There’s more to Phoenix than Super Bowl XLII
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Arizona Resorts/ Arizona Travel Deals / Arizona Golf / Spas in AZ
Phoenix may be hosting the Super Bowl next month. But Arizona wants to win over more than just the NFL with all its primping and preening.
It wants to win over tourists, too.
For the last year, the Super Bowl committee has been pushing a “come early, stay late” campaign. The expected 150,000 visitors are being urged to stretch their trips.
While the city will temporarily be the hippest, hottest place to be seen, the region has typically been thought of as where Grandpa and Grandma go to quietly retire.
Visitors of all ages, however, can find a strong pulse in the beating nightclubs of Scottsdale or Arizona State University hangouts in Tempe. In this 2,000-square-mile metropolis, it is possible to see the urban and the rural in less than a day. Travelers can have their pick of chic, artsy enclaves and four-star restaurants, and cactus-dotted landscapes rich with the history of the Old West and American Indian culture.
Arts: Clusters of high-end galleries make up much of the art scene in metro Phoenix. Scottsdale’s arts district will hold a special edition of its swanky, weekly art walks with the Scottsdale Super ArtWalk Feb. 2; for details, go to scottsdalegalleries.com/artwalks2.html.
Aside from browsing at galleries, visitors can listen to local musicians along the designated route and sample food from local restaurants.
The downtown Phoenix Art Museum has 60 paintings, sculptures, etchings and watercolors in a new exhibit on 19th -Century French artists, “Masterpiece Replayed: Monet, Matisse and More. It also currently has works on display by photographer Richard Avedon.
Food: Foodies with $500 to spare can get a ticket for this year’s Taste of the NFL on Feb. 2, which raises money to fight hunger.
Glendale has also moved up its annual Glendale Chocolate Affaire. Chocoholics can nibble on confections made by local chocolatiers in downtown Glendale on Feb. 1-2.
The desert: More than 130 rare and endangered plant species thrive at the 50-acre Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix. Near the garden is the Phoenix Zoo, home to more than 1,200 animals.
There are also ample hiking opportunities at South Mountain Park and Preserve in south Phoenix. Hard-core hikers can try the summit trails on Camelback Mountain.
A tour of Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural marvel nestled at the foot of McDowell Mountains in Scottsdale, also serves as a serene diversion from Super Bowl mayhem.
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