Attractions in Phoenix Metro Area |
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A bright orange sunset over the mountains west of Casa Grande in southern Arizona.
Photo by Tyger Gilbert
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Looking for fun things to see and do on your next vacation? This list of attractions in the Phoenix Metro Area of Arizona may be just what you want. From natural scenic areas, to national and state parks, forests, and monuments, to classic tourist attractions and curiosities, you will find many places to visit as you travel through the Phoenix Metro Area. Click on the links to see other pages with maps, photos, and more information about an attraction, or to go to the official website for it.
The Phoenix Metro Area is a thriving metropolis that began with settlements along the Salt River as it flowed through the desert. Today the riverbed is dry, but the water is stored in several reservoirs and distributed through an extensive canal system to irrigate the entire Valley of the Sun. Grass, shrubbery, and trees are green and thriving all year, and with more than 290 days of annual sunshine, outdoor activities can be enjoyed anytime. Along with agriculture, clean light industry such as electronics and computer component manufacturing, and tourism, helps make Phoenix one of the most prosperous cities in the nation.
Phoenix supports all the major professional sports, including football, baseball, basketball, soccer, and hockey. The Valley has many cultural events, with museums, symphonies, live theatres, and numerous art galleries. Outdoor recreations, such as horseback riding, swimming, bicycling, and hiking abound here, as well as boating, fishing, water skiing, and other water sports on the lakes and rivers. Entertainment is plentiful, with a wide selection of night clubs, movies, race tracks, and amusement places. Residents and tourists alike have their choice of hundreds of quality restaurants, dozens of retail shopping and factory outlet malls, and an uncounted number of shops and stores of all types.
Gambling is available in the casinos on the Fort McDowell Mohave-Apache, Salt River Pima-Maricopa, and Gila River Indian Reservations located here.
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Featured Attraction Pages
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Black Canyon
Canyons
Black Canyon is north of metro Phoenix
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Lake Pleasant
Lakes & Reservoirs
Lake Pleasant is northwest of Phoenix off AZ-74
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Tempe Town Lake
Lakes & Reservoirs
Tempe Town Lake is on the Salt River, in north Tempe
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Horseshoe Reservoir
Lakes & Reservoirs
Horseshoe Reservoir is northeast of Carefree on the Verde River
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Bartlett Reservoir
Lakes & Reservoirs
Bartlett Lake is northeast of Phoenix on the Verde River
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Pages shown in grey are in development and will be available soon. |
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MESA |
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MESA SOUTHWEST MUSEUM
53 N Macdonald,
Mesa, AZ 85201
480-644-2230
Arizona's premier museum of cultural and natural history. See the largest collection of dinosaur fossils in the state, visit a Spanish mission, search for the Dutchman's lost treasure, and pan for gold in the History Courtyard. |
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MORMON TEMPLE GARDENS
525 E Main St
Mesa, AZ 85203-8740
A 'Cecil B DeMille' type temple in a lush green irrigated garden, showing that man can make the desert bloom. |
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PHOENIX |
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ARIZONA SCIENCE CENTER
600 E Washington St
Phoenix, AZ 85004
602-716-2000
Explore over 300 hands-on exhibits in five themed galleries and featured changing exhibitions. Experience the sciences and technologies that flourish in Arizona and affect your everyday life. |
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C. P. HUNTINGTON TRAIN
1202 W Encanto Blvd
Phoenix, AZ 85007
602-254-1200
Enchanted Island Amusement Park's one-third replica C. P. Huntington Train is a popular ride, offering guests a leisurely, seven-minute island tour. |
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DEER VALLEY ROCK ART CENTER
3711 West Deer Valley Road
Phoenix, AZ 85080
623-582-8007
A 47-acre nature preserve that contains more than 1,500 petroglyphs left on more than 500 boulders throughout the Hedgpeth Hills, a sacred Indian site. |
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DESERT BOTANICAL GARDEN
1201 N Galvin Parkway
Phoenix, AZ 85008
480-941-1225
The Garden’s commitment to the community is to advance excellence in education, research, exhibition, and conservation of desert plants of the world with emphasis on the Southwestern United States. |
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ENCANTO PARK
2605 N 15th Ave
Phoenix, AZ
602-261-8993
A 222-acre oasis with picnic areas, a lagoon, boat house, Enchanted Island Amusement Park, swimming pool, nature trail, urban fishing and two golf courses. |
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HALL OF FLAME FIRE MUSEUM
6101 East Van Buren St
Phoenix, AZ
602-275-3473
A wide variety of exhibits, including fire apparatus, fire trucks, artwork, uniforms and equipment, firemarks, alarm room equipment, a fire safety exhibit, a mini-theater, and many hands-on exhibits. |
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HEARD MUSEUM
2301 North Central Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85004-1323
602-252-8848
Internationally acclaimed, the Heard Museum is one of the best places to experience the myriad cultures and art of Native Americans of the Southwest. |
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HISTORIC HERITAGE SQUARE
115 N Sixth St
Phoenix, AZ 85004
602-262-5071
The Rosson House is the cornerstone of a city block of museums, gift shops and restaurants housed in late 1800's buildings that represent the only remaining group of residential structures from the original town site of Phoenix. |
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JAPANESE FRIENDSHIP GARDEN
1125 N 3rd Ave
Phoenix, AZ
602-256-3204
Ro Ho En features more than 1,500 tons of handpicked rock, more than 50 varieties of plants, flowing streams, a 12-foot waterfall and a Koi pond. |
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PAPAGO PARK
Galvin Parkway and Van Buren St
Phoenix, AZ
602-256-3220
This fabulous park, on 1,200 acres of rolling desert hills, features a golf course, museums, picnic areas, fishing lagoons, hiking trails and the Hole-In-The-Rock landmark. |
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PATRIOTS SQUARE PARK
Central Ave and Washington St
Phoenix, AZ
602-262-4627
Located in the heart of downtown Phoenix, features two-and-a-half acres of open space with grass, trees, benches, an outdoor performing arts stage, and two food kiosks. |
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PHOENIX ART MUSEUM
1625 N Central Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85004-1685
602-257-1222
Collection includes 17,000 works of art that span the centuries and the globe. American, Asian, European, Latin American, modern and contemporary, and Western art, and fashion design. |
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PHOENIX MUSEUM OF HISTORY
105 North 5th Street
Phoenix, AZ 85004-4404
602-253-2734
Dedicated to collecting, preserving, and exhibiting the early history of Phoenix, with interactive exhibits showcasing Phoenix’s metamorphosis from a dusty desert town to a modern metropolis. |
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PHOENIX ZOO
455 North Galvin Parkway
Phoenix, AZ 85008
602-273-1341
Open 364 days a year, rain or shine! |
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PIONEER AND MILITARY MEMORIAL PARK
15th Avenue and Jefferson Street
Phoenix, AZ
602-262-6412
Avenue of Flags, Benches, Fountain, Historic Cemeteries. |
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PUEBLO GRANDE MUSEUM AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL PARK
4619 E Washington Street
Phoenix, AZ 85034-1909
602-495-0901
877-706-4408
Dedicated to enhancing the knowledge of prehistory, history, and ethnology of Native Americans of the Southwest, and promoting a greater understanding of other cultures past and present. |
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SAINT MARYS BASILICA
231 North 3rd Street
Phoenix, AZ 85004
602-354-2100
The oldest Catholic church building in Phoenix, still an active Roman Catholic church with daily Mass. The basilica is noted for its carillon tower and for its magnificent stained glass windows. |
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SHEMER ART CENTER & MUSEUM
5005 E Camelback Road
Phoenix, AZ 85018
602-262-4727
A historical family-oriented museum and art education center. Fine art classes and education lecture series. Range of exhibitions is diverse, with traditional and nontraditional works. |
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SOUTH MOUNTAIN PARK
10919 S Central Ave
Phoenix, AZ
602-495-0222
The largest city park in the country, with 16,000 acres and 58 miles of trails for horseback riding, hiking and mountain biking at all ability levels. |
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STEELE INDIAN SCHOOL PARK
300 E Indian School Rd
Phoenix, AZ 85012
602-495-0739
This park features thirty acres of rolling grass terrain, meandering walkways and trails, clusters of trees, gardens, a playground, basketball and sand volleyball courts, a lake, and a 1500-person capacity amphitheater.
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TELEPHONE PIONEERS OF AMERICA PARK
1946 W Morningside Drive
Phoenix, AZ
602-262-4543
Features baseball fields, a therapeutic heated pool, wheelchair accessible playground equipment, handball, tennis, and a variety of special programs and events for people with disabilities. |
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THE WRIGLEY MANSION
2501 East Telawa Trail
Phoenix, AZ 85016
602-955-4079
Built in 1932 by chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr., the mansion sits atop a 100 foot knoll with commanding views of the mountains and city below. Opulent restaurant for banquets. |
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TOVREA CASTLE
5041 E Van Buren St
Phoenix, AZ 85034
602-262-6412
Atop a cactus-covered hill like a giant tiered wedding cake, one-of-a-kind castle was built in 1920's by Alessio Carraro and sold to cattle baron Edward Tovrea. Cactus gardens on grounds. |
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WELLS FARGO HISTORY MUSEUM
100 W Washington St
Phoenix, AZ 85003
602-378-1852
From 1858 on the stagecoaches of the Butterfield Line, through wild days at Tombstone, to extensive railroad service to mines, Wells Fargo’s history in Arizona is classic western history. |
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WESLEY BOLIN MEMORIAL PLAZA
1700 W Washington St
Phoenix, AZ
602-542-4581
Covers two square blocks of the State Capitol grounds and is the site of 23 memorials commemorating the many achievements of Governor Bolin and other prominent Arizonans. |
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TEMPE |
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THE ARBORETUM AT ASU
826 Apache Blvd
Tempe, FL 85287
480-965-2682
The Arboretum at ASU ecompasses the entire university campus, and is open seven days a week, dawn to dusk, at no charge. |
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