Travel: Places to Visit Near Phoenix, Arizona

Recently our family traveled to Arizona.  We visited several parts of the state, and I wanted to share a few of our favorite spots over the next few posts.

I will begin by noting that July isn't the best time to visit Arizona since it's monsoon season (and very warm!) but we had a great time.  After flying in to Las Vegas, we traveled down toward Phoenix.  We stayed in the Scottsdale area, right down the street from great shopping, including Historic Old Town, Fashion Square and the Fifth Avenue Shopping District.  While in Historic Old Town, I stopped by Silver Star Jewelry and fell in love with their selection of turquoise jewelry. 

We also went to the Desert Botanical Garden, which was incredibly beautiful.  I highly recommend arriving there as early as possible if you visit during the summer, as it warms up quickly.  We also visited Papago Park, and took some great photos at Hole-in-the-Rock.  Since it was so hot, we didn't do too much hiking around the Phoenix area, but we did enjoy some time at local water park Big Surf, and spent lots of time lounging in our pool at the DoubleTree Resort in Paradise Valley - Scottsdale.

In my next post, I will share a little about our road trip from Phoenix to Sedona, and where we stopped along the way.