Things to do · Phoenix · United States
18 best things to do in Phoenix
18 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Dru Bloomfield from Scottsdale, Arizona, USA, CC BY 2.0
Quick answer
The essential sights in Phoenix are Desert Botanical Garden, Camelback Mountain and Heard Museum. Of the 18 picks below, 7 are free, 6 work on a rainy day and 6 suit children. Allow about 4 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- Desert Botanical Garden
- Free sights
- 7
- Good on a rainy day
- Heard Museum
- Time to see the highlights
- 4 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Desert Botanical Garden | Papago Park | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Camelback Mountain | Arcadia | 2–3 hours | Free |
| Heard Museum | Midtown Phoenix | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Piestewa Peak | Phoenix Mountains Preserve | 1.5–2.5 hours | Free |
| South Mountain Park and Preserve | South Phoenix | 2–4 hours | Free |
| Papago Park and Hole-in-the-Rock | Papago Park | 1 hour | Free |
| Musical Instrument Museum | North Phoenix | 3–4 hours | Mid-priced |
| Phoenix Art Museum | Midtown Phoenix | 2 hours | Mid-priced |
| Taliesin West | Scottsdale | 1.5–2 hours | Expensive |
| Old Town Scottsdale | Scottsdale | 2–3 hours | Free |
| Roosevelt Row arts district | Roosevelt Row | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Heritage Square | Downtown Phoenix | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Phoenix Zoo | Papago Park | 3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Arizona Science Center | Downtown Phoenix | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| OdySea Aquarium | Scottsdale | 2–3 hours | Expensive |
| Pueblo Grande Museum and Archaeological Park | East Phoenix | 1–1.5 hours | Low cost |
| Arizona Capitol Museum | Downtown Phoenix | 1 hour | Free |
| Sunrise hot-air balloon flight | North Phoenix | 3–4 hours including transfers | Expensive |
The 18 best things to do
Garden · Papago Park
1.Desert Botanical Garden
Set among Papago Park's red buttes, the garden displays tens of thousands of desert plants, from towering saguaros and boojum trees to agaves and wildflowers, along trails that explain how people of the Sonoran Desert used them. Spring brings cactus blooms and a butterfly pavilion.
Visit at opening or in the evening in warmer months; in December, the luminaria nights light the paths with thousands of candle bags.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Book ahead
- Timed tickets are needed for busy periods and the December luminaria evenings sell out early.
- Iconic
- Outdoors
- Nature
- Photo spot
- Couples
Nature · Arcadia
2.Camelback Mountain
The city's signature hike climbs the 'hump' of Camelback Mountain, whose summit stands about 820 metres above sea level. The Echo Canyon and Cholla trails are steep and rocky, gaining roughly 400 metres in under 2 km with handrails on the hardest scrambles, and the top looks over the whole Valley.
Start at first light, carry more water than you think you need and turn back when half of it is gone; the city may close the trails on extreme heat days.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Views
- Active
- Outdoors
Museum · Midtown Phoenix
3.Heard Museum
Founded in 1929, the Heard is one of the leading museums of American Indian art, with galleries on the Native peoples of the Southwest, a large Hopi katsina doll collection and a moving exhibit on the boarding school era, set around courtyards with sculpture.
Allow time for the boarding school exhibit and the museum shop, which sells work bought directly from Native artists.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Art
- History
- Rainy day
Nature · Phoenix Mountains Preserve
4.Piestewa Peak
The Summit Trail up Piestewa Peak is a steep, popular climb of about 1.9 km with views over downtown and Camelback. The surrounding Phoenix Mountains Preserve has gentler circuit trails among saguaros for those not heading to the top.
Go at sunrise on a weekday; parking at the main trailhead fills early on weekends.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2.5 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Views
- Active
- Outdoors
Park · South Phoenix
5.South Mountain Park and Preserve
One of the largest city parks in the country, covering about 6,500 hectares of desert ridges with more than 80 km of trails. A scenic road climbs to Dobbins Lookout for views over the city, and Hohokam petroglyphs can be found along trails such as Holbert.
Drive up to Dobbins Lookout around sunset, then stay to see the city lights spread out below.
- Time needed
- 2–4 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Views
- Outdoors
- History
- After dark
Park · Papago Park
6.Papago Park and Hole-in-the-Rock
Red sandstone buttes, fishing ponds and easy trails between Phoenix and Tempe. A short scramble up Hole-in-the-Rock leads to a natural opening framing the city, a favourite spot for sunset photos.
Combine an early-evening climb to Hole-in-the-Rock with dinner nearby after a day at the zoo or Desert Botanical Garden.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Kids
- Views
- Outdoors
- Photo spot
Museum · North Phoenix
7.Musical Instrument Museum
The MIM displays thousands of instruments from around the world, arranged by country, with wireless headphones that play performance videos automatically as you approach each display. There are galleries on famous musicians and a room where visitors can play instruments.
Plan at least half a day; most visitors underestimate how long the geographic galleries take.
- Time needed
- 3–4 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Rainy day
- Kids
- Art
Museum · Midtown Phoenix
8.Phoenix Art Museum
The region's largest art museum covers American, Western, Asian, European and Latin American art and fashion design. Yayoi Kusama's infinity mirror room, filled with tiny lights, is its most popular single work.
Ask for a timed entry to the Kusama room on arrival; visits inside are short and spaced out.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Art
- Rainy day
Architecture · Scottsdale
1.Taliesin West
Frank Lloyd Wright's winter home, studio and school, begun in 1937 in the foothills of the McDowell Mountains, was built from desert rock and sand. It is part of a UNESCO World Heritage listing of Wright's 20th-century architecture, and guided tours show the drafting studio, living spaces and cabaret theatre.
Choose a morning tour for the best light on the stone and canvas, and the clearest views across the Valley.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Visits are by guided tour only; book online ahead, especially from January to April.
- Architecture
- History
- Couples
Neighbourhood · Scottsdale
2.Old Town Scottsdale
A compact district of Western-themed shops, art galleries and restaurants along Main Street and Marshall Way, with the Scottsdale Museum of the West and a weekly Thursday-evening ArtWalk when galleries stay open late.
Walk the gallery district on a Thursday evening, then have dinner nearby.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Shopping
- Art
- Free
- After dark
Street · Roosevelt Row
3.Roosevelt Row arts district
A few blocks of Roosevelt Street and the grid around it, covered with large murals and lined with galleries, coffee shops, vintage stores and restaurants. On First Fridays the streets fill with art walkers, food trucks and music.
Visit on the first Friday of the month for the art walk, or on a cooler morning for mural photos.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Art
- Free
- Photo spot
- After dark
Historic site · Downtown Phoenix
4.Heritage Square
A shaded block of late-19th-century houses from the original Phoenix townsite, including the restored 1895 Rosson House, a Victorian mansion with guided tours. Other houses hold restaurants, among them Pizzeria Bianco.
Combine a Rosson House tour with lunch on the square and the Arizona Science Center next door.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Architecture
- Food
Zoo · Papago Park
5.Phoenix Zoo
A large, non-profit zoo in Papago Park with an Arizona Trail of native wildlife, an African savanna, orangutans and a children's area. Shaded walkways and misters help, but mornings are best in warm months.
Go at opening outside winter; in December the evening ZooLights display is a family favourite.
- Time needed
- 3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Outdoors
- Nature
Museum · Downtown Phoenix
6.Arizona Science Center
Hands-on galleries on the human body, forces, energy and the Sonoran Desert climate, plus a planetarium and a giant-screen theatre, in a building beside Heritage Square downtown.
Use it as a midday escape from the heat with children, then picnic in the shade of Heritage Square.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Rainy day
Aquarium · Scottsdale
7.OdySea Aquarium
A large aquarium on Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community land in east Scottsdale, with sharks, sea lions, penguins and a rotating theatre that moves visitors between tanks.
Combine it with Butterfly Wonderland next door for a full indoor day in hot weather.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Expensive
- Kids
- Rainy day
Historic site · East Phoenix
8.Pueblo Grande Museum and Archaeological Park
A short trail leads over the remains of a Hohokam platform mound and ballcourt, part of a village occupied for centuries by the people who dug the canals that Phoenix's own irrigation later followed. A small museum explains Hohokam farming and pottery.
Visit in the cooler months, as the outdoor trail has little shade; it is a few minutes from the airport.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Off the beaten path
- Kids
Museum · Downtown Phoenix
9.Arizona Capitol Museum
The 1901 territorial capitol, with its copper dome topped by a Winged Victory weathervane, is now a free museum of Arizona history and government. Wesley Bolin Plaza outside has memorials including an anchor and mast from the USS Arizona.
Pair it with a walk through Wesley Bolin Plaza's memorials across the street.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Rainy day
Experience · North Phoenix
10.Sunrise hot-air balloon flight
From autumn to spring, balloon operators launch at dawn over the Sonoran Desert north of the city, drifting above saguaros and washes with views of the McDowell and Bradshaw mountains before a traditional champagne toast on landing.
Book for early in your trip so there is time to rebook if wind cancels the flight.
- Time needed
- 3–4 hours including transfers
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Flights operate only in calm weather and fill up in winter and spring; reserve ahead and expect a very early start.
- Couples
- Views
- Outdoors
- Photo spot
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| Art and museums | Heard Museum, Musical Instrument Museum, Phoenix Art Museum and Old Town Scottsdale |
| History | Heard Museum, South Mountain Park and Preserve, Taliesin West and Heritage Square |
| Views | Camelback Mountain, Piestewa Peak, South Mountain Park and Preserve and Papago Park and Hole-in-the-Rock |
| Outdoors and nature | Desert Botanical Garden, Camelback Mountain, Piestewa Peak and South Mountain Park and Preserve |
| Food and markets | Heritage Square |
| After dark | South Mountain Park and Preserve, Old Town Scottsdale and Roosevelt Row arts district |
| With children | Papago Park and Hole-in-the-Rock, Musical Instrument Museum, Phoenix Zoo and Arizona Science Center |
| On a rainy day | Heard Museum, Musical Instrument Museum, Phoenix Art Museum and Arizona Science Center |
What to book ahead
- Desert Botanical Garden: Timed tickets are needed for busy periods and the December luminaria evenings sell out early.
- Taliesin West: Visits are by guided tour only; book online ahead, especially from January to April.
- Sunrise hot-air balloon flight: Flights operate only in calm weather and fill up in winter and spring; reserve ahead and expect a very early start.
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in Phoenix?
Desert Botanical Garden. Set among Papago Park's red buttes, the garden displays tens of thousands of desert plants, from towering saguaros and boojum trees to agaves and wildflowers, along trails that explain how people of the Sonoran Desert used them.
+What can you do for free in Phoenix?
Camelback Mountain, Piestewa Peak, South Mountain Park and Preserve, Papago Park and Hole-in-the-Rock and Old Town Scottsdale. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in Phoenix when it rains?
Head indoors to Heard Museum, Musical Instrument Museum, Phoenix Art Museum and Arizona Science Center.
+What is there to do in Phoenix at night?
South Mountain Park and Preserve, Old Town Scottsdale and Roosevelt Row arts district are best after dark.