Scottsdale: Recreation
Sightseeing
Scottsdale celebrates the life of the West through a variety of attractions. Old Scottsdale hearkens back to pioneer days with its wooden sidewalks, blacksmith shop, mission, church, and the 1909 Little Red School House, now home to the Scottsdale Historical Society Museum. Rawhide Wild West Town is the state's largest western theme attraction, with a replica of a frontier town, stagecoach and burro rides, gunfights, petting ranch, museum, gold panning, and country music and food. Rawhide will close at the Scottsdale location at the end of 2005 and will reopen 35 miles from North Scottsdale. West-World of Scottsdale is a 120-acre equestrian center and special events facility. Many local companies offer trips via jeep, covered wagon, helicopter, and air balloon of the mountains, desert, and canyons surrounding Scottsdale. Day trips can be arranged to Kinishba and Tuzigoot or Canyon de Chelly, which are prehistoric pueblo villages. In Verde Valley, the five-story Montezuma Castle National Monument is a twelfth-century cliff dwelling carved into solid rock by the Sinagua Indians.
Arts and Culture
Scottsdale is a nationally recognized art mecca with more than 125 art galleries, the Scottsdale Center for the Arts, the Scottsdale Artists School, and a variety of public artworks, primarily downtown. Scottsdale has an "ArtWalk" every Thursday night that begins at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts; it offers an opportunity to meet artists and observe their work. The Fleischer Museum is dedicated to the American Impressionism California school of art, which flourished from the early twentieth century until the 1940s. It features landscapes, and architectural, figural, and still life paintings. Cosanti, an Arizona *istoric Site, is a unique complex of concrete structures designed and constructed by Paolo Soleri. Tours of where Soleri Windbells are made and sold are offered. Taliesin West/Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation is an architectural masterpiece and Wright's former home and studio. The world's largest art gallery, the Scottsdale Celebration of Fine Art, features 125 fine artists and crafts persons from across the country. The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, located in the city's Old Town district, houses modern and contemporary works from around the world. The House of Broadcasting, Inc. celebrates Arizona's radio and television history.
Other museums of interest in Scottsdale include the Buffalo Museum of America, with collections relating to the buffalo, and the Heard Museum North, focusing on Native American artists.
Scottsdale's showcase for the performing arts is the Scottsdale Center for the Arts, where symphonies and Broadway
Festivals and Holidays
Scottsdale's annual Barrett-Jackson Classic Car Auction in January is one of the largest in the world. In February, the Parada del Sol includes a rodeo and ends with the world's largest "horse-drawn parade." Also in February, the Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show—the world's largest all-Arabian horse show—attracts Arabian horse breeders and buyers from around the world.
The Festival of the West, a three-day celebration of cowboy life at Rawhide each March, features western film and television stars, western antiques, western art and music, cowboy poetry, and other events. Also in March, the Scottsdale Arts Festival showcases the work of nearly 200 nationally acclaimed artists. Indian Artists of America showcases 125 of the country's premier talents. The Desert Classic Invitation Team Roping event is also in March.
The Culinary Arts Festival in April showcases local and nationally-known chefs. Scottsdale celebrates the holiday season with the Tree Lighting and Concert at the Scottsdale Mall in December, and with displays featuring more than 500,000 holiday lights at McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park.
Sports for the Spectator
Although Scottsdale fields no major league sports teams, sports fans have easy access to events in Phoenix. Scottsdale is the spring training home of the San Francisco Giants Major League Baseball team. Scottsdale Stadium is also one of the playing sites for the Arizona Fall League, where the stars of the future vie for a shot at Major League Baseball in the Arizona Fall League competition.
Professional golf has an enthusiastic following in Scottsdale. January's Phoenix Open Golf tournament is held at Scottsdale's Tournament Players Club; it attracts the Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) Tour's finest players to one of the most respected national tournaments. All the major senior golfers come to The Tradition at Desert Mountain Senior PGA Tournament at Desert Mountain Golf Club in April. One of Scottsdale's more unique golfing events is the Scottsdale Celebrity Chef Golf Invitational in May.
Sports for the Participant
Scottsdale has more than 500 acres of developed park land, 36 acres of lakes, 37 miles of bike trails, and about 200 miles of non-paved multiuse recreational trails. Many of Scottsdale's 38 parks are located within the Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt, a 7.5-mile-long flood control project that uses a system of parks, lakes, and golf courses as an alternative to a conventional concrete channel. Pools and recreation centers also meet the needs of Scottsdale residents year-round. Residents may participate in youth and adult sports and recreation programs.
There are nearly 200 golf courses in the Scottsdale area, including 28 public golf courses. The Robb Report rated Scottsdale "America's Best Place to Live for Golf" in 2002. The course for P.F. Chang's Rock'n'Roll Marathon runs through Scottsdale and nearby cities, beginning at the Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix and ending in Tempe. Held in January, the marathon attracts thousands of distance runners due to its flat, fast course and live musical entertainment. Tennis, horseback riding, swimming, rollerblading, and fishing are among the other year-round recreational opportunities available in Scottsdale.
Shopping and Dining
Scottsdale has more than 2,500 retail shops with everything from hand-stitched leather boots to designer fashions. Upscale shopping centers such as Scottsdale Fashion Square, Biltmore Fashion Park, and Borgata of Scottsdale feature retailers such as Burberry, Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Company. Old Town Merchants Association, with more than 150 shops and restaurants, captures the flair of the Old West with traditional and southwestern merchandise. Scottsdale Pavilions is a shopping center that offers mass retailers such as Target, Home Depot, and Best Buy. El Pedregal Festival and Marketplace has courtyard amphitheater facilities surrounded by boutiques, galleries and restaurants. Native American arts and crafts are available at Chief Dodge Indian Jewelry & Fine Arts, Gilbert Ortega Gallery of Indian Art, and Iverson's Indian Arts.
Scottsdale has an excellent selection of first-class dining establishments among its more than 500 restaurants. Notable among them are Mary Elaine's in The Phoenician resort and the Marquesa Restaurant in the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, both of which have earned the prestigious AAA Five Diamonds award. Ethnic offerings include Southwestern specialties, Italian, French, Japanese, Chinese, Polynesian, Greek, Thai, Indian, and Continental cuisine. Mesquite grills abound, and Western fare served in cookout or ranch settings is popular.
Visitor Information: Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce, 7343 Scottsdale Mall, Scottsdale, AZ 85251-9800; telephone (480)945-8481; toll-free (800)877-1117