What to Do in Phoenix

Article Transcript

Walking Distance

Many of the convention attendees won’t have a vehicle during their stay. But not to worry. There are plenty of places to eat and hang out in the area immediately around the hotel. Here are just a few of them.

Downtown Chandler Cafe & Bakery 40 S San Marcos Plaza Get breakfast and lunch here. About 1 block from the resort. Hours 7:00am - 3:00pm

Murphy’s Law
58 S San Marcos Plaza
Irish Pub with live music. Around the corner from the resort. Hours 11:00am - 12:30am

San Tan Brewing Company
8 S San Marcos Plaza
Pub food for lunch and dinner. Across the street from the resort. Breakfast served Fri.- Sun. only. Hours 11:00am - 12:30am Mon-Thu. and 8:00am - 1:00am Fri.- Sun.

Ice Cream Sammies
135 W Boston St.
Ice cream and hand made ice cream sandwich creations and cookies. Two blocks from the resort. Hours 11:00am - 9:00pm

Getting Around

The Phoenix metro area is spread out with suburban housing developments that stretch for miles and miles of single family homes. Public transportation in Phoenix is not efficient. There is a bus system that is rarely on time, if it shows up at all. There is a surface rail system that goes from downtown Mesa to a rough area of Phoenix. But it does not run near the Crowne Plaza Resort. $3.50/day pass for either.

Uber is available in Phoenix and suburban areas.

The general consensus is you must have independent transportation as the city is not walking friendly and downtowns are small. I choose a motorcycle. If you’d like to do that, here’s an option to rent one during your stay.

AZ Funtime Rentals
1215 N Scottsdale Rd. Tempe, AZ 85281
Call Jerry (owner) at 480-968-2522 to reserve a bike or find more details. Must have motorcycle endorsement on your license or from your country.
Prices start from $89/ day + tax & insurance
Doesn’t put a $2000 hold on your credit card.

EagleRider
1000 N McClintock Dr, Tempe, AZ 85281
From $149/day, 3 days at $133/day
Jason Lyman is the shop manager
480-905-9397

Hertz Rent-a-Car office is inside the Crowne Plaza Resort if you prefer a vehicle with more than two wheels.

Below are places to eat, drink, hike and visit, around the Phoenix metro area. Also included are some popular spots farther away, but worth the time.

Coffee Shops

Giant coffee
1437 N 1st St. Phoenix, AZ 85004 This coffee shop is right across the street from the Phoenix Art Museum, north of downtown Phoenix.They also serve food. I recommend the breakfast burrito. Free wi-fi.

Cartel Coffee Lab (2 locations)
225 W University, Phoenix, AZ 85281
Bicycle themed. I recommend the toddy. In Tempe by the hangouts, comic shops, skate shops and made-expensive second hand stores. Free wifi.

7124 E 5th Ave. Scottsdale 85251
In Scottsdale’s Old Town which has a lovely/fancy arts district mixed in with souvenir shops and mass produced art galleries. The artists are usually in there on third Thursdays.

Jobot 918 N 5th St. Phoenix, AZ 85004 You can literally start a friendly conversa12 tion with anyone in this coffee shop. I met my sweetheart here. The floor creaks and the bathroom is very close to guest seating. But the parking is superb. There are walkable art galleries nearby and the famous Tammie Coe cupcakes if you want to get “American fat” as quickly as possible in the most heavenly way. It is a chamber of the still beating heart of the Roosevelt arts district. The Made Art Boutique is there and has fun, fun, fun trinkets that you can fit in a pocket of your jacket and take with you, and a TON of art magazines. They have savory cupcakes that taste like thanksgiving stuffing. Ask the barista what their favorite is and you won’t be disappointed. I believe there is currently an orange mocha on the menu. Free wifi.

Food/Drink

If you’re fully charged with caffeine and looking for lunch or dinner, here are some local spots I visit repeatedly even though there are new ones I could probably try out.

Filibertos
1050 W Chandler Blvd, Chandler, AZ 85224
Fast Mexican food chain with locations all over the valley.

Thai Rama Chandler
2040 W Chandler Blvd, Chandler, AZ 85224
They close at 10:00pm. Good size portions.

India Oven
5204 1315 S Gilbert Rd. Mesa, AZ 85204 I recommend this place because they offer an all you can eat buffet that is partially vegetarian and low fat. It’s about $13, nice and dark. And the food is spicy. Although it’s kind of far from Chandler.

Los Reyes de la Torta (a Mexican sandwich shop)
1528 East Southern Avenue, Tempe, AZ 85282
Recommended by a friend

Via De Los Santos
9120 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85020
My favorite restaurant in the world! Famous for margaritas. About a 35 minute drive from the resort. There are velvet paintings on the wall, bright, caked-on paint, great staff, spicy salsa, loads of beans, 8000 kinds of yum. On Sundays there is a live mariachi band playing for tips! The sopapillas are okay, but the dinner won’t leave room for them anyway.

Here are some fancy places:

The Vig Uptown
6015 N 16th St, Phoenix, AZ 85014
Tavern with food, drinks, live music, and games. Also open for breakfast and lunch.

The Vig Downtown
606 N 4th Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85003
Tavern with food, drinks, live music, and games. Also open for breakfast and lunch.

Southern Rail
300 W Camelback Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85013
American classics with a Southern twist.

Postino
302 N Gilbert Rd #102, Gilbert, AZ 85234
Italian bistro with large wine selection.

Culinary Dropout
5632 N 7th St, Phoenix, AZ 85014
Gastro pub.

Old Town Scottsdale area
4101 N Scottsdale Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Kierland Commons
15205 N Kierland Blvd #150, Scottsdale, AZ 85254
Upscale outdoor shopping and chain restaurants.

Bars

Casey Moore’s Oyster House
850 S Ash Ave, Tempe, AZ 85281
College kid hangout. Beer, beer, beer. Fried, fried, fried. Loud music, fun, tons of seating, fabulous parking.

T&T Roadhouse Bar
2915 N 68th St, Scottsdale, AZ 85251
Excellent biker bar.

Bikini Lounge 1502 Grand Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85007
The bar that sometimes has DJs, nice cocktails. CASH-ONLY!
On Grand Avenue, in the arts district. Art friends are here a lot. Great people watching.

Sip Garage
3620 E Indian School Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85018
They took a Jiffy Lube and turned it into a bar. My friend Adam recruits local musicians to get up and sing and play guitar on the last Monday of the month. Highly recommended. Lots of beer choices, local brews, excellent food menu. Parking is extraordinarily limited here.

Breakfast

Hangar Café Chandler
1725 E Ryan Rd 85286
Breakfast on the tarmac of a small airport (my favorite). 10 minute drive from resort.

Joe’s Farm Grill
3000 E Ray Rd, Gilbert, AZ 85296
They grow what they serve. 15 minute drive from resort.

Art/Museums

On the first and third Fridays and all weekends, galleries are open on a walk-in basis. Museums have regular hours.

Phoenix Art Museum (Free on Wednesdays) 1625 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85004 Our city’s art museum has a great collection of contemporary works, a fashion section, Asian art, and a good selection of European works.

Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (Free on Thursdays) 7374 E 2nd St, Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Gallery {9} - Phoenix

Eye Lounge - Phoenix

R Pela Gallery - Phoenix

Calvin Charles gallery - Scottsdale

Willo North Gallery - Phoenix

Heard Museum – Native American cultural museum

Deer Valley Petroglyph Preserve – AZ Wildlife and rock drawings
3711 W Deer Valley Rd
Phoenix, AZ 85073

Musical Instrument Museum
4725 E Mayo Blvd, Phoenix, AZ 85050

Museum of Natural History
53 N Macdonald, Mesa, AZ 85201

Rawhide 5700 W N Loop Rd, Chandler, AZ 85226
Western town and steakhouse with cowboy actors and gift shops. Entrance is free, but you can purchase tickets to fake gun battles.

Martin Auto Museum 7641 N Black Canyon Hwy. Phoenix, AZ 85023
Classic American cars.

Arcosanti 13555 S. Cross L Rd. Mayer, AZ 86333
A sculptor popular in the 70’s that makes metal bells made an ecologically conscious compound which you can tour.

Outdoors/Hiking

Tempe Town Lake
Here you can visit the Tempe Center for the Arts, take a paddleboard or kayak on the water or just enjoy the nice 2 mile walk around the lake’s edge. There is a boathouse to rent out a scull if you enjoy rowing. Nearby is “A Mountain” (for Arizona State), which is a short and steep hike with great views.

Echo Canyon Trailhead
N Echo Canyon Dr, Phoenix, AZ 85018
This trailhead at Camelback Mountain has very little parking, is a steep and crowded hike.

Piestewa Peak Trailhead
7232 N Squaw Peak Dr. Phoenix AZ 85016
South Mountain/ Pima Canyon
9904 S 48 St 85044

Be sure to go to the Hidden Valley. It’s a neat canyon, but there are bees that swarm there.

Papago Park
625 N Galvin Pkwy, Phoenix, AZ 85008
Hiking, biking, golf in a rocky area right in the middle of the Phoenix metro area. The Phoenix Zoo is here as well.

Day Trips

Jerome, AZ
Very small biker town. 2 hour 15 minute drive north of Chandler.

Tombstone, AZ
Old West town that was the site of the famous shootout at the O.K. Corral with Wyatt Earp. 2 hour 30 minute drive south of Chandler.

Flagstaff, AZ
Town at a high elevation with skiing and lots of pine trees. 2 hour 45 minute drive north of Chandler.

Sedona, AZ
Town and artist community with striking red rock formations and power vortex centers for spiritual exploration. 2 hour 30 minute drive north of Chandler.

Tortilla Flat, AZ
(nearest day trip to the resort) Small outpost in the hills east of Phoenix. It’s the last surviving stagecoach stop along the old Apache Trail. On the way there, it’s a beautiful scenic drive amongst hills, canyons, cliffs and Arizona’s famous saguaro cactus. 1 hour drive east of Chandler. Along the way to Tortilla Flat on SR-88, stop by Goldfield Ghost Town, a touristy but fun re-creation of an Old West Town.

The Grand Canyon
If you’re going to hike it, the Bright Angel Trail is hot and sunny with few plants, no shade and sweeping canyon views. The trails are busy and you have to keep moving. No sitting. The Kaibab Trail has lots of shady trees, places to sit, friendly squirrels and is usually crowded. But plants can block the views sometimes. If you plan make it all the way down, be sure to have saved a bed or camp spot at Phantom Ranch where they serve a bean chili at night, and a simple breakfast. Spots fill months in advance. 3 hour 45 minute drive north of Chandler.

Grand Canyon National Park (North Rim)
N Kaibab Trail, North Rim, AZ 86052
Don’t go rim to rim in a single day. It’s dangerous and people die every year trying it. There’s no water available except at Phantom Ranch, the CO river, and other hikers. Be prepared. (You cannot drive easily to the North Rim from Phoenix. You must hike there from the South Rim).

Havasu Falls
A beautiful and remote water feature that is a 10 mile hike from the nearest parking. West of Grand Canyon Village. Over 4 hour drive from Chandler.

Art Supplies!

As of press time, there isn’t anyone selling art supplies at the convention. But there are three big art stores within close driving distance. They are all in the area surrounding Arizona State University in Tempe.

Jerry’s Artarama
4421 S Rural Rd #1-3, Tempe, AZ 85282
17 minute drive from resort.
Hours: 10:00am - 7:00pm

Blick Art Materials
930 E University Dr, Tempe, AZ 85281
19 minute drive from resort.
Hours: 9:00am - 7:00pm

Arizona Art Supply
Southern Palms Shopping Center, E Southern Ave #13, Tempe, AZ 85282
17 minute drive from resort.
Hours:9:00am - 6:00pm

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