Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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In Scottsdale, you can ride the
Scottsdale Trolley
(
&
480/421-1004;
www.scottsdale
trolley.com) shuttle buses between Scottsdale Fashion Square, the Fifth Avenue shops,
the Main Street Arts district, and the Old Town district. These buses run daily from
11am to 9pm, with service every 10 minutes. Between mid-January and mid-April, free
shuttles serve many of the area's resorts, including, among others, Camelback Inn, Sanc-
tuary on Camelback, InterContinental Montelucia Resort & Spa, and Renaissance
Scottsdale Resort. These trolleys operate daily from 9am to 6pm, with service every 30
minutes, and will take you to Scottsdale Fashion Square. From there you can take the
Scottsdale Trolley to other shopping districts.
The area's most useful public-transit alternative is Valley Metro's
METRO light-rail
system,
which runs along Central Avenue, through downtown Phoenix, and east to
Tempe and Mesa. Attractions along or close to the line include the Heard Museum,
Phoenix Art Museum, Historic Heritage Square, Phoenix Museum of History, Arizona
Science Center, Pueblo Grande Museum and Archaeological Park, Desert Botanical
Garden, Phoenix Zoo, Hall of Flame Firefighting Museum, Tempe's Mill Avenue shop-
ping district, and the Arizona State University Art Museum. There is also a free airport
shuttle that connects the 44th Street/Washington Street stop to the airport. For more
information, contact Valley Metro (
&
602/253-5000;
www.valleymetro.org).
BY TAXI
Because distances in Phoenix are so great, the price of an ordinary taxi ride can be quite
high. However, if you don't have your own wheels or you had too much to drink and the
bus isn't running because it's late at night or the weekend, you won't have any choice but
to call a cab.
Yellow Cab
(
&
602/252-5252;
www.aaayellowaz.com) charges $2.50 for
the first mile and $2 per mile thereafter.
Discount Cab
(
&
602/200-2000;
www.
discountcab.com) charges $2.95 for the first mile and $1.95 per mile after that.
FAST FACTS
The Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center, 1111 E. McDowell Rd., Phoenix (
&
602/
239-2000
), is one of the largest hospitals in the valley. For a doctor referral, call the Ban-
ner Health Physician & Resource Line (
&
602/230-2273
); for a dentist referral, call the
Dental Referral Service (
&
866/639-7444
).
State sales tax is 5.6% (plus variable local taxes, so expect to pay around 8%). Hotel
room taxes vary considerably by city but are mostly between 10% and 11%. The total taxes
and surcharges when renting a car at Sky Harbor Airport add up to more than 50%.
13
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WHERE TO STAY
The Phoenix area has the greatest concentration of resorts in the continental United
States. However, sunshine and spring training combine to make it hard to find a room
on short notice between February and April. If you're planning to visit during these
months, make your reservations as far in advance as possible. Also keep in mind that in
winter, the Phoenix metro area has some of the highest room rates in the country.
With the exception of valet-parking services and parking garages at downtown con-
vention hotels, parking is free at almost all Phoenix hotels. If there is a parking charge, I
have noted it. You'll find that all hotels have nonsmoking rooms and all but the cheapest
have wheelchair-accessible rooms.
