5 Things Not To Miss in Phoenix, Arizona

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I absolutely love traveling, but when I made my first trip to Phoenix, Arizona in 2014 I fell head-over-heels in love with the city. So much so as soon as I got home I packed up my car and moved across country. It was a breath of fresh air in comparison to the midwestern city I had been residing in the past few years. I loved all of it; the sun, the heat, the vegetation, the people. It was like my own little slice of heaven on earth.

Since then I loved sharing my favorite spots with people visiting. Here’s my list of top five things you must do the next time you find yourself around Phoenix.

Camelback

  1. Hike Camelback Mountain. This is totally free and the view is beautiful, but you need to get an early start because it gets warm fast. And don’t forget to bring lots of water!
  2. Grab a margarita at a tequila bar. Specifically this one in Old Town Scottsdale called Cien Agaves- they have a ton of different flavors including a prickly pear, which is native to the area. Besides, are you really in the southwest if you don’t have a sip or two of some good tequila?
  3. Enjoy the sunset at Hole in the Rock. There’s nothing more beautiful than a desert sunset (well, possibly a desert sunrise- but I’m not a morning person). So pack some snacks, take a short hike, and enjoy the sunset from a gorgeous, natural look-out point.pexels-photo-764998.jpeg
  4. DeFalco’s. This place is a hidden gem. It’s an italian deli hidden in the back of a grocery store in a strip mall (I know, I know. Italian food in the desert? just trust me on this one). Every single person I’ve taken here ends up going back at least one more time before their flight out. It’s that good.
  5. The Old Town Shops. Catch the trolly or an uber and have the drop you off in Old Town Scottsdale and just enjoy the locally owned shops and submerge yourself in the old-timey Southwest culture. Stop by the Rusty Spur- the oldest (and probably the smallest) saloon in Arizona, check out some turquoise jewelry, or try some prickly pear tea. Whatever you deccide to do, it’ll be an experience you’ll never forget.

 

If you enjoyed this post, please stop by mamaunrated.com and don’t forget to say hi!

-Kayla

34 thoughts on “5 Things Not To Miss in Phoenix, Arizona”

  4. I grew up in Tucson and still have a fondness for Tucson and Phoenix and the upper Sonoran desert in general. Beautiful. It was a great time. But I only travel occasionally now to the desert.

    Reply

      • It is the only place where at midnight I had a badger come up to my apartment door and look in; we fed a couple stray cats outside so the badger snacked on cat food. (The front door was open because the air conditioning did not work and it was a hot Friday evening.)

      • Lol I believe it! That’s so funny. I used to work on a ranch at the base of south mountain and had a ton of run ins with snakes and scorpions but never a badger. The wildlife is fantastic

      • When you have the opportunity, I hope you see a Gila Monster. After my mother passed away and I was cleaning up around her home, I saw that a g/m – first I ever saw in the wild – had taken up residence under the slab out front of her home (it was in the canyon east of Vail ). The house was on a dirt road named- wait for it: Gila Monster Way…

      • Hahaha! O, the irony! I hope I see one too. When my mom came out we did a pink Jeep tour and saw a bunch of wild mustangs which was really neat. They also told us that the little ground squirrels regulate their body temperature by laying on the ground. So if they get too cold at night, the lay on the warm earth and it’s called “taking a cool dump.” I would love to say that I was mature enough not to chuckle at that but ermm… haha!

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