Phoenix Arizona Travel Guide

We decided that we wanted to go on a little vacation before our baby came, and since we are still living in Covid times, our vacation options were pretty limited! We decided to drive to Phoenix and spend some time there. Now, we had VERY low expectations for Phoenix, and we mostly went to see the Grand Canyon, but turns out we were SHOCKED by how much we LOVED Phoenix!!

PS. I have made a bunch of other travel guides: Like, LA, San Diego, Paris, Sacramento, and San Fransisco! See them all here!

I did a ton of research beforehand which lead us to some pretty amazing spots, so I had to share all of the great things that Phoenix has to offer with you! This post will probably be a little on the long side since we did so much, but I think it’s better that way – plus I’ll only share places we really loved and recommend! I can’t wait for you to fall in love with Pheonix too!

Oh, I also included what we did in Sedona, the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff at the bottom incase you also want to visit those spots while in Phoenix!

OKAY, it’s time to get started!! Let’s go!

FOOD:

Lunch, Dinner & Breakfast

Joy Ride Tacos

This is easily one of our fave places that we ate at! The atmosphere is amazing, it’s so cute, but that doesn’t compare to the food!! The tacos are super yummy, and they are only $2 on weekdays from 2-6! The best part though are the CORN FRIES – a must!! They are literally deep fried baby corn with the most incredible sauce and I haven’t stopped thinking about them since!

Chop Shop

We loved this place so much we went twice – we tried to go a third time but ran out of time! It is SO yummy, so cute, with great prices and healthy options! I got the acai bowls and Brennan got the Thai coconut chicken bowl both times and he was obsessed with it! A must!

Snooze AM Eatery

This spot has a fun and retro 50s vibe, and amazing food! They have a ton of variety – we got the avocado toast eggs benedict and the breakfast burrito (which is HUGE) both were delicious!!!

Morning Glory Cafe

This lil breakfast spot is located on The Farm at South Mountain! You get your amazingggg breakfast, and then get to explore the cute farm with it’s gift shops and animals! Pro Tip: the breakfast monte cristo is incredible! Also they have a lunch and dinner restaurant on the same farm!

Cornish Pasty

This place was super unique and had an irish pub vibe. So, they specialize in ‘pastys’ which are basically hand pies, and they are sooo yummy! They have about a million different kinds – and you’ve gotta try this place!

Wild Flower Bread Company

This a really cute breakfast and lunch spot with homemade bread and pastries! Love!

Dessert

Super Chunk

Brennan says that this is the best ice cream he’s ever had – for real!! It’s super creamy and delicious – get the honeycomb flavour!

Churn

A really cute ice cream spot across the street from our fave Joy Ride Tacos! They make their own ice cream and cookies with unique flavours! They also have a pretzel cone!!

Sugar Bowl

This is an ADORABLE vintage ice cream shop! They have amazing floats and ice cream! Plus, they have been around for 60 years!

Coffee

Sip Coffee & Beer

A fun coffee shop with really yummy lattes!

Azukar Coffee

This place has amazingggg coffee! They put a locally mad syrup in their coffee that we loved so much we bought some! You’ve gotta try it!

Hikes

Hole in the Rock

Now, I wouldn’t actually call this a ‘hike’ because it’s more like an inclined walk – haha, but definitely worth the time! As the name implies is a giant hole in a giant rock that you can climb up to and sit in. It has a great view of the city too!

Piestewa Peak Hike

Okay, I’m not gonna lie – this hike is HARD! I mean it could have been because I was five months pregnant, we had just eaten a big meal, or that we didn’t bring enough water – hahaha! Even still it was hard, but worth it in my opinion! Though there are also great views all the way up, so you really. don’t even have to go all the way to the top. Though the 360 degree view at the top is pretty stunning!

South Mountain Park Loop Hike

This hike is uphill, but pretty chill and has great views the entire way! We didn’t do the entire thing, but we loved it!

Activities

Desert Botanical Garden

These gardens are so beautiful, especially if you love cacti and succulents like I do – ha! The gardens are SO well done, and the whole thing feels high end. It’s $25/per person, but free on the second Tuesday of the month. Also a great spot for photos!

Roosevelt Row Arts District

They have a tonnnn of fun murals here to walk around and see – which is why we went!

The Farm at South Mountain

I mentioned this spot already because it is where the Morning Glory Cafe is! But, even if you don’t want to eat there, it’s still a super fun place to see with their animals, shops and games. Would be especially great with kids.

Shopping

Old Town Scottsdale

A cute little western town with tons of cute shops and restaurants! We loved walking around here!

France’s

The cutest lil trendy boutique with alllll the best and cutest things! It’s also right next to a record shop!

Stinkweeds

The record shop next to the boutique that I just mentioned! A great little record shop!

Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market

A huge farmers market with really amazing stuff! I feel like I never find good stuff at farmers markets, but we got so much good stuff from this one!

Sedona

A cute little town on the way to the Grand Canyon, it is SO beautiful!

Devils Bridge Hike

This hike is amazing!! For sure my fave hike of the trip! It’s not too hard, really pretty, plus the rock bridge at the end is breathtaking!

Tlaquepaque 

Okay! This was possibly the most surprising highlight of the trip! This is a little shopping center, but it is SO BEAUTIFUL!!! There are the greatest shops in here, but honestly it’s worth the visit just for how pretty it is, with it’s Italy vibes!

Picazzo’s

This was one of Brennan’s very favourite meals of the whole trip! They have AMAZING pizzas that are so, so unique! Pro Tip: You can order a half and half pizza if you can’t decide what kind to get like us!

Flagstaff

This town is in between Sedona and the Grand Canyon. It is also where we stayed the night before visiting the Grand Canyon.

The Lumberyard

This dinner spot is DELICIOUS! They have great comfort food that is still unique! Their greek burger is incredible, and they have tons of different types of mac and cheese like pulled pork and buffalo chicken!

The Grand Canyon

I did a little research before visiting to make sure we got the best views and saw everything that we needed to! Here’s what we liked best!

The South Rim

We visited the South Rim which is the closest to Phoenix, the most common part to visit, and open all year round. If you want to visit other parts of the Grand Canyon you’d need more than a day. But, the South Rim for sure has the most classic views!! So we spent the day here.

Mather Point

This is where everyone recommends you start, it is the most classic viewpoint and is right by the visitor center. We did start our day here, though it is the most crowded of all the viewpoints, and has big fences that kind of take away. It’s still a good place to start. Though I may have gone to Powell Point first since that was my fave view.

Powell Point

This was my personal fave viewpoint that we stopped at. There’s a path that kind of juts out into the canyon, so it feels like you are surrounded by it, which is so cool!

Hermit Road Shuttle Bus

This is a free shuttle bus that you can hop on at the Visitor center. Take the ‘Red’ route which will take you to Powell Point, as well as Hopi Point (which we also loved) Trail View Point, and Mohave Point.

Visitor Center

They have food here, bike rentals a gift shop, bathrooms and information. You can also catch the shuttle here. It’s a great starting point!

The Hopi House

This is a historic Native American Adobe brick house that they turned into a shop with local art for sale. But it also has a little museum. I had low expectations for this spot, but it was pretty neat, and worth the stop!

Bright Angel Trail

This hike was Brennan’s fave part of the whole trip I think. It is a hike that goes down into the Grand Canyon, which is SO COOL! You can actually take this trail down alllll the way to the bottom, and to the Colorado River. Though you could not do that in a day obviously!! We just hiked a little ways down and then went back up! This is a MUST!

Well, that’s the Phoenix Arizona Travel Guide! WOO! That was long! Hopefully you’ll LOVE Phoenix as much as we did! It’s a unique city that just doesn’t get enough love! Happy travels!