"VAlley in the Sun" Top 5 Page for this destination Phoenix by BruceDunning

Phoenix Travel Guide: 717 reviews and 1,456 photos

Panorama of the valley city - Phoenix
Panorama of the valley city
A Phoenix on the horizon

The city itself is only part of the larger suburb complex of surrounding residential and retail places to shop, eat and drive around. End to end it must be about 60 miles east/west, and 40 miles north/south. Total population estimate is 4.2 million in SMSA, and 1.5 million in Phoenix proper. Phoenix the city has 517 square mile coverage area, but the whole valley communities total 15,000 square miles-LARGE-, and over 40 other community towns that make up the composite area.
The irony is there are about 400,000 snowbirds that flock here for usually 4-6 months to get away form the north winter weather. They spend some money, but most are retirees not having a lot of slush money to blow. Even though, it is estimated they spend about $600 million while there. The irony, is the demand for house them has created some of the more disasterous looking places with mobile homes and RV parks all around, or cheap end housing units. It devalues the home prices overall, to about $120,000 for the region area.
The highway system is good, but the number of vehicles still make it treachery for commuters and tourists trying to maneuver around the area. Hwy 10 and Hwy 17 are main arteries, and loop roads are 202 and 101, which make getting around more tolerable.

The sceneic views of the landscape
View of sunset - Phoenix

View of sunset

Sunrise and sunset views are the craze in this valley, and they are magnificent. This is of a sunset picture. People marvel at the different colors and mixing with cloud variations; so do I.

Multiple highway connectors throughout the area
Overpasses ring the highways. - Phoenix

Overpasses ring the highways.

Without the intricate road system that carries traffic, this would be gridlock daily; more than it is now.

Pros and Cons
  • Pros:Good and warm/pleasant in the winter
  • Cons:Good and hot in summer and traffic is ugly+smog
  • In a nutshell:A very large valley area and sunny most of the year
  • Last visit to Phoenix: Dec 2010
  • Intro Updated Jan 17, 2011
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Reviews (42)

Pictorial view of the bridge over the dam - Phoenix Salt River Bridge at Roosevelt Dam Off The Beaten Path (3)

This bridge became the backbone for creating a dam system to serve the Phoenix area. Before that dam process, and canals... more travel advice

South Mountain Park - Phoenix South Mountain Park Things to Do (20)

This a a large park that stretches for about 5 miles along the south edge of the city of Phoenix. It has some shopping... more travel advice

View from South Mountain hill - Phoenix Panorama of Phoenix Seen for Miles Favorites (3)

The downtown city center is right in the middle of the valley and surrounded by hills/mountains on all sides. Views of... more travel advice

Crest of a hill on trail - Phoenix Freedom Trail-Circumference Around... Sports & Outdoors (3)

This hike is a connector to other trails along the bottom edge of Squaw/Piestewa Mtn. I goes for about 4 miles, but I... more travel advice

Comments (2)

  • Reply
    globetrott's Profile Photo
    Dec 28, 2010 at 3:41 PM

    good to learn that there is a Schwarzwald-restaurant with Bauern-Schmaus and even Austrian Beer ! ;-)

  • Reply
    Gili_S's Profile Photo
    Dec 28, 2010 at 3:34 AM

    Phoenix museums and churches? No thanks, not for me ;-) but the mountains seems nice :)

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