Tucson,+AZ


 * Travel Tips for Tucson, AZ:**
 * Tucson Wikitravel Website:** []
 * Tucson Wikitravel Website:** []


 * Mike Summers - March 2011:**

Because of the current F9 flight schedule, Tucson needs to be at a minimum a one-night stay. Needless to say, that's not a bad thing when visiting Tucson. Here's a website for Tucson (Website: [] ) which is home of the University of Arizona (Websites: [] and [] ). I went with some friends for five days to watch the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Part of our group played golf. One course that they highly recommended was Arizona National Course (Websites: [] and [] ) which they said was fun and challenging. A second course that they played was El Rio, which is a municipal course (Website: [] ). You can Google the many other courses in Tucson. While our partners went golfing, three of us went to Tombstone, Arizona. Tombstone is about one and one-half hours southeast of Tucson (Tombstone Websites: [] and [] ). We visited the site of the "Gunfight at the OK Corral" (Websites: [] and [] ) and Boot Hill (Website: [] ). If time had allowed, we would have also checked out the Birdcage Theatre (Website: [] ) and one of the many mine tours nearby. We ate lunch at Big Nose Kate's Saloon in the downtown of Tombstone (Website: [] ), which offered above average food and a good attempt at an old west atmosphere. We also traveled another 30 minutes to Bisbee, Arizona (Websites: [] and [] ), which has numerous antique shops, bookstores, and art galleries. Stop by the Old Bisbee Brewing Company for some refreshment before heading back to Tucson (Website: [] ). On another day, we went on a roadtrip to Kitt Peak National Observatory, which is about a 75 minute drive west of Tucson. Here you see 24 different telescopes and visit 3 that are used by astronomers throughout the U.S. and world. I recommend taking a guided tour which begin at 10:00 AM, 11:30 AM, and 2:00 PM. Here's some websites: [] and [] to review before deciding to go. Other places to visit would include the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum (Website: [] ) and the Pima Air & Space Museum (Website: [] ). Check out the Boneyard while at Pima. In Tucson, I found two areas that have numerous good places to eat. One area is on University Blvd. just west of the University of Arizona campus between Park Avenue and Euclid Avenue (Map: [] ). I enjoyed the following restaurants: 1) No Anchovies Pizza (Website: [] ), 2) Wilko Wine Bar (Website: [] ), 3) Gentle Ben's Brewing Company (Website: [] ), 4) Frog & Firkin (Website: [] ) and 5) Auld Dubliner (Website: [] ). They all have food and drink specials and great atmospheres, but they are all a bit different. I'm sure one or more will suit your needs. In addition to this University Blvd. area, another great place to eat that is within walking distance from here (University Blvd) is Fourth Avenue. (A quick note: In Tucson they have both Streets that run east-west and Avenues that run north-south.) Fourth Avenue is about six blocks west from Euclid Street along University Blvd. Once you reach Fourth Avenue, turn south. It's easy to follow because there are trolley tracks down the middle of each street (Trolley Website: [] ) that you can ride on Friday's through Sunday's. Fourth Avenue has it's own website: []. It has numerous restaurants too. Here's a few that we tried: 1) Bison Witches Bar and Deli (Website: [] ), 2) Bumsteds (Website: [] ), 3) Magpies Gourmet Pizza (Website: [] ), 4) The B Line Restaurant (Website: [] ), and for coffee 5) Chocolate Iguana on 4th (Website: [] ). There's more places to eat and visit along with some live music venues. We managed to visit many since we were in Tucson for five days. Because of its arid climate, Tucson is not the prettiest city in the US, but I found it to be very enjoyable with many things to do. I wouldn't hesitate to visit it again. Enjoy! Mike Summers


 * Mike Summers - April 2017:**

We flew into Phoenix and drove south to Tucson, Arizona's second city. It's a laid back place with plenty of sunshine. A couple of essential stops would include El Charro Café. Founded in 1922. El Charro is the oldest Mexican restaurant in the United States and the self proclaimed home of the chimichanga. Their foot-long version gets a jolt from a chili enchilada sauce. In addition, you should try the enchiladas sonorenses too. These doughy masa disks are smothered with red chili sauce (El Charro Website: https://www.elcharrocafe.com/ ). A second must-visit stop would be Barrio Bread (Website: http://barriobread.com/ ). We'd recommend either spelt roll or the desert durum. Barrio will change the way you see the humble loaf. Now that you're thirsty, head over to the Dragoon Brewing Company (Website: http://www.dragoonbrewing.com/ ). The Whetstone Wheat was pretty good. They have almost a dozen beers on tap. If you want the best fry bread in Arizona, head to Indian Fry Bread Manna from Heaven (Website: https://www.facebook.com/IndianfryBreadMannaFromHeaven/ ). The cooks toss the dough into hot oil until it emerges crisp and flaky. Diners then add a crowning ladleful of meaty red or green chili or sweet toppings like honey or powdered sugar and cinnamon. One last stop would be the Pasco Kitchen and Lounge (Website: http://www.pascokitchen.com/ ) just west of the University campus. Come hungry and order the "Pasta de Tucson" a fettuccine crafted from white Sonora wheat that arrives flecked with chorizo and cotija. Chase it with a Father Kino!

Tucson is great!