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  • Phoenix: Should You Rent a Car or Rely on Public Transit?

    Phoenix: Should You Rent a Car or Rely on Public Transit?

    Phoenix is one of the most car-dependent big cities in the United States, and for most visitors the honest answer to “should I rent a car?” is yes. The metro area sprawls across a desert valley roughly the size of a small state, the attractions are spread between Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, Mesa and a dozen other cities, the best trailheads have no transit at all, and Sedona and the Grand Canyon, the reasons many people fly here, are road trips. But there are real exceptions. Sky Harbor is only a few kilometers from downtown and is linked to the light rail by a free airport train, the light rail runs through the three most walkable districts in the Valley, driverless robotaxis and ride-hail cover the gaps, and a visitor on a downtown conference, a Tempe stay or a resort break may barely need a car at all. This guide explains how the Valley is laid out, how Valley Metro and its fares work, what driving here is really like in the heat and the monsoon, when a car earns its keep, and gives you a straightforward way to decide.

    The short answer

    Rent a car if Sedona, the Grand Canyon, Tucson or any other day trip is on the itinerary, if you want to hike Camelback, South Mountain or the McDowell Sonoran Preserve at dawn, if you are staying in Scottsdale, the suburbs or with family, if you are following several teams around the Cactus League ballparks, or if you are traveling with children. That is most visitors. Skip the car if you are staying downtown, in Roosevelt Row or in Tempe for a conference, a game, a concert or a short city break, and your plans are the museums, the ballpark, the arts district, Mill Avenue and the airport; the light rail, your feet and the occasional ride-hail will cover that, and you will not pay for parking. And if you are staying at a resort and plan to spend most of the time by the pool, ride-hail for the occasional outing is often cheaper than a car sitting in a valet lot. Compare rental rates for any of these plans on our Phoenix car rental page.

    How Phoenix is laid out

    Phoenix and its neighbors fill a broad, flat valley ringed by mountains, and almost all of it is laid out on a single grid. In Phoenix, Central Avenue divides east from west and Washington Street divides north from south; numbered Streets run north-south east of Central, and numbered Avenues run north-south west of it, so 16th Street and 16th Avenue are about 5 kilometers (3 miles) apart. The major arterials fall roughly every mile, which makes navigation easy and distances long. Downtown sits near the center of the city, with Roosevelt Row immediately north and Sky Harbor immediately east. Tempe and Arizona State University are a short hop southeast of the airport, Mesa beyond them, Scottsdale to the northeast, and the West Valley cities of Glendale, Peoria, Goodyear and Surprise to the west, where many spring training ballparks and the Cardinals’ stadium sit. A web of freeways links it all: I-10 and I-17 meet west of downtown at the interchange locals call the Stack, and the Loop 101, Loop 202 and Loop 303 ring the Valley, with SR 51 and US 60 filling in.

    Hotels cluster downtown around the convention center and the ballpark, near the airport, along the Camelback corridor, in Old Town Scottsdale and the resort belt north of it, in Tempe, and in the Roosevelt Row area. Our Phoenix hotel search lets you compare them.

    Getting in from the airport

    Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX) is about 5 kilometers (3 miles) east of downtown, and getting into the city is unusually easy. The free PHX Sky Train runs around the clock between Terminals 3 and 4, the East Economy parking area, and the 44th Street station, where you change to the Valley Metro light rail for downtown Phoenix, Tempe or Mesa; the trip downtown takes around half an hour including the change. The Sky Train also connects to the Rental Car Center, the consolidated facility west of the terminals where every major company has its counters, and shuttle buses run there as well. Taxis and ride-hail pick up at marked zones outside each terminal, and the drive downtown takes 10 to 15 minutes outside rush hour; driverless Waymo robotaxis also serve the airport. For Scottsdale, allow 20 to 30 minutes by car, and for the West Valley 30 to 45. Check the airport’s site for current ground-transport details; our PHX airport guide covers the layout.

    A Valley Metro light rail train approaching a station in downtown Phoenix
    Valley Metro light rail links the airport's Sky Train, Tempe, downtown and Central Avenue (Photo: Tomwsulcer via Wikimedia Commons, CC0)

    Phoenix transit, explained

    Valley Metro runs the light rail, the Tempe Streetcar and most of the bus network across the region. It is clean, air-conditioned and straightforward, and along its core corridor it is a genuinely useful way for a visitor to get around; its limitation is coverage, because a single rail system cannot serve a metro area this spread out, and the buses that fill in the rest run on the mile grid at frequencies that suit commuters more than sightseers.

    The light rail

    The light rail runs for more than 40 kilometers (25 miles) through the heart of the Valley. From the east, it starts in Mesa, runs through downtown Mesa and Tempe, past Arizona State University and Tempe Town Lake, crosses to the 44th Street station for the airport, and continues along Washington and Jefferson Streets into downtown Phoenix, stopping near Chase Field, the convention center and the downtown arena. From downtown it turns north along Central Avenue past Roosevelt Row, the Heard Museum and the Phoenix Art Museum, and on to north Phoenix, and since the South Central extension opened in 2025, a branch also runs south from downtown along Central Avenue toward South Mountain. The system operates as two lines that share tracks through downtown; check Valley Metro’s map for the current line names and end stations. Trains run from early morning until late evening, roughly every 12 to 20 minutes depending on the time of day.

    Streetcar and buses

    The Tempe Streetcar loops through downtown Tempe, along Mill Avenue and past the lake and the university, connecting to the light rail. Valley Metro’s buses run along most of the major arterials on the mile grid, with express routes to the suburbs; they reach places like the Desert Botanical Garden and the Phoenix Zoo, but frequencies drop in the evenings and on weekends, and waiting at a bus stop in summer is hard work. Check the timetable before relying on a bus for a return trip.

    Fares and tickets

    One fare system covers the light rail, streetcar and local buses. Buy single rides or a day pass from the ticket machines on every light-rail platform, or use the Valley Metro app on your phone, and keep your ticket with you, because fare inspectors check on board. A day pass is the best value for a sightseeing day with several rides, and reduced fares are available for seniors and younger riders. Check Valley Metro’s site for current fares and payment options before you go.

    Accessibility

    Every light-rail station is level-boarding and step-free, and the fleet of trains, streetcars and buses is accessible; the stations have shade structures, which matter more here than almost anywhere.

    Beyond Valley Metro

    • Free circulators. Several cities run free neighborhood shuttles: the Scottsdale Trolley loops Old Town and the resort corridor, and Tempe’s Orbit buses serve the neighborhoods around the university. They are handy for short hops once you are in those districts.
    • Ride-hail and robotaxis. Uber and Lyft operate across the Valley, and Phoenix is one of the places where driverless Waymo robotaxis carry the public, across much of Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, Mesa and Chandler. For short trips, especially in a group, ride-hail is competitive with transit and much faster to places the light rail does not reach.
    • Walking and cycling. Downtown, Roosevelt Row, Old Town Scottsdale and Mill Avenue are walkable, and paths along the canals and around Tempe Town Lake are good for cycling in the cooler months; shared bikes and e-scooters operate in parts of the Valley. In summer, walking more than a few blocks in the afternoon is not advisable.
    • Tours. Day tours to Sedona and the Grand Canyon pick up from hotels across the Valley, and they are the main alternative to driving for visitors who want the canyon without the car; the Grand Canyon Railway from Williams, about three hours north, is another.
    • Intercity travel. Buses connect Phoenix with Tucson, Flagstaff, Las Vegas and Southern California. Amtrak does not serve Phoenix itself; the nearest station is in Maricopa, about 55 kilometers (35 miles) south.
    The PHX Sky Train approaching Terminal 4 at Phoenix Sky Harbor
    The free PHX Sky Train connects the terminals, the light rail and the Rental Car Center (Photo: Hunter Trick (TrickHunter) via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

    Driving in Phoenix: what it is really like

    By the standards of most large American cities, Phoenix is easy to drive: a logical grid, wide arterials, a dense freeway network, good signage and plentiful parking outside the busiest districts. The frustrations are specific. Weekday rush hours, roughly 6 to 9 a.m. and 3:30 to 6:30 p.m., slow I-10 through Tempe and the West Valley, I-17 north of downtown, SR 51, and the Loop 101 through Scottsdale and Tempe. Big events, from spring training and the Phoenix Open to Cardinals games in Glendale, bring heavy traffic around the venues. Construction is constant on a freeway network that is still growing. And the distances are long: a trip from a Scottsdale resort to a ballpark in Goodyear can take the best part of an hour.

    The Stack, the interchange of Interstate 10 and Interstate 17 in Phoenix, at night
    The Stack, where I-10 meets I-17 west of downtown; the freeways are easy outside the weekday rush hours (Photo: Alan Stark from Goodyear, AZ, United States via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0)

    Parking

    Parking in Phoenix is easier and cheaper than in most big cities. Downtown has metered street parking and many garages, which get busy and more expensive on game and concert nights. Old Town Scottsdale has free public parking garages, with time limits on some spaces. Tempe’s Mill Avenue area has garages and metered streets. The resorts usually charge for self-parking or valet, sometimes folded into the resort fee, so check before you book. Trailhead parking is the real challenge: the small lots at Camelback’s Echo Canyon and Cholla trails and at Piestewa Peak fill early on cool-season weekends, often before sunrise, so arrive early or use ride-hail. At Sky Harbor, the economy lots are linked to the terminals by the Sky Train.

    Rules and conditions worth knowing

    • The heat and your car. A parked car becomes dangerously hot within minutes in summer; never leave a child or a pet inside, even briefly. Use a windshield sunshade, cover the steering wheel and seats, keep extra water in the car, and remember that batteries and tires are more likely to fail in extreme heat, so do not skip the rental company’s warning lights.
    • Dust storms. During the monsoon, a haboob can cut visibility to near zero on the freeway in seconds. ADOT’s advice is to pull as far off the road as you safely can, turn off all your lights, set the parking brake and take your foot off the brake pedal so that other drivers do not follow your taillights, and wait until it passes.
    • Flooded washes. Never drive into a flooded road or wash, even if it looks shallow; the water can be far deeper and faster than it appears. Under Arizona’s so-called Stupid Motorist Law, drivers who go around barricades into flooded areas can be billed for the cost of their rescue.
    • Cameras. Several Valley cities, notably Scottsdale and Paradise Valley, use speed and red-light cameras on city streets; fines follow the car and the rental company will bill you, often with a fee.
    • Phones. Arizona law bans holding a phone while driving; use a mount and hands-free mode.
    • HOV lanes. The carpool lanes on the freeways are restricted to vehicles with two or more people during weekday rush hours and open to everyone at other times; check the signs.
    • Right turns on red are permitted after a full stop unless signed otherwise.
    • Road conditions. AZ511, run by the Arizona Department of Transportation, publishes closures, crashes and weather alerts, including snow on I-17 and I-40 in the high country.
    Interstate 17 near Flagstaff in the Arizona high country
    I-17 climbs from the desert to the pine country around Flagstaff in about two hours (Photo: Bernard Gagnon via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)

    When renting a car makes sense

    • Sedona and the Grand Canyon. Sedona is about two hours north on I-17 and the Grand Canyon’s South Rim three and a half to four hours; a car lets you reach the trailheads early and stop at Montezuma Castle and Jerome along the way. Many Sedona trailhead lots require a Red Rock Pass, and the national park charges a vehicle entrance fee.
    • Sunrise hikes. Camelback, Piestewa Peak, South Mountain and the McDowell Sonoran Preserve are best at first light, before the heat, when transit is not running to them and ride-hail can be slow to arrive.
    • Scottsdale and the resort belt. The resorts, Taliesin West, the Musical Instrument Museum and the golf courses are spread across the northeast Valley, well away from the light rail.
    • Spring training. Ten ballparks across the Valley, several in the West Valley far from the rail line; a car makes a ballpark tour easy.
    • Families. Car seats, pool bags and the summer heat all argue for a car, and our family car rental guide looks at vehicle choice.
    • Road trips. Tucson, Las Vegas via the Hoover Dam, San Diego and Southern California; our Phoenix to San Diego route guide and Las Vegas to Phoenix route guide cover two classics.

    If any of those apply, our rental car booking tips cover insurance, deposits and the questions to ask at the counter.

    When it does not

    • You are staying downtown, in Roosevelt Row or in Tempe, and your plans are along the light rail.
    • You are in town for a convention, a Suns or Diamondbacks game, or a concert downtown, when parking near the venues is at its most expensive and the light rail stops beside them.
    • You are staying at a resort and plan to spend most of your time by the pool and the spa, with ride-hail for the occasional dinner.
    • You want the Grand Canyon for a day and are happy to take an organized tour.

    The hybrid plan for a city-plus-desert trip

    Go car-free for the city days and rent for the day trips, and think about where you pick up. Every major company operates from the Sky Harbor Rental Car Center, which is convenient but adds airport fees and surcharges, some of which have long helped fund the region’s sports venues. Neighborhood rental offices in Phoenix, Tempe and Scottsdale avoid some of those charges and make sense if you are spending the first nights in the city. A pattern that works well: take the Sky Train and light rail or a ride-hail to your hotel, spend two or three car-free days downtown and in Tempe, pick up a car from a city location for Scottsdale, a sunrise hike and a night in Sedona or at the Grand Canyon, and return it to the airport on the way to your flight home, which many companies allow at little or no extra cost. Book early for February and March, when the Rental Car Center can run short of cars. Compare the day rates on our Phoenix car rental page against a full-trip rental and the difference is usually obvious.

    A worked cost comparison

    Numbers change with the season and the booking window, so treat this as a method rather than a quote, and check current rates before deciding. For a three-night city break downtown for two people, the car-free version costs two light-rail day passes each and perhaps three or four ride-hail trips to the Desert Botanical Garden, Old Town Scottsdale and back; the rental version adds three days of a compact car, airport fees and surcharges, three nights of hotel parking and fuel, and buys you little you could not reach otherwise. The transit option wins. For a four-night stay with a day in Sedona, the car-free version adds an organized Sedona tour for two; the hybrid version adds a one-day rental from a city location, fuel and a Red Rock Pass. For two people the rental is usually cheaper than the tour and far more flexible; for one person the tour can be competitive. For a week at a Scottsdale resort with golf, hiking and the Grand Canyon, a rental for the whole stay is the only practical answer, and the airport pickup, despite the surcharges, is simpler than paying for ride-hail across the Valley every day. Run the rental rates for your dates on our Phoenix car rental page and put them beside the tour and ride-hail costs before you choose.

    Driving out of Phoenix in each season

    The highways out of Phoenix are good, but they cross some of the most extreme terrain in the country, and conditions change fast with altitude and season. I-17 north to Sedona and Flagstaff climbs from the desert floor to over 2,000 meters (about 7,000 feet) near Flagstaff in about two hours; in summer it is the escape route, jammed northbound on Friday afternoons and southbound on Sunday afternoons, and in winter the upper stretch and I-40 can be snowy or icy while Phoenix is sunny and warm, so check AZ511 before you leave and ask for an all-wheel-drive car if snow is forecast. US 93 northwest to Las Vegas runs through Wickenburg and Kingman and crosses the Colorado River on the bridge beside the Hoover Dam; it is about five hours, remote in places, and fuel stops are far apart. I-8 west to San Diego crosses the low desert past Gila Bend and Yuma, some of the hottest country in North America in summer, before climbing through the mountains east of San Diego; about five and a half hours in all, and Border Patrol checkpoints operate on some highways in the borderlands, so carry ID. I-10 runs southeast to Tucson in about two hours and west to Los Angeles. In summer, the risk on every route is the heat: a breakdown in the desert is dangerous, so start with a full tank, carry plenty of water, keep your phone charged, and stay with the car if it breaks down. During the monsoon, add dust storms and flash floods. In winter, the low desert is perfect for driving, and the high country needs respect. For the canyon, Grand Canyon National Park posts current road and weather conditions.

    Decision table

    Your tripRecommendationWhy
    City break downtown or in TempeNo carThe light rail links the airport, downtown, Roosevelt Row and Tempe
    Convention or game downtownNo carThe light rail stops beside the venues; event parking is expensive
    Resort stay, mostly by the poolNo car, ride-hail for outingsAvoids resort parking fees for a car you rarely use
    Scottsdale, golf and sunrise hikesRent for the whole stayResorts, courses and trailheads are far from transit
    City plus Sedona or the Grand CanyonHybrid: rent from a city location for the trip daysCar-free city days, car for the high country
    Grand Canyon without drivingOrganized tourHotel pickup and no long drive
    Spring training ballpark tourRent at the airportTen ballparks spread across the Valley
    Arizona or Southwest road tripRent (consider one-way to Las Vegas or San Diego)Phoenix is the start, not the destination

    Money-saving tips for both options

    • On transit: the Sky Train is free; buy a day pass for a heavy sightseeing day on the light rail; use the free Scottsdale Trolley and Tempe Orbit once you are in those districts.
    • On a rental: compare airport and neighborhood pickup, book early for February and March, decline extras you already have through a credit card or home policy (check first), and buy the Red Rock Pass or national park pass in advance where you can.
    • On the hotel: if you are renting, price the parking or resort fee into the room rate, and look at resorts whose fees include parking.
    • On timing: avoid the freeways in the weekday rush hours, I-17 northbound on summer Friday afternoons and southbound on Sunday afternoons; the best time to fly to Phoenix guide lists the busiest weeks, and for a wider Southwest trip our guide to whether you need a car in Las Vegas covers the other end of the drive.
    • On ride-hail: for a group of three or four on a short trip, a single ride often costs less than four transit fares and saves waiting in the heat.

    Frequently asked questions

    Is it worth renting a car in Phoenix?

    For Scottsdale, the trailheads, the ballparks, Sedona and the Grand Canyon, yes, and that is most visitors. For a downtown or Tempe stay built around the light rail, no.

    Is Phoenix public transit good for tourists?

    Good along its core corridor: the light rail links the airport’s Sky Train, Tempe, downtown, Roosevelt Row and the Heard Museum. It thins out quickly beyond that, and the buses are slow for sightseeing.

    How do I get from Phoenix Sky Harbor to downtown?

    The free Sky Train to the 44th Street station and then the light rail, in about half an hour, or a taxi, ride-hail or robotaxi in 10 to 15 minutes outside rush hour.

    Can I get to Sedona or the Grand Canyon without a car?

    Yes, on organized day tours that pick up from Phoenix hotels, or by combining an intercity bus with local tours. A car gives you far more flexibility.

    Is it safe to drive in Phoenix in summer?

    Yes, with precautions: keep water in the car, never leave anyone in a parked vehicle, pull off the road in a dust storm, and never drive into a flooded wash.

    Is parking expensive in Phoenix?

    Less than in most big cities. Downtown garages cost more on event nights, resorts charge for parking or valet, and Old Town Scottsdale has free public garages.

    Do I need a four-wheel drive for Arizona?

    Not for the paved highways to Sedona, the Grand Canyon, Tucson, Las Vegas or San Diego. Consider all-wheel drive in winter if snow is forecast for Flagstaff and the high country.

    Whichever way you go, start with the flight. Compare cheap flights to Phoenix, choose a neighborhood with our Phoenix hotel search, and if Sedona or the Grand Canyon is on the list, price the rental for those dates on our Phoenix car rental page. For what to do once you arrive, start with our first-timer’s guide to Phoenix.

    Keep planning with TicketScanner

  • Things to Do in Phoenix: A First-Timer’s Guide

    Things to Do in Phoenix: A First-Timer’s Guide

    Phoenix is easy to misread from the air. Coming in to land, it looks like one enormous grid of rooftops and swimming pools stretching to the mountains, and plenty of visitors treat it that way: a resort, a round of golf, a spring training game and a flight home. They miss a city with some of the best museums in the West, a botanical garden devoted entirely to the desert, mountains you can climb before breakfast without leaving the city limits, an arts district that fills with thousands of people on the first Friday of every month, a food scene rooted in Sonoran Mexican cooking, and a winter climate that makes it the warmest big-city escape in the country from November to April. Sedona and the Grand Canyon are a morning’s drive away. This guide covers the sights that earn a day, the neighborhoods worth a half-day, the food, spring training and the sports, the day trips that make Phoenix a base as much as a destination, how to handle the summer heat, and the practical details that turn a resort stay into a trip.

    If you are still comparing cheap flights to Phoenix, read this alongside our guides to the best time to fly to Phoenix and whether you need a rental car. Between the three you can plan the whole trip.

    The downtown Phoenix skyline with desert mountains behind
    Downtown Phoenix from South Mountain, at the center of a desert valley ringed by mountains (Photo: Alan Stark from Goodyear, AZ, United States via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0)

    Phoenix at a glance for first-timers

    • Airport: Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX), about 5 km (3 miles) east of downtown, one of the closest big-city airports to its center in the country; the free PHX Sky Train links the terminals to the light rail, and a taxi, ride-hail or rental gets you anywhere in the Valley. See our PHX airport guide.
    • Getting around: Valley Metro light rail runs from the airport’s Sky Train connection through downtown Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa. Beyond that corridor, the Valley is built for driving, and most visitors rent a car for at least part of their stay.
    • Money: U.S. dollars. Sales tax is added at the register, and hotels and rental cars carry their own extra taxes and fees, so compare total prices. Many resorts add a nightly resort fee. Tipping 18 to 20 percent in restaurants is standard.
    • Weather: sunny almost every day, with mild winters, hot springs and falls, and summers that regularly pass 43 °C (110 °F). Arizona does not observe daylight saving time. Our month-by-month guide has the detail.
    • Where to stay: downtown for the ballpark, the convention center and the light rail; Roosevelt Row for galleries, bars and a local feel; Scottsdale for resorts, golf and nightlife; Tempe for the university and the lake; the Camelback corridor and Paradise Valley for the classic desert resorts. Our Phoenix hotel search covers them all.

    Downtown: Heritage Square, the Heard and the sports district

    Downtown Phoenix spent decades emptying out after dark and has spent the last two filling back up, helped by the light rail, the Arizona State University campus, and a cluster of new apartment towers. Start at Heritage Square, a block of restored late-19th-century houses that survived the city’s growth, including the Victorian Rosson House, which you can tour, and a converted brick building that holds Pizzeria Bianco, the restaurant that made Phoenix a name among pizza obsessives. The Arizona Science Center is next door, and the Children’s Museum of Phoenix is a few blocks away. A few blocks south, Chase Field, the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, has a retractable roof and air conditioning that make summer baseball bearable, and the downtown arena beside it hosts the Suns, the Mercury and the big touring concerts. A short ride north on the light rail, the Heard Museum is one of the finest museums of American Indian art and culture in the country, with galleries on the peoples of the Southwest, a celebrated collection of Hopi katsina dolls, contemporary art, and a long-running, sobering exhibit on the federal boarding-school era; plan at least half a day. The Phoenix Art Museum, a few blocks away on Central Avenue, is one of the largest art museums in the Southwest, with strong fashion and Western American collections.

    Papago Park and the Desert Botanical Garden

    If you only do one thing in Phoenix, make it the Desert Botanical Garden. Set among the red sandstone buttes of Papago Park, on the border of Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tempe, it holds tens of thousands of desert plants from around the world along easy looped trails, with towering saguaros, blooming cactus gardens in spring, a wildflower loop, and exhibits on how the peoples of the Sonoran Desert have lived from its plants for centuries. Go at opening time in any season except winter, and consider the evening events: in December the garden’s paths are lined with thousands of luminarias, paper-bag lanterns, for one of the Valley’s favorite holiday traditions. Beside it, the Phoenix Zoo is spread across the same desert landscape and has a strong Arizona trail. Papago Park itself is free: the short scramble up to Hole-in-the-Rock, a natural window in a sandstone butte, is the classic sunset view over the city, and the lagoons, the white pyramid of Hunt’s Tomb (the resting place of Arizona’s first governor) and the flat walking loops around the buttes make an easy morning.

    Saguaros and cactus gardens at the Desert Botanical Garden in Papago Park
    The Desert Botanical Garden in Papago Park, the one sight no first visit should skip (Photo: Simeon87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)

    The mountains in the city: Camelback, Piestewa and South Mountain

    What sets Phoenix apart from other Sun Belt cities is the mountains rising straight out of its neighborhoods. Camelback Mountain, the humped red peak between Phoenix and Paradise Valley, has two summit trails, Echo Canyon and Cholla, that are steep, rocky and genuinely strenuous, with handrails on the steepest sections of Echo Canyon; the view from the top across the whole Valley is worth it, but this is not a casual stroll, and the fire department carries out rescues here every year. Piestewa Peak, in the Phoenix Mountains Preserve to the north, has a similarly steep summit trail and gentler loops around its base. South Mountain Park and Preserve, on the city’s southern edge, is one of the largest city parks in the United States, with about 80 kilometers (50 miles) of trails, petroglyphs, and a road to Dobbins Lookout that gives you the famous view of the downtown skyline without the climb. In Scottsdale, the McDowell Sonoran Preserve protects a vast stretch of desert with well-marked trailheads and some of the best saguaro forests near the city. The rule for all of them is the same: start at first light, carry far more water than you think you need, and be off the trail before the day heats up.

    Camelback Mountain seen from Papago Park in Phoenix
    Camelback Mountain from Papago Park: a steep sunrise climb with a view over the whole Valley (Photo: Dru Bloomfield from Scottsdale, Arizona, USA via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0)

    Neighborhoods worth a half-day

    Roosevelt Row

    Just north of downtown, Roosevelt Row is the city’s arts district: murals on nearly every wall, galleries in old bungalows, coffee shops, bars and some of the best independent restaurants in Phoenix. On First Fridays, the monthly evening art walk, the streets fill with galleries, food trucks and street performers; it is one of the largest events of its kind in the country and free. It is on the light rail.

    Old Town Scottsdale

    Scottsdale’s historic core mixes Western-themed souvenir shops, serious galleries of Southwestern and Native art, the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and a dense entertainment district of restaurants, cocktail bars and nightclubs that is the Valley’s busiest nightlife. On Thursday evenings the galleries host an art walk, and a free trolley loops the district.

    Tempe and Mill Avenue

    Home of Arizona State University, Tempe is the Valley’s college town: Mill Avenue has bars, restaurants and shops, Tempe Town Lake on the Salt River has paths for walking and cycling and paddleboard rentals, and the streetcar loops through downtown and the campus. It is on the light rail, and the Papago buttes rise just across the water.

    Arcadia and the Camelback corridor

    East Phoenix at the foot of Camelback Mountain, Arcadia is a leafy neighborhood of ranch houses and old citrus groves, with some of the city’s most popular brunch spots and patios. West of it, the Biltmore district is home to the Arizona Biltmore, the 1929 resort whose patterned concrete blocks show the influence of Frank Lloyd Wright; its lobby is worth a look even if you are not staying.

    Mesa and the Asian District

    Mesa, the Valley’s second-largest city, has a revived downtown on the light rail with the Arizona Museum of Natural History, and along Dobson Road an Asian District of Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese and Filipino restaurants and markets that is one of the best-value food trips in the metro area.

    Museums, culture and family attractions

    The Musical Instrument Museum, in north Phoenix, is one of the most unexpected museums in the country: thousands of instruments from nearly every nation on Earth, with headsets that play each gallery’s music as you approach, an experience room where you can play some of them, and galleries devoted to famous musicians. In Scottsdale, Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s winter home and architecture school, built from desert stone in the 1930s, is part of a UNESCO World Heritage listing of Wright’s work, and it can be seen only on guided tours, which are worth booking ahead in winter and spring. Pueblo Grande Museum Archaeological Park, beside the airport, preserves a platform mound built by the Hohokam, the people who dug the irrigation canals along the Salt River more than a thousand years ago; the modern city’s canals follow many of the same routes. For performance, the Orpheum Theatre and Symphony Hall downtown host the Phoenix Symphony, Arizona Opera and Ballet Arizona. For what is on stage and in the arenas during your dates, our Phoenix events page lists concerts, shows and games.

    Spring training and the winter season

    From mid-February to late March, the Valley becomes the home of the Cactus League, as half of Major League Baseball’s teams hold spring training in ten ballparks spread across Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, Mesa, Glendale, Goodyear, Peoria and Surprise. The ballparks are small, the seats are close, tickets cost a fraction of a regular-season game, and on a warm March afternoon with a lawn seat and a cold drink it is one of the best days out in American sport. It is also the busiest time of the year for hotels, because it coincides with the peak of the winter-visitor season. Early February brings the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale, one of the best-attended golf tournaments in the world, famous for the rowdy stadium around its 16th hole; January brings the Barrett-Jackson collector car auction to Scottsdale; and the Heard Museum’s Guild Indian Fair and Market, one of the most important Native art markets in the country, fills its grounds in early March. If your trip falls in this window, book the hotel before the flight; if it does not, the weeks just before and after are some of the best-value weeks of the Valley’s high season.

    Sports

    Phoenix is a four-league market with a year-round calendar. The Arizona Diamondbacks play baseball at Chase Field downtown from April to September, with the roof closed and the air conditioning running through the summer. The Phoenix Suns play basketball from October to April in the downtown arena, which they share with the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA in summer. The Arizona Cardinals play NFL football at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, a building with a retractable roof and a grass field that rolls outside to catch the sun; the same stadium hosts the Fiesta Bowl around New Year and has staged several Super Bowls. Phoenix Raceway in Avondale hosts NASCAR weekends, and ASU’s Sun Devils play college football in Tempe. Golf is the other sport: the Valley has roughly 200 courses, and winter tee times at the famous ones sell out. Check what is on sale in Phoenix for your dates before you book flights.

    What to eat, and where

    Phoenix food starts with Sonoran Mexican cooking, the style of the neighboring Mexican state: flour tortillas as thin as paper, carne asada grilled over mesquite, cheese crisps, green corn tamales in late summer, and the chimichanga, the deep-fried burrito whose invention both Phoenix and Tucson claim. The Sonoran hot dog, bacon-wrapped and piled with beans, onions, tomatoes, mayonnaise and jalapeño sauce in a soft bolillo roll, is sold from carts and small stands across the city and is worth one lunch. Beyond that, the city has a national reputation for pizza, led by Pizzeria Bianco at Heritage Square; an excellent Asian food corridor in Mesa; a strong brunch culture in Arcadia and Roosevelt Row; and a growing group of chefs cooking with desert ingredients such as prickly pear, mesquite flour, cholla buds and Medjool dates from the farms of the lower Colorado River. Craft breweries are everywhere, and prickly pear margaritas are the local signature cocktail. The Saturday-morning farmers’ market downtown is good for Arizona produce, citrus in winter and local honey.

    Phoenix through the seasons

    Phoenix runs on a reversed calendar: winter is high season, and summer is when locals leave. Winter (December to February) is sunny and mild, with afternoons in the high teens to low 20s Celsius (mid-60s to low 70s Fahrenheit), chilly nights, and snow visible on the high peaks to the north; it is golf, hiking and patio season, the resorts are full of winter visitors from Canada and the Midwest, and the Phoenix Open arrives in early February. Spring (March to May) is the best of the year: spring training, wildflowers in wet years, the saguaros blooming white from late April, and pool weather by May. Summer (June to September) is extreme: highs regularly above 43 °C (110 °F), overnight lows that can stay above 30 °C (86 °F), and the monsoon from July bringing dust storms, lightning and sudden downpours. The city moves indoors, into the pools and up to the cool pine country two hours north, and resort rates fall dramatically. Fall (October to November) brings the heat down to perfect by November, with the Arizona State Fair, football and the return of the winter visitors. Our month-by-month guide has the fare patterns that go with each season.

    Staying safe in the summer heat

    Phoenix heat is not an inconvenience to push through; it is a genuine health risk, especially for visitors who are not used to it. From roughly late May to late September, plan outdoor activity for the first hours after sunrise and the evening, and spend the middle of the day indoors or in the water. Heat illness can develop quickly, and thirst is a late signal, so drink water steadily through the day and add electrolytes if you are active; wear a hat, loose light clothing and sunscreen. On the trails, start at dawn, carry more water than you expect to need, and turn back well before you run low; on days when a heat warning is in effect, the city closes the trails at Camelback and Piestewa Peak during the hottest hours. Dark pavement, playground slides, car seats and seat-belt buckles can get hot enough to burn skin, and a parked car heats up dangerously within minutes, so never leave a child or a pet in one, even briefly. The National Weather Service office in Phoenix issues the forecasts and heat warnings; check them each morning, and treat its advice as the plan for the day.

    Phoenix with kids

    Phoenix is an easy family city, especially from October to April. The Phoenix Zoo and the Desert Botanical Garden, side by side in Papago Park, make a full day. The Arizona Science Center downtown has a planetarium and hands-on galleries, the Children’s Museum of Phoenix is one of the best for under-tens in the West, and the Musical Instrument Museum’s experience room is a hit with every age. OdySea Aquarium, on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community’s land beside Scottsdale, has sharks, penguins and hands-on exhibits. In summer, the big resort pools with lazy rivers and water slides, the Valley’s water parks and the ice rinks become the plan. Spring training suits children perfectly, with lawn seating and players signing autographs along the fences. For families heading out on day trips, our family car rental guide covers the vehicle question.

    Phoenix on a budget

    A lot of the best of Phoenix is free: the hiking trails at Camelback, Piestewa Peak, South Mountain and the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, Papago Park and Hole-in-the-Rock, Tempe Town Lake, First Fridays on Roosevelt Row, the Thursday art walk in Old Town Scottsdale, and the Arizona Capitol Museum. The Desert Botanical Garden, the Heard and the Musical Instrument Museum charge admission but are worth it, and some museums offer free or reduced entry on certain evenings; check their sites. Summer is the budget season: resort rates can drop to a fraction of their winter level, and many restaurants run summer deals for locals. Eat well for less along Dobson Road in Mesa, at the taquerias and Sonoran hot dog stands across the city, and at happy hours. A light-rail day pass covers downtown, Tempe and Mesa. Compare rates by neighborhood on our Phoenix hotel search.

    Day trips from Phoenix

    Sedona is about two hours north on I-17: red rock buttes, vortex trails, Cathedral Rock and Bell Rock, galleries and a canyon drive up Oak Creek to Flagstaff; many trailhead lots need a Red Rock Pass, and a free trailhead shuttle runs on busy days. On the way, Montezuma Castle National Monument preserves a cliff dwelling set into a limestone wall, and the old mining town of Jerome clings to a hillside above the Verde Valley. The South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park is about three and a half to four hours each way and is better as an overnight trip. Closer in, the Superstition Mountains east of Mesa have Lost Dutchman State Park, Canyon Lake and the start of the Apache Trail; Tucson, about two hours south, has Saguaro National Park and its own Sonoran food scene; and Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, an hour south, protects a four-story Hohokam great house. Las Vegas is about five hours northwest by way of the Hoover Dam; see our Las Vegas guide and the Las Vegas to Phoenix route guide. San Diego and the Pacific are about five and a half hours west on I-8; our Phoenix to San Diego route guide covers the drive. All of these are car trips; see our Phoenix car rental page, and carry extra water in summer. Visit Arizona covers the wider state.

    Cathedral Rock in Sedona, two hours north of Phoenix
    Cathedral Rock in Sedona, about two hours north of Phoenix on I-17 (Photo: Nikolai Gates Vetr via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

    Two sample itineraries

    Three days, light car use

    Day one: the Heard Museum in the morning by light rail, lunch at Heritage Square, the Arizona Science Center or the Phoenix Art Museum in the afternoon, and dinner and bars on Roosevelt Row. Day two: a sunrise hike on Piestewa Peak or South Mountain, the Desert Botanical Garden, sunset at Hole-in-the-Rock, and an evening on Mill Avenue in Tempe. Day three: the Musical Instrument Museum, Taliesin West in the afternoon, and dinner and nightlife in Old Town Scottsdale, with ride-hail filling the gaps.

    Five days, with Sedona and the Grand Canyon

    Add a spring training game or a spa afternoon at a resort, then pick up a car and drive north to Sedona for a night, continue to the Grand Canyon’s South Rim for sunset and sunrise, and return through Flagstaff and down I-17, dropping the car at the Sky Harbor Rental Car Center on the way home.

    Practical details

    • Transit: buy light-rail and bus passes at station machines or in the Valley Metro app. Valley Metro has maps; our car-versus-transit guide goes into detail.
    • From PHX: the free Sky Train to the light rail at 44th Street, a taxi or ride-hail, or a rental from the Rental Car Center. The airport’s site covers ground transport.
    • Weather: sun protection and water in every season, a warm layer for winter evenings, and serious heat precautions from May to September. The National Weather Service’s Phoenix office issues heat and dust-storm warnings.
    • Time zone: Mountain Standard Time all year. Arizona does not change its clocks, so it matches Los Angeles in summer and Denver in winter; the Navajo Nation in the northeast does observe daylight saving time.
    • Entry requirements: Canadians need a valid passport; visitors from Visa Waiver Program countries need an approved ESTA before boarding, and everyone else needs a visa. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the authoritative source.
    • Safety: the tourist areas are generally safe with ordinary big-city awareness; the heat, the trails and monsoon flash floods are the real hazards, so never drive into a flooded wash.

    Frequently asked questions

    How many days do you need in Phoenix?

    Three days covers the museums, the Desert Botanical Garden, a sunrise hike and two neighborhoods; add one for Sedona and two for the Grand Canyon.

    What is the number one thing to do in Phoenix?

    The Desert Botanical Garden, ideally at opening time, followed by sunset at Hole-in-the-Rock next door. From February to March, add a spring training game.

    Is Phoenix walkable?

    Downtown, Roosevelt Row, Old Town Scottsdale and Mill Avenue in Tempe are, and the light rail links several of them. The rest of the Valley assumes a car, and summer heat limits walking anywhere.

    Do I need a car in Phoenix?

    Not for downtown, Tempe and a resort stay with ride-hail. For Scottsdale’s attractions, the trailheads, Sedona and the Grand Canyon, yes, and that is most visitors.

    Is it safe to visit Phoenix in summer?

    Yes, if you plan around the heat: outdoor activity at dawn and dusk, the middle of the day indoors, plenty of water, and a check of the National Weather Service forecast each day. Resort rates are at their lowest.

    What is Phoenix known for?

    Desert sunshine, winter golf and resorts, spring training baseball, saguaros and the Sonoran Desert, Sonoran Mexican food, and being the gateway to Sedona and the Grand Canyon.

    Ready to go? Compare flights to Phoenix, find a place to stay with our Phoenix hotel search, and if Sedona or the Grand Canyon is on the list, price a rental car for those days.

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  • Best Time to Fly to Phoenix: Seasons, Weather & Prices

    Best Time to Fly to Phoenix: Seasons, Weather & Prices

    Phoenix turns the usual travel calendar upside down, and its prices follow. It is one of the sunniest large cities in the United States, with winters so mild that it fills with visitors escaping snow from Canada and the Midwest, a spring that brings half of Major League Baseball to town for training camp, and a summer so hot that locals leave and resorts cut their rates to a fraction of the winter price. Sky Harbor is also a major airline hub, which keeps fares competitive year-round, so the real swings are in the hotel rooms and resort rates rather than the seats. Add the monsoon, the season of dust storms and sudden downpours from midsummer, and you have a place where the right time to go depends on whether you want golf and hiking, baseball, a pool, or the lowest possible total price. This guide walks through the weather month by month, the fare seasons, the events that move prices, how to handle the heat, and how to get into the city from the airport.

    The short answer

    For the best weather, come from late October to early December or from late February to April, when days are warm, nights are cool, and the trails, patios and golf courses are at their best. For the lowest prices, look at June to mid-September, when resort and hotel rates fall steeply because of the heat; if you can handle spending the middle of the day indoors or in a pool, summer is extraordinary value. The most expensive stretches are mid-February to late March, when spring training, spring break and the peak of the winter-visitor season overlap, the week of the WM Phoenix Open in early February, and the Christmas and New Year holidays around the Fiesta Bowl. Whatever you choose, run a flexible-date search on our Phoenix flights page, and price the hotel for the same dates before you commit; in Phoenix, the room usually moves the total more than the fare.

    The view from the lawn seats at Scottsdale Stadium during spring training
    Cactus League spring training, the busiest and most expensive weeks of the Phoenix year (Photo: Cygnusloop99 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)

    Phoenix weather, season by season

    Phoenix sits in a broad desert basin, the Valley of the Sun, a little over 300 meters (about 1,100 feet) above sea level in the Sonoran Desert. It receives only about 180 mm (7 inches) of rain a year, sunshine on the great majority of days, very low humidity for most of the year, mild winters and some of the hottest summers of any large city in the country. The figures below are approximate seasonal patterns at Sky Harbor, based on the long-term climate normals published by NOAA and the National Weather Service’s Phoenix office; check the current forecast before you pack, especially for heat warnings in summer and dust-storm warnings during the monsoon.

    MonthTypical daytime highTypical overnight lowWhat it feels likeFare pressure
    Januaryaround 19 °C (67 °F)around 8 °C (46 °F)Sunny, mild afternoons and chilly nights; occasional winter rainHigh; peak for resorts, Barrett-Jackson week
    Februaryaround 22 °C (71 °F)around 9 °C (48 °F)Warm, bright days; wildflowers start in wet yearsPeak; Phoenix Open, then spring training
    Marcharound 25 °C (77 °F)around 12 °C (54 °F)Near perfect; the desert in bloomPeak; spring training and spring break
    Aprilaround 29 °C (85 °F)around 16 °C (61 °F)Warm to hot afternoons, pleasant evenings; saguaros begin to bloomHigh, easing through the month
    Mayaround 35 °C (95 °F)around 21 °C (70 °F)Hot and very dry; pool season in full swingModerate, falling
    Junearound 40 °C (104 °F)around 26 °C (79 °F)Extreme dry heat; the hottest days often come nowLow
    Julyaround 41 °C (106 °F)around 29 °C (84 °F)Extreme heat with rising humidity; monsoon storms and dust stormsLow, except the Fourth of July
    Augustaround 41 °C (105 °F)around 28 °C (83 °F)Hot, humid by desert standards; flash floods possibleLow
    Septemberaround 38 °C (100 °F)around 25 °C (77 °F)Still very hot; the monsoon fades by the end of the monthLow to moderate, rising after Labor Day
    Octoberaround 32 °C (89 °F)around 18 °C (65 °F)Warm and dry; the first comfortable evenings in monthsModerate
    Novemberaround 24 °C (76 °F)around 12 °C (53 °F)Ideal: warm, sunny afternoons and cool nightsModerate to high; Thanksgiving spike
    Decemberaround 19 °C (66 °F)around 7 °C (45 °F)Mild days, cold nights, occasional rainModerate until mid-month, then peak

    Three things the table cannot show. First, the heat is relentless in summer: an average July high around 41 °C (106 °F) means plenty of afternoons well above that, and in recent summers the city has recorded long runs of days at or above 43 °C (110 °F). The low humidity makes it feel manageable in the shade, but you lose water faster than you notice, and outdoor exertion in the afternoon is dangerous. Second, the nights stay hot: the pavement and buildings of a metro area of several million people hold the day’s heat, so summer lows are often near 29 °C (84 °F) and there is little relief after dark. Third, the monsoon: officially from mid-June to the end of September, and most active in July and August, it brings moisture from the south, sudden thunderstorms, lightning, flash floods in normally dry washes and towering walls of dust known as haboobs that can drop visibility on the freeways to almost nothing in minutes.

    How Phoenix fare seasons work

    Sky Harbor is one of the busiest airports in the country, a hub for American Airlines and one of Southwest’s largest operations, with other U.S. carriers and several low-cost airlines adding capacity. That competition keeps airfares into Phoenix reasonable in most months, and it means the sharp price swings are usually in the rooms. Three calendars drive them: the winter-visitor season, from roughly January to April, when Canadians and Midwesterners fill the resorts and golf courses; the event calendar, led by spring training, the Phoenix Open and major college and pro sporting events; and the heat, which empties the resorts from June to September. The result is a long, expensive high season in late winter and spring, a deep summer trough, and a pleasant, moderately priced fall.

    Peak season

    January to mid-April, with the highest prices from the Phoenix Open in early February through the end of spring training in late March, plus the Christmas and New Year holidays. In those weeks the famous resorts in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley can charge several times their summer rates, golf tee times are booked weeks out, and spring break adds families and college students in March. If you must travel in peak, book the hotel as early as possible, fly midweek, and consider Tempe, Mesa or the West Valley near the ballparks rather than Scottsdale for better rates.

    Shoulder season

    Mid-April to May, and October to mid-December outside Thanksgiving. Late April and early May give you pool weather and lower resort rates before the real heat; October is warm and dry, and November is arguably the best month of the year for weather, with rates that have not yet reached their winter levels. Watch Thanksgiving week, the Arizona State Fair weekends and Cardinals home games.

    Low season

    June to mid-September. Resort and hotel rates drop to their lowest of the year, many resorts run summer packages aimed at Arizona residents that visitors can often book too, and restaurants offer summer deals. The trade-off is the heat. Airfares into Phoenix are usually good value in summer, though flights out of Phoenix on summer weekends can be busy with locals heading for the California coast and the mountains, which sometimes lifts round-trip prices for the return leg.

    As elsewhere, midweek departures and early or late flights usually price below Friday and Sunday afternoons on the same route, and a search across a whole month reveals cheaper pairs of dates close to your first choice. Our guide to the best times to book explains how to read those patterns.

    Phoenix month by month

    January

    Sunny, mild and firmly in high season. Afternoons are pleasant for hiking and golf, nights are cold enough for a jacket, and a winter storm occasionally brings a day of rain and dusts the mountains to the north with snow. The Barrett-Jackson collector car auction fills Scottsdale for a week in the second half of the month, and the resorts are busy with winter visitors. Fares from colder cities rise after the first week of the year.

    February

    The start of the very top of the season. The WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale, usually in the first half of the month, is one of the best-attended golf tournaments in the world and sends Scottsdale hotel rates soaring; the Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show follows. Pitchers and catchers report for spring training in mid-February, and the first Cactus League games start in the last week of the month. In a wet winter, the wildflowers begin.

    March

    The most expensive month for hotels and one of the best for weather. Spring training fills ten ballparks across the Valley, spring break brings families and students, and the Heard Museum’s Guild Indian Fair and Market takes over its grounds in early March. The desert is at its greenest, the trails are busy from dawn, and every patio is full. Book early, and expect the rates to stay high until the last spring training game.

    April

    Warm to hot, with afternoons that climb toward 30 °C (86 °F) and beyond, and a noticeable drop in hotel rates once spring training ends. The saguaros begin to bloom late in the month, the Diamondbacks open their season at Chase Field, and the pools are open everywhere. It is one of the better value windows for a resort stay with weather that still suits hiking at dawn.

    May

    Hot and dry, with highs around 35 °C (95 °F) and rising. Resort rates fall steadily through the month, Memorial Day weekend is busy with locals by the pool, and the saguaro blossoms peak. Hike early and treat the afternoons as pool time.

    June

    The start of the real heat and of the low season, and often the month with the hottest, driest days of the year before the monsoon moisture arrives. Hotel rates are near their annual low. Do everything outdoors at sunrise, and plan air-conditioned afternoons in museums such as the Heard or the Musical Instrument Museum, or at a resort pool.

    July

    The hottest month on average, with the monsoon adding humidity, evening thunderstorms and dust storms. The Fourth of July weekend brings some demand, but otherwise July is one of the cheapest months of the year. Many locals escape to Flagstaff and the pine country two hours north, which is a good plan for visitors too. Take the heat and the storms seriously; see the safety section below.

    August

    Much like July, with a little more humidity and the strongest monsoon storms. Schools in Arizona go back early in the month, which empties the resort pools of local families on weekdays. Prices stay low throughout, and the Mercury and the Diamondbacks give you air-conditioned evenings.

    September

    Still very hot, but the monsoon fades and the heat starts to ease by the end of the month. Labor Day weekend is busy with locals, the Cardinals and ASU football start their seasons, and rates begin to rise slowly as the first winter visitors book. Late September is a good compromise of lower prices and slightly kinder weather.

    October

    The heat breaks, usually during the first half of the month, and evenings become pleasant for the first time since spring. The Arizona State Fair runs for several weekends in the fall, patio season restarts, and hotel rates climb but stay well below winter levels. A strong month for a city break with some hiking.

    November

    Many locals’ favorite month: warm afternoons, cool nights, clear skies, and the winter visitors not yet at full strength. Rates are moderate apart from Thanksgiving week, when fares from across the country rise. Golf courses reopen after their fall reseeding, and the holiday light displays begin at the zoo late in the month.

    December

    Two months in one. The first half is mild and moderately priced, with the Desert Botanical Garden’s luminaria nights and holiday events across the Valley. From the week before Christmas, fares and hotel rates jump for the holidays, and the Fiesta Bowl and its associated events around New Year bring college football fans to town.

    A monsoon lightning strike over the desert north of Phoenix
    The summer monsoon brings lightning, dust storms and sudden downpours, mostly in July and August (Photo: Shredex via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)

    Events that move Phoenix flight and hotel prices

    Cross-check these against your dates before you book. Exact dates shift each year; Visit Phoenix keeps the current calendar.

    • Barrett-Jackson (second half of January, Scottsdale): collectors and car enthusiasts fill the resorts.
    • WM Phoenix Open (early February, TPC Scottsdale): the biggest single hotel spike in Scottsdale.
    • Cactus League spring training (late February to late March): the peak of the year across the Valley.
    • Spring break (March, varying by school district and university).
    • Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day weekends: busy with locals, but rarely expensive for visitors.
    • Arizona State Fair (several weekends in the fall).
    • Thanksgiving week and the Christmas and New Year holidays, including the Fiesta Bowl.
    • Super Bowls, college football championship games and the NCAA Final Four, which the region hosts every few years and which send prices through the roof.
    • Big conventions at the Phoenix Convention Center, and Suns, Cardinals and Diamondbacks home games. Our Phoenix events page shows what is on sale for your dates.

    Getting in from the airport

    Phoenix’s main airport, Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX), is only about 5 kilometers (3 miles) east of downtown, and it serves the whole Valley. Its passenger terminals, currently 3 and 4, are connected by the PHX Sky Train, a free automated train that also runs to the 44th Street station on the Valley Metro light rail and to the Rental Car Center. American Airlines and Southwest are the largest operators, and there are nonstop flights from almost every large U.S. city, from several Canadian and Mexican cities, and from London. Getting downtown is easy: ride the Sky Train to 44th Street and take the light rail, which runs through downtown Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa; take a taxi or ride-hail from the curb, about a 10-to-15-minute drive to downtown; or pick up a car from the consolidated Rental Car Center, which every major company uses. Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport (AZA), about 50 kilometers (30 miles) southeast, is served mainly by low-cost carriers and can be worth checking if you are staying in the East Valley. Our Phoenix car-versus-transit guide works through whether to rent, and our PHX airport guide covers the layout.

    American Airlines jets at the gates at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
    Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX), a hub for American Airlines about 5 km from downtown (Photo: Robert693 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

    Timing tricks that work for Phoenix

    • Price the room first. Airline competition at Sky Harbor keeps fares fairly steady, while resort rates can triple between August and March. Run a Phoenix hotel search for your dates before you commit to the flight.
    • Search the whole month. The Phoenix Open, spring training and holiday weekends create sharp edges in the calendar; a calendar search on TicketScanner shows them instantly, and the week after spring training ends is often dramatically cheaper than the week before.
    • Fly midweek. Friday and Sunday afternoons are the busiest times at Sky Harbor on most routes; Tuesday to Thursday is usually the value.
    • Use the shoulders. Late October to early December offers weather as good as March for a fraction of the price, and late April is pool season before the summer heat.
    • Consider a road trip. Las Vegas is about five hours away; compare fares into both cities with our Las Vegas flights page and our guide to the best time to fly to Las Vegas, and see the Las Vegas to Phoenix route guide.
    • Build a monsoon buffer. Summer thunderstorms and dust storms can delay flights at Sky Harbor, mostly in the afternoons and evenings of July and August; morning flights are the safer bet, and our guide to how early to arrive covers what to allow.
    • Flying out of Phoenix instead? The same seasonality applies in reverse; see cheap flights from Phoenix.
    Saguaro cactus in the Sonoran Desert southwest of Phoenix
    Saguaros in the Sonoran Desert, at their best in the mild months from November to April (Photo: BLMArizona via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)

    Staying safe in the heat

    If you travel between May and September, plan the trip around the heat rather than in spite of it. Schedule outdoor sightseeing and hiking for the first hours after sunrise, and spend the early afternoon indoors, in the water or resting. Drink water steadily through the day rather than waiting until you are thirsty, add electrolytes if you are active, and wear a hat, loose light clothing and sunscreen. On any desert trail, carry more water than you think you need and turn around well before you run low; the City of Phoenix closes some of its most popular summit trails during the hottest hours when a heat warning is in effect. Never leave a child or a pet in a parked car, even for a moment, and be careful with metal seat-belt buckles and dark pavement, which can burn skin. During the monsoon, never drive or walk into a flooded wash, and if a dust storm reaches the freeway, pull off the road as far as you safely can and wait it out. The National Weather Service in Phoenix publishes daily heat and storm forecasts; make checking them part of your morning.

    What to pack, by season

    Winter (December to February): layers for mild days, a warm jacket for evenings that can drop close to freezing, and sunglasses; add a proper coat if you are heading north to Sedona, Flagstaff or the Grand Canyon, where it snows. Spring (March to May): light clothing, swimwear, a layer for the evenings, and high-factor sunscreen, because the sun is already intense. Summer (June to September): the lightest, loosest clothing you own, a wide-brimmed hat, sunscreen, a large refillable water bottle, and a sweater for the aggressively air-conditioned restaurants and theaters. Fall (October to November): summer clothing into October, with a light jacket for November nights. In every season, bring sturdy shoes with grip for the rocky desert trails, and something smarter for the resort restaurants.

    The best time to fly to Phoenix for…

    Spring training

    The first three weeks of March, booked as early as you can manage, with the hotel first; late February has lower rates and fewer crowds but not every team is playing yet.

    Golf and resorts

    November and early December for excellent weather at moderate rates, or January to April for the full high-season experience at high-season prices.

    Hiking and the desert

    November to March, starting early on the trails; late February to April for wildflowers and cactus blooms.

    Sedona and the Grand Canyon

    April to May and September to October, when Phoenix is warm, and Sedona and the Grand Canyon’s South Rim, which sits at about 2,100 meters (7,000 feet), are comfortable; in winter the rim can be snowy and very cold. See Grand Canyon National Park for conditions.

    The lowest prices

    June to mid-September, when resort rates are at their lowest of the year, provided you plan around the heat.

    Families

    Fall break in October or the week after Thanksgiving for comfortable weather and moderate rates; summer is cheap and the resort pools are superb, but outdoor sightseeing with children is limited to the early mornings.

    Cross-border and international visitors

    Canadians need a valid passport; travelers from Visa Waiver Program countries need an approved ESTA before boarding, and everyone else needs a visa. U.S. Customs and Border Protection explains what applies to you, and the TSA lists what you can carry through security. Remember that Arizona stays on Mountain Standard Time all year.

    Frequently asked questions

    What is the cheapest month to fly to Phoenix?

    For the total trip, July and August, when resort and hotel rates are at their lowest; airfares are usually reasonable too. June and early September are close behind.

    What is the best month to visit Phoenix for weather?

    November and March, with late October, early December, February and April close behind.

    How hot does Phoenix get in summer?

    Average highs are around 40 to 41 °C (104 to 106 °F) from June to August, and many days go higher. Nights often stay near 29 °C (84 °F). Plan outdoor time for early morning and check the National Weather Service forecast daily.

    When is monsoon season in Phoenix?

    Officially from mid-June to the end of September, with the most storms in July and August. Expect afternoon and evening thunderstorms, dust storms and occasional flash flooding.

    How expensive is Phoenix during spring training?

    It is the most expensive stretch of the year for hotels, especially in Scottsdale. Flights rise less sharply. The week after spring training ends is much cheaper.

    How far ahead should I book?

    Well ahead for February and March, the Phoenix Open and the holidays; for the summer and fall, rates are stable enough that choosing the right dates matters more than booking early.

    Does Phoenix change its clocks?

    No. Arizona stays on Mountain Standard Time all year, so it matches Pacific time in summer and Mountain time in winter; check your connection times carefully.

    Ready to pick your dates? Compare fares across the whole month on our Phoenix flights page, then find a room with our Phoenix hotel search. For what to do when you land, start with our first-timer’s guide to Phoenix.

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