Chapel of the Holy Cross
Set 250 feet up the side of a sandstone spur, the Chapel of the Holy Cross is the rare 20th-century landmark that lives up to its reputation. The 1956 design by sculptor and Frank Lloyd Wright student Marguerite Brunswig Staude pins a 90-foot cross between two pillars of native rock; from below it appears to grow straight out of the cliff face. Free to enter, open daily, and walkable for almost anyone.
What it is
The Chapel of the Holy Cross is a working Catholic chapel built in 1956 at the urging of Marguerite Brunswig Staude, who first sketched the concept in the 1930s after seeing the Empire State Building under construction. After two false starts in Hungary and Los Angeles, she found the right site on a 250-foot red-rock spur south of Sedona. Architects Richard Hein and August K. Strotz executed the build; the cross between the twin pillars is the structural centerpiece, both literally (it bears the roof load) and symbolically.
Why visit
Three reasons. First, the architecture: there is nothing else like it in the American Southwest, and the modernist conviction of the design holds up nearly seven decades later. Second, the view: the upper terrace looks south across the Verde Valley toward Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte, with Cathedral Rock framing the western horizon at sunset. Third, the silence — once you are inside the small nave, the acoustics absorb the parking-lot chatter and the space genuinely feels devotional whether or not you came for that. Mass is celebrated Mondays at 5pm; the chapel asks for quiet at all times, especially during services.
Practical tips
Park in the lower lot off Chapel Road (rangers strictly enforce the no-parking zone on the residential streets above). From the lower lot it is a 250-yard walk up a paved switchback ramp — gentle enough for grandparents and strollers, though there are a few benches if you need to pause. Time your arrival for 90 minutes before sunset: walk up in late-afternoon light, sit on the upper terrace as the rocks ignite. There are no restrooms at the chapel — use the ones at the trailhead lot off SR-179 before driving up. Photography from below (looking up the ramp toward the cross) is the classic frame; the wider context shot is from the pullout on Chapel Road as you drive in.
Stay nearby
The Chapel sits in the cluster of properties south of Sedona — browse our rentals to find one within a 10-minute drive. Pair the visit with dinner at Tlaquepaque on the way back into town. For more area context, see Visit Sedona.
