salton Sea, Yuma Territorial Prison, Saguaro National Park
• Discover unique mid-century architecture in Palm Springs
• Discover some of the desert National Parks of the US including Death Valley National Park, Joshua Tree National Park and Saguaro National Park
• See Las Vegas from above from the Highroller
• Sonoran Desert, Mojave Desert

• Death Valley: Embrace the must-sees of Death Valley National Park at Death Valley Ranch, a former working ranch located inside the Park. Located next to the National Park Service Visitor Center, you can even visit the a classic town square lined with date palms and mission California architecture. Within the ranch, cool off in the naturally fed swimming pool, hit up the sports courts or rent a Jeep to explore the park in a rugged 4×4.

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It is claimed that the sun shines 95% of the year in Yuma, Arizona. As a result, the town, located 185 mi/295 km southwest of Phoenix, attracts a lot of northern snow birds—visitors who head south in the winter months to escape the cold and gray of northern climes. Free Yuma Travel
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Real birds seem partial to Yuma as well, and a good place to see them is at the Bureau of Land Management's Betty's Kitchen Watchable Wildlife Viewing Area, outside of town on the Colorado River. This is one of the best places in the state to view resident and migratory birds, including white-winged and mourning doves, great blue herons and the endangered Yuma clapper rail.

Other attractions include a tour through the Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park (a historic jail dating to 1876), the Fort Yuma Quechan Indian Museum and the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area (a restored supply post that was established in 1864).

Those in search of a quiet evening will enjoy a dinner cruise on the Colorado River to view the remnants of old gold-mining settlements. And while you're in the area, visit Palm Canyon, a small desert oasis with the only naturally growing palm trees in the state.