What are the top things to do in Scottsdale?

Old Town Scottsdale, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, Taliesin West, McDowell Sonoran Preserve, and more. Paste your own list into Tripsapien and it checks each place's hours, closures, and booking pressure for your exact dates.

Which neighborhoods should I explore in Scottsdale?

Old Town, Arts District, South Scottsdale, McCormick Ranch. Tripsapien groups your places by neighborhood so each day stays in one or two areas instead of zig-zagging.

When is the best time to visit Scottsdale?

November, February, March balance comfortable temperatures with fewer rainy days. Pick your month below to see that month's events, public holidays, and seasonal timing.

Will the places on my list be open when I'm in Scottsdale?

Tripsapien checks each place against the exact dates you're in Scottsdale and flags closures, limited hours, and sell-outs before the trip.

Scottsdale Arizona

Things to do in Scottsdale

By Tripsapien Research / Updated May 20, 2026

Scottsdale is the desert-resort edge of metro Phoenix, with Old Town galleries, Sonoran trailheads, spa hotels, spring-training baseball, and golf spread between walkable historic blocks and car-dependent resort districts. The best months are sharply seasonal: winter and spring are premium outdoor windows, while summer is an extreme-heat trip built around pools, early starts, and indoor backups.

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About Scottsdale

City overview

Food & drink

Scottsdale dining splits between resort restaurants, Sonoran and Mexican food, steakhouses, cocktail bars, health-conscious brunch spots, and polished Old Town dining rooms. Old Town works without a car for dinner, while North Scottsdale resorts and trailhead restaurants require rideshare or driving.

Top sights

Ranked for suitability using weather, setting, ratings, and review volume.

Map of Scottsdale with pinned top attractions (1 through 8)

1
Old Town Scottsdale
Walkable historic core with galleries, boutiques, restaurants, public art, and nightlife clustered around Main Street and Scottsdale Road.
2
Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art
4.3★ · 1,176
Compact contemporary museum beside the Center for the Performing Arts, useful as an indoor anchor in hot weather.
Wikipedia
3
Taliesin West
4.6★ · 2,679
Frank Lloyd Wright winter home and architecture campus at the foot of the McDowell Mountains.
Wikipedia

Show 5 more sights

4McDowell Sonoran Preserve
5Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West
6Pinnacle Peak Park
7Butterfly Wonderland
8Spring Training Baseball

Neighborhoods

1
Old Town
First-time base for galleries, restaurants, nightlife, museums, and walkable resort shuttles.
2
Arts District
Main Street and Marshall Way galleries, Thursday art walks, public art, and dinner reservations.
3
South Scottsdale
Lower-key local restaurants, breweries, and easier access to Tempe and Papago Park.
4
McCormick Ranch
Golf, greenbelts, lakes, resort hotels, and a quieter mid-Scottsdale base.
5
North Scottsdale
Luxury resorts, trailheads, golf, desert views, and car-first access to Pinnacle Peak and Taliesin West.
6
Kierland / Scottsdale Quarter
Shopping, dining, hotels, and nightlife near the Phoenix border.

Day trips

15km / 20 min by car
Desert Botanical Garden
Phoenix cactus garden with Sonoran desert plants, seasonal art installations, and Papago Park views.
70km / 1.5h by car
Apache Trail & Canyon Lake
Desert scenic drive with lake views, Superstition Mountain scenery, and old-stagecoach-road drama.
200km / 2.25h by car
Sedona
Red-rock hiking, galleries, and vortex-viewpoint day trip, best started early from Scottsdale.

Getting around

Old Town is walkable, but Scottsdale as a whole is spread out. Use a car or rideshare for resorts, trailheads, golf courses, Kierland, and day trips; in summer, avoid exposed trail time after mid-morning.