Off the Strip: Fun & Games >>

• BEST PLACE TO PLAY POKER WITHOUT LOSING YOUR SHIRT
  Horse & Hound
  The only thing that keeps us away from a poker table is our serious and committed relationship with money. (Well, that and a large man with a concealed weapons permit who really hates losing.) Lucky for us, we found the Horse & Hound on a Saturday night, where two free poker tournaments -- run... More >>
• BEST TEXAS HOLD 'EM
  Casino Arizona's Talking Stick Poker Room
  Other casinos might throw a gimmick or two your way to get you through the door for a poker tournament, but none offers the action you'll find at Talking Stick, home to the best cash players in the Valley. With 45 tables of nonstop poker (most tables offer Texas Hold 'Em, but you'll also find... More >>
• BEST OFF-TRACK BETTING
  Gallagher's Food & Fun
  For Valley urbanites who think dog tracks like Turf Paradise are just too doggone far away, there's an abundance of off-track-betting sites scattered across our sprawl. These havens for bombastic betting behavior are usually found inside assorted sports bars and taverns and allow wagering on... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO PONY UP
  Turf Paradise
  Take a break from the strip malls, the freeways, the dog eat dog of the real world, and break for the ponies. Few things in life are as satisfying as leaning against the fence at the finish line, nursing a drink and looking left to catch the first glimpse of the pack coming home. If your horse... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO FIND COLLEGE KIDS PLAYING HIDE-AND-SEEK
  Wal-Mart Supercenter Store #2768
  Sometimes college students need to just let loose, get a little crazy and occasionally get escorted out of a building after a bit of debauchery. Spending your nights on Mill Avenue can get old. The real place to catch raucous 18- to 22-year-olds mid-shenanigans is at Wal-Mart. By midnight, at... More >>
• BEST SLIDE
  Rustler's Rooste
  Face it: Steak houses can be pretty bland. The menu of most typical wood-paneled, sawdust-on-the-floor family restaurants can easily be replicated on the grill at home if you know your way around a kitchen. But throw in a giant steel slide that propels you into the dining room at relatively... More >>
• BEST WAY TO SCORE A HO WITHOUT CATCHING VD
  Hookers . . . on Van Buren
  It's late on a Saturday night in the PHX. You've just downed a dozen Seven and Sevens at the strip club Band Aids. There's a $20 bill left in your wallet, and before you know it, you're rollin' down Van Buren, checking the ho stroll for a 10-minute GFE (Girl Friend Experience). Don't do it, bro!... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO DRINK AND THEN DRIVE
  GameWorks
  Shhh! Don't tell. The other night we went for a little spin while seriously soused. With our bloodstream filled with more booze than John Q. Law permits, we hopped into a souped-up streetcar and set out broadsiding Caddies and crashing through cinderblocks on a private path of destruction. Don't... More >>
• BEST CHEAP THRILL
  Bobby's Rock Trail, Echo Canyon Recreation Area
  There are few breathtaking views in town to be had as easily as the one from Echo Canyon. Around here, getting high enough up a mountain to get a panoramic view tends to involve hiking for miles, purchasing a $12 cocktail, or even finding a sugar daddy. (How else are you going to buy that manse... More >>
• BEST NOT-SO-CHEAP THRILL
  The Phoenician
  The palm trees that stand dramatically at attention along the entrance to this posh resort should give you some clue: Nothing about this place is going to be subtle. Or even quietly luxurious (except perhaps in the meditation room of the spa). The Phoenician is shiny and rich, a paean to the... More >>
• BEST FUNKY WEEKEND GETAWAY
  Francisco Grande Resort
  With an $8 million overhaul, the main tower of the Francisco Grande Resort has been returned to its swingin' modernist splendor, circa 1961. Once the haunt of the likes of John Wayne and Willie Mays, Francisco Grande, about 40 miles south of Phoenix, went through several decades of slow decay... More >>
• BEST BOUTIQUE HOTEL
  Sanctuary Camelback Mountain
  We've learned the hard way that boutique hotel does not always equal luxury hotel. Don't be sucked in by a fancy lobby and a ritzy bar -- it doesn't mean your room will be up to par. When we're looking for luxury in an intimate setting, we head up the mountain to Sanctuary, which offers a great... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO HIDE IN YOUR HOTEL ROOM
  Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North
  The Valley's own Four Seasons is perhaps best known for its location, snuggled up against Pinnacle Peak, with beautiful views of the landscape, the perfect home base for a serious hike. But if you're serious about relaxing, this is also the place for you. We recently checked in and checked out... More >>
• BEST SPA
  Camelback Inn
  Every year, we try new spas in this town (it's hard to keep up with the craze), and every year, we rush back to the comforts of the spa at the Camelback Inn. From the thick white robes to the cushy pool chaises, we're relaxed and happy, sipping the spa's signature tea, swiping on its own special... More >>
• BEST SPA FOR MEN
  Willow Stream at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess
  The male staffers -- excuse us, "experience coordinators" -- at the five-diamond Fairmont's elegant Willow Stream spa are pleased as prickly pear punch when another guy shows up to check out the 44,000-square-foot multilevel pampering place. Willow Stream was recently essayed in the New York... More >>
• BEST RESORT POOL
  Hyatt Regency Scottsdale at Gainey Ranch
  The best resort pools are the wet dreams you can still sneak into without springing for a room card key; where a casual flip of a wrought-iron fence latch and a confident "been here since Thursday" attitude is enough to keep security from tapping you on the shoulder, even if you have just... More >>
• BEST ROOFTOP POOL
  The San Carlos Hotel
  Sipping chilled martinis poolside, draped across a whitewashed deck chair, the breezy air whispering over you as beads of sweat gather beneath the rim of a shady sun hat, you stir. Squint a little and, because you're at the San Carlos Hotel, you can almost imagine Mae West basking beside you.... More >>
• BEST COMPETITIVE POOL
  Mona Plummer Aquatic Center at Arizona State University
  If knocking down 3,000 meters an hour sounds like fun, then this is the pool where you'll want to do your flip turns. The outdoor facility features a very fast eight-lane, 50-meter Olympic pool that is 25 yards wide, allowing for both short-course and long-course training. The six-foot-deep pool... More >>
• BEST POOL SHAPED LIKE A BONE
  Applewood Pet Resort
  Here in the Best of Phoenix, we won't tell you where to get a boob job or a nose job; we don't even want to recommend our favorite tattoo artist. And we certainly won't tell you where to board your best friend, man. But we do feel comfortable saying that Applewood Pet Resort has the coolest pool... More >>
• BEST DOG PARK, NORTH PHOENIX
  North side of East Paradise Lane, between 58th and 60th streets
  A dog's version of the Holy Grail, or should we say Growl, this greenbelt oasis provides canines of all shapes and sizes a sweet outdoor locale to sniff and be sniffed. At sunrise and sunset, the pups (and, alas, their owners) convene on what sometimes serves as a soccer field for the daily meet... More >>
• BEST DOG PARK, WEST VALLEY
  Foothills Park
  Located next to the Foothills Library parking lot, this gated, "leash-optional" dog park draws people and pups of every persuasion, and it's not unusual to see Great Danes and dachshunds romping together. The park includes ramps, a watering area, and random toys scattered throughout the grass,... More >>
• BEST DOG PARK, TEMPE
  Mitchell Park
  We're fashionable folk, but even we need to dress up to visit Tempe's favorite dog park. The leash-free zone is a hipster haven. These scenesters may look pissed off when you see them at a coffee shop or an art gallery, but they are still good mommies and daddies to their cute wittle puppies.... More >>
• BEST DOG PARK, SCOTTSDALE
  Horizon Park
  Horizon Park is small -- just two-thirds of an acre -- compared to other Valley dog parks, but what it lacks in space, it makes up in amenities (this is north Scottsdale, after all). You and Bowser will find a large, shaded area, as well as a special dust-control feature that allows you -- with... More >>
• BEST DOG PARK, SOUTHEAST VALLEY
  Quail Run Park
  We should really give this puppy hangout "Best Name for a Dog Park" because we bet if there are any quail in the vicinity, they certainly do run fast, to escape Rover. The off-leash doggy portion of this Mesa park is more than three acres, completely fenced and featuring benches, water fountains... More >>
• BEST HISTORY LESSON CLEVERLY DISGUISED AS A PARK
  Steele Indian School Park
  A surprisingly big city park at the intersection of Central Avenue and Indian School Road, four-year-old Steele Indian School Park has a little something for everyone: swings for the kids, a lake with trout and bass for anglers, and a very cool spiral of a garden for quiet reflection. But the... More >>
• BEST PARK FOR ICE BLOCKING
  Freestone Park
  If you're unfamiliar with the quasi-sport of ice blocking -- the act of locating a steep hill, plopping your bum down on a big block of ice and getting a push from a friend in order to bobsled silly down a grassy hill -- you really haven't lived. Or maybe you are actually sane. Epic ice-blocking... More >>
• BEST BIKE SHOP
  Domenic's Cycling
  Wouldn't you know it? Turn your back for one minute, and some mysterious bicycle bandit has snatched the phat beach cruiser you use to get around town. Looks like you're gonna have to beat feet down to Domenic Malvestuto's Mill Avenue bike business to score a new ride. Willing to drop a couple... More >>
• BEST SKATEBOARD SHOP
  Pulse Boardshop
  Pulse, which this summer celebrated its first anniversary in what owner Erik Beckmann predicts will be the Valley's next extreme-sports mecca -- Goodyear ("It's blowin' up out here!" he says) -- strikes the perfect medium between the hard-core street cred of Cowtown and the board-park mom... More >>
• BEST OLD-SCHOOL SKATEBOARD PARK
  Chandler Skatepark
  The city's outdoor skate parks have become a battlefield of sorts between young and old skateboarders and even BMX bike riders, who all want to claim the turf as their own. One thing they all seem in agreement on is that the sprawling concrete playground occupying a corner of the Snedigar... More >>
• BEST NEW SKATEBOARD PARK
  Tempe Sports Complex Skate Park
  While Tempe's city government was very late to acknowledge its local skating scene, it delivered a winner with this new park, which opened in February. Area skaters are raving about the street-oriented course, saying it is by far the best in the state. Spread across 26,000 square feet, the... More >>
• BEST INDOOR SKATEBOARD PARK
  Phoenix Skatepark
  Skateboarding might not be a crime, but those damn punks seem to always find ways to get busted. Thankfully, Phoenix has the state's only indoor park at Metrocenter, where kids can skate 40 hours a week for less than the cost of a trespassing citation. To shred through Phoenix Skatepark's 36,000... More >>
• BEST PAINTBALL PARK
  Westworld Xtreme Pursuit Paintball Adventures
  Many of the Valley's outdoor paintball parks look like glorified junkyards, littered with precisely the kind of old industrial waste barrels and weathered wooden fortresses your mother would've warned you not to play on -- which, of course, is part of the appeal. But at Westworld's indoor Xtreme... More >>
• BEST UNOFFICIAL PAINTBALL PARK
  Jomax Drive, west of Cave Creek Road, Phoenix
  The dedicated pay-to-spray parks around the city all offer their own unique charms, bunkers and hiding spots. But these days the serious splatter-junkies stock up on their own paintball guns, paint, air and wear, and head out north of Phoenix on Cave Creek Road until just beyond the canal... More >>
• BEST BOWLING
  Saturday Night Live Monthly League
  The operative word here is "monthly." While there are a few ringers and rabid pinheads lurking about with their death-head balls and pro-style gear, the demographic of this nifty league tends toward amateur to midlevel bowlers with little time to spare. (Speaking of sparing, we recently... More >>
• BEST COSMIC BOWLING
  AMF Frontier Lanes
  Got a few hours to kill before your fave Scottsdale danceteria opens? Join your pin pals for a few frames of Cosmic Bowling (a.k.a. Xtreme Bowling) at the nearby Frontier Lanes, before trying to talk your way past the doorman at CBNC. Although many Valley alleys have been lowering their lights... More >>
• BEST GO-KARTS
  Speedway Raceway
  It'll cost you about $1,200 a day to get your speed fix driving race-ready Corvette C5s out at Bob Bondurant's School of High Performance Driving. For most of us, that just ain't gonna happen, particularly on any regular basis. For us, there's Speedway Raceway, where racing is so intelligently... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO DRIVE FAST AND FURIOUS
  Speedworld Raceway Park
  Crotch rockets. Imports with supercharged engines, injected with nitrous oxide for extra speed. Tricked-out Mustangs that are all show and no go. Hoochie-mamas that can do a neck roll to beat Mr. Fantastic. Fly bitches that'll make you drool like a fool. These are just some of the sights you'll... More >>
• BEST MOTORCYCLE RIDE
  Phoenix to Prescott via Wickenburg
  The first 40 miles on U.S. 60 are nondescript desert. Flat, but with not a lot of traffic -- given the sparse population in these parts, you should be able to get through this in a half-hour or less. A few miles past Wickenburg, things get interesting as you begin the ascent to 5,200 feet on... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO RIDE YOUR MOTORCYCLE REALLY, REALLY FAST
  State Highway 238 between Maricopa and Sonoran Desert National Monument
  Carbon buildups are bad, and downright dangerous for the modern exhaust system. In the interests of safety and proper maintenance, the conscientious motorcycle rider must occasionally remove small carbon deposits before they have a chance to become big ones. And there's only one way to blow... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO CATCH A WAVE
  Big Surf
  Of the Valley's three water parks, all owned by the Mesa-based Golfland Entertainment Centers, only Big Surf offers a wave pool where you can actually ride the waves -- and even then, the only spot the curls break strong enough to carry your rental raft all the way in to shore is at the... More >>
• BEST MINIATURE GOLF
  Golfland/Sunsplash
  Sandwiched between the barreling tube slides of the entertainment complex's water park and its oddly secluded bumper boat lagoon, the mini golf course at Golfland/Sunsplash wins points for funneling the park's fascination with H2O throughout the typically hot, hot, hot putt-putt setting. It... More >>
• BEST QUICKIE GOLF COURSE FOR DOWNTOWN WORKERS
  Encanto 9-Hole Golf Course
  So you're sick of the grind -- the tough morning commute, the uptight boss, the boring gig. And you like to whack the little white ball around now and then. Then why wait for the weekend, when there's so many other things facing you? The Encanto courses may not be as challenging or as beautiful... More >>
• BEST MUNICIPAL GOLF COURSE
  Bear Creek Golf Course
  A good city golf course must have open arms to all ages, skill levels and pocketbooks. And if it's a city course in a course-saturated and golf-crazy place like the Valley, it needs to offer good golf, too. Bear Creek in south Chandler fits both bills. Besides offering good golf at a great... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC GOLF COURSE
  Gold Canyon Golf Resort's Dinosaur Course
  On the Dinosaur Course at Gold Canyon Golf Resort, central Arizona's most spectacular mountains are on full display as you play one of Arizona's most impressive golf courses. Nowhere else do you feel like you're getting the vistas you'd find on a long, challenging hike when you're actually in a... More >>
• BEST GOLF WEEKEND GETAWAY
  Apache Stronghold
  Apache Stronghold remains Golfweek magazine's top golf course in Arizona. This is heady stuff, and certainly debatable. Better than Troon North? The Boulders? Grayhawk? That's like saying Ferrari is better than Lamborghini. It's more a matter of taste than quality. But for a weekend golf... More >>
• BEST THING TO HAPPEN TO GOLF SINCE THE CREATION OF THE 19TH HOLE
  BlueBallSports' "Putt-Her"
  Chris Wehrle and his mom, Candy Phelps, are at the top of our "Wish I'd Thought of That" list, thanks to their Putt-Her golf club, which is flying out of pro shops across the land. The Putt-Her, like those old stag-party ballpoint pens, displays a bikini-clad woman when you tip it over. Although... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO PLAY TENNIS
  Scottsdale Athletic Club
  Serious racqueteers are unanimous in their praise of the Scottsdale Athletic Club. The enterprise began decades ago as the Scottsdale Tennis Club and over the years has evolved into a full-fledged tennis, fitness and dining/banquet facility. The club's pride and joy are its 11 immaculate courts,... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO CLIMB THE WALLS
  Phoenix Rock Gym
  Phoenix Rock Gym's personable owner Paul "Dief" Diefenderfer has been scaling the big buttes around Arizona for 30 years -- he favors Pinnacle Peak and the giant domes of Cochise Stronghold near Tucson -- and he designed his indoor rock gym, now situated just across from the APS power plant on... More >>
• BEST DAY HIKE
  Lost Goldmine Trail
  Perhaps because of its proximity to the hugely popular -- and stunning -- Peralta trailhead, this newish (c. 2001) trail seldom gets its props as one of the Valley's best. Don't make the same mistake. A 10-mile trek along the edge of the Superstitions, the Lost Goldmine Trail brings a hiker... More >>
• BEST KILLER HIKE
  Reavis Ranch Trail
  There are 170 miles of trails through the Superstition Mountains, which, by far, give hikers the most intense Sonoran Desert experiences within an hour of Phoenix. One of the longest, meanest and most rewarding hikes in the Superstitions begins at the Reavis Ranch Trailhead. From this... More >>
• BEST SHABBY CHIC HIKE
  Papago Park
  Most people would stop at "shabby" when describing Papago Park, but we think it's one of the coolest and most underutilized hiking areas in the Valley. Yes, the Phoenix city park is something of a faded dowager; yes, it's trashy; yes, the pea-green muckhole generously termed a pond looks as if... More >>
• BEST HIKE FOR THE FAMILY
  South Mountain Park's Telegraph Pass Trail
  Within a mile of all sorts of fast-food restaurants in Ahwatukee, you and the kids can set off on the Telegraph Pass Trail and quickly feel like you've left civilization. This one-and-a-half-mile trail offers fantastic views of the Valley as well as gorgeous desert flora and fauna, rugged... More >>
• BEST FALL DAY TRIP FOR THE FAMILY
  Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park
  Boyce Thompson Arboretum is gorgeous and deeply informative any time of the year. But only in fall, as you walk the 1.5-mile path through the steep-walled Queen Creek Canyon, do you pass through hundreds of different tree species from ecosystems around the world changing colors together. It's a... More >>
• BEST SPRING DAY TRIP FOR THE FAMILY
  Picacho Peak State Park
  Late February and early March is wildflower season in Arizona, something many locals had forgotten until the rains returned last winter, bringing the desert's incredible flowers this past spring. One of the most spectacular shows of color, and one of the most easily accessed, is Picacho Peak... More >>
• BEST DRIVE BACK IN TIME
  The Apache Circle Route
  The narrow, serpentine Apache Trail cuts through deserts, around mountains, near cliff dwellings, along the shores of three lakes dammed up along the Salt River, past active copper-mining towns, and through beautifully eroded canyons. It's easy to see why this gorgeous 120-mile route has been a... More >>
• BEST DRIVE TO SEE WILDFLOWERS
  Florence Junction to Oracle; San Manuel to Superior
  This wonderful day trip cuts through segments of spectacular cactus forest vistas interspersed with old copper-mining towns and steep mountain grades. The route is a favorite for motorcyclists and convertibles, with some choice camping and picnicking spots scattered along the way, and a couple... More >>
• BEST WAY TO GET YOUR KIDS OFF THEIR BUTTS
  Racelab Jr.
  This is what P.E. was meant to be: stretching, training for races, and -- get this -- having fun. Some of the kids we've seen running around at the two parks where Racelab operates aren't in the best of shape. But they're getting there, and seem to be having such a good time that they forget... More >>
• BEST WAY TO TEACH YOUR KIDS TABLE MANNERS
  Table Graces at Bravo Bistro
  Kids will be kids, but do they have to have lousy table manners, too? Not according to Katie Hamati and Kim Frampton, founders and teachers of this hands-on, interactive class on proper table etiquette. Table Graces teaches Johnny and Janey (and perhaps their manners-impaired parents as well)... More >>
• BEST WEEKEND SCENE FOR TEENS
  Desert Ridge Marketplace
  Every weekend night, a sea of teenage boys and girls makes its pilgrimage to this user-friendly outdoor mall. There, in what the mallsters call The District, the teens engage in the north Valley equivalent of the Mexican paseo, strolling around and around the outdoor heart of the mall to see and... More >>
• BEST ENTERTAINMENT FOR KIDS, STRINGS ATTACHED
  Great Arizona Puppet Theater
  We all know that the mass media dangle the strings of our little ones' minds -- must we utter the word Barney to make our point? But there are alternatives to the onslaught, and they're fun ones. Since 1983, the nonprofit Great Arizona Puppet Theater has been thrilling young audiences all over... More >>
• BEST WAY TO COAX A KID INTO A HOT CAR
  Cold Seat
  We have to admit that we thought this was one of the dumbest inventions we'd ever heard of -- 'til a hot August afternoon when we scorched little thighs with seat belts, trying to coax our toddlers into the car, and thought, "Gee, why don't we have a Cold Seat or two?" Shari Griffin was tired of... More >>
• BEST STARBUCKS FOR SIGHTING SPORTS CELEBRITIES
  Starbucks
  We're not easily impressed. We're saying, we've seen our share of celebrity homies in this sun-baked metropolis: Alice Cooper, Glen Campbell. The list is, um, endless. But we've never seen either of them early in the morning, much less in the same place. And, before a year or two ago, we had... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SEE A DEFROCKED PEDOPHILE PRIEST CONSORT WITH JERRY COLANGELO
  The Phoenix Suns' Ring of Honor
  We almost choked on our popcorn last March 18 when, during halftime of a Phoenix Suns game, we spotted Monsignor Dale Fushek, once second in command of the Phoenix Roman Catholic Diocese, sitting alongside Jerry Colangelo and a score of other sports celebs as late legendary Suns coach Cotton... More >>
• BEST PRO SPORTS TEAM
  Phoenix Suns
  Let's see. Best sports team? Duh! Ladies and gentlemen, your Phoenix Suns! With league MVP Steve Nash at the controls, the beast that is Amaré Stoudemire was unleashed, and Shawn Marion had a breakout season. Our very tall boys shattered the team NBA mark for three-pointers, with Quentin... More >>
• BEST PRO ATHLETE
  Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns
  He looks like your quirky disheveled cousin who's supposedly on the edge of making a big breakthrough in the software industry. But he's not. Instead, this Canadian import took the town and the NBA by storm last season en route to winning Most Valuable Player honors. Everyone in town knows that... More >>
• BEST SUNS-STROKE VICTIM
  Joe Johnson
  Now, we can certainly understand how a rich, young African-American celebrity would relish living in Blacklanta, the capital of Buppie America, but for Phoenix Suns shooting guard Joe Johnson to choose playing for the lowly Atlanta Hawks -- when he could get the same mega-money ($69 million and... More >>
• BEST COLLEGE ATHLETE
  Ike Diogu
  Ike Diogu won over untold fans during his three wonderful years as the best college basketball player in these parts (hey, now, Arizona Wildcats fans), and it wasn't just for his uncanny ability to stick a ball through a hoop. We liked Ike because he wasn't a suck-up or a stuck-up, but a put-up,... More >>
• BEST SUPERFAN
  Rattler Man
  By day, Richard Rodriguez is a mild-mannered airplane mechanic for Timco Aviation. After nightfall, however, the 50-year-old Phoenix resident transmogrifies into his sensational alter ego known as Rattler Man. If you're wondering just who this snake-themed superhero is, you're obviously not... More >>
• BEST SPORTS FACILITY
  Surprise Recreation Campus
  Stand out in the thick haze of dust on a patchwork Little League field in the Milwaukee Brewers' abandoned spring training facility in south Chandler, and you'll learn to appreciate just how cool the Surprise Recreation Campus really is. While East Valley suburbs such as Chandler lag behind in... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SEE A SPRING TRAINING GAME
  Peoria Sports Complex
  The Peoria Sports Complex is like a megaplex for baseball. Over here, you can watch Ichiro and the Seattle Mariners getting primed for the upcoming season. Over there, Khalil Greene and his Padres compadres are taking infield. And in most any direction, Padre and Mariner hopefuls are practicing... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SPOT SPRING TRAINING PLAYERS OFF THE FIELD
  Babe's Cabaret
  We conducted a wholly unscientific survey to determine the best place to spot baseball players in town for spring training. Of the three guys (and trust us, these are men in the know) we asked, each said the same thing, before the question was even complete: Babe's. We won't tell you who we've... More >>
• BEST PARK FOR PICKUP BASKETBALL,EAST SIDE
  Jaycee Park
  Less than a mile away from the concrete of downtown Tempe sits a seven-acre green neighborhood park -- and home to some serious rim-rocking pickup basketball. True, the courts at Jaycee Park are sparse (just two), but the competition is the real deal. On Thursday evenings, be prepared to wait 30... More >>
• BEST PARK FOR PICKUP BASKETBALL, WEST SIDE
  Encanto Park Sports Complex
  According to hometown ballers, the only basketball game in town -- even when the Suns are playing at home -- takes place on Sunday nights at Encanto Park. With the aged Veterans' Memorial Coliseum as the backdrop, play alongside the best local talent from the high school, college and... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO WATCH AMARÉ STOUDEMIRE PLAY FOR FREE
  Scottsdale Community College
  It's no secret that pro athletes love to get their recreational, off-season game on (sans paycheck) in the Valley. You'll frequently find NFL players like Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb and ex-Cardinal Simeon Rice hooping it up inside the student rec center at Arizona State... More >>
• BEST PLACE FOR PUTTIN' ON THE BLITZ
  Ritz-Carlton Hotel
  If you can stand to vacate your lucky armchair on Saturdays and Sundays, you'll be rewarded handsomely -- if not with a win by your favorite pro or college football team, then at least with a pigskin party fit for an MVP. The Ritz's Executive Football Club boasts three big-screen plasma TVs,... More >>
• BEST URBAN FISHING
  Encanto Lake
  Our out-of-state buddies love teasing us about how the only bodies of water we have around these parts are the various "fake lakes" dotting the arid local landscape. "Back where we come from, ponds don't need to be filled with recycled toilet water," they exclaim, before deluging us with their... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO DANCE WITH THE BUTTERFLIES
  Marshall Butterfly Pavilion, Desert Botanical Garden
  Every fall and spring, thousands of folks flutter over to this desert sanctuary to join the butterflies in an orgy of color and movement. Inside the pavilion, surrounded by native foliage and blooming wildflowers, the humans observe the butterflies in all their glory. Those really in the know... More >>
• BEST VIEW OF THE VALLEY
  I-10 eastbound Just past the I-17 interchange
  If you're motoring into Phoenix from Los Angeles after the mind-numbing negative space of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts -- or even just returning from a visit to the West Valley -- this perspective of downtown and uptown with the Phoenix Mountains and Camelback Mountain looming to the left is... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO FIND FUN AND GAMES
  Fun Services
  We love a parade, but we love a carnival even more -- you know, an old-fashioned, cheesy cake walk of a good time. But where to find the accouterment? We discovered rows of old cardboard boxes stuffed with carnival goods at Fun Services, an oddly named warehouse of a party store in Tempe. The... More >>