Top Things to Do in Phoenix — 2026
Desert sun and Sonoran adventure in the Valley of the Sun
Get a Free Quote for PhoenixPhoenix Ghost & Haunted Tours
Phoenix runs on ghost stories after dark — one of the most winnable and popular tour categories in the city. The walks work the old downtown and the historic neighborhoods, tracing the territorial-era buildings, the old hotels and saloons, and the pioneer and mining history that the desert town was built on. Some tours pair the hauntings with the downtown's bars, and there's a genuine local scene of small-group, guide-driven walks, so the guide makes the tour — read recent reviews before you book. They run year-round and pick up hard around Halloween, when the cooler evenings make the after-dark walking easy.
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Grand Canyon & Day Trips from Phoenix
Phoenix is the launch point for the big Arizona day trips, and the Grand Canyon is the headline. The South Rim is a full-day trip from the city — about three and a half hours each way — so guided day tours are the easy way to do it, handling the long drive, the park entry, and the viewpoints while you take in the geology; some run by coach, others add a helicopter flight over the canyon once you arrive. Beyond the canyon, day trips fan out across northern Arizona from the Valley. One honest note on Sedona: it's about two hours north, and if the red rocks are your main goal, Flagstaff is the closer gateway (only about 30 minutes from Sedona) — we point you there for that trip. From Phoenix, book the Grand Canyon day trips ahead in the cooler months, when they're busiest.
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Phoenix City Sightseeing, Bus & Walking Tours
To get the lay of the Valley of the Sun, a city sightseeing or bus tour is the efficient first move — a narrated loop links downtown Phoenix, the historic districts, and out toward Scottsdale, with the city's territorial and modern history filled in between stops. On foot, walking tours cover the downtown core, and there's a rich seam of architecture and design here: Phoenix is Frank Lloyd Wright country (Taliesin West sits just out in Scottsdale), the Arizona Biltmore and the historic Wrigley Mansion offer their own house tours booked directly, and the Roosevelt Row arts district — "RoRo" — is the place for a street-art and mural walk. It's an easy way to get oriented before heading out into the desert or up to the canyon.
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Phoenix Food, Wine & Brewery Tours
Phoenix's food scene has grown into one of the Southwest's best, and a guided tour is the fastest way in — most walk a downtown or Scottsdale neighborhood, pacing tastings on foot across a handful of kitchens with the Sonoran and Mexican-American roots of the local cooking filled in along the way. The drink side is a genuine draw too: the craft-brewery scene is deep and the brewery tours shuttle between the taprooms so nobody has to drive, and guided wine-tasting trips run out to the tasting rooms and the Arizona wine country. These are among the most winnable, best-value tours in the city, small-group and best booked ahead on weekends.
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Phoenix Desert & Adventure Tours
Phoenix sits in the heart of the Sonoran Desert — the tall saguaro country that defines the Southwest — and getting out into it is the signature Phoenix experience. Guided adventure and hiking tours lead you into the desert preserves and the mountain parks around the Valley, from the saguaro forests to the sunrise and sunset trails, and after dark the clear desert skies make for excellent guided stargazing away from the city lights. For a faster ride, off-road jeep and ATV tours run the desert trails and the washes, and out on the Valley's reservoir lakes a desert-lake cruise on Saguaro Lake is a cooler, water-level way to see the Sonoran cliffs. Go in the mornings and the cooler months — desert tours cluster around sunrise and sunset to beat the midday heat.
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Phoenix Helicopter Tours
For a different angle on the Valley of the Sun, a helicopter tour is a clean, easy add-on. Flights bank over downtown Phoenix, the desert mountain preserves — Camelback and the Superstitions — and the saguaro country at the city's edge, for the whole basin at a glance; some pair the flight with a desert landing. They're short and premium, so compare air time and route before booking. It's a memorable way to take in the scale of the desert and the sprawl of the Valley that the ground tours can't match, and it suits couples and first-timers looking for something special.
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Things to Do in Phoenix
Beyond the guided tours, Phoenix packs the tall-saguaro Sonoran Desert and its hikes and jeep trails, a launch point for Grand Canyon day trips, a downtown of historic homes and Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, a deep food-and-brewery scene, and clear dark skies into one sprawling desert metropolis. Here is how to make the most of a trip — from the desert and the canyon to downtown and after dark.
The Sonoran Desert
The desert is the whole point in Phoenix — the tall-saguaro Sonoran country that rings the Valley. Guided hiking and adventure tours head into the mountain preserves and desert parks, off-road jeep and ATV tours run the trails and washes, and the clear dark skies make for excellent guided stargazing outside the city. On the water, a desert-lake cruise on Saguaro Lake is the cooler way to see the Sonoran cliffs. Desert tours cluster around sunrise and sunset to beat the heat.
Grand Canyon & Arizona Day Trips
Phoenix is a launch point for northern Arizona. The Grand Canyon's South Rim is a full-day trip — about three and a half hours each way — done by guided coach or with a helicopter flight added at the canyon. Sedona's red rocks are about two hours north, though Flagstaff is the closer gateway if the red rocks are your focus. These are long, rewarding full days out of the Valley, best in the cooler months.
Downtown, Historic Homes & After Dark
In the city itself, a sightseeing or bus loop links downtown Phoenix and Scottsdale, and there's real architecture to see: this is Frank Lloyd Wright country (Taliesin West), with the Arizona Biltmore and the historic Wrigley Mansion offering their own house tours booked directly, and the Roosevelt Row ("RoRo") arts district for a mural and street-art walk. After dark, Phoenix's ghost and haunted-history walks work the old downtown, one of the city's most popular tour categories.
Best Time to Visit
Phoenix is a desert city, so the seasons are inverted from most of the country: winter and spring (November–April) are the peak — warm, dry, and ideal for the desert hikes, the Grand Canyon day trips, and everything outdoors. Summers are brutally hot (routinely well over 100°F), so from June through September the desert and walking tours run at sunrise and after dark, and much shifts indoors. Book the cooler-month desert and canyon tours ahead.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the best tour to do in Phoenix?
It depends on what you're after. For the city itself, a ghost and haunted-history walk of the old downtown is the most popular and winnable pick. To experience the landscape, a Sonoran Desert hiking, jeep, or stargazing tour is the signature Phoenix outing — the tall-saguaro desert is what the region is known for. And for the big bucket-list trip, a Grand Canyon day tour from Phoenix runs up to the South Rim and back. A city sightseeing or food-and-brewery tour rounds out an easy first day in the Valley.
Can I do a Grand Canyon day trip from Phoenix?
Yes, but plan for a full day — the South Rim is about three and a half hours each way from Phoenix. Guided day tours handle the long drive, the park entry, and the viewpoints, and some add a helicopter flight over the canyon once you arrive, which is a popular way to make the distance worth it. If you'd rather cut the drive, Flagstaff is only about 90 minutes from the South Rim and makes a closer base for the canyon. From Phoenix, book ahead in the cooler months when these trips are busiest.
What desert tours can I do around Phoenix?
Phoenix sits in the Sonoran Desert, so the outdoor options are the highlight. Guided hiking and adventure tours lead into the mountain preserves and desert parks around the Valley, from saguaro forests to sunrise and sunset trails; off-road jeep and ATV tours run the desert trails and washes; and guided stargazing tours use the clear dark skies outside the city. There's even a desert-lake cruise on Saguaro Lake for a cooler, water-level angle. Nearly all of these run around sunrise and sunset to beat the midday heat, and the cooler months are the prime season.
What are Phoenix ghost tours like?
They're small-group, on-foot, and story-driven, working the old downtown and historic neighborhoods after dark — the territorial-era buildings, the old hotels and saloons, and the pioneer and mining history the desert town was built on. Some fold the hauntings into a round of the downtown's historic bars. Because the guide makes the tour, it's worth reading recent reviews before booking. They run year-round, are busiest around Halloween, and the cooler evenings make the after-dark walking easy.
Can I visit Sedona from Phoenix?
You can — Sedona's red-rock country is about two hours north of Phoenix and makes a long day trip. That said, if the red rocks are your main goal, Flagstaff is the closer gateway: it's only about 30 minutes from Sedona down Oak Creek Canyon, so a Sedona trip is easier anchored from there. From Phoenix, Sedona usually comes paired into a longer northern-Arizona day-trip loop rather than on its own.
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