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Photo: Jöshua Barnett, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
More like Biosphere II than a walled institution, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is part zoo, part natural history museum and part botanical garden all in one Tucson attraction. From tarantulas to black bears, coyotes to scorpions, the museum-zoo is an entrancing and full-contact tribute to the Sonoran desert's wildlife (the wire fences are nearly invisible and the hummingbirds in the buzzing, walk-in aviary seem to think you are the attraction). Give yourself time to soak in the Southwest splendor and if time is all you have, the Museum is also on the fringes of Saguaro National Park, home to the world's largest forests of Saguaro cacti.
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is a 98-acre zoo, aquarium, botanical garden, natural history museum, publisher, and art gallery founded in 1952. Located just west of Tucson, Arizona, it features two miles (3.2 km) of walking paths traversing 21 acres of desert landscape. It is one of the most visited attractions in Southern Arizona.
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This minor mountain range to the southwest of the city has an excellent trail network for hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians. The park has many healthy stands of saguaros. The higher-elevation trails provide beautiful views, and are a popular place to photograph sunsets.
Ever notice that Hollywood's Old West, the backdrop for the gun-slinging and cryptic comments of Hollywood's Western icons – Wayne, Eastwood, Douglas and Newman – has much in common with the Wild West of today's Tombstone and Geronimo? They've all been filmed at the Old Tucson Studios, which were built in 1939 for the making of the William Holden film Arizona. Still an active film, TV and commercial set, it's also a nostalgia-themed park, with main drag shootouts, corseted can-can dancers, educational shows, pre-Prohibition saloons, restaurants, and gift shops.
An annual four-day event celebrating mariachi music and folklorico dance. International stars and local students alike give performances.
Museum that features more than 4000 artifacts on display from the old Pasqua tribe, displayed in a home built in 1926 and listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
A museum complex housed in a collection of historic adobe houses, this museum hosts exhibits of regional contemporary art, as well as the Arizona Biennial. Its permanent collection of Latin American and pre-Columbian art is particularly noteworthy. There is a well-stocked shop in the lobby that is open during museum hours.
The venue is part of the Tucson Convention Center, though it isn't Tucson's largest indoor arena (that would be the Arizona Wildcats' McKale Center). It hosts a number of events throughout the year including local events, concerts, Monster Truck shows, and circus performances. It has been the home for the Tucson Roadrunner American Hockey League (AHL) team.