Phoenix, AZ by Gautam Khattak

Last updated: April 25, 2008

Disclaimer: These are notes I’ve written or gathered from various sources. I have not experienced all things in this document nor is it intended to be a definitive guide.

Shopping locations

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Kierland Commons – http://www.kierlandcommons.com/

Scottsdale Fashion Square Mall – http://www.fashionsquare.com/

Chandler Fashion Square – http://www.chandlermall.com/

Tempe Marketplace – http://www.tempemarketplace.com/

Desert Ridge Marketplace – http://www.shopdesertridge.com

San Tan Village – http://www.shopsantanvillage.com

Outdoor stuff –  Hiking & Rock Climbing Gyms

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Camelback Mountain Hike – http://www.phoenix.gov/parks/hikecmlb.html – (right in town)

South Mountain Hike – http://phoenix.gov/parks/hikesoth.html – (right in town)

Active Arizona – http://www.activearizona.com/ – Site for hikes all through Arizona

Outdoor Adventures AZ – http://www.outdooradventuresaz.com/

Whitewater Rafting – http://rafting.allaboutrivers.com/Arizona_river_rafting/Arizona_white_water-stAZ.html

– http://www.azraft.com/

– http://www.destination360.com/north-america/us/arizona/white-water-rafting-in-arizona.php

Salt River Tubing – http://www.saltrivertubing.com/

AZ Mountaineering Club – http://www.azmountaineeringclub.org/

Rock Climbing Routes in Arizona – http://www.rockclimbing.com/routes/North_America/United_States/Arizona/

Rock Climbing Arizona! – Climbing and Adventure School – http://www.climbingschool.com/Introduction.html

Climb Arizona – http://www.climbaz.com/

List of all Rock Gyms in AZ – http://www.rock-climbing-for-life.com/arizona-climbing-gyms.html

Things to do around AZ : 

http://www.azcentral.com/travel/

http://www.thingstodo.com/states/AZ/index.htm

Phoenix Event Calendar – http://www.azcentral.com/ent/calendar/

Sites

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Spring Training Phoenix (Seasonal – March) – http://www.cactus-league.com/

http://phoenix.about.com/od/springtrainingbaseball/tp/Cactus-League.htm

Scottsdale Culinary Festival (Seasonal – April-ish) – http://www.scottsdaleculinaryfestival.org/

Phoenix Zoo – http://www.phoenixzoo.org

Wildlife World Zoo – http://www.wildlifeworld.com

South Mountain  Dobbins Lookout
http://www.azcentral.com/ent/best2003/rec/articles/0914bestcitylight14.html
http://www.azcentral.com/travel/arizona/features/articles/0409southmountain0409.html

Arizona Lakes & Leisure – http://www.arizona-leisure.com/arizona-lakes.html

Yes we are the desert but there are more registered boats in Arizona than any other state!

Apache Trail Drive

http://phoenix.about.com/od/daytrips/ss/apachetrail.htm

http://www.azcentral.com/travel/drives/articles/fav-apachetrail-CR.html

Wild Horse Pass Casino & Resort – http://www.wildhorsepass.com/home.html

Casino Arizona – http://www.casinoarizona.com/

Rawhide – http://www.rawhide.com/

Tombstone –

http://www.cityoftombstone.com/

http://www.americanwest.com/pages/tombston.htm

AZ Vineyards – http://www.catchwine.com/wineries/arizona/
The good ones are in Elgin (well past Tucson) and the really good ones are in California 🙂

Museums

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SMoCA (Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art) – http://www.smoca.org

Taliesin West Tours  (Frank Lloyd Wright) – http://www.franklloydwright.org/index.cfm?section=tour&action=taliesinwest.

Arizona Science Center – http://www.azscience.org/

Boyce Thompson Arboretum – Supposedly really nice…near Superior
http://arboretum.ag.arizona.edu/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boyce_Thompson_Arboretum_State_Park

Desert Botanical Garden – http://www.desertbotanical.org/

Recommended – Sometimes there is a Chihuly Exhibit at the Botanical Gardens. It’s an amazing thing to see. I recommend going at the 4-8pm showing so you can see the pieces during the daylight, dusk and lit up at night! https:// chihuly.dbg.org

Spas & Resorts

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Mondrian Hotel – http://www.mondrianscottsdale.com/

Biltmore Resort – http://www.arizonabiltmore.com/

Gainey Ranch – http://www.gaineysuiteshotel.com/gainey-ranch.cfm

Camelback Inn – http://www.camelbackinn.com/

The Fairmont Princess – http://www.fairmont.com/scottsdale

Arizona Grand Resort (Formerly Pointe South Mountain) – http://www.arizonagrandresort.com/ – Has a water park!

The W Scottsdale – http://www.starwoodhotels.com/whotels/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1736

The Hotel Valley Ho – http://www.hotelvalleyho.com/

Places to visit outside Phoenix

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Sedona – http://www.visitsedona.com/

Flagstaff – http://www.flagstaff.az.gov/

Tucson Stuff

•  Science Museum – http://www.tucsonattractions.com/Science/index.htm
•  Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson- http://www.desertmuseum.org/ I heard it was good, never been
•  Kitt Peak, Tucson – http://www.noao.edu/kpno/
•  Biosphere 2
•  Kartchner Caverns – http://www.azpbs.org/wildaz/caverns/cavern.html
•  Colossal Cave, Tucson – http://www.colossalcave.com/explore.html

Skiing

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Snowbowl, Flagstaff – http://www.arizonasnowbowl.com/

Sunrise (3.5 hours from Phoenix) – http://www.sunriseskipark.com/

Here are some places for folks to dine in the general area.  I didn’t put extremely fancy places on here because I figured most people wouldn’t like those on this visit. There are tons of places to eat at in Phoenix, this is a very very small subset

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AZ88 http://www.az88.com/ American (New). Great for cocktails
Big Fat Greek Restaurant http://www.azeats.com/mybigfatgreek/ Greek, Mediterranean
Bloom http://www.foxrestaurantconcepts.com/bloom.html New American
Café ZuZu http://www.hotelvalleyho.com/content/fooddrink/cafezuzu.html New American
Café Boa (On Mill) http://www.cafeboa.com/ Italian
[emoji thumbs up ] Carlsbad Tavern http://www.carlsbadtavern.com Mexican
[emoji thumbs up ] Chelsea’s Kitchen http://www.chelseaskitchenaz.com/ Southwestern
[emoji thumbs up ] Cornish Pasty Company http://www.cornishpastyco.com/ English
Fez http://www.fezoncentral.com Mediterranean
[emoji thumbs up ] Four Peaks http://www.fourpeaks.com/ American (Bar). Brewery with excellent food! I recommend the Veggie Pesto Pizza, the Carne Adovada, the Portabella Beer Bread Wrap
[emoji thumbs up ] House of Tricks http://www.houseoftricks.com/ American
Kazimierz World Wine Bar http://www.kazbar.net/ Wine Bistro
Kona Grill http://www.konagrill.com/ Pacific Rim Fusion, Sushi
[emoji thumbs up ] Los Sombreros http://www.lossombreros.com/ New Mexican

[emoji thumbs up ] The Mission http://www.themissionaz.com/ Mexcian – anythign Pork is fantastic

NoRTH http://www.foxrestaurantconcepts.com/north.html Italian
Old Tortilla Factory http://www.oldtowntortillafactory.com/  Mexican
Olive & Ivy http://www.foxrestaurantconcepts.com/olive.html Italian
Oregano’s (Tempe) http://www.oreganos.com/ Italian / Pizza (Super thin & Chicago Style)
[emoji thumbs up ] Pita Jungle http://www.pitajungle.com/ (Healthy, Mediterranean)

Pizzeria Bianco’s – Best artisanal pizza in America according to Oprah: http://www.pizzeriabianco.com/

[emoji thumbs up ] Postino Wine Cafe http://www.postinowinecafe.com Wine Bistro
RA Sushi http://www.rasushi.com/ Pacific Rim Fusion, Sushi
Roaring Fork http://www.roaringfork.com/ScottsdaleAZ/index.html American (Trad)
[emoji thumbs up ] Salt Cellar (480) 947-1963 Seafood (yes they actually have good seafood in the desert!)

Tapino Wine Bar http://www.tapino.com/ – Wine Bistro

Tarbells http://www.tarbells.com/ – Southwestern
Z-Tejas Southwestern Grill http://www.ztejas.com Southwestern – Menu is generally ‘okay’ but the Diablo Chicken Pasta is my all time favorite southwestern dish [emoji thumbs up ].