Sedona, Arizona has a unique character immediately apparent to vacationers staying in Sedona vacation rentals. Many buildings in the city are constructed of adobe in the Taos style, and local adherence to this architectural pattern is so strong that when a McDonald's was constructed, the traditional yellow arches were swapped out for turquoise ones since they would blend much better with the earth tones of the buildings all around.
Another interesting architectural feature of the town is the Chapel of the Holy Cross. Construction started on the building in the mid-1950s and the intention from the first was to make a building reminiscent of the Empire State Building in New York City. To that end, the chapel was built on top of a red rock formation naturally a thousand feet high.
These red rock formations dominate the natural landscape around Sedona, making it a popular filming spot for western films. Classic westerns filmed in this part of the Arizona desert include Broken Arrow, staring James Stewart; Stay Away Joe, one of Elvis Presley's movies, was also filmed in the area, as was the Robert De Niro comedy Midnight Run.
As a way of celebrating its cinematic legacy, Sedona each year hosts the Sedona International Film Festival. Lasting five days each year, the festival typically features screenings of at least 125 films and offers tourists a chance to see some of the big name celebrities that attend. In the past, attendees have included Ed Asner, Andrew McCarthy, and Linda Gray.