The Navajo Nation

The Navajo Nation covers around seventy thousand square kilometres of high desert and mesa across Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, larger than several states and larger than a good many countries, and it is governed from Window Rock with its own laws, police and courts. Diné is spoken widely and taught in schools. The land itself is the draw for most visitors, since Monument Valley, Canyon de Chelly and Antelope Canyon all lie within it and are visited with Navajo guides, but the deeper interest is the living culture: the weaving tradition that produces rugs of extraordinary quality, the silver and turquoise work, the churro sheep that underpin both, and the frybread and mutton stew of a roadside stand.

What you actually see

• Canyon de Chelly - a canyon of cliff dwellings still farmed by Navajo families.
• Navajo weaving - rugs from local wool, sold at trading posts and markets.
• Silver and turquoise work - a jewellery tradition with its own regional styles.
• The roadside food - frybread, Navajo tacos and mutton stew.

When to go

April to October is the comfortable season, though the high desert stays cool at night and summer afternoons bring monsoon storms and flash floods in the slot canyons. The Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock each September is the largest gathering of the year and the best time to see dance, rodeo and craft together.

Honest expectations

This is sovereign land and visitors are guests: photographing people requires asking first, many areas need a permit or a Navajo guide, and alcohol is banned across the Nation. Some of the best-known sites can only be entered with a licensed guide, and slot canyon tours book out weeks ahead. Services between towns are sparse, so fill the tank.

Nearby

Monument Valley, Antelope Canyon and Chaco Culture are within or beside the Nation.