Sedona Jeep Tours

One Ladder for Every Operator

Pink Jeep rates its own tours from 1 to 5. Arizona Safari uses mild, moderate and wild. A Day in the West uses easy, moderate and extreme. To make the listings comparable, every tour here sits on one four-step ladder, with the operator's own wording kept alongside.

Use the ladder to match the ride to your group. The table below sorts every Sedona jeep tour on this site by how bumpy it gets, from smooth pavement to full off-road trails.

The Rugged Rides

Six tours sit at the top of the ladder. The Outlaw Trail Off-Road Jeep Tour is moderate to wild terrain with bumpy sections over 3 hours. Pink Jeep rates the Scenic Rim Pink Jeep Tour 5 of 5, intense hills and steep valleys on Schnebly Hill Road. The Schnebly Hill Road Jeep Tour is extreme off-roading in a Jeep Gladiator, rated 5.0 from 928 reviews.

The Rim Run Express 1-Hour Jeep Tour packs the same very bumpy ride into 1 hour at $76.18. Pink Jeep rates Diamondback Gulch Pink Jeep Tour 5 of 5, descending into the arroyo over 3 hours. The Cliff Hanger Hummer Jeep Tour is a rugged historic crossing with sheer drops, $89 in a 4x4 Hummer.

The Gentle Rides

The Oak Creek Canyon Pavement Jeep Tour is pavement only, no off-roading, and costs $67, the lowest price here. The Sedona Vortex Jeep Tour and the Private Ride the Vortex Jeep Tour both stay on paved roads. The vortex tour is really a walking tour, about 1 mile on foot, with no off-roading at all.

Pink Jeep rates the Red Rock Range Pink Jeep Tour and the Honanki Ruins Pink Jeep Tour at 2 of 5, mild dirt roads for red rock views without the jolts.

Who Should Not Ride

The off-road tours turn away pregnant travellers and people with back or neck problems. A Day in the West never takes pregnant guests on its jeeps under any circumstances. The Schnebly Hill climb and the Rim Run Express also screen for spinal injuries and poor cardiovascular health.

Minimum ages differ by operator. The Rim Run Express takes children from age 1. Pink Jeep tours take children from age 2. Most other tours start at age 3, and the Sedona Vortex Jeep Tour starts at age 5. Children under 5 on Arizona Safari tours need a car seat you provide.

Schnebly Hill Road and the Mogollon Rim

Schnebly Hill Road is Forest Road 153, an 11-mile one-way OHV route climbing to Schnebly Hill Vista at 5,980 feet. The Forest Service says a high clearance, 4-wheel drive vehicle is needed to reach the vista from Sedona and warns the road eats regular vehicles for breakfast. It began as the Munds Road and was finished as a wagon road in 1902.

In winter the upper part of the road can close seasonally, from the Merry-Go-Round to the top and from the Huckaby Trailhead parking lot up. The Forest Service gives no gate dates and points drivers to its road status page.

Three tours use it: the Scenic Rim Pink Jeep Tour to the Mogollon Rim, the Schnebly Hill Road Jeep Tour past Merry-Go-Round Rock, and the 1-hour Rim Run Express 1-Hour Jeep Tour.

Diamondback Gulch and the Western Canyons

The Forest Service lists the western routes with fixed lengths: Diamondback Gulch is a 6-mile loop, the Outlaw Trail a 10.5-mile loop and Cliffhanger 5.5 miles one way. The Diamondback Gulch Pink Jeep Tour descends into the arroyo over 3 hours. The Outlaw Trail Off-Road Jeep Tour runs the longest loop. The Cliff Hanger Hummer Jeep Tour rides Cliffhanger with sheer drops.

The Red Rock Backcountry Jeep Tour rolls along the base of the red rocks in the same western canyons. The private tours cover this ground too: the Private Lil' Rattler Jeep Tour climbs over big boulders, the Private Red Rock West Jeep Tour in 7 Canyons drives Dry Creek Basin to the Van Deren Cabin, and the Private Red Rock West Jeep Tour stops at the same cabin with photo stops.

Soldier Pass

Soldier Pass Road is permit-only. Recreation.gov issues a maximum of 12 permits a day, one vehicle each, valid only from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with a $6.00 non-refundable reservation fee. The Forest Service trailhead parking has just 14 spaces and no restrooms.

The road passes the Devil's Kitchen sinkhole and the Seven Sacred Pools. Because of the permit cap, driving it yourself means competing for one of 12 daily slots. The Private Soldier Pass Jeep Tour is how most visitors ride the road, 1.5 hours in a private jeep past both landmarks.

Broken Arrow

Broken Arrow is best known as a hiking trail. The Forest Service lists it at 1.5 miles to Chicken Point, about 3.5 miles round trip including the Submarine Rock side path, moderately easy, with 344 feet of gain. It notes the roads next to the trail are used by jeep tours, and the hiking trail starts across the jeep road from the signed trailhead.

Pink Jeep's Broken Arrow tour is not sold on GetYourGuide or Viator, so it is not on this page. The closest Pink Jeep rides here are the Scenic Rim Pink Jeep Tour and the Diamondback Gulch Pink Jeep Tour.

Trails Side by Side

The Forest Service publishes a length for each OHV route, and the tours that ride them are linked below. Soldier Pass is listed as a permit road rather than with a tourable length.

Shared Jeeps

Shared jeeps are the way most people ride. The Sedona Vortex Jeep Tour takes groups of up to 8, the Red Rock Backcountry Jeep Tour up to 10, and Pink Jeep's Wranglers seat 6 to 9 passengers depending on guest height and weight. The Cliff Hanger Hummer carries up to 11 in stadium front-facing seats.

Tipping is never in the price. Arizona Safari charges a minimum 18% gratuity at check-in for parties of 6 or more, and 8 or more on the Rim Run Express. A 15-20% tip is customary on the private tours and the Hummer.

Private Jeeps

Six tours sell the whole jeep to your party, priced per person. The Private Soldier Pass Jeep Tour is $169, the Private Lil' Rattler Jeep Tour is $159, the two Red Rock West tours are $150 each, the Private Ride the Vortex Jeep Tour is $160 and the Private UFO Night Jeep Tour is $247.

The Soldier Pass, Lil' Rattler and A Day in the West Red Rock West tours require a minimum of 2 guests per booking. That last one includes pickup from Central and West Sedona hotels, and Pink Jeep's Scenic Rim tour also includes Sedona hotel pickup.

Private and Shared Side by Side

The table lines up three private jeeps against three shared rides on price per person, format and length. All figures come from the bookable listings, and all six offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.

Vortex Jeep Tours

Visit Sedona names the four best-known vortex sites as Airport Mesa, Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock and Boynton Canyon. It frames the claims as belief, using phrases like thought to be and said to be.

Two tours visit these sites and neither goes off-road. The Sedona Vortex Jeep Tour runs on paved roads with short walks of about 1 mile, from age 5. The private Ride the Vortex Jeep Tour is also paved, with optional short walks, and every guest gets a digital vortex book and DVD.

Night and Stargazing

Sedona became the eighth International Dark Sky Community in 2014, and its outdoor lighting ordinance dates from 2001. The dark skies are why a night ride works here.

The private UFO Night Jeep Tour runs 2.5 hours toward Bradshaw Ranch, with heated seats and provided blankets in the jeep. Sightings are not guaranteed, and the stop is at the overlook about one mile from the ranch, since access beyond the perimeter is restricted.

The Honanki Cliff Dwellings

Honanki Heritage Site is open 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily and closes when it is over 100 F or the roads are impassable. Day-use fees are $5 per vehicle per day, $15 per week or $20 per year, and a Red Rock Pass or America the Beautiful Pass is required. Dr. Jesse Walter Fewkes named the cliff dwellings in 1895, and the site is about 17 miles northwest of Sedona on Forest Road 525.

The Honanki Ruins Pink Jeep Tour gets you there in a Jeep Wrangler, rated 2 of 5 for roughness, with 45 minutes of guided walking through the site.

Stargazing After Dark

Two rides are built around the night sky rather than the UFO story. The Private Stargazing Jeep Tour at Night takes your party into the Seven Canyons area for 2 hours at $219 per person, and the Hummer Stargazing Off-Road Tour does the same in a 4x4 Hummer for $140 per person. Both head away from town lights, so the sky is darker than anything you see from your hotel.

Compare all three night rides on the stargazing tours page.

The Tip Is Extra

Every listing on this site leaves gratuity out of the price. A 15-20% tip is customary on the private tours and on the Cliff Hanger Hummer.

Arizona Safari Jeep Tours charges a minimum 18% gratuity at check-in for parties of 6 or more, and 8 or more on the Rim Run Express. Budget for it on top of the ticket price.

Ages and Health

Minimum ages differ by tour. The Rim Run Express takes children from age 1. Pink Jeep tours take children from 2 on the Diamondback Gulch and Honanki rides. Most other tours start at 3 or 4. The vortex tour starts at 5 and requires about 1 mile of walking.

Arizona Safari requires a car seat for any child under 5. Pregnant travellers are turned away on the off-road tours, and people with back or neck problems get the same advice. Sit in the front seat if you do not want to get bounced on the rough rides.

Check-In and Where Tours Start

Arizona Safari Jeep Tours checks in 30 minutes before departure at the corner of Apple and Jordan Rd in Uptown Sedona, in a grey building with blue trim. Pink Jeep Tours checks in 30 minutes before the tour at 204 N. State Route 89A.

Red Rock Western Jeep Tours asks you to arrive 15 minutes early on the Soldier Pass tour. A Day in the West operates from 2900 West State Route 89A in West Sedona, where the private Red Rock West tour and the night tour also meet.

Do You Need a Red Rock Pass?

The Red Rock Pass costs $5 a day, $15 a week or $20 a year and covers everyone in one vehicle at Coconino National Forest sites. You do not need it to park in town for shops, galleries and restaurants.

Honanki requires a Red Rock Pass or an America the Beautiful Pass in addition to its day-use fee, and a vending machine on site sells the daily and weekly versions.

Month by Month

The table below compares all 12 months of Sedona climate normals, high, low and precipitation, from the NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals for the Sedona weather station. Use it to match the season to how much heat or cold you want on the trail.

Sedona sits at 4,500 feet, so evenings stay cool even after hot days.

Summer Heat and the Monsoon

The National Weather Service puts the monsoon from June 15 to September 30. Never drive through flood water: 12 inches can sweep a car off the road, and most flood deaths happen in vehicles. No outdoor spot is safe when thunderstorms are near, so get inside a building or an enclosed metal-topped car.

Tours run morning slots in summer, which beat the worst heat. The Scenic Rim tour departs every hour from 7:00 to 17:00, and the private Red Rock West tour runs 7:00 to 18:00. Honanki closes over 100 F, so the ruins ride goes earlier in the day.

Winter

December brings an average low of 32.8 F and January a high of 58.3 F. The Forest Service restricts motor vehicles on many forest roads each winter, and Schnebly Hill Road can start in desert conditions and end in deep snow, with seasonal closures of the upper part possible. Check the Forest Roads Status page before driving it yourself.

Jeeps used on the night tour carry heated seats and blankets, so a winter ride stays comfortable.

Sunset Rides

The Outlaw Trail tour, the Red Rock Backcountry tour and the Rim Run Express all offer sunset departures. You confirm the sunset time by calling the operator at least 24 hours ahead.