Scottsdale Tours and Excursions
Phoenix/Valley Highlights
This tour provides views of Phoenix and Scottsdale including historic sites, the state capitol, Camelback Mountain, the late Senator Barry Goldwater's home, the McCune Mansion now owned by Georgie Hormell, the Wrigley Mansion, the Biltmore and much more. This is an excellent introduction to the Valley of the Sun.
Tour provider: JDR Tours
Phone: 602-264-2833 or 800-759-8747
Web Site: http://www.jdrtours.com
Phoenix/Valley Area Highlights
An excellent introduction to the Valley of the Sun! This tour provides views of Phoenix/Scottsdale including historic sights, the state capitol, Camelback Mountain, Wrigley Mansion, and Scottsdale's Fifth Avenue/Old Town district. Includes an hour at leisure to browse the shops and galleries of Old Town Scottsdale.
Tour provider: Open Road Tours
Phone: 602-997-6474 or 800-766-7117
Web Site: http://www.openroadtours.com/
Heard Museum & Desert Gardens
Experience Arizona's Native American cultures at the world renowned Heard Museum. Exhibits feature traditional dwellings, jewelry, clothing, sculpture, arts and antiquities. Later, you'll also visit the Desert Botanical Gardens and stroll through pathways lined with native plants from deserts around the world.
Tour provider: Open Road Tours
Phone: 602-997-6474 or 800-766-7117
Web Site: http://www.openroadtours.com/
Scottsdale Arts & Dinner
Scottsdale is well known for its diverse arts community. From classic to contemporary, the selection is outstanding. Join us for a scrumptious Southwest dinner (included). Then take part in Art Walk. During this weekly event, over 80 galleries open their doors for casual browsing in an intimate setting. This is a great evening for collectors or those who simply enjoy quality art.
Tour provider: Open Road Tours
Phone: 602-997-6474 or 800-766-7117
Web Site: http://www.openroadtours.com/
Sonoran Nature Trek
Enjoy the beauty of the Sonoran Desert on this half-day nature trek. Our informative guide will share information on the plants and animals that make their home in this arid environment. Along the way, there is time for photographs and panoramic views of the Valley of the Sun. The trails are suitable for avid hikers or novices and our guides make the trek lots of fun!
Tour provider: Open Road Tours
Phone: 602-997-6474 or 800-766-7117
Web Site: http://www.openroadtours.com/
City Tour With Pueblo Grande Museum
Experience the City in the Desert from adobe haciendas to the luxurious homes of celebrities; from the natural beauty of the desert to the man-made oases. This tour covers the highlights of the Valley of the Sun. Sights along the way include the exclusive township of Paradise Valley, the Arizona Biltmore Estates, a drive up one of our mountains for an overview of the Valley, the Scottsdale shopping areas, and the Pueblo Grande Museum and Archeological Park. Located at a 1,500 year-old Hohokam village ruin, this site is in the heart of modern-day Phoenix. Visitors can explore the ruin of an 800 year old platform mound, possibly used by the Hohokam for ceremonies. Some of the last remaining intact Hohokam irrigation canals are located here.
Tour provider: Southwest Custom Tours, Inc.
Phone: 602-971-1381 or 800-513-1381
Web Site: http://www.southwesttours.com/
Desert Botanical Horseback Riding Tour
Miles & miles of great action and incredible mountain views. We might see some deer or javelina as we ride through this botanical paradise. If you like to trot or canter, then this is the ride for you!
Tour provider: Windwalker Expeditions Inc.
Phone: 480-585-3382 or 888-785-3382
Web Site: http://www.windwalkerexpeditions.com
Botanical Jeep Tours
This it truly an exciting "4-wheel drive" adventure and as you can see, is not for the timid. Travel around one of our largest desert lakes, experience unusual geological rock formations, explore the narrow slot canyons formed eons ago by wind and water, and bask in the rich vistas that only belong to the Sonoran desert.
Tour provider: Windwalker Expeditions Inc.
Phone: 480-585-3382 or 888-785-3382
Web Site: http://www.windwalkerexpeditions.com
Archaeology Ecotours
Accompanied by a professional archaeologist as your guide, you'll explore the remains of the desert's earliest dwellers. As you learn about the culture of these ancient indians by roaming through some amazing ruins, you'll experience the desert's most rugged, yet spectacular, scenic panoramas. These tours were inspired by Dr. James Schoenwetter, professor of archaeology at Arizona State University, to teach members on the tour about regional ecology and cultural history.
Tour provider: Windwalker Expeditions Inc.
Phone: 480-585-3382 or 888-785-3382
Web Site: http://www.windwalkerexpeditions.com
Mountain Biking Tours
Mountain biking provides riders of all levels an invigorating Sonoran Desert experience! Enjoy 70-mile views that span the Sonoran Desert as you cruise single-track trails atop a high-performance bike. AOA's trails wind throughout the McDowell Mountain Regional Park, offering exclusive group access to Arizona's premier mountain bike trail system! In addition to sharpening your mountain biking skills, this adventure also allows you to learn about the fascinating flora and fauna, geology and history of the richly diverse Sonoran Desert.
Tour provider: Arizona Outback Adventures
Phone: 480-945-2881 or 866-455-1601
Web Site: http://www.azoutbackadventures.com
Hiking Tours
Offering a rainbow of bright flowers, towering green cacti, and lush trees, Arizona's Sonoran Desert offers a landscape unlike that of any other desert in the world! Venture into the lush desert and learn all about the unique flora, fauna, geology, and history with our knowledgeable, professional guides. Exploring on foot is the most intimate and educational way to experience the desert. You'll enjoy an up close and personal look at the elements that comprise the Sonoran Desert, and find answers to ever-popular questions - Just how old is that saguaro? Which cactus did John Wayne drink from? While more than a simple nature walk, the hikes are designed so that individuals of modest fitness levels as well as more active participants will enjoy themselves.
Tour provider: Arizona Outback Adventures
Phone: 480-945-2881 or 866-455-1601
Web Site: http://www.azoutbackadventures.com
Desert 4X4 Tour
Jump on board one of our teal blue blazers and head out into the great Sonoran Desert with one of our expert guides. He'll take you on some beautiful desert trails which run past unique desert gardens and washes teaming with life. Also walk with your guide and he'll teach you Indian survival secrets and about the many plants and animals that fill the desert. Then try your hand at firing an authentic six-shooter and learn how to throw a tomahawk.
Tour provider: Arrowhead Desert Jeep Tours & Events
Phone: 602-942-3361 or 800-514-9063
Web Site: http://www.azdeserttours.com
Sonoran Half Day Adventures
Experience the excitement that made National Geographic vote Desert Storm Hummer Tours as one of the "Top 100 Adventures in America . Just minutes outside of Scottsdale, Arizona, you and your family will "Hummer" through the vast Sonoran Desert in America's most advanced 4x4. You will climb off the desert floor by way of an old mining trail to 4000 feet inside a boulder canyon with fantastic rock formations and abundant desert landscape.Our experienced and seasoned guides will bring Arizona's dynamic history, geology and archeology to life and show off the Sonoran Desert's most fascinating wildlife.
Tour provider: Desert Storm Hummer Tours, Inc.
Phone: 480-922-0020 or 1-866-DSHUMER
Web Site: http://www.dshummer.com/
Night Storm
Hummer through the Sonoran Desert with an incredible Arizona sunset! After dark, experience Arizona?s fascinating plant and animal life with ITT GEN 3 Night Vision Equipment!
Tour provider: Desert Storm Hummer Tours, Inc.
Phone: 480-922-0020 or 1-866-DSHUMER
Web Site: http://www.dshummer.com/
Desert Mountain Biking Tours
Four-hour Desert Biking Adventure - On the four-hour tour you may bike up to two hours and cover fifteen to twenty miles. Trails include mountain, cross-country and downhill paved. We pick up at various locations in Scottsdale on this tour.
Three-hour Desert Biking Adventure - On the three-hour tour you may bike up to one and one-half hours and cover ten to fifteen miles. Trails include mountain, cross-country and downhill paved. We pick up at various locations in Scottsdale on this tour.
Two-hour Desert Biking Adventure - On the two-hour tour you may bike for approximately an hour and cover eight to ten miles. The two-hour tour requires a minimum of two persons in your group. We pick up at a north Scottsdale location for the two-hour tour.
Tour provider: Desert Biking Adventures
Phone: 602-320-4602 or 888-249-2453
Web Site: http://www.desertbikingadventures.com
Gold Mine Tours
Visit a historical gold mine at the base of the Bradshaw Mountains. You'll see the homesteads and gravesites of the first settlers who found gold in this area in the 1800's. While working along side a genuine prospector, you will hear great legends of the land, learn about the geology unique to the area, and dredge for gold and keep what you find.
Tour provider: Windwalker Expeditions, Inc.
Phone: 480-585-3382 or 888-785-3382
Web Site: http://www.windwalkerexpeditions.com
Cosanti Foundation
Daily tours of the site begin in the Arcosanti Gallery, every hour on the hour between 10am and 4pm. The basic tour provides a quick but comprehensive introduction to the history and design philosophy of the Arcosanti project, takes you through much of the site, and shows you the proposed designs for future structures. The suggested donation for these tours is $8 per person. School groups may give a lesser donation and should be scheduled in advance.
Special group tours can be arranged in advance with the Gallery staff. Group tours can focus on the special interests of the group, everything from school-aged children to architecture professionals. Please make reservations for these tours at least 2 weeks in advance. The suggested donation is $12 per person, $100 minimum.
Foreign language tours are available in French, German, Italian, Spanish and Japanese.
Bird watching tours are available in association with the Sonoran Audubon Society. These tours include a gentle 2-mile hike through the Agua Fria Riparian area. The tour lasts about 3 hours, and water is provided.
Organic gardens tours explore the Arcosanti sustainable agriculture program located at the base of Arcosanti in the scenic Agua Fria River Canyon. We currently manage 15 acres including a peach orchard, vegetable gardens, prototype greenhouses, a large field and the largest successful Paulownia tree stand in the Western United States. Tours include an explanation of sustainable organic food production, composting, permaculture, desert gardening techniques, greenhouse growing, and an overview of local wildlife and ecosystem. Organic garden tours last about 1.5 hours, depending on questions.
Architectural tours cover regular tour stops with the added feature of exploring some interiors as well as the design office. A guide from the planning department, specifically versed in Arcosanti and Arcology design, gives an overview of past, present and projected architectural activity with drawings and models for viewing. The core tour lasts 1.5 to 2 hours depending on question/discussion dynamics.
Tour provider: Costani Foundation
Phone: 800-752-3187
Web Site: http://www.cosanti.com
Hours of operation: Tours run daily between 10am and 4pm
A One-Day Archaeological Adventure
If you have ever had a desire to have a "hands on experience" in archaeology we offer the very unique opportunity to work with a team recording and documenting ancient sites on public lands administered by the Bureau Of Land Management. Under the direction of a professional archaeologist, participants are instructed in the lifeways of the ancients, proper site etiquette and archaeological methodology: mapping procedures, artifact identification and recording. The information gathered on these expeditions is submitted to the Bureau Of Land Management to help them determine the future of these sites, and is recorded in the Arizona Historical Records. This is a full day experience, approximately 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM for small groups of about 5-15 participants. It includes continental breakfast and lunch. Participants should bring appropriate footwear, sunscreen, sun hat, water bottle or canteen. We recommend long pants or jeans.
Tour provider: Archaeological Adventures Arizona
Phone: (623) 465-1981
Web Site: http://www.archaeologicadventures.com
Off-Road Nature & Historical Jeep Tours
Climb aboard a custom rigged 4x4 with your own personal cowboy guide and experience the awesome beauty of the Sonoran Desert! Travel scenic desert trails and learn the secrets of its past inhabitants. Your guide will demonstrate how the US Calvary and the Native Americans used abundant desert plant life to survive. Enjoy a leisurely nature walk or hike as you take in the majestic scenery of the old west the way it looked a hundred years ago. Visit up close and personal with the unique desert wildlife. An experience you'll remember for a lifetime!
Tour provider: Arizona Desert Tours and Excursions
Phone: (602) 569-4889
Web Site: http://www.azdesertevents.com
Guided Horseback Trail Rides
This trip to the Valley is a memory you will enjoy for a long time. Escape from the city's frenzy, noise, and pollution to the peaceful and scenic Sonoran Desert aboard one of our horses or take the whole group together on a haywagon. In addition to hayrides and horseback riding, MacDonalds Ranch offers many specialized horse activities.
Tour provider: MacDonald's Ranch
Phone: (480) 585-0239
Web Site: http://www.macdonaldsranch.com
Desert Jeep Tours
The Sonoran Desert is a "living desert" with unique animal and plant life seen nowhere else in the world. On our four-hour desert tour you will learn about the desert plants and how they were used by the Native Americans to provide their food needs in a seemingly inhospitable environment. Travel up rugged desert roads to a fabulous view of the mountains and flaming desert sunsets. Learn about the 150 year old Saguaro Cactus and the "Jumping Cholla". Take the opportunity to try your skills with a western "six shooter" under the supervision of your guide. This is a "wild west" experience that can't be duplicated anywhere else in the world.
Tour provider: Adventures Out West
Phone: (800)755-0935
Web Site: http://www.adventuresoutwest.com
Hot Air Balloon Adventures
Our adventures take us above the flora and fauna of the classic southwestern desert near the Scottsdale and Carefree resort area. You'll experience the beauty of the desert landscape and the rugged peaks of the Arizona Mountains as well as intimate views of wildlife in the desert below. Complimentary champagne, juice and muffins are a continuing tradition, and your balloon trip concludes with the traditional champagne toast and the gift of a flight certificate.
Join us any time of the year. Each season in Arizona holds a special charm for a balloon ride.
Hot air balloons depart daily from sites near Scottsdale and Carefree. Summer launches commence shortly after sunrise, departures during fall and winter are later. Flights average one hour.
Each hot air balloon flight is a unique experience, our exact course and destination can never be predicted. Plan a total excursion of 3 hours. If you're staying at a Scottsdale hotel, we can provide transportation.
Tour provider: Unicorn Balloon Company
Phone: (800) 755-0935
Web Site: http://www.unicornballoon.com/arizona.htm
Sonoran Desert Tour
The tour that made us famous! Thrill to tales of the old west, see 250 year old saguaro cacti, and learn how Native Americans used plants for food, medicine, and survival; all told to you by our authentic cowboy guides. This tour runs 7 days a week, 365 days a year, from sunrise to sunset. It is 3.5 to 4 hours in length and refreshments are provided. So sit back, relax, and explore the beautiful backcountry of Arizona Adventure.
Tour provider: Arizona Adventure
Phone: (800) 419-9320
Web Site: http://www.arizona-adventure.com
?Desert After Dark? Tour
Ever wonder what the Sonoran Desert is like at night time. Well our guides will give you a first hand ?look see?. Wildlife in the desert travels mostly at night and we try our darndest to scare up some. Sorry no guarawtees, sometime these critters come out and other times they get shy. But we will make some homemade hot chocolate and a lil snack. Sit back and enjoy a beautiful blanket of stars, the quiet desert night, and a few tales of the ?Old West?. We?ll even set up a telescope so you can peer at the heavenly bodies. This tour runs Monday-Thrusday, depart times vary with time of year, length is 3.5 to 4 hours.
Tour provider: Arizona Adventure
Phone: (800) 419-9320
Web Site: http://www.arizona-adventure.com
Happy Trails Horseback Rides
Experience the Sonoran Desert like the cowboys of old. Combine a trail ride (with a desert tour) on our well trained horses for a fun-packed western adventure. If you?ve never ridden, that?s fine; we have horses that have never been ridden either. Of course this is western style rides. Length of tour is 4 to 4.5 hours. Also ask about other rides we can offer for your enjoyment.
Tour provider: Arizona Adventure
Phone: (800) 419-9320
Web Site: http://www.arizona-adventure.com
Control the Adventure! ATV?s
This is an unforgettable off-road experience you get to control from your own seat of one of our full size ATVs. We put you in control of one of our fully automatic Polaris Trail Boss ATVs for a guided desert excursion.
Visit some of Arizona's most serene mountains and lakes in the Sonoran Desert while in the refreshing open air. All of these ATVs are safe and easy to operate. After a short instruction course you and your group will be off on a lifetime experience with the best guides Arizona has to offer. The adventure leaves right from your resort and includes lunch and beverages.
Tour provider: Stellar Adventures
Phone: (877) 878-3552
Web Site: http://www.stellaradventures.com
Wild West Jeep Tour
Experience the splendor of the untamed Sonoran Desert and the majesty of the giant saguaro. Your four wheel drive tour will lead you through the lushest plant life of any desert in the world. Our Naturalist-Guides are our greatest asset - They will bring to life for you the delicate balances of the desert ecosystem, highlight Arizona's colorful history, and regale you with tales of the Wild West in an entertaining dialogue.
Tour provider: Wild West Jeep Tours
Phone: (480) 922-0144
Web Site: http://www.wildwestjeeptours.com/arizonatours.htm
Taliesin West
In late 1937 Wright purchased land in northeast Scottsdale, Arizona, where he and his young apprentices took on the task of building Taliesin West as a winter "camp." The complex of buildings included residential spaces, theaters, a shop, and an architectural studio and drafting room. From its inception, the buildings at Taliesin West astounded architectural critics with their beauty and unusual form. In it 1956 report Architectural Record called a visit to Taliesin West "an experience in color, light, and time . . . Most of all, the building is an experience in time: approach terraces, the steps, the long walk under the pergola, the penetration into the heart of the building itself: all these form a subtle sequence of varied spaces, scales, and shapes . . .Perhaps never since the baroque period has the element of time been used so skillfully in realizing the enchantment of an intricate work of art."
Wright continued to add buildings and make changes to the site for twenty years. Taliesin West served as Wright's winter home, architectural studio, and campus for the Taliesin Fellowship.
In 1932 Wright and his third wife, Olgivanna, founded the Taliesin Fellowship, an architectural apprenticeship program for young men and women at their home, Taliesin, in Wisconsin.
Taliesin West offers a broad range of tours to meet individual interests. All tours are led by knowledgeable guides, and all visitors must be accompanied by a guide.
Tour provider: Frank Lloyd Wright Taliesin West
Phone: (480) 860-2700
Web Site: http://www.franklloydwright.org/
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