Phoenix / Scottsdale
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Little more than a desert frontier settlement just a century ago, Gay Phoenix has grown rapidly into one of the West’s most dynamic and exciting getaways. The city sits low in an arid valley surrounded by mountains and high desert - its once-rugged terrain having been replaced to a large degree by massive blocks of residential subdivisions, strip retail and office developments, and oasis-like golf and tennis resorts. The many slick and trendy dining, shopping, and gay nightclub options - coupled with the sunny dry climate and abundance of outdoors diversions - make this an increasingly popular lesbian and gay travel destination. This sprawling city has an amazingly dry climate - only the Sahara Desert is less humid than Phoenix’s Sonoran Desert. If you’re planning a trip here it’s important to consider how the different seasons can affect your stay - outdoorsy types should avoid the deathly hot summers, although May through September can be great months to score great bargains at Phoenix’s gay friendly hotels and there is air-conditioning virtually everywhere, so it’s rarely oppressive.
Adjacent to Phoenix, Scottsdale is an upscale resort town and shopping destination and America’s West at its finest. Sometimes called “a desert version of Miami’s South Beach” this desert oasis boasts popular nightlife, glamorous resorts and is a major art center for the metropolitan Phoenix area.
For more information on the HOT places to go, eat, stay and see in Phoenix, check out EDGE Phoenix, the city’s premier LGBT publication.
