Week in Scottsdale, Arizona

We had a very enjoyable vacation at the Scottsdale Camelback Resort. It’s located at the base of Camelback Mountain and is 20 minutes from the Phoenix airport. Our 2 bedroom 2 bath unit was very clean. There’s a living room with a southwestern style fireplace, TV, stereo system, and dining room. The master bedroom has a king sized bed with plenty of storage space and a TV. The master bath has a whirlpool tub, walk in shower, 2 sinks and toilet area with separate door. There’s toilet tissue and facial tissues supplied. The guest bedroom has 2 twin beds and TV and a separate bathroom with a tub and shower and 2 sinks. The kitchen has a washer dryer, dishwasher, full size refrigerator and stove, microwave and garbage disposal. There’s a weeks supply of dishwasher detergent, dish detergent and paper towels. There is free midweek cleaning and replacing of towels. A new sofa and loveseat were delivered while we were visiting.

We had a second floor unit with a patio with a table and 4 chairs with a nice view of Camelback Mountain. We would sit on the patio at night and see beautiful sunsets.

There is a good-sized swimming pool, spa and plenty of lounge chairs at the resort with very clean rest rooms. There’s a large children’s pool with a canopy to shade you from the sun. The pool’s open from 8am to 10pm. Towels are available in your unit. There’s a reasonably priced restaurant and bar adjacent to the pool. If you didn’t bring your laptop, there is a laptop in the restaurant you can use for free to access the Internet. It was available whenever we wanted to use it.

There’s an exercise room, game room, walking trails, tennis courts, putting green, and charcoal grills with picnic tables. A concierge is available and the front desk has directions to area attractions.
The staff was friendly and the resort is kept very clean. The units are non-smoking and no pets are allowed.

We enjoyed our stay and would highly recommend the Scottsdale Camelback Resort.

The Heard Museum in Phoenix is a beautiful extensive collection of Native American artifacts and artwork. The museum is open daily from 9:30am to 5pm Admission is $10 for adults and $3.00 for children 6 to 12. We took a one hour guided tour(included in the admission price). Tours are available at 1:30pm and 3pm and it was excellent! The guide was very knowledgeable and we learned things we wouldn’t have known on our own. We also watched a good video in the small theater.

The collection of Kachina Dolls donated by the late Senator Barry Goldwater is impressive. Some of the dolls are over 100 years old. The artwork, costumes and crafts in the Museum are amazing.

There is a hands on area for everyone to try beading, art, cutouts, etc.

There’s a terrific gift shop and the staff is very eager to answer any questions you might have. It was wonderful to see the detailed handicrafts. A café that serves lunch and dessert open from 9:30pm to 3pm.
No flash videos, lights or tripods are allowed in the museum.

It was a wonderful way to spend a day and learn about Native American culture.

The Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix is a beautiful 50-acre desert garden with paved walking trails. It’s very peaceful and educational. Some walkways are in the direct sun and some are in the shade and there are plenty of benches if you’d like to relax. It was very hot when we visited, but we were prepared with hats, sunscreen, and water.
There are 5 different trails to visit: Desert Discovery Trail, Sonoran Desert Nature Trail, Center for Desert Living Trail and Desert Wildflower Trail. If you want to learn about the desert plants and wildlife in the area, this is the place to go. We saw families of quails, roadrunners, squirrels, butterflies, hummingbirds, lizards, and a jackrabbit.
There’s a terrific gift shop open 9am to 5pm I purchased a lovely cactus garden in a decorated clay pot for a reasonable price and they packed it to travel and it’s doing very well. They also have soda and vending machines and an outdoor café that’s open 8am to 4pm that serves salads and sandwiches.
The Garden is open every day from 7am to 8pm during May to September and 8am to 8pm October to April. They’re closed July 4, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Admission is $10.00 for adults and $4.00 for children 3 to 12.
This is a beautiful relaxing place to spend some time and learn about the desert.