Recommended day trips from Phoenix
 

My family and I will be going to Phoenix for the first time, spending a week at the Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak at the end of August. My wife and I have two daughters, age 8 and 11. The main draw for us is the pool, but I'd like to do a couple of day trips as well.

I'm thinking about a day in Sedona - that seems like a pretty safe bet to entertain everyone.

I'm also thinking about a trip to Saguaro NP near Tucson. Is it worth it to drive all the way to Tombstone while we're (more or less) in the neighborhood? The kids are fairly tolerant of long car trips, but hopefully they'll be somewhat entertained when they get there. Is Saguaro NP worth the trip? If there are lots of cacti on the way there, is there anything really special about the park?

Any comments or suggestions regarding day trips are welcome. We all like different things - shopping, museums, hiking, history - so any ideas that combine a few of those would be great.

One last question - although the pool at our hotel sounds pretty cool, I'd be interested in a trip to a good water slide park. It looks like there are several in the area - any suggestions, or will we be happy enough at Squaw Peak.

Thanks for your help.

I live in Tucson, Saguaro NP is okay, it will take you about an hour to drive through. You can picnic around there. Have you thought about Collosal Cave? The caves are close to Saguaro NP. Kartchner Caverns ia also pretty awesome. The drive from Phoenix to Tucson is boring. Just a lot of dirt. There is a really good book out for day trips. "Day Trips from Phoenix, Tucson, and Flagstaff" by Shifra Stein. The book gives you a lot of scenic back road to take. Good luck.

We went to Tucson about 5 years ago, and as I've always loved the Wyatt Earp story, we visited Tombstone. It was SO disappointing. I personally think it's a waste of time.

When you go to Sedona, stop in Jerome along the way. It's an old mining town, very charming with some wonderful shops and galleries.

definitly jerome & sedona

The pool at Squaw Peak is nice and will suffice. Temperature in Phoenix in late August will still be 100+. Need a day trip to get out of the heat. Jerome is definitely a must. It is an old copper mining town built into the side of a mountain. VERY CASUAL. Frequented by bikers and day trippers. Also want to catch the red rocks of Sedona. Do it all in one day.

The kids would enjoy Rawhide. Kind of a wild west show, shops and restaurant place all combined. The steakhouse has good food and is casual. Even has rattlesnake on the menu. Sort of like Ghost Town at Knott's Berry Farm, but without the rides. Check it out. www.rawhide.com

Tombstone is pretty grotty--I wouldn't recommend it.

Saguaro National Monument is great, but even better is the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, which is right "next door". It's a large outdoor park/zoo/arboretum, and gives a wonderful overview of the Sonoran Desert and its flora and fauna. Lots of kid-oriented displays and wandering docents, especially on weekends, good animal habitats, and gorgeous scenery. Worth the drive from Phoenix, undoubtedly.
Other day trips: Sedona, as the red rocks have to be seen to be believed (drive through Oak Creek Canyon, too); Taliesin West in Scottsdale (not exactly a whole day thing), if someone is a big Frank Lloyd Wright fan; Flagstaff, for a whole different climate zone, cooler and piney and high up.
Btw, the drive from Phoenix to Tucson is, indeed, pretty dull, and not so cactus-y, but hang in there, because the scenery improves as you climb a bit. Have a great trip!

Agree with E...if you do decide to go to Tucson and Saguaro Nat'l Park, be sure you go to Desert Sonora Museum, adjoining all the saguaros.....of course, it will be very hot and you may want to stick around the pool area. Pointe South Mountain has a new water park and I'm sure the concierge could give you passes to use their sister resort.

I was is sedona a few months ago, we reserved a car on orbitz and drove out to sedona... I highly reccomend sedona, it is simply amazing... beautiful backdrops everywhere, we did the hike around cathedral rock, it was beautiful. my vote (which counts for nothing) ;-) is for sedona

I will be in Phoenix in the middle of August and am considering a day trip offered by Open Road Tours. The trip is called Down Mexico Way and goes to Nogales, Mexico. The price of the trip is $70 and includes pick-up/drop-off at our hotel. Can anyone provide comments on this trip?
Thanks,
Victor

Open Road Tours has a very good reputation, so you are safe on that account.....not sure about the trip to Nogales, as border towns are nothing to write home about. I am a lover of Mexico, but not border towns, but if that appeals to you, you will be in good hands with Open Road.

When I was in Phoenix/Scottsdale with my hubby who was at a conference, I took in the Desert Botanical Garden right in town. I enjoyed it immensely. I'm sure it's much smaller in scope than the Sonoran Desert Museum but it had some historical farming and Indian life in the desert sections along with beautiful desert plant displays. It should probably only take a morning to do should you want to just hang at the pool the rest of the day. I also went to Cosanti, the local 'branch' of Arcosanti and watched the artisans pour bronze for bells and learned about Paolo Soleri and his project. We also drove to Sedona - but first up to Flagstaff then down the canyon road taking all the wonderful views. I think Sedona was exceptionally stunning this way. Coming down out of the treed canyon into the red rocks. Great sight!
Enjoy your trip!

I am not familiar with Open Road Tours so cannot comment. I agree with karenabs, I too am a lover of Mexico, but border towns are not the way to see Mexico. STRONGLY recommend against trip to Nogales. I live in Scottsdale and I can think of a lot of things I would rather do than go to Nogales.

I also agree with the above. Mexico is a beautiful place. However, don't go to Nogales, it will spoil what you think of that country. I live in Tucson, there is so much more to do than visit border cities.

If you go on to Tucson, Mt. Lemon is a beautiful spot to see, as is Sabino Canyon.

Stay out of Nogales. It's really raunchy. You can buy blankets anywhere!

I wouldn't rely on seeing Mt. Lemmon and Sabino Canyon this year. It recently experienced a fire. Maybe someone from Tucson can comment on what was burned and if the area is opened.
You should do Sedona, amazing! Check out Slide Rock State Park when you are there.
I would recommend taking you daughters to the Science Center when you are in Phoenix. Nice cool place to escape the heat with lots to do.

Mt. Lemmon is closed to the general public at least until September. Sabino Canyon is now open, however, the water/ streams are full of ash and other debris from the fire. In other words, the water is black.

karenabs, JohnHamilton, azgrl2 & Leona,

Thanks to all of you for your recommendation NOT to take the Nogales day trip. Since we live in Pennsylvania, visiting Mexico sounded like a good thing to do. Since there are so many other interesting things to do in Scottsdale, I so happy we will not waste valuable time on this trip.

Victor

We are going to the Salt River valley- is that good?

It's supposed to be a mini-Grand Canyon.

If you are animal lovers, you absolutely MUST visit Out of Africa Nature Park way out east of Scottsdale. The main inhabitants are big cats (lions, tigers, leopards), but there are also wolves, giraffes, etc.) At first it seems a little run down (but that may be because they are moving to much larger quarters in May), but the highlight is the way the staff interacts with the animals! The "shows" are like nothing you've seen anywhere else - how about watching a "splash party" in a large pool with six humans and two full grown tigers? Or watch the largest tiger suck one of the owner's thumbs which he's done there since he was a baby? By all means, check it out!