Phoenix had seen more than 100 days straight of temperatures above 100F when I arrived (Image: Chris Granet)
Wearing jeans and a T-shirt, I stepped out into the busy streets of downtown Phoenix ready to embrace the world’s sunniest city. The American city had just gone through its hottest and driest summer ever so I thought I’d be sufficiently dressed. But then it turned cold and started to rain.
People walking chirpily out of bars and restaurants were stunned by the chill wind and the strange wet stuff falling from the sky, quickly huddling together or rushing back inside. And there was me thinking it would be a great getaway from a dismal British winter! I took temporary shelter in a supermarket and made the classic British cliched joke to a cashier about bringing the rain with me.
“You should visit more often,” he grinned. “We need it.”
He’s not wrong. Being on the edge of the vast Sonoran Desert, the summer had had more than 100 days straight of at least 100F (37.8C) temperatures, breaking its previous record of 76 days in a row set back in 1993. Last summer had seen 54 consecutive days of 109F (43C) or higher, and only 0.15in of rain.
These numbers are staggering and, in 2022, David Hondula, Phoenix’s director of heat response and mitigation office, had said: “Phoenix is already unlivable in summer for far too many of our residents, who literally didn’t live because it was too hot.” He added that these types of summers “could be normal by 2050 or 2080”.
Phoenix, Arizona is the USA’s hottest and fifth most-populated city (Image: Getty)
Scorching summers aside, it’s the climate that makes Phoenix a hotspot for North American tourists for the rest of the year. International visitors, though, often overlook the city as they head out to explore Arizona’s more famous natural wonders, but it’s a cool city (not literally!) worth exploring for a few days.
I stayed in the heart of Downtown, in the high and wide Sheraton hotel that dominates the skyline. My room was on the 29th floor, with an expansive view even better than the King Suite. Upon arrival, all of Phoenix was laid out before me, the city lights countering the night flooding in, the mountain-lined horizon stained gold by the dying day. What a welcome.
Downtown is where the sports arenas, theatres, music venues and convention centre are all clustered. There, brightly lit mainstream bars, restaurants and sports joints dominate the scene, and I was surprised to stumble upon a trophy parade of Phoenix Rising FC (in the US footy second tier). Drunk and happy fans sang and danced in the rain. It felt like home.
The following morning, the weather was back to normal, with the sun out and blazing, the only respite coming from the occasional wandering cloud. I wandered to the northern side of Downtown to the Roosevelt Row Arts District, the hipster hood with more alternative bars, cafes and boutiques. I had breakfast at the Kahvi Coffee and Cafe, a former art gallery, then explored backroads daubed in vibrant murals, their colours popping against the blue-sky backdrop.
Phoenix has many interesting attractions, but they’re spaced out and public transport isn’t great, so it’s best to hire a car. The giant Rental Car Center near the airport is the size of one of its terminals. I was given a “little car”, a saloon that’d be hard to park back home but was on the small side for an American motor.
Driving is easy as the roads are wide, straight, and not busy. Plus parking is free and plentiful, and unlike in the UK, there are very few cameras waiting to charge you for a minor infraction. I enjoyed driving for the first time in years.
Cactus in the hills above Phoenix (Image: Getty)
My first stop was the Musical Instrument Museum, 25 miles away but incredibly still on the outskirts of town. But the drive there along the freeways was easy, and I was inside having a self-guided tour in no time. The massive museum celebrates music from around the world, with hundreds of instruments from all continents and cultures. Well worth a visit.
For lunch, I moseyed on over to the relatively close Tia Carmen restaurant where I tried the local southwest cuisine for the first time. It’s excellent. A fusion of Native American, Mexican and US foods that’s suitably light for the hot weather, yet packed with interesting flavours.
I had a raw tuna tostada laced with guacamole, herbs and fresh chilli. Dessert was a vanilla flan topped with tequila caramel and manchego cheese, all washed down with prickly pear cactus ice tea.
I then drove back down to the southeastern side of the city to Papago Park, where the Sonoran meets the city, and where several attractions reside including Phoenix Zoo and the Desert Botanical Garden. The latter is home to thousands of species of desert flora. Its meandering footpaths take you and hordes of selfie-taking visitors past amazing giant cacti with a backdrop of surreal rocky red hills. It felt like I was on the set of a Wild West movie. Apart from the hordes, that is.
The afternoon was suitably ablaze when I arrived at my next stop, the nearby Hall of Flame, the largest historical firefighting museum in the world. It has a fascinating collection of about 200 restored trucks and apparatus from around the globe, dating back to 1725. Excellent and informative tours are available by phoning beforehand.
I then headed over to the aforementioned surreal red hills, the most famous of which is the Hole in the Rock. As the name suggests, it is a giant hole in a giant rock and it is one of Phoenix’s most famous sunset spots, with a short and easy trail up to it. Facing west, crowds gather to watch the sun sink gloriously behind the skyline in the distance, the evening light painting the landscape even redder.
For dinner, I visited the First and Last restaurant back in the Arts District. The venue and the food were great; high-ceilinged industrial chic offset by masses of plant life and low-lighting. The fare was also fusion, but this time Italian with a local twist. The cocktails were great too. Hic.
As I was drinking, I couldn’t drive, but rather than call an Uber, I decided to try something very different a Waymo self-driving taxi. The Jaguar SUV pulled up with whirling sensors and no driver. Most surreal. Then more so as it told me to buckle up before navigating itself through the nocturnal Downtown streets. It was all fun until we hit open roads and it went butt-clenchingly fast, making me think the robot revolution may have already started.
The Phoenix skyline (Image: Getty)
The biggest concentration of nightlife is located in Old Town Scottsdale. Dozens of lively and more upmarket bars, restaurants, and shops are on the west side of North Scottsdale Road, while on the east is a riot of neon and noise, with tides of drunken young folk spilling in and out of cheesy clubs galore. It felt like I was back in my native Essex.
If you want a more healthy pursuit, Phoenix is surrounded by gnarly mountains with many great hikes available. The most popular is Camelback Mountain Phoenix’s highest which I climbed the following morning.
It only takes up to an hour and a half at most, yet it’s steep and tough, and must be quite a lung-buster during the hotter months. But it was well worth the strain. From its 2,706ft peak I got a magnificent panoramic view of the city and the desert beyond.
I sat in the sunshine and surveyed the vast expanse before me. Picking out all the places I’d been, I came to a realisation Phoenix was indeed a great winter getaway.
Book a holiday in Phoenix, Arizona
- British Airways flies from Heathrow to Phoenix Sky Harbor starting at £594 return. ba.com
- Rooms at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown hotel start at £150 a night. marriott.com
- More info at visitphoenix.com visitarizona.com