The Grand Canyon is a short day trip from Scottsdale, about 230 miles or a 4-hour car drive.
For more information on things to do along the way and also at the canyon, click here.
For more than 50 years, the Parada del Sol Parade has attracted thousands of spectators to downtown Scottsdale and provided them with a taste of Arizona’s Old West charm. So, put on your Western duds, gather the family and load up your lawn chairs, because the 63rd Annual Parada del Sol Parade is coming to downtown Scottsdale on Saturday, February 13, 2016. The parade will march south along Scottsdale Road from Drinkwater Blvd. to First St. where it will turn west toward Marshall Way. From Marshall Way, it will head south to Second St., eat to Brown Ave. and north to Indian School Rd., ending in Old Town Scottsdale.
With nearly 150 entries last year, the Parada del Sol Parade maintains its reputation as one of the world’s largest parades. Immediately following the parade is the Trails End Celebration in Old Town Scottsdale. Join the fun at this family-friendly block party where you’ll enjoy live music, delicious food, and shopping among a variety of merchandise vendors.
More on the Parada Del Sol:
Adoring fans call the Waste Management Phoenix Open the “Greatest Show on Grass.” We’re willing to bet it has something to do with the party-like atmosphere on the 16th hole. Surrounded on all sides by stadium seating, the 16th hole draws spectators who are there for a good time as much as they are there to see pros like Phil Mickelson and J.B. Holmes duke it out. In honor of the 2016 WM Phoenix Open golf tournament, we’re counting down the top five most memorable moments on the 16th hole:
5. 1988: Two years after winning the entire tournament, PGA TOUR professional Hal Sutton made the first hole-in-one on the 16th during the third round of the event. At that time, the tournament was known simply as the Phoenix Open.
4. 1995: A major step toward amplifying the Waste Management Phoenix Open’s party atmosphere, this is the year that the tournament’s first corporate skyboxes made their appearance along the 16th hole’s southern embankment. Skybox tickets on the 16th hole are the most in-demand of the entire golf event.
3. 2009: The “coliseum” takes shape as the 16th hole is completely surrounded by stands, making it the first golf hole of its kind on the PGA TOUR. The grandstands seat between 15,000 and 20,0000 spectators, and that’s not counting the corporate skyboxes!
2. 2000: Arizona State University students and golf fans officially tag the 16th hole as “The House that Phil Built” after former Sun Devil and two-time Phoenix Open Champion Phil Mickelson. Mickelson won the tournament in 1996, 2005 and 2013.
1. 1997: Tiger Woods hits the “shot heard ‘round the world” on the 16th hole when he sinks an ace. The event exposes the world to the fun and rowdy atmosphere of the Phoenix Open as its replayed on television over and over (and over – still, to this day!).
Scottsdale is located in the Sonoran Desert – a vibrant oasis bursting at the seams with unusual wildlife and vegetation, including 2,000 native plant species. The pristine landscape beckons visitors to get out and explore, but the options are as varied as the terrain itself. Here are five ways to explore Scottsdale’s Sonoran Desert setting during your next visit.
Drive a few minutes southwest of downtown Scottsdale and you’ll find yourself in Papago Park. The unmistakable red rocks dotted with holes like Swiss cheese are home to small animals such as jackrabbits and ground squirrels, as well as picturesque hiking trails and picnic areas, and one of the nation’s top zoos for kids.
You can spend a day enjoying the park’s natural beauty and rich cultural heritage at three diverse attractions – the Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix Zoo, and Pueblo Grande Museum & Archaeological Park.
At the Desert Botanical Garden, you’ll see more than 20,000 individual plants from deserts around the world while learning about desert living, colorful wildflowers, and the diverse plants and people of the Sonoran Desert. Home to several lush trails, the Garden also offers guided tours, seasonal exhibits such as the Butterfly Pavilion, live concerts under the starry skies, fun family activities such as the Summer Flashlight Tours, an outdoor café, and a gift and plant shop.
The Phoenix Zoo is home to more than 1,300 animals, including more than 200 endangered or threatened species. Designed around four distinct trails – Africa, Tropics, Children’s and Arizona – the zoo offers daily activities such as the Safari Train, Stingray Bay, Giraffe Encounters, Wild About Animals Show and a petting zoo. Be sure to stop by Monkey Village, where you become part of a family of squirrel monkeys as they play around you.
You’ll be taken back 1,500 years at the Pueblo Grande Museum where you’ll experience the ruins of an ancient Hohokam Indian village, including an excavated prehistoric ball court and two full-scale reproductions of prehistoric Hohokam dwellings. Kids will “dig it” as they explore archaeological clues from ancient and historic sites to identify artifacts. Changing galleries showcase exhibits on archaeology, Southwestern cultures and contemporary American Indian arts.
At the end of each fun-filled adventure, be sure to stop by the museum stores and gift shops to bring home a unique Arizona gift, including Native American art, Southwestern foods and candies, and more.
