Cool stuff to do in Arizona?
Discussion
Visit the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum?Another vote for the Sonora Desert museum. The stagecoach tour of Tombstone is pretty cool, as is Biosphere, Meteor Crater, Canyon De Chelly, Four Corners, Monument Valley (just before sundown). Ooooooh, and the Titan Missile museum and Pima Air & Space museum. And the Lowell observatory in Flagstaff. And Rte 66. I just love Arizona/Utah/Nevada etc. Don't bother with Old Tucson Studios - expensive crap.
We went in August last year and managed to see the rodeo at Payson. Brilliant!
We went in August last year and managed to see the rodeo at Payson. Brilliant!
As mentioned above:
If you're vaguely in the area, the meteor crater near Flagstaff is pretty cool.
http://www.meteorcrater.com
Monument Valley (Utah but near Arizona border) is quite simply one of the most stunning places on earth, plus there's a cool little dirt road you can burn the obligatory rental Shelby around.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monument_Valley
edited to add, there are some stunning dirt roads in Arizona - if you simply enjoy driving you can get off the main roads and drive for mile upon mile without seeing any cars/houses etc. (actually you can do that on the main roads as well!)
If you're vaguely in the area, the meteor crater near Flagstaff is pretty cool.
http://www.meteorcrater.com
Monument Valley (Utah but near Arizona border) is quite simply one of the most stunning places on earth, plus there's a cool little dirt road you can burn the obligatory rental Shelby around.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monument_Valley
edited to add, there are some stunning dirt roads in Arizona - if you simply enjoy driving you can get off the main roads and drive for mile upon mile without seeing any cars/houses etc. (actually you can do that on the main roads as well!)
Edited by blackvanman on Monday 13th October 20:18
Well, I live there now... I live in Scottsdale, which is on the East side of the Phoenix Metropolitan area.
Depends on what you're after, and how far you're willing to travel, but there is a whole world of things to do.
Sonoran Desert Museum is a must, as is the Grand Canyon. The Tombstone meteor crater is worth a look in, as is the aeroplane graveyard at Tucson - get a tour bus to drive you round..
Day to day, for amenities like shopping, eating and nightlife, Scottsdale is probably the place to be. Thousands of restaurants, a high-end mall, loads of bars, and Old Town Scottsdale (where I live) actually looks like a wild-west themed amusement park, in that it's all saloons/corals, full of art galleries and the like.
Prescott/flagstaff/Sedona are all a couple of hours north by car, Sedona is a gorgeous little town built into red rock, Prescott, a real wild-west type place, big courthouse in the market square, then saloon shops/bars/museums around it.
Check to see if there is any sports games on. Baseball season is over for AZ, but, the Cardinals (NFL), Coyotes (NHL) and Suns (NBA) are all in season, well worth trying to get tickets..
There is other stuff that you can't really get in the UK, too, such as gon clubs - hire a browning 50. cal and open it up on a heap of sand bags.
For hotel recommendations, just let me know. We're now in-season, so it's more expensive, but still, just let me know... I've friends and family who've stayed at most of the well-known hotels here, so I can give you their opinion. Generally speaking, anything service-related here is done very well.
Feel free to plug away with questions! It's a great place to visit, and the weather right now is PERFECT! Not a cloud in the sky, 27 degrees C, 4mph wind... Just been to walk the puppy round the lake.. Happy days..
Depends on what you're after, and how far you're willing to travel, but there is a whole world of things to do.
Sonoran Desert Museum is a must, as is the Grand Canyon. The Tombstone meteor crater is worth a look in, as is the aeroplane graveyard at Tucson - get a tour bus to drive you round..
Day to day, for amenities like shopping, eating and nightlife, Scottsdale is probably the place to be. Thousands of restaurants, a high-end mall, loads of bars, and Old Town Scottsdale (where I live) actually looks like a wild-west themed amusement park, in that it's all saloons/corals, full of art galleries and the like.
Prescott/flagstaff/Sedona are all a couple of hours north by car, Sedona is a gorgeous little town built into red rock, Prescott, a real wild-west type place, big courthouse in the market square, then saloon shops/bars/museums around it.
Check to see if there is any sports games on. Baseball season is over for AZ, but, the Cardinals (NFL), Coyotes (NHL) and Suns (NBA) are all in season, well worth trying to get tickets..
There is other stuff that you can't really get in the UK, too, such as gon clubs - hire a browning 50. cal and open it up on a heap of sand bags.
For hotel recommendations, just let me know. We're now in-season, so it's more expensive, but still, just let me know... I've friends and family who've stayed at most of the well-known hotels here, so I can give you their opinion. Generally speaking, anything service-related here is done very well.
Feel free to plug away with questions! It's a great place to visit, and the weather right now is PERFECT! Not a cloud in the sky, 27 degrees C, 4mph wind... Just been to walk the puppy round the lake.. Happy days..
Hi Andy, we've been loads of times - I love Arizona. If you are into the outdoors - hiking and general scenery, then as papoo says, you simply MUST go to Sedona. It's not too far from Phoenix and you could easily spend a few days walking there. Then you could go (via Winslow, Az if you are an old git like me who loves "The Eagles" and "stand on the corner" - re the song "Take it Easy") to Petrified National Park (East Az) and Canyon de Chelly ( N.E. Az). Obvious place to go is Grand Canyon in the North and one of my favourite places I have ever been to is the Antelope Canyon and other slot Canyons near Page (on Az/Utah border - we went a few years ago before it became a big tourist attraction - but it's still worth seeing). There are other slot canyons off the main Hwy 89 south of Page that are kind of free to visit (you need a Navajo pass to park on the road for a few $) - check at Tourist Info centre in Page - these other slot canyons are great as they are a little known secret - you would never know they were there.
Anyway, if this is too far north, then just do Sedona then on the way back south to Phoenix area, go back via Tonto Natural Bridge S.P. nr Payson (on Hwy 87) then after this go via Hwy 260 onto Hwy 188 to Roosevelt Lake and then drive the most amazing road in Arizona - the Hwy 88 (called the Apache Trail) from Roosevelt to Apache Junction via the Superstion Mountains (East of Phoenix). Honestly, if you only do one good driving road in Az., then this is it - it's a slow going road full of hairpins and sheer drops and great scenery, about 45 miles long.
If you go south to Tucson, the the aircraft graveyard is amazing, as is the scenery around the Mount Lemmon area (just North of Tucson).
Hope this helps.
Cheers, Jon
Anyway, if this is too far north, then just do Sedona then on the way back south to Phoenix area, go back via Tonto Natural Bridge S.P. nr Payson (on Hwy 87) then after this go via Hwy 260 onto Hwy 188 to Roosevelt Lake and then drive the most amazing road in Arizona - the Hwy 88 (called the Apache Trail) from Roosevelt to Apache Junction via the Superstion Mountains (East of Phoenix). Honestly, if you only do one good driving road in Az., then this is it - it's a slow going road full of hairpins and sheer drops and great scenery, about 45 miles long.
If you go south to Tucson, the the aircraft graveyard is amazing, as is the scenery around the Mount Lemmon area (just North of Tucson).
Hope this helps.
Cheers, Jon
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