Two hikers among the banded blue and purple badlands of Blue Mesa in the Painted Desert

3 trips in 5 states

Route 66 photography trips

Trips timed for light rather than mileage: sunrise on the Painted Desert, blue hour under the neon of Albuquerque, sunset on the rim of the Grand Canyon.

Trips: 30 end to end
States: 5Along Route 66
Length: 5 to 9 daysSmall groups
From: $2,190Per person

Photography road trips

Route 66 photography trips: what to expect

Route 66 is one of the most photographed roads in the world, and most of those pictures are taken at noon from a car window. Our photography trips are planned the other way round. The day is built around the two good hours at each end, and the middle of the day is for driving, lunch and rest.

The 9-day trip from Santa Fe to the Grand Canyon is led by Annie Cho, a photographer based in Santa Fe who has shot the Southwest for 20 years. Groups are limited to 10 so everyone gets a good spot at the overlooks and a few minutes of one-to-one help each day. You can use any camera, including a phone.

Typical sessions: blue hour on Central Avenue in Albuquerque, the adobe walls of Santa Fe in morning light, a pre-dawn start at the Painted Desert Inn, Winslow at golden hour, and sunset and sunrise at the Grand Canyon from points away from the main crowds. Evenings include a short review of the day's pictures.

Our California section trip and the Neon and Diners trip also carry this theme, with fewer formal sessions but plenty of time at the classic subjects: Roy's sign in Amboy, the Wigwam Motel and the Blue Swallow.

Each evening Annie gives a short review of the day's pictures, and on the last night the group chooses a favorite from every photographer. Many guests have told us that the slower pace and early starts changed how they travel even without a camera, because they finally saw the places in good light.