Book Scottsdale attraction tickets

Scottsdale sits at the eastern edge of the Phoenix metropolitan area, where the Sonoran Desert presses right up against the city's manicured resort corridors and the McDowell Mountains form a jagged silhouette to the north-east. It is a place shaped by contradictions that somehow resolve themselves comfortably: a frontier town turned luxury destination, a desert environment that has cultivated one of the most concentrated collections of art galleries in the American South-west, and a community that takes its outdoor culture as seriously as its spa culture.

Old Town Scottsdale is the natural starting point for anyone arriving for the first time. The neighbourhood preserves a handful of genuinely historic adobe structures alongside the galleries, boutiques, and restaurants that have accumulated around them over decades. Fifth Avenue and Main Street form the commercial spine, and the Scottsdale Arts District along Marshall Way is recognised nationally for the quality of its commercial galleries. On Thursday evenings throughout much of the year, the area's galleries coordinate openings that draw locals and visitors alike through the neighbourhood on foot, which is one of the more pleasant ways to absorb the city's particular aesthetic sensibility.