Phoenix Essential Info
Overview
The New West melds seamlessly with the Old West in Phoenix. Unfettered sunsets and starry skies are still the stuff of romance in this city, where a burgeoning dining and brewery scene and locally-owned boutique shops share a cactus-studded landscape with mountain trails and Native American ruins.
Because Phoenix basks in sunshine more often than any other major metro area in America, exploring the city means spending quality time outdoors. Urban parks provide visitors with an outlet for every grade of outdoor activity—hiking, cycling, mountain biking, climbing—and professional outfitters are happy to show the Sonoran Desert to sightseers from the saddle of a horse, the seat of a Jeep or the basket of a hot-air balloon.
Like the best American cities, Phoenix makes it easy to migrate between high culture and low. Visitors can cocoon themselves within the grounds of a palm-canopied resort by day, then seek out local Mexican food and craft brews by night. In between, visitors can broaden their horizons in downtown’s mural-adorned arts district or trek through rugged desert trails just minutes from the cityscape.
Basics
Best Time To Go
Year round
Current Time
Current Weather
Partly Cloudy
Fun Facts
- Phoenix basks in sunshine more often than any other major metropolitan area in the U.S. The sun shines on Phoenix during 85 percent of its daylight hours.
- Phoenix is located in the Sonoran Desert, which is one of the wettest and greenest deserts in North America, thanks to 3-15 inches of annual rainfall.
- Phoenix’s South Mountain Park and Preserve is one of the largest municipal parks in the country, covering more than 16,000 acres of Sonoran Desert with 51 miles of primary trails for horseback riding, hiking and mountain biking.
- According to legend, Phoenix gets its name from Cambridge-educated pioneer Darrell Duppa, who saw the ruins and prehistoric canals of the Hohokam and believed another civilization would rise from the ashes.
Popular Foods
- Sonoran dogs: This bacon-wrapped, bean-topped hot dog is a Southwest staple; and some of the very best are found nightly on pop-up food carts on street corners and parking lots throughout the metro area.
- Tacos: From gourmet creations to simple food truck fare, one is never far from a great taco when in Phoenix. Barrio Café, La Santisima and Tacos Chiwas are just a few of the can’t-miss spots to get your fix.
- Pizza: Every city has pizza—what’s the big deal about Phoenix’s pies? How about two certified Neapolitan pizza makers—La Piazza PHX and Pomo Pizzeria—and Pizzeria Bianco, hailed by Rachael Ray, the New York Times and others as America’s best pizza.