4 HOURS IN... SCOTTSDALE
This Sonoran Desert city is hot in more ways than one, a destination that mixes business and pleasure in a special way
This Sonoran Desert city is hot in more ways than one
1 OLD TOWN SCOTTSDALE
Long a favorite of snow birds from the north who descend upon it in the winter, Scottsdale’s multitude of resorts and destination spas attract 11 million visitors a year, many of whom elect to stay a bit longer.
Despite the plethora of beautifully designed resorts, heading into Old Town Scottsdale is a must for visitors. Fifth Avenue features a variety of boutiques selling everything from souvenirs to clothing. In fact, the largest retail destination in the southwest, Fashion Square, is nearby and offers a variety of luxury brands and smaller local shops. You’ll find small art galleries (dozens along East Main Street alone) and jewelry stores displaying local handicrafts. oldtownscottsdaleaz.com
If you prefer to wait until evening, when temperatures are cooler, there’s plenty of great dining plus several microbreweries, wine bars, nightclubs if you want to make an evening of it. You’ll even find a few western-style saloons like Rusty Spur Saloon where country music dancing is a regular affair. rustyspursaloon.com
The free Scottsdale Trolley takes visitors around the area, but it stops around 9:30 PM. Social media fans will enjoy the JoyridesAZ Instagram Tour, which takes visitors via golf cart through Old Town to snap the most iconic and entertaining shots for their profile (there are more than three dozen). joyridesaz.com
2 SCOTTSDALE ARTWALK
The city is quickly becoming known for its creative arts, which including southwestern-inspired work as well as modern art. Each Thursday evening, Old Town Scottsdale’s galleries stay open late and host live music and artist presentations. That’s in addition to the city’s public art program that offers visitors 70 permanent pieces, including Robert Indiana’s iconic
LOVE sculpture, plus temporary installations and activities around town. Guests can explore on their own using a self-guided walking tour that explains the inspiration and ideas behind each piece. scottsdaleartsdistrict.com/artwalk
The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, which has a permanent collection of more than 2,000 pieces and an impressive gift shop for creative minds, reopened Feb. 19 with limited ticketed entry to meet COVID-19 social distancing requirements.
3 OLD ADOBE MISSION
When Winfield Scott bought 650 acres of desert farmland in 1888 at the cost of $3.50 per acre, he surely never imagined what his namesake
city would have become today. To get to know more about the region, visit several of the city’s historic sites like the Old Adobe Mission, once the only Catholic church in town. There’s also the Heard Museum explaining the history of the region’s Native American cultures through artifacts and live events. The Little Red Schoolhouse, home to the Scottsdale Historical Museum, is closed temporarily because of the pandemic.
4 THE MUSEUM OF THE WEST
This Smithsonian affiliate museum showcases the 19 states that make up the western part of the country through rotating exhibits and galleries including six centuries of rare Hopi pottery and a great collection of cowboy gear like holsters, chaps, and saddles. Open 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM Wed – Sunday. scottsdalemuseumwest.org
Of course, you’ll find even more Parada del Sol rodeo artifacts at the Scottsdale Rodeo Museum housed in a former stable (one of the city’s newest museums), and the Cavalliere Blacksmith Shop, across the street, offers free tours of old-fashion wagon wheels, spurs, and lanterns among other custom metal work pieces.
5 THE DESERT BOTANICAL GARDEN
While each resort has its own roster of activities including golf, tennis, and spas among other attractions, the city’s location in the vast 30,580-acre Sonoran Desert means that there is a lot of nature worth exploring. Any time spent outdoors will make you appreciate the variety of flora and fauna including the region’s famous and sometimes colorful cacti and saguaro blossoms. The Desert Botanical Garden gives visitors a taste of the region’s arid land plants via five themed trail walks including free access the second Tuesday of the month. Admission $29.95. Open 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM Daily. experiencescottsdale.com
Beyond that, the area around Scottsdale has more than 400 miles of hiking trails as well as two rivers great for fishing, white water rafting, canoeing. Open-air Jeep or heavyduty Hummer rides through the desert are another approach to seeing the natural beauty of the area.