Things to do in Scottsdale
Top things to do in Scottsdale include Old Town Scottsdale, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, Old Town. Plan each day around one neighborhood to avoid backtracking, then add your dates to check opening hours and booking needs.
First visit? Start with these — and plan each day around one neighborhood:
- Old Town ScottsdaleWalkable historic core with galleries, boutiques, restaurants, public art, and nightlife clustered around Main Street and Scottsdale Road.
- Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art★ 4.3 · 1.2k reviewsCompact contemporary museum beside the Center for the Performing Arts, useful as an indoor anchor in hot weather.
- Old TownFirst-time base for galleries, restaurants, nightlife, museums, and walkable resort shuttles.
- Getting aroundOld Town is walkable, but Scottsdale as a whole is spread out.
By TripSapien Research · Updated May 20, 2026
About Scottsdale
City overview
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.
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.
What Scottsdale is best for
Scottsdale is best for nature, wellness, food, nightlife, and adventure.
- Typical budget
- Higher-end
Top sights
Ranked using weather, setting, ratings, and review volume.
- 1Taliesin West
- 2McDowell Sonoran Preserve
- 3Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West
- 4Pinnacle Peak Park
- 5Butterfly Wonderland
- 6Spring Training Baseball
1Taliesin West
4.6★ · 2,679Frank Lloyd Wright winter home and architecture campus at the foot of the McDowell Mountains.
Wikipedia
2McDowell Sonoran Preserve
4.8★ · 2,480Large desert preserve with saguaro-lined hiking and biking trails, best early in the day outside winter.
Wikipedia
3Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West
4.7★ · 1,478Museum focused on Western art, Native American material, cowboy culture, and regional history.
Wikipedia
Show 3 more sights
- 4Pinnacle Peak Park
- 5Butterfly Wonderland
- 6Spring Training Baseball
Neighborhoods
1Arts District
Main Street and Marshall Way galleries, Thursday art walks, public art, and dinner reservations.
2South Scottsdale
Lower-key local restaurants, breweries, and easier access to Tempe and Papago Park.
3McCormick Ranch
Golf, greenbelts, lakes, resort hotels, and a quieter mid-Scottsdale base.
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.
Planning a Scottsdale trip?
Add your dates and we'll check every place for closures, limited hours, and booking needs before you go.
Things to do in Scottsdale by month
Pick a month for weather, any sourced events, holidays or observances, and seasonal timing. November, February and March have the most comfortable weather (tagged below).
Common questions about Scottsdale
- Which neighborhoods should I explore in Scottsdale?
- Old Town, Arts District, South Scottsdale are useful starting points. Plan each day around one or two neighboring areas to avoid unnecessary backtracking.
- When is the best time to visit Scottsdale?
- November, February, March balance comfortable temperatures with fewer rainy days in Scottsdale.
- What is Scottsdale known for?
- Scottsdale is best for nature, wellness, food, nightlife, and adventure. For matched places, TripSapien checks available hours, closure signals, and booking links.
Ready to plan Scottsdale?
Turn everything above into a day-by-day Scottsdale plan, with every place checked for closures and booking needs on your dates.