Not everybody in their right mind wants to take a day trip to Tucson in July. But that’s just what we did and had a great time! No 100° day is going to cramp our style!
We celebrated Ryan’s 42nd birthday (I know!) with an ultimate Tucson day trip and here is what we did and what we thought about our activities.
Tucson is about two hours from our home north of Phoenix. A gas stop and/or bathroom trip is a good thing to plan on for the halfway mark. Which is around Casa Grande. Just so you know 😉 .
So after stopping to fill the car and well, you know, we were ready to resume our trip, driving another hour to stop number 1.
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
John and I lived in Tucson for a couple years beginning in 2008 and among our most treasured memories was our membership to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.
The museum is located on the west side of Tucson adjacent to the GORGEOUS Saguaro National Park.
Most of the museum is in an outdoor setting, so if you’re visiting in the summer (like we did) going early is best. They open at 7:30 a.m. so earlier is better.
This is the most unique “museum” I’ve ever visited. Because it’s part zoo, part geology display and part lovely desert gardens.
The animals, insects, reptiles, fish, gems are native to Arizona and the Sonora desert. The displays are lovely and the outdoor art is tasteful and charming.
You know I was instantly smitten when the first person I ran into was a docent with a tiny girl named Screechy. They were both friendly and posed nicely while I took a picture and asked a bunch of questions.
Many of the exhibits are kid-friendly, but the day we went we had almost the entire park to ourselves. Ryan was a very good sport in the bat cave and posed with the human-sized bat ears.
The bat cave was very, very dark, but I got as good a pic as I could of napping bats.
Can you see them?
The animals and gardens are my favorite parts. Unfortunately many of the animals were hidden away sleeping through the heat and some displays were being renovated.
But! The display with the mountain lion? It was all full of mountain lion. Who happened to be napping right next to the glass.
I have never been that close to a mountain lion before and it was so beautiful and captivating. We stayed and admired it and spoke to it for a long time. It was a very good sport.
The aquarium and gem displays are really lovely and very educational.
And if you ever wondered how many different rattlesnakes live in the region, they have an answer for you. And live snakes to prove it.
The Desert Museum offers free parking and a number of admission discounts. The best is to show your Arizona ID if you have one because there is a good residential fee.
Saguaro National Park
There are two districts of Saguaro National Park in Tucson and we visited the west side.
Tucson has enjoyed a much better monsoon season that we have further north. So right now, the desert is positively lush.
We live among lovely saguaros in our part of the desert, but the majesty in the national park is jaw dropping.
With temps over 100 degrees we didn’t get out and hike through the park, but the back road drive was stunning.
Sweet Tomatoes
We asked Ryan to choose a place to eat while we were in Tucson to celebrate his birthday. And he chose Sweet Tomatoes!
If you don’t know or can’t remember, Sweet Tomatoes was a salad bar restaurant chain that closed down during Covid.
Ryan really misses Sweet Tomatoes and he found there is ONE restaurant open in the world (?) and it’s in Tucson.
So lunch at Sweet Tomatoes, it was. That place was so busy, they need to strongly consider opening back up. Plus it was the most reasonably priced place we eaten at in a long time.
Pima Air & Space Museum
Sitting on 80 acres of outdoor displays and many indoor displays, the largest non-government air museum is in south Tucson and it’s impressive!
We have been a couple times, but Ryan had not so this was going to be the last leg of the ultimate Tucson day trip.
But, alas, we arrived 30 minutes after their last ticket sales and we were not allowed to enter. It was quite a disappointment, but a number of the planes can be seen from the street.
I am not one to name off every plane I see like John can, but I do know Airforce One when I see it. And you can see a very old one right from the main road in front of the museum.
We have been in that plane on a previous visit. It was used by JFK and LBJ and all it’s old-fashioned equipment is a hoot.
Wrap Up
Thank you for taking a jaunt down Interstate 10 for a great day trip.
What are your plans for this last week of July? Can you believe it?
As always, may our good Lord shine down brightly upon you and those your hold closely.