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
Top 8 Geologic Formations in Central Arizona, Central Arizona
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. Cathedral Rock
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 5,917 reviews
Towering red rock formation, part of the Cathedral Rock Trail.
Reviewed By Cristine4412 - Pittsburgh, United States
It's a relatively easy hike to the base of Cathedral Rock, and from there you can choose the more challenging hike up the rock, or take the flat Templeton trail around the base.
2. Hole in the Rock
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,027 reviews
Reviewed By jesseo582 - Jackson, United States
Close to the zoo and botanical gardens, this is a an extremely accessible and fun park! And, in early November, there were few people enjoying it. I was especially glad to read interpretation here that the rock had Native astronomical significance. For many it’s a place to scramble. But the picnic facilities, cacti, birds and rabbits I found were most enjoyable.
3. Bell Rock
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4,873 reviews
Reviewed By cookpias - Los Angeles, United States
There was a fairly easy hike from the Bell Rock trailhead in between Bell Rock and the courthouse formation, completely around the rock itself which gave wonderful views and a nice way to stretch our legs and enjoy the setting.
4. Snoopy Rock
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 464 reviews
Reviewed By G8451ZJbilla
a must see area at least once in your life. The pink jeep excursions were very professional and was a fantastic way seeing the mountain terrain.
5. Soldier Pass (Brin's Mesa)
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 357 reviews
Reviewed By SedonaBob55 - Sedona, United States
A hike on Solider Pass Trail can be like hiking four trails in one. If you enjoy looping trail, Soldiers Pass connects first with Brins Mesa Trail, then meets up with Cibola Pass Trail before it connects to Jordan Trail and then finally back to the Soldier Pass Trailhead. The total length is about 6 miles. Sites at the beginning are pretty spectacular. In the first quarter-mile, you will see Sedona's largest sinkhole, Devil's Kitchen, as well as the Seven Sacred Pools and some impressive arches along the canyon wall. Should you go from there to Brins Mesa, the views are pretty panoramic, including a shot of Steamboat Rock, some will swear it looks like a petrified boat. Depending on the time of the year, temperature, and route this can be hard to moderate hike. Elevation change of about 800 if you take the four-trail loop, 450 feet if you stay on Solider Pass. Bring plenty of water and trail maps. Cell service is marginal at times in this area, and trail apps may not work. As a backup, I always have my Sedore Core paper map.
6. Phallic Rock
7. Devil's Kitchen Sinkhole
8. Cleopatra Hill
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 37 reviews
The town of Jerome is perched on the side of Cleopatra Hill.
Reviewed By 866TaylorB - Chicago, United States
Visitors from Sedona and Phoenix and elsewhere can see it from a long way off, from across the Verde Valley. It's the big J on the side of Cleopatra Hill, which overlooks the old mining town of Jerome, Arizona. It went from a tent city in 1876 to a bustling mining camp to a ghost town, all within a period of 50 years. The mines went bust. Now the town is undergoing a rebirth and becoming a popular tourist destination with trendy restaurants, coffee houses, art galleries and boutiques. But Cleopatra Hill remains the focal point. Most of Cleopatra Hill, the rock formation upon which Jerome was built, is 1.75 billion years old, created by a massive caldera eruption. The town owes its old-time prosperity to two ore bodies that were formed along a ring fault in the caldera of an undersea volcano. The United Verde Mine was one of the largest mines in the world and produced nearly 33 million tons of copper, gold, silver, lead and zinc ore over its 77-year life from 1875 to 1953. The Little Daisy Mine, owned by the Douglas family that built the famous Douglas Mansion in Jerome, produced $10 million worth of copper, gold and silver ore in 1916 alone, of which $4.7 million was profit. The copper deposits in Cleopatra Hill were among the richest ever found. The mines closed in the 1950s but the J on the slope of Cleopatra Hill remains. It is maintained by a local service organization known as the J Club.
