Phoenix
There's no place on earth quite like the Grand Canyon State. Although it's the largest city in the US Southwest, Phoenix's greatest attraction is the land that surrounds it: a vast expanse of untamed desert. But it’s not just the landscapes, which take in tall mountain ranges, swift rivers, grasslands, sand dunes, and cactus forests. Phoenix has garnered well-earned praise as one of the world's top five golf destinations. As the sixth-largest city in the United States, with nearly 1.3 million residents, Phoenix offers a multitude of cultural and recreational activities.
When to Go
From September through April, Phoenix enjoys mild weather and plenty of cultural events. Autumn is the choicest time to visit weather-wise, though the early months of spring have all the best festivals. Heat lovers who attempt to visit the city in the summer will experience temperatures rising above 100°F (38°C) for weeks on end, commonly climbing well over 110°F (43°C) in midsummer. Summer is also monsoon season, when late afternoon thunderstorms blast the area and flash flooding becomes a concern for hikers. During the hottest spells, nobody does much of anything during daylight hours unless they're in an air-conditioned zone.
What to See
Old Town Scottsdale: Half a dozen blocks near Scottsdale's chamber of commerce constitute 'Old Town,' a cluster of early 20th century buildings and some more recently styled to look like those of the Old West. One of the area's true fossils is the 'Little Red School House,' built in 1909 and now housing the Scottsdale Historical Museum. It hosts exhibits on the area's early days. Nearby, the Scottsdale Center for the Arts is home to some contemporary art galleries and a sculpture garden, and plays host to various performing artists.
Heard Museum: A one-stop shop for learning about Southwest Indian tribes' history, arts and culture. The Heard's kachina doll collection is outstanding, as are the audiovisual displays, live demonstrations and bookshop, which has the area's best selection of Native American arts and crafts.
Deer Valley Rock Center: On the lower slopes of the Hedgepeth Hills, Deer Valley Rock Art Center has the largest concentration of ancient petroglyphs in the metropolitan Phoenix area. Some 1,500 of the cryptic symbols are found here, left behind by various Native American cultures that have lived in the Valley (or passed through) during the past thousand years.
Flagstaff
From Phoenix, you can drive north to Flagstaff in under three hours along I-17. In this neighborhood, antique inns sidle up against vegetarian cafes and you're likely to hear strains of a local jazz combo. You can also visit the Lowell Observatory, where in 1930 the planet Pluto was discovered, or a stroll through the 200 blissfully green acres (80ha) of the local arboretum.
Sedona
Sedona is around 100 miles (160km) north of Phoenix along I-17. Nestled among crimson sandstone formations at the southern end of Oak Creek Canyon, Sedona enjoys one of the prettiest locations in Arizona. In the 1960s and '70s, its surroundings began attracting retirees, artists and tourists in large numbers, but it wasn't until around 1980, when New Agers began touting Sedona's vortexes - points where the earth's energy is focused - that the free spirits really started flocking in. Today, Sedona is the foremost New Age center in the Southwest and one of the most 'important' anywhere. Sedona's New Age Information Center offers lectures, seminars, psychic readings, massage healings and vortex information. Likewise, the Healing Center of Arizona offers anything from an hour in a sauna to several days of holistic healing, reasonably priced vegetarian meals and acupressure, massage, yoga, nutrition counselling, herbology, tai chi, meditation and psychic channelling.
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