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Southern Arizona

This is a land of Stetsons and spurs, where cowboy ballads are sung around the campfire under starry, black-velvet skies and thick steaks sizzle on the grill. Anchored by the bustling college town of Tucson, it's a vast region, where long, dusty highways slide past rolling vistas and steep, pointy mountain ranges. Majestic saguaro cacti, the symbol of the region, stretch out as far as the eye can see. Some of the Wild West's most classic tales were begot in small towns like Tombstone and Bisbee, which still attract tourists by the thousands for their Old West vibe. The desert air is hot, sweet and dry by day, cool and crisp at night. And the sunsets? Stupendous.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Southern Arizona.

  • See

    Saguaro National Park

    Saguaros (sah- wah -ros) are icons of the American Southwest, and an entire cactus army of these majestic, ribbed sentinels is protected in this desert playground. Or more precisely, playgrounds: the park is divided into east and west units, separated by 30 miles and Tucson itself. Both sections – the Rincon Mountain District in the east and Tucson Mountain District in the west – are filled with trails and desert flora; if you only visit one, make it the spectacular western half. The larger section is the Rincon Mountain District, about 15 miles east of downtown. Its visitor center has information on day hikes, horseback riding and backcountry camping. Camping requires a permit ($8 per site per day) and must be obtained by noon on the day of your hike. The meandering 8-mile Cactus Forest Scenic Loop Drive, a paved road open to cars and bicycles, provides access to picnic areas, trailheads and viewpoints. Hikers pressed for time should follow the 1-mile round-trip Freeman Homestead Trail to a grove of massive saguaros. For a full-fledged desert adventure, head out on the steep and rocky Tanque Verde Ridge Trail, which climbs to the summit of Mica Mountain (8666ft) and back in 20 miles ($8 backcountry camping permit required for overnight use). If you'd rather someone (or something) else did the hard work, family-run Houston's Horseback Riding offers trail rides in the eastern section of the Park. West of town, the Tucson Mountain District has its own Red Hills Visitor Center. The Scenic Bajada Loop Drive is a 6-mile, graded dirt road through cactus forest that begins 1.5 miles north of the visitor center. Two quick, easy and rewarding hikes are the 0.8-mile Valley View Overlook (awesome at sunset) and the half-mile Signal Hill Trail to scores of ancient petroglyphs. For a more strenuous trek we recommend the 7-mile King Canyon Trail, which starts 2 miles south of the visitor center, near the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. The 0.5-mile informative Desert Discovery Trail, which is 1 mile northwest of the visitor center, is wheelchair accessible. Distances for all four hikes are round-trip. As for the park's namesake cactus, don't refer to the limbs of the saguaro as branches. As park docents will quickly tell you, the mighty saguaro grows arms, not lowly branches – a distinction that makes sense when you consider its human-like features. Saguaros grow slowly, taking about 15 years to reach a foot in height, 50 years to reach 7ft and almost a century before they begin to take on their typical many-armed appearance. The best time to visit is April, when the cacti begin blossoming with lovely white blooms – Arizona's state flower. By June and July, the flowers give way to ripe red fruit that local American Indians use for food. Their foot soldiers are the spidery ocotillo, the fluffy teddy bear cactus, the green-bean-like pencil cholla and hundreds of other plant species. It is illegal to damage or remove saguaros. Note that trailers longer than 35ft and vehicles wider than 8ft are not permitted on the park's narrow scenic loop roads.

  • See

    Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

    Home to cacti, coyotes and palm-sized hummingbirds, this 98-acre ode to the Sonoran Desert is one part zoo, one part botanical garden and one part museum – a trifecta that'll entertain young and old for half a day easily. Desert denizens, from precocious coatis to playful prairie dogs, inhabit natural enclosures, the grounds are thick with desert plants, and docents give demonstrations. Strollers and wheelchairs are available, and there's a gift shop, an art gallery, a restaurant and a cafe. There are two walk-through aviaries, a mineral exhibit inside a cave, a half-mile desert trail and an underground exhibit with windows into ponds where beavers and otters frolic. Wear a hat and walking shoes, and remember that the big cats are most active in the morning. The museum is off Hwy 86, about 14 miles west of Tucson, near the western section of Saguaro National Park.

  • See

    Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures

    Divided into the Enchanted Realm, Exploring the World and the History Gallery, this delightful museum of miniatures presents dioramas that are fantastical, historical and plain intriguing. You can also walk over a snow-globey Christmas village, peer into tiny homes constructed in the 1700s and 1800s, and search for the little inhabitants of a magical tree. The museum grew from a personal collection in the 1930s. Parents may find themselves having more fun than the kids.

  • See

    Mission San Xavier del Bac

    The dazzling white towers of this mission rise from the dusty desert floor 8 miles south of Tucson – a mesmerizing structure that brings an otherworldly glow to the scrubby landscape surrounding it. Nicknamed 'White Dove of the Desert,' the original mission was founded by Jesuit missionary Father Eusebio Kino in 1700, but was mostly destroyed in the Pima uprising of 1751. Its successor was gracefully rebuilt in the late 1700s in a harmonious blend of Moorish, Byzantine and Mexican Renaissance styles. Carefully restored in the 1990s with the help of experts from the Vatican and still religiously active, it's one of the best-preserved and most beautiful Spanish missions in the country. The extraordinary splendor behind its thick walls begs for a closer look. Your eyes are instantly drawn to the wall-sized carved, painted and gilded retable behind the altar, which tells the story of creation in dizzying detail. In the left transept the faithful line up to caress and pray to a reclining wooden figure of St Francis, the mission's patron saint. Metal votive pins shaped like body parts have been affixed to his blanket, offered in the hope of healing. A small museum explains the history of the mission and its construction. Free 45-minute docent tours (four to ten per day, Monday to Saturday) add helpful context. Visit the website for tour times. American Indians sell frybread, jewelry and crafts in the parking lot. From I-19, take exit 92.

  • See

    4th Avenue

    Linking historic downtown and the university, lively 4th Ave is a rare breed: a rough-around-the-edges, alt-flavored strip with not a single chain store or restaurant (except for Dairy Queen). The stretch between 9th St and University Blvd is lined with buzzy restaurants, coffeehouses, bars, bookstores, galleries, indie boutiques and vintage shops. It has its own traders' association along with events (see the website). Under the overpass that crosses 4th Ave and Broadway is the Tucson Portrait Project, a wonderful public art project composed of thousands of locals' portraits. Parking is free on weekends. The best time to visit 4th Ave is during the two annual street fairs held for three days in mid-December and in late March or early April. See the 4th Ave website for details.

  • See

    Pima Air & Space Museum

    An SR-71 Blackbird spy plane and a massive B-52 bomber are among the stars of this extraordinary private aircraft museum. Allow at least two hours to wander through hangars and around the airfield where more than 300 'birds' trace the evolution of civilian and military aviation. Take a self-guided tour using the museum's GPS-guided app, or pay an extra $6 for the one-hour tram tour departing at 10am, 11:30am, 1:30pm and 3pm from November to May. Hardcore plane-spotters must call ahead (minimum 10 days) to book a spot on the 90-minute bus tour of the nearby Aerospace Maintenance & Regeneration Group – aka the 'Boneyard' – where 4000 or so aircraft are mothballed in the dry desert air.

  • See

    Arizona State Museum

    To learn more about the history and culture of the region's American Indian tribes, visit the Arizona State Museum, the oldest and largest anthropology museum in the Southwest. The exhibit covering the tribes' cultural histories is extensive but easy to navigate, and should appeal to newbies and history buffs alike. These galleries are complemented by much-envied collections of minerals and Navajo textiles. Don't miss the impressive Wall of Pots and take a peek into the climate-controlled Pottery Vault. The museum has more than 20,000 whole vessels.

  • See

    Tucson Museum of Art

    For a small city, Tucson boasts an impressive art museum. There's a respectable collection of American, Latin American and modern art, and the permanent exhibition of pre-Columbian artifacts will awaken your inner Indiana Jones. The special exhibits are varied and interesting, there's a superb gift shop, and the block surrounding the building holds a number of notable historic homes. The museum stays open to 8pm on the first Thursday of the month, when admission is free from 5pm.

  • See

    Old Tucson Studios

    Nicknamed 'Hollywood in the Desert,' this old movie set of Tucson in the 1860s was built in 1939 for the filming of Arizona. Hundreds of flicks followed, bringing in movie stars from Clint Eastwood to Leonardo DiCaprio. Now a Wild West theme park, it's all about shoot-outs, stagecoach rides, stunt shows and dancing saloon girls. Hours vary by month – check online before you go.

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