With so many great trails in Sedona AZ, it’s hard to chose the best ones! Sedona is a huge hiking destination with tons of beautiful red rocks, hidden caves, arches, and tons of hiking trails. There are trails available to hikers of every level, from beginner to expert. Not to mention that being located in the high desert means milder weather.
Here’s our list of the best hikes in Sedona. If you’re planning a trek here, these are the ones that should be on your list!
Devil’s Bridge
Overview:
- Distance: 2-4.2 round trip (depending on route)
- Type: Out & Back
- Time: 2-3 hours
- Elevation Gain/Loss: 600 ft
- Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
- Crowd Factor: Extremely High
No hiking trip to Sedona would be complete without visiting the iconic Devil’s Bridge! This is probably the most popular hike in the area made famous by Instagram. The hike to get to the bridge it pretty short – roughly 4mi round trip. The views of the bridge are astounding, but be prepared for crowds! Make sure to start this one early.
Subway Cave (Via Boynton Canyon)
Overview:
- Distance: 6 mi round trip
- Type: Out & Back
- Time: 2.5-3.5 hours
- Elevation Change: 800 ft
- Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
- Crowd Factor: Moderate – High
The Subway Cave via Boyton Canyon trail is another super popular hiking spot. This one takes you off-trail on an adventure to find a cave nestled in the hills. The trail is about 6mi round trip and easy to follow if you know what you’re looking for, and then it’s just a steep climb up some rocks to enter the cave. This location has also become Instagram famous and is usually pretty crowded, so make sure to get an early start on this trail!
Detailed guide for hiking to The Subway Cave available here.
Soldiers Pass Cave/ Seven Scared Pools/ Devil’s Kitchen
- Distance: 3 – 4 round trip (depending on trailhead)
- Type: Out & Back
- Time: 1.5-3 hours
- Elevation Change: 615 ft
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Crowd Factor: Moderate – High
Soliders Pass Cave and the seven sacred pools is a roughly 4mi round trip hike in Sedona with beautiful views. This trail has also become very popular due to its impressive landscape which includes a huge sinkhole known as the Devil’s Kitchen. There’s a few options of how to reach the cave depending on if parking lots are full, or you could even make this hike a full loop if you wanted to.
Detailed guide for hiking to Soldiers Pass Cave available here.
The Birthing Cave
- Distance: 2mi round trip
- Type: Out & Back
- Time: 1-2 hours
- Elevation Change: 250 ft
- Difficulty: Easy
- Crowd Factor: Moderate – High
The Birthing Cave in Sedona is a short 2mi round trip hike that’s very popular and has great views. This is an easy hike that’s good for beginners. It’s a very rewarding hike due to the incredible panoramic views of the area. Available off of Long Canyon Trail, this is a trail that’s better done later in the afternoon so that the sun has moved behind the caves and isn’t causing problems for your photos.
West Fork Oak Creek
- Distance: 6-12 round trip (depending)
- Type: Out & Back
- Time: 3-6 hours
- Elevation Change: 732 ft
- Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
- Crowd Factor: Moderate – High
The West Fork of Oak Creek hike was my favorite from our trip to Sedona. It’s unlike many of the other available hikes since you’re following a creek the whole time. Due to the water in the area, there’s a lot more trees and a lush landscape. There are several impressive features along this hike including a subway-esk tunnel and stunning towering canyon walls. While the maintained trail ends creating a roughly 6mi round trip hike, there’s also the option to venture further and even camp overnight along the creek.
Detailed guide to hiking West Fork Oak Creek available here.
Map of the Best Hikes
Our Recommendations
- If you can only do one – Devil’s Bridge
- Short hike with a little adventure – The Birthing Cave, Subway Cave
- Moderate hikes – Soldiers Pass Cave, Devil’s Bridge
- Advanced, all day hike – West Fork Oak Creek
Hiking Tips & Need To Know
The two most important tips I can give you before doing any of these hikes:
- Get a red rock parking pass – Available Here! This is going to save you so much time and frustration! Most (but not all) of the hikes in Sedona require a Red Rock parking pass if you’re going to park in the lot directly at the trailhead. Plus – you can’t get the parking pass at every trailhead, even some where you are required to have it. Getting the parking pass ahead of time (it’s only $5 per day or $15 per week) will save you so much time from either trying to find the few available kiosks where you can print a parking pass, or needing to park miles away on the street because you didn’t have the required pass to park in the lot.
- Start early – no, even earlier than that! If you think you’re early enough, you’re not, go even earlier. These hikes, especially the best ones, are so popular, especially during peak seasons of April and May and they get CROWDED. Crowded, as in 30min wait times at 7:30am on Devil’s Bridge so that you can get your photo. We were shocked at how many people were visiting Sedona during our trip in April and it definitely impacted our hiking plans as we were not able to get in as many hikes since there was so much traffic trying to get from place to place.
- Stay at the north end of town – this is the more “touristy” area, which some people might like whereas others won’t, but it’s also much closer to most of the hiking trails. The best, most popular trails almost all start in the Red Rock Wilderness, which is North of Sedona. If you’re staying somewhere towards the south end of town, it could add an hour to your drive time to get to these trails.
- Bring lots of water – more water than you think you need. Even though it might not feel like it, Sedona is still a desert. And most of these hikes are trekking across the unshaded, no water available desert with little to no coverage or protection from the sun. The tables can turn quickly and unexpectedly when you’re in the desert and you don’t want to be caught without enough water in the heat!