Arizona Travel Guide

Arizona is a state in the American Southwest. It was the 48th State of the Union, admitted in 1912. To the west is California and Nevada, to the north is Utah, to the east is New Mexico, to the northeast is Colorado, and to the south is the Mexican state of Sonora. It is one of the Four Corners states.

The climate is typically dry, hot desert in the southern lowlands, and coniferous forest in the upcountry north and east. Summertime temperatures are routinely above 110 during the day in the desert, but much cooler in the higher elevations. Mild winters in the low country, but the upcountry gets cold and frequently receives snow.

When in the desert be sure to carry plenty of water. Dehydration happens surprisingly quickly, especially if you aren't accustomed to the heat.

Arizona Travel Guide - Cities

* Phoenix
* Tucson
* Mesa
* Tempe
* Flagstaff
* Scottsdale
* Sedona
* Prescott
* Payson
* Tombstone
* Nogales
* Yuma
* Blue
* Wikieup

Arizona Travel Guide - Destinations

* Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest
* Canyon de Chelly National Monument
* Casa Grande Ruins National Monument
* Chiricahua National Monument
* Four Corners Monument
* Glen Canyon National Recreation Area
* Grand Canyon National Park
* Lake Mead National Recreation Area
* Mogollon Rim
* Montezuma Castle National Monument
* Monument Valley
* Mount Humphries -- San Francisco Peaks
* Natural Bridge State Park
* Navajo Nation
* Navajo National Monument
* Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument
* Painted Desert
* Parashant National Monument
* Petrified Forest National Park
* Pipe Springs National Monument
* Saguaro National Park
* Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
* Tonto National Forest
* White Mountains
* Wupatki National Monument -- ruins
* Mount Lemmon
* Coronado National Forest

Regions

* Southeast Arizona's Sky Islands
* Greater Phoenix
* Northern Arizona including Grand Canyon and the "Arizona Strip"
* South Central Arizona
* Western Arizona

Arizona State Guide - Transportation

Highways

Main interstate routes include I-17, and I-19 running north-south, I-40, I-8, and I-10 running east-west, and a short stretch of I-15 running NE/SW through the extreme NW corner of the state.

Phoenix

Phoenix is served by a network of freeways, many of which were initiated by a ½ cent general sales tax measure approved by voters in 1985. Before this network, I-10 and I-17 handled almost all freeway traffic in Phoenix, placing a large burden on surface arterial streets, leading to increased traffic congestion as the area grew in size.

I-10 (the Maricopa and Papago Freeways) from Los Angeles travels from the west through downtown, and exits the metro area in a southeast direction toward Tucson. I-17 (the Black Canyon Freeway) begins in downtown Phoenix and travels north to Flagstaff. US 60 also travels through the heart of the city, starting in downtown Phoenix, and heading northwest through the suburbs of Glendale, Peoria, and Surprise. To the east, it is called the Superstition Freeway, and from its beginning in Tempe, travels eastward towards Mesa, Gilbert, and Apache Junction, and beyond. State Route Loop 101 (called the Agua Fria, Price, or Pima Freeway, depending on the segment) is also a major highway that forms a semicircle around the northern suburbs of the city, starting from I-10 in the west and travelling around to the Santan portion of Loop 202 in the southeast.

The new freeways started after the 1985 sales tax approval are: Arizona 51, Loop 101, Arizona 143 (the Hohokam Expressway), Arizona 153 (the Sky Harbor Expressway), Loop 202 (the Red Mountain and Santan Freeways), and Loop 303 (the Estrella Freeway), and the final section of I-10. Most of these have been completed by 2005, with Loop 202 and Loop 303 being in the final stages of construction and development.

Arizona 51 (the Piestewa Freeway) connects downtown and central Phoenix with north Phoenix and Paradise Valley, and connects with the aforementioned Loop 101 at its northern end. Two-thirds of this route was opened in 1999 and the remainder in 2003. It had been known as the Squaw Peak Parkway (for a nearby mountain), but this name was considered offensive to those in the Native American community. Both the road and the mountain were re-named in the spring of 2003 for US Army Pfc. Lori Piestewa, a member of the Hopi tribe, the first woman to die in combat during the current Iraq War and the first Native American woman to die in combat while in the US Army.

As recently as 1959, many roads such as State Highway 87, the Beeline Highway between Phoenix and the small community of Payson in Gila County, were unpaved.

Tucson

The Tucson metropolitan area is primarily served by I-10, I-19 and Arizona 77. I-19 departs from I-10 in the southern part of Tucson, runs through southern Tucson (including an exit serving the historic Mission San Xavier) and the retirement community of Green Valley and terminates in Nogales, in Santa Cruz County, at the international border with Mexico. Destination signs on I-19 have metric distance figures in kilometers instead of standard miles. Arizona 77 serves North Tucson and Tucson's northern suburbs including Casas Adobes, Catalina Foothills, Oro Valley, and Catalina. Arizona 77 continues northward until it terminates at the Navajo Indian Reservation in northeastern Arizona.

State Route 210 (Barraza-Aviation Parkway) is a limited-access parkway built in the early 1990s to connect downtown Tucson to the southeastern portion of the city. Few new limited-access roads are in the plans in Tucson due to strong community opposition to freeways.

Yuma, Flagstaff & Casa Grande

Yuma and Casa Grande are served by I-8; Flagstaff is served by I-17 and I-40. US Highway 95 parallels the Colorado River, from Las Vegas to the Mexican border near Yuma.

Historic U.S. Route 66, a major route for Midwestern emigrants prior to the advent of the interstate highway system, traversed the northern part of the state, passing through Flagstaff and Kingman. Route 66 in Arizona closely followed the route of what is now Interstate 40 except for an 88 mile stretch between Seligman and Kingman now known as Arizona State Highway 66, where the route veered to the north passing through Peach Springs.

Public transportation and intercity bus

The Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas are served by public bus transit systems. Yuma and Flagstaff also have public bus systems. Greyhound Lines serves Phoenix, Tucson, Flagstaff, Yuma, and several smaller communities statewide.

A light rail system is currently being built in Phoenix. When completed, it will connect Central Phoenix with the nearby cities of Mesa and Tempe. The system is projected to be operational by December of 2008.

In May 2006, voters in Tucson approved a Regional Transportation Plan (a comprehensive bus transit/streetcar/roadway improvement program), and its funding via a new half-cent sales tax increment. The centerpiece of the plan is a light rail streetcar system that will connect the main University of Arizona campus with the Rio Nuevo master plan area on the western edge of downtown.

Aviation

Airports with regularly scheduled commercial flights include: Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (IATA: PHX, ICAO: KPHX) in Phoenix (the largest airport and the major international airport in the state); Tucson International Airport (IATA: TUS, ICAO: KTUS) in Tucson; Yuma International Airport (IATA: YUM, ICAO: KYUM) in Yuma; Prescott Municipal Airport (PRC) in Prescott; and Flagstaff Pulliam Airport (IATA: FLG, ICAO: KFLG) in Flagstaff.

Other significant airports without regularly scheduled commercial flights include Williams Gateway Airport (IWA) in Mesa, and Scottsdale Municipal Airport (IATA: SCF, ICAO: KSDL) in Scottsdale.

Article Source: Wikipedia