Logistics of Planning a Trip to the Phoenix Area

For everyone who has decided to plan a trip to Arizona, but wants to know the details of how to plan a trip, look no further. Since everything in the Phoenix area is relatively close, these tips will apply to all of the cities (Phoenix, Tempe, Scottsdale).

Where to stay

Tempe

If you are in Tempe, you will want to stay right where all the action is which would be right on Mill street! The Marriott is a block off Mill and can provide you easy access to walking to all your favorite restaurants, bars, and the ASU campus. The hotel has a pool and a free shuttle to and from the airport! You really can’t be the convenience factor.

Scottsdale

In Scottsdale, you will want to stay at a nice resort. My favorite, although pricey, was the Hyatt. They have free bikes to rent and the pool is to die for with pool side service and a separate adults only pool.

How to get there

You will fly into Phoenix Sky Harbor airport (PHX). It is close to Phoenix, Tempe, and Scottsdale. It is an easy airport and generally is never too crowded.

How to get around

Walking is easy once you are centered in either Scottsdale or Tempe. Everything is pretty close together.

Uber is another option to get around if walking is too far. Everything in the Phoenix area is pretty close so uber would be cheap and an easy option getting around. I think you could easily get away without renting a car. In fact, unless your doing a road trip I really don’t see a reason to not just uber.

There is also a light rail that can take you around for just a couple dollars. You can look up routes online but I normally took it between Tempe and Phoenix.

What to wear

Summer outfits!! Shorts, tank tops, flip flops, swimsuits! I would say about 90% of the time this should be what you pack. If you come in “winter” you might want a long sleeve and jeans. Going out in Tempe is fairly casual, but in Scottsdale you will want to dress up more.

When to visit

In general, keep in mind that Tempe is in the desert. This means there are basically two seasons. Hot and hotter. It is a dry heat thought so I always compare the temperature in Tempe to somewhere else at about 10-15 degrees colder. For instance, 100 in Tempe is like 85-90 in California. If you stay long enough, your blood thins out and the heat really is not that bad. Nights in the winter can rather chilly as it is a desert.

September-November

This is a perfect time to visit. The weather is absolutely gorgeous and hits the most ideal temperatures in October. September may get tailwinds of the hot monsoon season. By October, it is 80s and sunny every day. November for the most part stays nice, but right after Halloween you can notice a little bit more of chill in the night air and the temperatures are not as consistently warm.

December-February

Believe it or not Tempe can get somewhat ‘cold’ in the winter months. By this I mean mid-60s and you must wear long sleeves and jeans which is a weird thought in Arizona. Of course there are still gorgeous pool days throughout the months but they are more few and far between. Perhaps those coming from much colder places may find the weather absolutely ideal.

March-May

March the weather is back up to mid 80s every day and stays consistent. March is also when spring training is so it is a perfect time to visit Arizona! Why not leave that cold, dragging winter behind and escape to Arizona! This may be my favorite month in Arizona. After March, the weather starts slowly increasing back up to the low 100’s by late May.

June-August

You guessed it, but these are the months to skip if you are not used to the heat. The heat can range from 105-120 which is hot enough to fry and egg on the sidewalk and burn yourself on your car seat! I really don’t think it is that bad. It’s no different than how you’d treat a winter anywhere else, just stay indoors in the AC unless your out enjoying the weather poolside. One thing to note, Arizona gets monsoons which are giant rainstorms that come in and leave quickly but the amount of rain that falls in the amount of time is astronomical. There are also frequent thunder storms which is fun to watch the lightening! Finally, there are dust storms called haboobs that role in and get everything very dirty.