Phoenix is the second largest city in the West after the City of Angels. The nickname “Valley of the Sun” was given to it due to its geographical position and its climate.
The city is located in the valley of the Salt River. Having an arid climate – which can also be called desertic – it has very high average temperatures. Even during winter, the daytime temperatures can exceed 19 °C. Because of the temperatures occurring summertime, which can be as high as 40-41 °C, the city is among the hottest cities in the world such as Baghdad or Riyadh. Investors realized that these characteristics make the city a perfect holiday destination.
Having a population of one and a half million people, the town is ranked as the fifth largest city in the US. Including the now incorporated suburbs and towns the metropolitan area has a population over four million. This guarantees a large variety of performing arts and other cultural events. The median age between the residents of the city is 31, which ensures dynamism.
Phoenix’s early economy was dependent on agriculture. The main exported goods were cotton and citrus. These days the city’s economy is more diverse. It’s mainly based on national high-tech investors, tourism and recreation like golf. The city it the home of many well known sport clubs. These include the Arizona Cardinals, the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Phoenix Suns, the Phoenix Coyotes and Arizona Stings. These are all national major league sport teams. Beside these Phoenix has its own women’s basketball team, the Phoenix Mercury, arena football club, the Arizona Rattlers and hockey team, Phoenix RoadRunners.
Phoenix is not only present on the regional and the national sport scene, but it also has two teams competing in international leagues. These two are the Tucson Scorpions, which competes in the International Fight League, and the Phoenix Flame, which is an internationally known basketball team. This means that any true sport fan can find match for his taste if visits Phoenix.
Not only fans find the city a great place because of its sports franchises, but also the NFL considered being able to held the 2007 Super Bowl that took place at February 3, 2008. As known by many the Giants won by 17 to 14 over the Patriots. This was of the biggest sporting event in 2008 in the US.
However, even if you missed it you can choose from plenty of activities. Because of its arid climate there were built many water parks to make the residents life easier in the harsh desert heat. Today these are very popular among the tourist too. Some of these parks are situated in near cities just a few kilometers away this way giving you the opportunity to experience more of Arizona. Such parks are Oasis Water Park, Golfland SunSplash (in Mesa), Waterworld Safari (in Glendale) and Big Surf (in Tempe). For those who aren’t satisfied by the water slides there is also an amusement park in Phoenix, the Castles N' Coasters. Several roller coasters are running all day long to serve those who are looking for an adrenaline rush.
Not only this type of parks are in and near Phoenix. You can also visit one of the six parks established to preserve the unique plants and sight, which can only be found in the desert area. These parks include South Mountain Park, Camelback Mountain, Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park and Sunnyslope Mountain. The South Mountain Park is the largest municipal park in the world spreading on an area of 16,500 acres. A tourists must is the Papago Park which is one of the 30 Phoenix Points of Pride. This is the home of the Desert Botanical Garden and the Phoenix Zoo. In addition, several golf courses can be visited here.
Even if you’re not so into active leisure you can find other events and places you surely will love. In Scottsdale and downtown area of Phoenix, several performing arts venues can be found. Such venues are the Phoenix Symphony Hall, the Orpheum Theater, the US Airways Center and the Jobing.com Arena. The Arizona Opera and the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera are regular performers in these venues. In addition, numerous concerts are held in these venues during a year. If you are looking for Native American arts, you can find a quality collection in the Heard Museum. You will also find interesting and unique expositions and collections in this museum, which attracts nearly 300,000 visitors each year. Hopi kachina dolls, contemporary jewelry and a life-size Navajo Hogan are also among the museums features. You can spend your night in one of the restaurants or clubs that are concentrated in the Central Avenue.
The attractions the city has are a guarantee that you will enjoy every moment you spend in this large-scale oasis in the heart of the desert.
