Top Things to do in Central Arizona
Top Hotels in Central Arizona
- 1. Arizona Grand Resort & Spa
- 2. Drury Inn & Suites Phoenix Airport
- 3. Drury Inn & Suites Phoenix Happy Valley
- 4. Scottsdale Plaza Resort & Villas
- 5. Arizona Grand Resort & Spa
- 6. Fairmont Scottsdale Princess
- 7. Gila River Resorts & Casinos - Wild Horse Pass
- 8. The McCormick Scottsdale
- 9. The Wigwam
- 10. Drury Inn & Suites Phoenix Tempe
Things to do in Central Arizona, Central Arizona: The Best Art Museums
Home to the Phoenix metropolitan area and its more than 3.4 million residents, Central Arizona offers an amazing array of museums, cultural venues and outdoor adventures. The Valley of the Sun boasts hopping nightlife and a thrilling selection of restaurants, resorts and spas. Discover Old West and Native American history. Hike among the cactus in the Sonoran desert. Try your hand at ranching in Glendale. Drive the Superstition Mountains. Visit Frank Lloyd Wrights Taliesin West in Scottsdale.
Restaurants in Central Arizona
1. Arizona Copper Art Museum
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 494 reviews
--Winner of the Arizona Tourism Award!-- The Copper Art Museum is one of the most interesting in the USA, purposely located in the former copper town of Clarkdale - a USA City Beautiful Movement town founded in 1912. Clarkdale was built by Senator W. A. Clark "America's Copper King." The collection on display is massive with over 5000 artifacts and hundreds dating to the 1500-1800's, Galleries; Special Historical Information, Military Art, Art and Architecture, Kitchen Collection, Drinking Collection and Winery and Distillery Collection. You will be amazed by this museum!
Reviewed By tbone4 - Scottsdale, United States
An education around every corner. This museum is immaculately maintained and has wonderful self guided signs throughout. The feeling is cool, quiet and peaceful. They have worked hard to create this space. Plan on spending a couple of hours if you want to stroll through....longer if you want to read every sign. Every question you might have about copper and this museum is answered somewhere within these walls. Loved it! There's few places to eat while in Clarkdale. However we took a stroll around this cute little town. We went back to historic Cottonwood for lunch. There's a lot of places to stop there.
2. Phoenix Art Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,059 reviews
Phoenix Art Museum has provided access to visual arts and educational programs in Arizona for more than 60 years and is the largest art museum in the Southwestern United States. In addition to an annual calendar of exhibitions, Phoenix Art Museum’s permanent collection galleries are drawn from more than 19,000 works of American, Asian, European, Latin American, Western American, modern and contemporary art, and fashion design. Visitors also enjoy photography exhibitions through the Museum’s landmark partnership with the Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona. The Museum presents a variety of public programs year-round, including tours, lectures, films, special events, and more designed to enlighten, entertain and stimulate visitors of all ages. Voluntary-donation times every Wednesday from 3 to 7 pm and the first Friday of every month from 3 to 7 pm.
Reviewed By 866TaylorB - Chicago, United States
Established in 1959, the Phoenix Art Museum is the largest art museum for visual art in the Southwest United States. Located at 1625 North Central Avenue, it has 285,000 square feet of space and displays international exhibitions alongside its comprehensive collection of more than 18,000 works of American, Asian, European, Latin American, Western American, modern and contemporary art and fashion design. The museum also features a 300-seat public theater, a research library, studio classroom facilities, a kids gallery, a museum store and a cafe. Not to mention the 40,0000-square-foot Bennett and Jacquie Dorrance Sculpture Garden. The art collection includes Claude Monet's Flowering Arches, painted at his home in Giverny, France, in 1913. Visitors can admire American paintings by Gilbert Stuart, Georgia O'Keeffe, Robert Henri, Sanford Gifford and Marsden Hartley, European paintings by Monet, Pablo Picasso, Ubertini, George Romney and Jean-Leon Gerome, contemporary art by Carlos Amorales and Yayoi Kusama and 20th century sculpture by Max Ernst, Hans Arp and Aristide Maillol. Another interesting feature is The Hub: The James K. Ballinger Interactive Gallery, an interactive space for children. Perhaps the most popular cultural attraction in the Phoenix metropolitan area, the Phoenix Art Museum has hosted more than 400 exhibitions from all over the world, grown its collection to more than 18,000 works of art and been visited by millions of people in the last 60 years.
3. Heard Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,899 reviews
The foremost showcase of Native American art and culture in the U.S., the Heard Museum reveals the cultures of tribes in the region through exhibits, demonstrations and live performances and displays the work of contemporary Native American artists. Artists demonstrate their work during the week and musicians perform on most weekends.
Reviewed By MsInformedALWAYS - Las Vegas, United States
This place was a real surprise, nice architecture, beautifully displayed/housed native America goods from clothes, baskets, paintings, and general artifacts in excellent condition. Very well laid out with a nice bookstore AND gift shop (a bit pricey) Most enjoyable visit and stands out above and beyond most I've seen (I'm a fan of native American indian works - I've been to a half dozen wonderful museums...)
4. Scottsdale Center for the Arts
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 168 reviews
A cultural must-see when visiting Scottsdale.
Reviewed By antonioj93
Attended a great concert in the center and the venue is awesome. Had a great time as the venue is great for music
5. Shemer Art Center and Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 8 reviews
A Phoenix Point of Pride, this museum is a cultural locus, featuring local artisans and offering its own arts and crafts workshops.
6. Arizona Latino Arts and Cultural Center
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 13 reviews
7. Creative Gateways
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 14 reviews
Creative Gateways is a unique fine art gallery. We have an eclectic offering of art and artists from all over the world. We believe in giving our guests a diverse range of art mediums to enjoy and a diverse range of artists working with those mediums. Guests visit our Kuivato Location in the popular Tlaquepaque Arts and Crafts Village in Sedona, AZ from all over the world. Here they can experience the architecture and landscape of a beautiful village. Looking for luxury? No problem! Visit our Creative Gateways location located next to Neiman Marcus on the upper level in the luxury wing of Fashion Square in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Reviewed By 62victoriap - Carefree, United States
Beautiful glass gallery with decorative home goods and wearable art. A feast for the eyes. The gallery is located in the Tlaquepaque Village. Staff are helpful and will explain any piece of art you might have a question on. Always enjoy our visit here.
8. Mesa Arts Center
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 528 reviews
The Mesa Arts Center mission is to inspire people through engaging arts experiences that are diverse, accessible, and relevant. Owned and operated by the City of Mesa, Arizona’s largest arts center is recognized as an international award-winning venue. The unique and architecturally stunning facility is home to four theaters, five art galleries, and 14 art studios and an artist cooperative gallery.
Reviewed By spencerstopa - Mesa, United States
We have been there three times, twice in the main concert hall and once in a smaller hall ideally suited for chamber music or for a small group of musicians. The last time we were there we saw the group "Kansas." The center is architecturally beautiful, the acoustics are great, the seats are comfortable, and the prices are reasonable, considering the quality of the performers - eg .Itzak Perlman will be here in February, 2020 and we will go to see him. Even though Mesa lives in the shadow of Phoenix, our performing arts center is every bit as good as theirs.
9. Rare Earth Gallery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 72 reviews
Reviewed By GeorgeT3421 - Mount Laurel, United States
There is a lot of eye candy within this shop. There are a lot of crystal rock shops in Arizona, but this shop makes it into the top tiers. They have everything you could hope for in terms of personal purchases to gifts. There is lots of petrified wood, jewelry, stones, geological ornaments, wine bottle holders, butterfly collections, etc. This shop was recommended to us by locals including our Jeep Tour operator.
10. Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 619 reviews
Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West celebrates the art, history and unique stories of the 19 states comprising the American West. The rotating exhibitions feature hundreds of Western artworks and rare historic artifacts on loan from some of the world's foremost collectors and institutions. The contemporary, 43,000-square-foot building is an architectural gem that meets the highest standards for sustainability and conservation of natural resources. Visitors also will enjoy the informative video kiosks, beautiful outdoor sculpture courtyard,museum store, and inspirational film "Spirit Is." Located in downtown Scottsdale's arts district, Western Spirit is within easy walking distance of numerous art galleries and restaurants. Nearby attractions include Old Town Scottsdale,Scottsdale Fashion Square, Scottsdale Stadium (Cactus League Spring Training home of the San Francisco Giants baseball team), the Scottsdale Waterfront, Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts and the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art. Scottsdale's Museum of the West is a Smithsonian Affiliate museum, and was selected 2016 Best Western Museum in the nation by True West magazine.
Reviewed By 866TaylorB - Chicago, United States
This is an unusual and fascinating museum, Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West, a well thought-out conglomeration of exhibitions from everything from cowboy and Native American attire to spurs to saddles to paintings to sculpture, even a stuffed buffalo. Located at 3830 North Marshall, in Old Town Scottsdale, on the former site of the Loloma Transit Station at North Marshall Way and East 1st Street, it was the vision of former Scottsdale Mayor Herb Drinkwater and opened in 2015. The two-story, 43,000-square-foot museum features the art, culture and history of 19 states in the American West, including Arizona. As museum director Mike Fox has said: "We are not a museum of objects, but a museum of ideas." And so it is. With eight exhibit spaces, a 135-seat multimedia theater, a gift shop and a sculpture garden, it covers everything you want to know about the Wild West. Even photographs and biographies of influential Westerners such as Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Billy the Kid, the notorious gunfighter. Current exhibits of note include photographs by the late Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater, paintings by western artists Maynard Dixon, Gilbert Waldman and Paul Calle, Hopi pottery, western movie posters, bronze sculpture by John Coleman, western artifacts and paintings and sculpture by Frederic Remington, Thomas Moran and Alfred Jacob Miller. It's a collection that you won't find anywhere else.
