S'edav Va'aki, formerly Pueblo Grande Museum and archeological park, is a sacred ground with…read moreinformative and immersive exhibits. The overall museum, inside and outside, is relatively small, but it's truly a hidden gem to truly understand the history of the Sonoran Desert and rich culture of the O'Odham people. Admission prices are relatively cheap and are as follows: Adults (18-64): $13.00 Seniors (65 & ove​r): $10.00​ Students (with ID): $6.00 Children (6-17): $6.00 Children (​under 6): Free Museum Members: Free *Discounted Admission on Thursday evening (4 pm - 8 pm) Hours are dependent on month and are as follows: ​Regular Hours (September - June) Monday, Friday, Saturday: 9 am - 4 pm​ Thursday: 9 am - 8 pm Sunday: 12 pm - 4pm Tuesday - Wednesday: Closed Summer Hours (July and August) Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday: 9 am - 2 pm Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday: CLOSED Interpretive Mound Trail ​ Closes at 4:00 pm Closes at Twilight on Thursday evenings Museum Store Store Hours ​Vary.​​ ​Holida​y Closures New Years Day, Juneteenth,​ Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day,​​ and Christmas Day We explored the entire establishment, inside and out, but enjoyed the outdoor trails the most, as it provided the most immersive experience. We got to savor the temperate spring weather on a Saturday afternoon, entering a pit house and climibing onto a platform mound. Definitely recommend all visitors interested in museums, culture, or history to stop by while in Phoenix!​ For more information, visit the City of Phoenix's webpage on the museum: https://www.phoenix.gov/administration/departments/sedav-vaaki.html

This property is sacred ground. The Museum itself is small-ish, but the outdoor adobe structures…read moreand walking path are informative and educational. It's truly remarkable how folks managed to survive in the Arizona desert without the luxuries of running water, air conditioning, etc. High praise to the archeologists who have uncovered these adobe structures including the large public gathering place.

Did you know that the state of Arizona does not have a capitol building? But they do have a museum!…read moreThey only provide reserved guided tours via their website for parties of 10 or more but they do offer a free walk-in guided tour Monday, Wednesday, Friday at 2 PM. Make sure to arrive a few minutes early because finding the door to enter can be tricky. The guided tour was brief but enjoyable. We walked through about half a dozen exhibits/rooms and the guide was knowledgeable, informative, and humorous. I've been to other capitol buildings in other cities and found the content here to be more diverse than what I've experienced elsewhere. There's an exhibit on women's suffrage, Martin Luther King, World War II, etc. 1-1.5 hours would probably be sufficient if you don't plan to read every poster on every wall, otherwise if you're into that, definitely allow for closer to 3+ hours.

On Christmas Eve, I visited Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza. The Arizona Capitol Museum is located…read moreright across the street. Since I was there in the late afternoon/early evening, the museum had already closed. Luckily, a month and a half later, I returned to check it out with my mom. There's ample free parking in the surface lot across the street. Make sure you arrive early, because the museum closes at 2 p.m. If you like to explore museums to the fullest and read almost everything, it'll take you around 2 hours to fully explore as there are four floors to check out. And before I get deeper into it, here's another plus: admission is free. Upon checking in, you're given a brochure describing what's featured on every floor. The Arizona Capitol Museum consists of a bunch of various exhibits. I won't mention them all but some of the subjects include USS Arizona, buffalo soldiers, MLK, merci train, minerals in Arizona, the governor's room, a Jewish exhibit, Sandra Day O'Connor, and more. The diversity of the exhibits at the Capitol showcase different historical aspects of the state of Arizona and prominent figures in the history of the state. While it's not the most technologically advanced museum, it's definitely worth your time. The Capitol is air-conditioned and they also have a small cafe and a gift shop. I've been lucky enough to check out several state capitols, including the one in Austin and the one in Santa Fe. While Phoenix's isn't the most impressive of the bunch, it's well worth a visit. When you're the resident of a city, you tend to not explore all of the attractions that your hometown has to offer. I think it's important to not miss out on opportunities like these.

We visited the museum on a weekday morning. We enjoyed the displays of rocks from various parts of…read morethe earth, the Arizona-Mexican artifacts, and of course the dinosaurs, especially the aquatic dinosaurs. This museum has an active dinosaur fossil dig - you can watch and even talk to the paleontologist working on it! There's lots to see and enjoy here, including real elements from a jail that held prisoners from the 1830s to the 1970s!! The gift shop is reasonably priced and you can even purchase a "memory bag" filled with pencil, notebook eraser, etc, for only $2.50 each.

Paid $14 and only stayed about 40 minutes. There were multiple groups of school children that were…read morerunning around, screaming, jumping and bumping into everything. I expect that behavior to be tolerated at a children's museum, not a public museum where a basic level of respect and decorum is expected for EVERYONE inside. Wish I could say I enjoyed it but the hundreds of screaming children ruined any experience I could have had and left with a migraine. **Would appreciate museums to have specific days for "field trips" or hours for school days. Unfortunately many museum experiences are ruined due to the behavior of unruly children, and I'm still the one paying full price.

First of all this is a free museum and packed with historical law enforcement memorabilia. We were…read moregreeted by some very informative staff members who spoke about the early times in Phoenix. They gave a on overview about what we were going to see then let us browse at our own pace. They then checked in with us to see if we had any questions. They had uniforms for my kids to try on, a motorcycle they could sit on and get pictures. They even had a helicopter from the 70's in there. At the end of our tour we went into the memorial room where the museum pays tribute to the officers and K9's who gave their lives to protect us. Very sobering exhibit. Of course there was a nice gift store. My kids received a goody bag of a coloring book, badge sticker, pencil and eraser and crayons. Nice touch! This small but informative museum is well worth your time. Thank you.

Great place to visit in downtown Phoenix! Lots of history and information. Fun to tour with friends…read moreand family!

Highly recommend a visit here…read more There are fire vehicles going back to the 1800s on display. The wagon wheels, engraved wood, embossed brass and stainless steel finishings on these vehicles were in themselves works of art. Even the hub caps of the wheels were intricately decorated. A ton of vintage fire fighting "vehicles" including a horse drawn fire vehicle. There are informational videos playing throughout this large museum and well-upholstered, beautiful chairs. The Hall of Flame is privately funded. The collection is IMMENSE.

Very well put together museum. Didn't know this place existed until one of my friends suggested to…read morego since we had a firefighter friend visiting us from Japan. I loved that all the vehicles in there are in working condition and the staff are retired firefighters. They were very knowledgeable, kind and friendly. Must visit if specialty museum is interesting to you :)

We quickly became members of this museum because our 2 year old loved everything about it. Close up…read moreof airplanes, military jeeps and some of the most incredibly well kept WW2 planes. You can even fly in some of the old ones, although we never did. It's a unique spot and now that we moved, one of our most missed places in the area. Oh and every volunteer was incredible. Super helpful, very kind and always accommodating. Best of the best.

Five glowing stars…read more My late father was a Decorated WW2 Veteran for HM AF and I always enjoy visiting airplane museums. This facility is entirely staffed by volunteers including Korean War Veterans! They offer rides in vintage planes including vintage bombers, cargo planes, etc. Very expensive so we passed on that. It would have been a lot of fun. There is so much to see here. The hangar is full and they have a few restored beauties outside. I so appreciate the folks who Remember ALL Veterans of the Alliance.

Small site, great ode to the late Mr. Eddie Basha…read more What a phenomenal person he was - his accomplishments and CONTRIBUTIONS to and love of the Navajo Nation will live on in Chandler's history forever.

Fantastic museum! Many interesting exhibits and helpful staff. Couldn't believe this museum was…read morefree. One of the best parts of my trip! Some of the kids' art was incredible. It's great to see such talent showcased.

Was in the area from out of town and I wanted to see this beautiful house in person. I wasn't able…read moreto go inside but the outside is so pretty Love all the details. It's truly breathtaking

I grew up in an old victorian house and thought it would be fun to bring my dad here for a tour…read morewhen he was in town visiting. We ended up being the only ones on the tour which was nice. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and funny. The entire house has been restored to represent how the original owners would have it set up as closely as possible. The inside details are gorgeous and intricate. Our tour ended up being more like 45 minutes because it was just us and we didn't ask questions. It was a great way to spend a little bit of time before our next activity.