Beyond the Red Rocks: Discovering Sedona’s Living Indigenous Heritage
Last Updated May 2, 2026
Sedona and the Verde Valley have been home to Indigenous peoples for thousands of years, and those connections continue today.
The Yavapai-Apache Nation is based in the Verde Valley, while Hopi, Yavapai, Apache, Zuni and other Indigenous communities maintain cultural and ancestral connections to lands throughout the region.
For visitors, several heritage sites and museums offer a chance to learn more about the people who have lived in this landscape, past and present.
Visit the Crane Petroglyph Heritage Site
Formerly known as V Bar V, the Crane Petroglyph Heritage Site preserves the largest known concentration of petroglyphs in the Verde Valley.
More than 1,000 petroglyphs are carved into the sandstone here. Archaeologists generally associate the site with communities they refer to as the Southern Sinagua, while present-day Indigenous peoples maintain their own histories and cultural connections to the people and places of the Verde Valley.
The site is about 17 miles south of Sedona. Check current days and hours before making the drive, as access is more limited than at many Sedona attractions.
Explore Palatki and Honanki
West of Sedona, Palatki Heritage Site combines cliff dwellings with pictographs and petroglyphs from several periods of human use.
Palatki limits the number of visitors allowed into the site, so a timed reservation is required. Tours include the cliff dwellings and rock-art area and take about an hour. The final road to Palatki is gravel, so allow extra time for the drive.
Nearby Honanki Heritage Site also preserves cliff dwellings and rock art. It does not currently use the same timed-reservation system as Palatki. Check current site hours, access information and road conditions before heading out, particularly after bad weather.
At all three heritage sites, stay on designated routes and never touch rock art, cliff dwellings or archaeological objects. If you find pottery fragments, stone tools or other artifacts, leave them exactly where you found them.
Visit the Museum of Northern Arizona
If you have time for a trip to Flagstaff, the Museum of Northern Arizona is one of the best places in the region to learn more about Indigenous art and cultures.
For 2026, the museum is showing Artist Hopid Unveiled, an exhibition devoted to Artist Hopid, a collective formed in 1973 by five Hopi artists: Michael Kabotie, Delbridge Honanie, Terrance Talaswaima, Neil David Sr. and Milland Lomakema.
The exhibition explores how the group combined imagery rooted in Hopi life with contemporary approaches to art and runs through April 30, 2027.
The museum also maintains collections covering the art, archaeology, anthropology and natural history of the Colorado Plateau.
Buy Native Art From Native Artists
Sedona has no shortage of galleries and shops selling Southwestern art, but it is worth knowing who actually made the piece you are buying.
Under the federal Indian Arts and Crafts Act, artwork cannot legally be marketed as Native American or as the work of a particular Tribe unless it was created by a qualifying Native artist.
You can ask sellers for the artist's name and Tribal affiliation, request written verification of authenticity when appropriate, and make sure that information is included on your receipt.
Visit Heritage Sites With Respect
These are archaeological sites, but for many Indigenous people they are also culturally significant places.
A few simple practices help protect them:
Stay on designated trails and within viewing areas
Never touch petroglyphs, pictographs, walls or cliff dwellings
Do not move or take pottery fragments, stone tools or other objects you may find
Follow any posted photography restrictions
Check current hours, reservations and road conditions before leaving Sedona
When buying Native art, ask who made it and how the artist's Tribal affiliation is documented
Preserving these places means leaving them exactly as you found them.
Stay in Sedona
Pop Art Villa Verde makes a convenient home base for exploring Sedona and the wider Verde Valley. Every stay includes complimentary personal concierge service. If you would like help planning a visit to Palatki, checking current site access or building a day trip around Sedona and the Verde Valley, it would be our pleasure to help.