About Phoenix, AZ

Thinking about making the move to Phoenix? There's a lot to consider. What's the weather like in Phoenix? What things are Phoenix most known for and how does that match with your interests? How much is the cost of living? What's the culture like? We've compiled all of this information for you in order to give you a sense of what life is like in Phoenix year round, and also made it easy for you to compare against other cities that you might be considering.

About Phoenix - "The Valley of the Sun"

When most people think of Phoenix, they think desert. But actually, Phoenix has almost 200 parks in the city. Whether you want to go hiking, biking, running, or horseback riding, there's over 200 miles of trails. You can also find beautiful spots for casual walks and picnicking. South Mountain Park and Preserve is a great spot, as it is the nation's largest municipal park. Rafting down the Colorado River is another popular outdoor activity.

While you will see pigeons in New York City and gators in Florida, in Phoenix there's coyotes. They can run up to 40mph and they can jump fences that are 8 feet tall! You can hear them howl and yelp at night throughout different parts of the city. But as with most animals, they are more afraid of you than you are of them and so they don't pose much danger. Aside from coyotes you can also spot desert tortoises, roadrunners, chuckwallas, wild pigs and even the occasional jaguar, bald eagle, mountain lion and bobcat.

But perhaps the most dangerous thing to look out for in Phoenix is haboobs which are essentially dust storms. But they go away as quickly as they come and don't pose as much threat compared to hurricanes of the East Coast or tornadoes of the Midwest.

The golfing scene is a big part of Phoenix. There's more than 200 golf courses spread throughout Phoenix. The city also hosts the Phoenix Open which is the largest golf tournament on the PGA Tour.

Arizona is one of the best states in the country for wine, perhaps only behind California. Some of the best wine tours are available in Sedona which is a little less than 2 hours from Phoenix. The most popular wine tours in Sedona are Sedona Wine Adventures and Verde Valley Wine Trail. Nearby Scottsdale which is less than 30 minutes from Phoenix also offers wine trails by Arizona Urban Wine Tours and Sip and Savor Tours.

Authentic Mexican food is hard to beat in Phoenix. There are enough Mexican restaurants in Phoenix to eat at a different one every day for months. A few of the must-try ones are Gallo Banco, Chino Bandido, Barrio Cafe, La Santisima Gourmet Taco Shop, Rokerij, and Los Reyes De La Torta.

Phoenix offers many options for performance entertainment as well. You can find ballet, symphonies, operas, and theatre shows. The most popular venues are the US Airways Center, Chase Field, The Sundome. Gammage Auditorium (designed by Frank Lloyd Wright) and the Cricket Pavilion which is the best outdoor venue.

You can find many other entertainment options in Phoenix as well such as comedy clubs, techno music dance clubs, line dancing, dueling piano bars, and cigar and martini lounges.

A lot of people come to Phoenix to visit the Grand Canyon since it is only a little over 3 hours from the city. The Arizona State Fair brings over a million people to Phoenix every year. People also come to see The Barringer Meteorite Crater which is one of the most well-preserved meteorite impact craters in the world which is a mile wide and 570 feet deep.

Because of the 16 million tourists that visit the Phoenix metro area every year, there's also no shortage of luxury spas, upscale resorts, and casinos. A few well known touristy spots are the Havasupai Falls, Keyhole Sink, Glen Canyon, and London Bridge.