Phoenix, AZ is the Hottest Place We’ve Ever Been (literally)

Have you ever wanted to be caught up in a warm windstorm in the middle of a city block? Yeah, us neither. But that’s exactly the kind of random thing that happens to us on our travels.

Because we are clearly the sharpest knives in the drawer, we visited Phoenix, AZ in the middle of July. Temperatures were a measly 117 degrees (Fahrenheit) and we definitely did not almost die at the botanical gardens. Never fear though, we were saved by a friendly neighborhood bartender, cocktails, and melted cheese.

In all seriousness, we ended up in the hottest place we have ever been in the middle of summer (we blame the Atlanta Braves) and learned a few lessons. Not recommended, friends. We did enjoy our stay in Phoenix, but would highly recommend planning a trip to The Valley of the Sun from September to April. It it too dang hot in the summer. Additionally, a lot of outdoor sites, hikes and attractions are closed June-August due to high temperatures.

If you do visit in summer like we did, make sure to drinks LOTS of water and stay inside as much as possible.

With those warnings in place, let’s get into our three day trip to Phoenix.

What to See/Do

There are many hikes in and around Phoenix that are quite popular. However, most of them were closed when we were there due to excessive heat. We were able to do one mini hike to see the Hole in the Rock. This .3 mile trail is easy to moderate and leads you to the top of the rock where you can look out over the nearby town. It’s also nice because you can feel the breeze through the rock, great on a hot day. We did encounter a guy chilling at the top, drinking beer, and planning a long run. (Did we mention is was 117 degrees?) We still wonder about him.

We’d read a lot about the Desert Botanical Gardens and it was on our list of places we definitely wanted to check out in Phoenix. We also got really lucky because they offer free entry on the second Tuesday of every month and that happened to be the day we went. It was also good for us that it was free because we nearly died there (Mal- or I did anyway). The whole garden was less than half a mile and we had to take so many breaks. We spent a good 15 minutes inside this random building trying to cool off with ice packs and fans. Seriously though, we were one of two sets of guests in the entire park. We’re honestly surprised they were open.

Aside from the heat, it was a really neat place to visit. This was our first experience with giant cacti and we were impressed by their size as well as by the quite beautiful desert plant life.

One of the best parts of the botanical gardens was the restaurant near the front gate. People, we were told, just come to eat here without visiting the park. See more on this restaurant below.

By now you should know that we are trying to watch the Atlanta Braves play in every stadium. This year we had the chance to watch them in two stadiums back-to-back, which is how we ended up in the desert in July (thanks again, whoever set the MLB schedule). We attended two games at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks. This is a nice park with lots of food options, though the best part was the retractable roof that was thankfully closed for both games we attended.

During our second game, we were in a special section that allowed us access to a private area with a bar, restaurant, and bathrooms underground near the dugout. While it still was not cool in the stadium, at least this was a neat perk that we randomly got by choosing seats in a lower section.

Since it was a million degrees out, we opted for a few indoor activities as well.

On the advice of a bartender (don’t they give the best advice?), we went to the Musical Instrument Museum. They have instruments from all over the world, dating back to 4,000 BC. They give you a headset upon entry so you can listen to various music throughout the museum, which we really enjoyed. The downside is that you cannot take any beverages into the museum, including water, so we were very parched by lunch time. (We ate lunch in the museum cafe and it was fine.) We spent around 7 hours here because it was so big. If you are into music, you HAVE to go to this museum. If you are not that into music, you should still go because it is amazing how music from around the world can sometimes sound so similar to music you are accustomed to hearing regionally. There were more than a few countries who had music that sounded just like bluegrass, which was just so wild. It also speaks to the nature of humanity that music is so critical to our existence and identity.

The Arizona Boardwalk in Scottsdale has several indoor attractions that are good for adults and kids alike. We opted for the Museum of Illusions and are glad we did. It was a really neat place with photographic optical illusions and puzzles to solve. This was one of the best staffed places we have probably ever been as there were people on hand at nearly all of the cool photographic opportunities to take pictures and to direct you to get the best shots. We saw the whole museum in a little over an hour (you can leave and come back if you so desire, but we didn’t need to), and it was still worth the price of admission. We also did a little shopping at a souvenir store in the boardwalk to pick up some kitschy Phoenix souvenirs.

The best place we found to shop was Retail Therapy. This store was comprised of goods from local small businesses of all types. Each business had its own shelf, table, or section in the store and it was awesome to be able to shop small with so much variety. The person working in the shop the day we went was super helpful and had such an infectious enthusiasm. You felt welcome and joyful from the moment you walked into this shop.

What we Ate/Drank

Gertrude’s was the best place we ate in Phoenix and was located in the Desert Botanical Gardens. Because it was afternoon and we were planning to walk through the gardens after we ate, we ate a little light with Hummus and Korean Corn Cheese, both of which were delicious. The bartender, Caroline, was fantastic and made sure our water bottles were filled and that we knew to come back if we got too hot. After exploring the gardens, we returned, drenched in sweat and each got a Cactus Cosmo (made with prickly pear syrup). Whether it was a life saving potion or it was just a delicious drink we will never know, but we are still around to write this blog.

For supper the first night, we made our way to The Kettle Black Kitchen & Pub. Again, the bartenders were friendly and the drinks were cold. Court: I got the Philly cheesesteak fries and a local beer. The fries were delicious, the beer was ok. Mal: I had the buffalo chicken fries and the Afternoon Sunshine cocktail. Both were pretty good.

We have a somewhat bad habit of eating super late on vacation because we almost always end up eating after the ball games. Coabana, a Cuban tapas and cocktail restaurant, was open late and we have developed a taste for Cuban food since we went to Little Havana in Miami. Court: I got the Cuban sandwich with plantain chips, and a mojito. The mojitos were a bit on the minty side, the Cuban was super good, and the plantain chips were a little too done. Mal: I had the ceviche, which interestingly enough I have never had before, and a mojito. I agree that the mojito was too minty, but I enjoyed the ceviche.

For lunch while at the Boardwalk, we stopped into Pangaea, which is a dino themed restaurant near the dinosaur attraction. Court: I had the chicken pita and it was tasty. We both had the Greek fries, which were very delicious, and a Pina Colada because they had a special. Mal: I also had the chicken wrap (with feta and balsamic) which was really good. I was pleasantly surprised by this place.

We also had dinner one night at Crown Public House. Mal: I had the Baja power bowl. It was decent but dry (largely because I did not want the sauce that came with it). I also had the surfside lemonade. Overall this place was fine. Court: I got the Southwest chicken salad and it was fresh and delicious. It was also huge and I was barely able to finish it. I also ordered the Tiny Esses beer, which was a sour that tasted like Skittles. The logo had the 90s kid S, you know the one, so I had to try it.

Where We Stayed

We stayed at Home2 Suites in downtown Phoenix, next door to the stadium. The room was spacious and had a lot of surfaces (no joke, there were so many surfaces). We could see stadium out our hotel window, which was not beneficial in any way but that was our view lol. They also had continental breakfast, which we partook in every morning. Downsides: There was a weird sewage smell as you walked in the door of our room and they did not refill the shower gel the whole time we were there. We chose this place mainly because of proximity to the stadium, we wanted to be able to walk there easily. It was a pretty decent stay overall.

In conclusion, you should definitely visit Phoenix. In the fall or spring.