I'm going to Phoenix this weekend

[justfollowingtheelections]

Any advice on what to do or where to stay?
I am not planning to rent a car (I enjoy walking) and I don't mind staying at hostels.  All comments are welcome.

[Lief 🗽]

I am not planning to rent a car (I enjoy walking)

I'm not sure that that's possible in Phoenix.

[justfollowingtheelections]

I am not planning to rent a car (I enjoy walking)

I'm not sure that that's possible in Phoenix.

I've never been to Phoenix so any information would be useful.  I was just reading a blog about what it's like living in Phoenix without a car, and they claimed that if you live in Downtown Phoenix you can get by without a car.  Is this accurate?

[bedstuy]

Are you aware Phoenix, Arizona is not Berlin or Prague?  It's an extremely spread out American city with a pretty poor public transit system.  Rent a car unless you're desperately poor or something.  Maybe you can sort of get around without a car, but as a tourist, it's not really feasible.

And, do they even have hostels?  If they did it would be full of vagrants and drug addicts, so, maybe don't stay at a hostel in Phoenix.  You can get a bad motel room for $50, or airbnb it or stay with friends. 

As far as where to stay, central Phoenix and Scottsdale are nice.  Why are you even going there?

[justfollowingtheelections]

Are you aware Phoenix, Arizona is not Berlin or Prague?  It's an extremely spread out American city with a pretty poor public transit system.  Rent a car unless you're desperately poor or something.  Maybe you can sort of get around without a car, but as a tourist, it's not really feasible.

And, do they even have hostels?  If they did it would be full of vagrants and drug addicts, so, maybe don't stay at a hostel in Phoenix.  You can get a bad motel room for $50, or airbnb it or stay with friends. 

As far as where to stay, central Phoenix and Scottsdale are nice.  Why are you even going there?

Just to see the city.  I try to go on a trip to a different place whenever I have a 3 day weekend.  You guys are making me want to cancel my flight now
Is it really that bad?

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

[bedstuy]

I like Phoenix OK.  It's great if you're into golf or hiking. 

As far as hotels go, my favorite is the Arizona Biltmore.  It has a very cool art-deco vibe and it's a great hotel, part of the Waldorf Astoria hotel family I think.  Also, the Hyatt in Scottsdale has a great hotel pool.  I've also stayed at the San Carlos downtown which is kind historic and charming as far as anything in Arizona is historic and charming.

Or, you can fly into Phoenix and visit Tucson.  I like Tucson better actually.

[justfollowingtheelections]

I like Phoenix OK.  It's great if you're into golf or hiking. 

As far as hotels go, my favorite is the Arizona Biltmore.  It has a very cool art-deco vibe and it's a great hotel, part of the Waldorf Astoria hotel family I think.  Also, the Hyatt in Scottsdale has a great hotel pool.  I've also stayed at the San Carlos downtown which is kind historic and charming as far as anything in Arizona is historic and charming.

Or, you can fly into Phoenix and visit Tucson.  I like Tucson better actually.

Thanks for the information.  I checked the hotels you listed and while they are really nice, they're quite pricey for me.  I'm a backpack traveler and usually when I visit a city I'm more interested in bookstores, coffeeshops, vegan restaurants or museums.  I also enjoy learning more about the city's culture.  Would I be able to do all these things in Phoenix?  Also, is the city dangerous at night?

[bedstuy]

I like Phoenix OK.  It's great if you're into golf or hiking. 

As far as hotels go, my favorite is the Arizona Biltmore.  It has a very cool art-deco vibe and it's a great hotel, part of the Waldorf Astoria hotel family I think.  Also, the Hyatt in Scottsdale has a great hotel pool.  I've also stayed at the San Carlos downtown which is kind historic and charming as far as anything in Arizona is historic and charming.

Or, you can fly into Phoenix and visit Tucson.  I like Tucson better actually.

Thanks for the information.  I checked the hotels you listed and while they are really nice, they're quite pricey for me.  I'm a backpack traveler and usually when I visit a city I'm more interested in bookstores, coffeeshops, vegan restaurants or museums.  I also enjoy learning more about the city's culture.  Would I be able to do all these things in Phoenix?  Also, is the city dangerous at night?

Phoenix is not exactly the bookstore, coffeeshop, vegan restaurant, museum capitol of the world.  I guess there's some of that around ASU.  Arizona as a tourist destination is more of a outdoorsy sort of place. 

[justfollowingtheelections]

I like Phoenix OK.  It's great if you're into golf or hiking. 

As far as hotels go, my favorite is the Arizona Biltmore.  It has a very cool art-deco vibe and it's a great hotel, part of the Waldorf Astoria hotel family I think.  Also, the Hyatt in Scottsdale has a great hotel pool.  I've also stayed at the San Carlos downtown which is kind historic and charming as far as anything in Arizona is historic and charming.

Or, you can fly into Phoenix and visit Tucson.  I like Tucson better actually.

Thanks for the information.  I checked the hotels you listed and while they are really nice, they're quite pricey for me.  I'm a backpack traveler and usually when I visit a city I'm more interested in bookstores, coffeeshops, vegan restaurants or museums.  I also enjoy learning more about the city's culture.  Would I be able to do all these things in Phoenix?  Also, is the city dangerous at night?

Phoenix is not exactly the bookstore, coffeeshop, vegan restaurant, museum capitol of the world.  I guess there's some of that around ASU.  Arizona as a tourist destination is more of a outdoorsy sort of place. 

I realize that, but I haven't been there before, so I thought I would give it a try.

[Simfan34]

How much research did you do before you booked the ticket...?

[kcguy]

In fall 2013, I had a seven-week job transfer to Phoenix.

My company put me up in a hotel near Northern Avenue and East 16th.  It wasn't a bad neighborhood. . .if you have a car.

Since I know nothing about you, I'll project my opinion of young people onto you, and I'd probably recommend staying somewhere near the university in Tempe.  Looking at a map, the university, Old Town Tempe, the Arizona Historical Society Museum, and the Phoenix Zoo are all relatively close.  That being said, I can't swear to the quality of the neighborhood--I drove once into a neighborhood not too far northwest of there, and it made me think twice.

I didn't do any touristy things, so there's nothing in particular I can recommend.  My co-workers suggested driving 90 miles north to Prescott, which may something about the quality of tourist attractions in the Phoenix area, if they wanted me to leave town.  I do know that Frank Lloyd Wright had a home in the northeastern suburbs.

I agree with the part about needing a car.  I got to use the company car, except on days when it was needed by someone else.  Our office was near the Arizona Biltmore, so I decided to walk to lunch on one of the days I didn't have a car.  The nearest restaurant seemed close, but it turned out to be 1 1/2 miles away, which was a little warm in Phoenix in October.  I tried not to do that again.

[justfollowingtheelections]

In fall 2013, I had a seven-week job transfer to Phoenix.

My company put me up in a hotel near Northern Avenue and East 16th.  It wasn't a bad neighborhood. . .if you have a car.

Since I know nothing about you, I'll project my opinion of young people onto you, and I'd probably recommend staying somewhere near the university in Tempe.  Looking at a map, the university, Old Town Tempe, the Arizona Historical Society Museum, and the Phoenix Zoo are all relatively close.  That being said, I can't swear to the quality of the neighborhood--I drove once into a neighborhood not too far northwest of there, and it made me think twice.

I didn't do any touristy things, so there's nothing in particular I can recommend.  My co-workers suggested driving 90 miles north to Prescott, which may something about the quality of tourist attractions in the area.  I do know that Frank Lloyd Wright had a home in the northeastern suburbs.

I agree with the part about needing a car.  I got to use the company car, except on days when it was needed by someone else.  Our office was near the Arizona Biltmore, so I decided to walk to lunch on one of the days I didn't have a car.  The nearest restaurant seemed close, but it turned out to be 1 1/2 miles away, which was a little warm in Phoenix in October.  I tried not to do that again.

Thanks for the information.  I can imagine that it gets really hot but it looks like the weather will be a little more reasonable this weekend.  Since I won't be there long I don't want to visit too many places and waste my time on the road.  I guess my main question is, if I stick to downtown Phoenix would there be enough things for me to do, and does it ever get dangerous (I'm talking about the downtown area only)?

[bedstuy]

In fall 2013, I had a seven-week job transfer to Phoenix.

My company put me up in a hotel near Northern Avenue and East 16th.  It wasn't a bad neighborhood. . .if you have a car.

Since I know nothing about you, I'll project my opinion of young people onto you, and I'd probably recommend staying somewhere near the university in Tempe.  Looking at a map, the university, Old Town Tempe, the Arizona Historical Society Museum, and the Phoenix Zoo are all relatively close.  That being said, I can't swear to the quality of the neighborhood--I drove once into a neighborhood not too far northwest of there, and it made me think twice.

I didn't do any touristy things, so there's nothing in particular I can recommend.  My co-workers suggested driving 90 miles north to Prescott, which may something about the quality of tourist attractions in the area.  I do know that Frank Lloyd Wright had a home in the northeastern suburbs.

I agree with the part about needing a car.  I got to use the company car, except on days when it was needed by someone else.  Our office was near the Arizona Biltmore, so I decided to walk to lunch on one of the days I didn't have a car.  The nearest restaurant seemed close, but it turned out to be 1 1/2 miles away, which was a little warm in Phoenix in October.  I tried not to do that again.

Thanks for the information.  I can imagine that it gets really hot but it looks like the weather will be a little more reasonable this weekend.  Since I won't be there long I don't want to visit too many places and waste my time on the road.  I guess my main question is, if I stick to downtown Phoenix would there be enough things for me to do, and does it ever get dangerous (I'm talking about the downtown area only)?

Downtown Phoenix is like 30% homeless people.  But, it's not dangerous though.  Downtown Phoenix isn't an actual neighborhood though.  I has a lot of the downtown business district stuff, but it's not really a destination unless you're going to a basketball or baseball game.

[justfollowingtheelections]

In fall 2013, I had a seven-week job transfer to Phoenix.

My company put me up in a hotel near Northern Avenue and East 16th.  It wasn't a bad neighborhood. . .if you have a car.

Since I know nothing about you, I'll project my opinion of young people onto you, and I'd probably recommend staying somewhere near the university in Tempe.  Looking at a map, the university, Old Town Tempe, the Arizona Historical Society Museum, and the Phoenix Zoo are all relatively close.  That being said, I can't swear to the quality of the neighborhood--I drove once into a neighborhood not too far northwest of there, and it made me think twice.

I didn't do any touristy things, so there's nothing in particular I can recommend.  My co-workers suggested driving 90 miles north to Prescott, which may something about the quality of tourist attractions in the area.  I do know that Frank Lloyd Wright had a home in the northeastern suburbs.

I agree with the part about needing a car.  I got to use the company car, except on days when it was needed by someone else.  Our office was near the Arizona Biltmore, so I decided to walk to lunch on one of the days I didn't have a car.  The nearest restaurant seemed close, but it turned out to be 1 1/2 miles away, which was a little warm in Phoenix in October.  I tried not to do that again.

Thanks for the information.  I can imagine that it gets really hot but it looks like the weather will be a little more reasonable this weekend.  Since I won't be there long I don't want to visit too many places and waste my time on the road.  I guess my main question is, if I stick to downtown Phoenix would there be enough things for me to do, and does it ever get dangerous (I'm talking about the downtown area only)?

Downtown Phoenix is like 30% homeless people.  But, it's not dangerous though.  Downtown Phoenix isn't an actual neighborhood though.  I has a lot of the downtown business district stuff, but it's not really a destination unless you're going to a basketball or baseball game.

I see.  It sounds a lot like (a bigger) Honolulu actually

[memphis]

I've never been, but people who do reviews on tripadvisor agree that their Musical Instrument museum is something special. It's a neat concept. Most cities have a dinosaur bones museum and/or an art museum. Good for them for thinking of something different.

[justfollowingtheelections]

I've never been, but people who do reviews on tripadvisor agree that their Musical Instrument museum is something special. It's a neat concept. Most cities have a dinosaur bones museum and/or an art museum. Good for them for thinking of something different.

Yeah it sounds interesting.  I usually avoid museums where the ticket costs more than 10 dollars but this one sounds really unique.

[kcguy]

I've never been, but people who do reviews on tripadvisor agree that their Musical Instrument museum is something special. It's a neat concept. Most cities have a dinosaur bones museum and/or an art museum. Good for them for thinking of something different.

Yeah, now that I think of it, some of the natives recommended the Musical Instrument Museum to me too.

[retromike22]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

Oh bah, I'm "a brown" and I went there last year and nobody asked me for my papers. Arizona is bascially like southern California circa 1980. There were actually a lot of fellow brown folks.

To answer the OP, a car would be very helpful. Phoenix does have a small light rail system, but it's not huge. Study that rail map, as well as the bus map, and you can determine where you can go easily.

The Heard Museum was a medium-size museum that I thought was pretty interesting. http://heard.org/

Hole-in-the-Rock is a good place for selfies: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hole-in-the-Rock_%28Papago_Park%29

I would recommend Sedona and/or the Grand Canyon as a little day trip.

[Flake]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

Oh bah, I'm "a brown" and I went there last year and nobody asked me for my papers.

[retromike22]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

Oh bah, I'm "a brown" and I went there last year and nobody asked me for my papers.

See. Brown. El Arizona is la coolo stato.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

Oh bah, I'm "a brown" and I went there last year and nobody asked me for my papers. Arizona is bascially like southern California circa 1980. There were actually a lot of fellow brown folks.

You were probably with Mommy and Daddy so that doesn't count.

[Simfan34]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

Oh bah, I'm "a brown" and I went there last year and nobody asked me for my papers.

See. Brown. El Arizona is la coolo stato.

You don't look very "brown".

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

Oh bah, I'm "a brown" and I went there last year and nobody asked me for my papers.

See. Brown. El Arizona is la coolo stato.

You don't look very "brown".

If his name were retromiguel he might pass as a brown, Simi.

[retromike22]

If you're a black, or worse yet, a brown, avoid Maricoppa County.  K? Thx.

Oh bah, I'm "a brown" and I went there last year and nobody asked me for my papers. Arizona is bascially like southern California circa 1980. There were actually a lot of fellow brown folks.

You were probably with Mommy and Daddy so that doesn't count.

Actually I flew there myself and met up with my niece who lives there. I'll probably go again this summer, because I'd like to hike more of the Grand Canyon this time

If his name were retromiguel he might pass as a brown, Simi.

Lol it would probably help if I knew some Spanish as well.