Local Guide
Old Town Cottonwood: The Verde Valley Without the Sedona Prices
Five blocks of 1920s main street 43 miles from Prescott, a wine-tasting scene that grew out of the Verde Valley vineyards, and the practical base for Jerome and the railroad.
September 6, 2026 · The Owners
Old Town Cottonwood is about five blocks of 1920s main street in the Verde Valley, 43 miles from Prescott over Mingus Mountain. It went from a run-down strip to the centre of the county’s wine trade in about twenty years, and it is now where people eat when they have spent the morning somewhere more famous.
Where it fits
| Old Town Cottonwood | |
|---|---|
| Distance from Prescott | 43 miles, 1 hr 10 |
| Elevation | about 3,300 ft |
| Size of Old Town | roughly five walkable blocks |
| Time needed | an afternoon |
| Next to | Tuzigoot, Clarkdale, Jerome |
| Best for | eating, wine tasting, a break from driving |
The drive is over Jerome
You get there over Mingus Mountain and down through Jerome, which is the same road and the better-known stop. Jerome is built onto a 30-degree slope and is genuinely spectacular. It is also small, steep, and short on parking and places to sit down.
Cottonwood is what Jerome is not: flat, walkable, and able to seat you. The usual pattern is Jerome in the late morning for the views and the vertigo, then down the hill to Old Town for lunch.
The wine is local
The Verde Valley sits around 3,300 feet, which gives hot days and cool nights, and grapes do well in it. A commercial industry has grown there since the 1990s and most of the tasting rooms on Main Street pour wine grown within the county rather than shipped in.
Whether the wine is to your taste is a separate question, but the tasting rooms are close together, walkable, and considerably cheaper than the equivalent in Sedona half an hour up the road.
What else is within minutes
Tuzigoot National Monument, a hilltop pueblo, is a few minutes out of town. If you bought a Montezuma Castle ticket in the past seven days it covers Tuzigoot as well.
The Verde Canyon Railroad leaves from Clarkdale, immediately next door. A one o’clock departure and a four-hour ride puts you back in Old Town at a reasonable hour for dinner.
The heat
Cottonwood is roughly 3,100 feet below Groom Creek, so it runs far hotter. A June afternoon that is comfortable at the cabin is punishing on Main Street. Go in the morning or after four in summer. From October to May it is pleasant all day, which is when this trip is at its best.
For how it compares against the six other trips within reach, see day trips from Prescott.
Common questions
How far is Cottonwood from Prescott?
43 miles and about an hour and ten minutes by road, over Mingus Mountain through Jerome. Add fifteen minutes from Groom Creek.
What is there to do in Old Town Cottonwood?
It is about five walkable blocks of 1920s storefronts holding tasting rooms, restaurants, antique shops and a couple of small hotels. The main activity is walking the street, eating and tasting wine. It takes an afternoon, not a day.
Is Cottonwood better than Sedona?
Different, and considerably cheaper. Sedona has the red rock and the crowds and the prices. Cottonwood has a compact historic street and Verde Valley wine, half an hour away, at a fraction of the cost. Many people do the scenery in Sedona and the eating in Cottonwood.
Why is there wine in the Verde Valley?
Elevation and soil. The valley sits around 3,300 feet with hot days and cool nights, which suits wine grapes, and a commercial industry has built up there since the 1990s. Most Old Town tasting rooms pour wine grown within the county.
What else is near Cottonwood?
Tuzigoot National Monument is minutes away, the Verde Canyon Railroad departs from Clarkdale next door, and Jerome is up the switchbacks above the town. All three combine easily with an afternoon in Old Town.
Hero photo: Scottb211 / CC BY 2.0
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