Things to do in Arizona
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Grand Canyon Caverns & Inn
Nine miles past Peach Springs, a plaster dinosaur welcomes you to the Grand Canyon Caverns & Inn, a cool subterranean retreat from the summer heat. An elevator drops 210ft underground to artificially lit limestone caverns and the skeletal remains of a prehistoric ground sloth. If you’ve seen other caverns, these might be underwhelming, but kids still seem to get a kick out of a visit. The complex also includes a campground (tent/RV sites $15/30) amid junipers and a basic motel (r $85). The restaurant (mains $5 to $15; open 7am to 7pm) is a nice little roadside spot with a small playground and serves burgers and fried food. Note that, despite the name, Grand Canyon…
reviewed
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Casa Grande Ruins National Monument
Built around AD 1350, Casa Grande (Big House) is the country's largest Hohokam structures still standing, with 11 rooms spread across four floors and mud walls several feet thick. Preserved as a national monument it's in reasonably good shape, partly because of the metal awning that's been canopying it since 1932. Although you can't walk inside the crumbling structure, you can peer into its rooms. A few strategically placed windows and doors suggest that the structure may have served as an astronomical observatory. The ball court is one of more than 200 that have been found in major Hohokam villages throughout the region. Experts aren't 100% sure of the purpose of these…
reviewed
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South Rim
About 90% of Grand Canyon national-park visitors head for the South Rim. Just north of Tusayan, Arizona is the park’s south entrance station. A short drive further ahead next to ever-crowded Mather Point is Canyon View Information Plaza to help you get oriented. After stretching your legs, continue north to Grand Canyon Village. Duck inside the 100-year-old Hopi House, one of the park’s many Native American–inspired designs by famed Western architect Mary Colter, and the equally historic El Tovar Hotel and cliffside Kolb Studio. At the northeastern end of the village, panoramic views of the canyon unfold at Yavapai Observation Station, which has an intriguing…
reviewed
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Deer Creek
If you're lucky enough to have joined a Grand Canyon rafting tour, Deer Creek Falls tumbles into the Colorado River downstream of Granite Narrows below Mile 136. From this welcoming trailhead you head 150m (500ft) up a steep, bushy slope to a stunning overlook. From here the trail leads into Deer Creek Narrows, an impressive slot canyon whose walls bear remarkable pictographs.
The narrows end in an inviting cascade. Above, lush vegetation lines the trail as it meanders along the cottonwood-shaded creek. The trail crosses the creek and ascends open, rocky slopes to Deer Creek Spring, the trail's second waterfall. From here retrace your steps back to the river. Despite…
reviewed
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Arizona Vineyards
Nogales is the gateway to Hwy 82, aka the Patagonia Hwy, which rumbles through rolling hills, open range, wine country and bird refuges to link up 70 miles later with Hwy 80 near Tombstone. Tall grass sways in the breeze and lazy cattle graze in fields dotted with the occasional windmill. If the land looks familiar it’s because you’ve probably seen it on film. More than 50 movies were filmed in this area, including Red River and Oklahoma. It’s truly a road less traveled and a great way to get away from it all and perhaps taste a bit of Arizona wine. Didn’t know they grew grapes down here? OK, so it’s not the Napa Valley and there are only seven wineries thus far, but…
reviewed
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Tucson Museum of Art & Historic Block
For a small city, Tucson boasts an impressive art museum. There's a respectable collection of Western and contemporary art, and the permanent exhibition of pre-Columbian artifacts will awaken your inner Indiana Jones. A superb gift shop rounds out the works. First Sunday of the month is free.
reviewed
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Bright Angel Bicycles
Renting 'comfort cruiser' bikes on the South Rim, the friendly folks here custom-fit each bike to the individual. Rates include helmet and bicycle-lock rental; child trailers also available.
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IBT's
At Tucson's most sizzling gay fun house, the theme changes nightly – from drag shows to techno dance mixes to karaoke. Chill on the patio, check out the bods, or sweat it out on the dance floor.
reviewed
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Sedona Adventure Outfitters & Guides
- Sedona, USA
- Activities › Tour
Offers all sorts of outdoor adventures, from hikes to the top of Cathedral Rock to tubing Oak Creek and kayaking on Lynx Lake. Tours range from $48 to $91.
reviewed
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MacAlpine's
The oldest diner in Phoenix serves basic salads and sandwiches, but it's the old-timey soda fountain that's the real attraction - nothing like a malted milk to chase those blues away.
reviewed
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Museum of Northern Arizona
This small but excellent museum features exhibits on local Native American archaeology, history and culture, as well as geology, biology and the arts. Don't miss the extensive collection of Hopi kachina (also spelled katsina, ) dolls and a wonderful variety of Native American basketry and ceramics.
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Absolute Bikes
Absolute Bikes has the scoop on the biking scene. The shop offers mountain-, road- and children’s-bike rentals (from $15 per day), as well as trail maps and info. It also sells equipment and does repairs.
reviewed
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Phoenix / Valley Area Highlights
4 hours (Departs Phoenix, Arizona)
by Viator
Travel in air-conditioned comfort around the fascinating city of Phoenix. See the Old and New West as you visit the State Capitol, Camelback Mountain,the…Not LP reviewed
from USD$58.99 -
Saguaro National Park
If you're standing beside a docent at this cacti-filled park, don't refer to the limbs of the saguaro (sah-wah-ro) as branches. As the docent will quickly tell you, the mighty saguaro grows arms, not lowly branches – a distinction that makes sense when you consider their human-like features. They shake your hand, wave at you or draw a gun on you. They are also the most iconic symbol of the American Southwest, and an entire army of these majestic ribbed sentinels is protected in this national park. Their foot soldiers are the spidery ocotillo, the fluffy teddy bear cactus, the green-bean-like pencil cholla and hundreds of other plant species.
Saguaros grow slowly, taking…
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Chelsea's Kitchen
Kick up the wardrobe for this see-and-be-seen eatery (you will get a once-over); but then again, looking nice just feels right. Brick walls, lofty industrial ceiling, leather booths: this casual place wouldn't be out of place in New York's Chelsea. The cuisine, however, is distinctly Western-inspired. Burgers, salads and tacos make appearances, but we're partial to the organic meats tanned to juicy perfection in the hardwood rotisserie. There's a nice patio too.
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Reid Park Zoo
A global menagerie including giant anteaters and pygmy hippos delights young and old at the small and compact Reid Park Zoo. Cap a visit with a picnic in the surrounding park, which also has playgrounds and a pond with paddleboat rentals.
reviewed
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Antelope Canyon
Unearthly in its beauty, Antelope Canyon is a popular slot canyon on the Navajo Reservation a few miles east of Page and open to tourists by Navajo-led tour only. Wind and water have carved sandstone into an astonishingly sensuous temple of nature where light and shadow play hide and seek. Less than a city block long (about a quarter-mile), its symphony of shapes and textures are a photographer's dream. Lighting conditions are best around mid-morning between April and September, but the other months bring smaller crowds and a more intimate experience.
Four tour companies offer trips into upper Antelope Canyon; Antelope Slot Canyon Tours, owned by Chief Tsotsie, is…
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Mandala Tearoom
An organic vegan cafe in cheerful minimalist surroundings, it serves up rockin' baked ziti, dozens of organic teas, and a weekend brunch with filling tofu scrambles. In addition to the creative international-inspired menu, treats include vegan truffles from Cosmic Cacao, herbal elixirs (around US$7) and free wi-fi.
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Riordan Mansion State Historic Park
Having made a fortune from their Arizona Lumber Company, brothers Michael and Timothy Riordan had the house built in 1904. The Craftsman-style design was the brainchild of architect Charles Whittlesey, who also designed El Tovar on the South Rim. The exterior features hand-split wooden shingles, log-slab siding and rustic stone. Filled with Edison, Stickley, Tiffany and Steinway furniture, the interior is a shrine to Arts and Crafts. Visitors are welcome to walk the grounds and picnic, but entrance to the house is by guided tour only. Tours leave daily and on the hour; advance reservations are accepted.
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Blue Willow Restaurant
If you’ve greeted the day with bloodshot eyes, get back in gear with high-octane coffee, energy-restoring omelettes or a fiery chorizo scramble at this beloved local institution. Fresh pasta, bulging sandwiches, meat-free choices and daily specials keep the place packed through dinnertime. The patio is heated in winter.
reviewed
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Lowell Observatory
This national historic landmark was built in 1894 by Percival Lowell. The observatory has witnessed many important discoveries, the most famous of which was the first sighting of Pluto – in 1930 through the 1896 24-inch Clark Telescope. In the '60s NASA used the Clark telescope to map the moon. Weather permitting, visitors can stargaze through the telescope; check the website for the evening schedule. The short, paved Pluto Walk climbs through a scale model of our solar system, providing descriptions of each planet. You can stroll the grounds and museum on your own, but the only way to see the telescopes and lovely observatories is on a tour (on the hour from 10am to 4pm…
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Meteor Crater
Nearly a mile across and 600ft deep, the second most impressive hole in Arizona was formed by a fiery meteor that screamed into the atmosphere about 50,000 years ago, when giant sloths lived in these parts. Meteor Crater, 40 miles east of Flagstaff, is an out-of-this-world site for those with a thimbleful of imagination. There are lookout points around the crater's edge but no hiking to the bottom. Check out the fun, informative visitor center.
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Arcosanti
The brainchild of groundbreaking architect and urban planner Paolo Soleri, Arcosanti is a desert outpost based on 'acrology': architecture meets ecology. This cross between a kibbutz and design school 65 miles north of Phoenix looks like a village on Luke Skywalker's home planet. Radical when conceived in the 1960s, Soleri's ideas now seem cutting-edge in this age of urban sprawl and global warming. Arcosanti is good for a day trip or a long stay - there are week- and month-long seminars, a café, one-hour tours, concerts and other events. Basic accommodation is available, and the Sky Suite is designed for great views of a dark desert night.
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Pink Jeep Tours
- Sedona, USA
- Activities › Jeep
This company must be doing something right because it recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. The company runs 13 different thrilling and funny, if bone-rattling, off-road tours lasting from about two hours (adult/child $55/42) to four hours ($167/144). Tours to the Grand Canyon are also offered.
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Bison Witches
At this funky deli to and bar, everything's made fresh and with healthy ingredients like grilled meats, avocado and sprouts. In addition to sandwiches, there are a few salads on the menu. The back patio is more for the smoking and drinking crowd.
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