How many days do you need in Scottsdale?

A long weekend, three days, is the sweet spot. It's enough to mix a desert adventure, Old Town nightlife, a spa or pool morning, and a day trip without feeling rushed. Two days works for a quick getaway, and four-plus lets you add Sedona or the Grand Canyon.

What should you not miss in Scottsdale?

A guided desert tour or sunset ride in the Sonoran Desert, a night out in Old Town's Entertainment District, a boozy brunch, and at least one resort-pool or spa morning. Those four cover the essential Scottsdale experience for first-timers.

What is the best time of year for a Scottsdale weekend?

October through April, when days are warm and dry and evenings are cool. It's peak season, so book hotels, tours, and dinner reservations ahead. Summer weekends still work if you plan outdoor activities for early morning or sunset.

How far is the Desert Dog Offroad Adventures trailhead from Old Town Scottsdale?

About 45 minutes by car. You take the Beeline Highway (AZ-87) to Bush Highway, pass Saguaro Lake, and meet at the Butcher Jones OHV Staging Area in the Tonto National Forest. It's also 45 minutes from Sky Harbor and 15 from our Fountain Hills office, so a morning tour fits neatly between an early coffee and a late Old Town lunch.

Should you do the desert tour in the morning or at sunset?

Morning is the easy call from October through April: cool air, soft light, and the whole afternoon free for a pool or spa. Choose sunset when the forecast is hot, or when you want golden-hour views of Four Peaks. In summer, tours only run early morning or at sunset. Either way it's 2+ hours guided, the same buggies, and the same free photos.

Can kids do this Scottsdale itinerary?

Yes, with a few tweaks. On the desert tour, passengers ride from age 8 and drivers must be 16 or older with a valid driver's license, so a family of four takes two buggies with a parent driving each. Add the Saguaro Lake beach stop after the tour on Day 2, and on Day 3 hike Pinnacle Peak instead of Camelback. Helmets, water, snacks and photos are included for everyone.

The Perfect Scottsdale Weekend: A 3-Day Itinerary

Name: Desert Dog Offroad Adventures
Address: 17212 E. Shea Blvd., Fountain Hills, AZ, 85268, US
Telephone: (480) 837-3966
Price range: $$
Rating: 4.9

Three days is the perfect amount of time to fall for Scottsdale: long enough to get out in the desert, live it up in Old Town and still have a slow morning by the pool, short enough to keep the energy high. This itinerary runs in real time blocks, Friday in and Sunday evening out.

Where to Base Yourself

Pick the hotel first; it decides how much you drive. Old Town puts the Arts District, the Waterfront and the Entertainment District within a few blocks, so Day 1 and most of Day 3 happen on foot. A resort along Scottsdale Road toward Camelback trades that for the pools and spas that make Day 3’s afternoon. The desert-tour trailhead is 45 minutes from central Scottsdale either way. Our guide to where to stay in Scottsdale weighs the trade-offs.

Day 1: Arrive, Settle In, Walk Old Town

2:00 pm, land. Sky Harbor to Old Town is about 20 to 25 minutes by car (our Sky Harbor to Scottsdale guide covers your options). Decide on a rental now; Day 2 is a 45-minute drive each way.

3:00 pm, check in. Drop the bags and eat a late lunch on an Old Town patio.

4:30 pm, walk. Start in the Arts District (the galleries cluster on Marshall Way and Main Street), cut through the Fifth Avenue shops, then follow the Waterfront along the Arizona Canal. On a Thursday, the weekly ArtWalk keeps the galleries open into the evening.

7:00 pm, dinner and one drink. Eat in Old Town, take a first look at the Entertainment District nightlife, then go to bed. Day 2 starts early.

Day 2: The Desert Day

6:45 am, coffee and go. Leave Old Town 45 minutes before your start time (it’s on the booking calendar for your date). The route runs the Beeline Highway (AZ-87) to Bush Highway, past Saguaro Lake, to the Butcher Jones OHV Staging Area in the Tonto National Forest: 45 minutes from Old Town, 45 from Sky Harbor, 15 from our Fountain Hills office. Directions are on our maps and directions page.

The tour, 2+ hours. After the safety briefing you get a helmet and neck gaiter, climb into a 2-seat 800cc side-by-side sand buggy with a roll cage and seatbelts, and drive it yourself while a CPR-certified guide leads the whole route. Bottled water, snacks and free adventure photos are included. Drivers must be 16 or older with a valid driver’s license; passengers ride from age 8. It’s $299 per 2-seat buggy ($150 per person) or $199 solo. Book the U-Drive tour for the morning.

Hot forecast? Take the sunset version, which runs toward golden hour with views of Four Peaks (in summer, tours only run early morning or at sunset). It also makes a hard-to-top first night if you land by noon on Day 1. For a sunset Day 2, flip the order: pool in the morning, desert at golden hour, dinner late.

On the way back, find water. Saguaro Lake is minutes from the trailhead (there’s a beach at the Butcher Jones Recreation Site), and the Lower Salt River sites along Bush Highway often have the wild horses grazing on the bank. Both need a Tonto day pass; buy it before you leave town.

12:30 pm, back in Scottsdale. Shower, eat, nap; your forearms will have opinions. Keep the afternoon slow, with nothing on the clock until 7:30 pm, the long dinner: a reservation, a patio if the weather allows, two hours and no plans after.

Day 3: Sunrise, Brunch, Spa, Golden Hour

Sunrise, the hike. The easy pick is Pinnacle Peak, a well-maintained 3.5-mile out-and-back in North Scottsdale, about 30 minutes from Old Town, with big views and nothing technical (check the park’s posted hours). The hard one is Camelback’s Echo Canyon: over 1,200 feet of gain in a little over a mile, with scrambling near the top. The trailhead is 10 to 15 minutes from Old Town, the lot fills before sunrise on weekends, and the trail closes during extreme-heat warnings. Our best hikes near Scottsdale guide covers both.

9:30 am, brunch. Weekend patios fill by mid-morning, so reserve ahead and take the earlier seating; our best brunch spots in Old Town guide sorts them by mood.

11:30 am to 3:30 pm, spa or pool. At a resort, this is why you picked it. From Old Town, book one treatment at a resort spa; that usually gets you its pools and lounges for the afternoon.

5:00 pm, golden-hour walk. One more lap of the Waterfront and the Soleri Bridge as the light goes orange, with a stop on Fifth Avenue for a gift. Sky Harbor is 20 to 25 minutes away, so leave Old Town about two and a half hours before an evening flight.

Swaps by Season

Summer (June through September). Tour early morning or at sunset. Hike at first light, pool from noon to four, and push the golden-hour walk past 7:00 pm. Monsoon storms (July into September) build in the afternoon, another reason to keep outdoor blocks early.
Peak season (October through April). Everything works as written. The catch is demand: book the hotel, tour and Day 2 dinner earlier than feels necessary, and earlier still during Cactus League spring training in late February and March.
Day trip instead of spa? Swap Day 3’s afternoon for lunch in Cave Creek, about 40 minutes north, or a Sedona day trip, roughly two hours each way, and skip that morning’s hike.

With Kids

Passengers ride from age 8 and drivers need to be 16 with a valid license, so a family of four is two buggies with a parent driving each. Do the lake stop after the tour, pick Pinnacle Peak over Camelback on Day 3 and keep the Day 2 dinner early. See our guide to things to do in Scottsdale with kids.

For a Group

Base in Old Town so nobody drives at night, and put the tour on Day 2 morning while everyone’s fresh. With two or more buggies you can go VIP private: from $349 per buggy, two-buggy minimum, your own guide and a custom start time. Book the Day 2 dinner and Day 3 brunch first; big tables are the scarce thing in Old Town on weekends.

What to Pack

Closed-toe shoes for the buggy and the hike.
Sunscreen and sunglasses. The helmet and gaiter cover your head; the sun still finds your arms.
A light long-sleeve layer for early starts from October through April.
A refillable bottle for the hike (water is included on the tour, not the trail).
Swimsuit for the pool and the lake stop.
One nicer outfit for the long dinner.
Your physical driver’s license on tour morning.

Season-by-season detail is in our what to wear on an Arizona sand-buggy tour post.

Booking Checklist

4 to 6 weeks out: the hotel, especially October through April.
2 to 3 weeks out: the desert tour, or four or more for sunset slots and peak-season weekends.
1 to 2 weeks out: the Day 2 dinner, Day 3 brunch and any spa treatment.
2 days out: check the forecast; a hot day is your cue to move the tour to sunset.
The night before: confirm the start time, license in the wallet, tank full, phone charged.

The Weekend at a Glance

Day	Morning	Afternoon	Evening
1	Fly in	Old Town lunch and walk	Dinner, early night
2	Desert tour	Lake stop, slow afternoon	The long dinner
3	Sunrise hike, brunch	Spa or pool	Golden-hour walk, fly home

Make It Yours

The beauty of Scottsdale is how easily it flexes. Celebrating something? We’ve hosted bachelorette parties, birthday groups and corporate outings since 1997, and hold a 4.9-star average across 1,700+ reviews. Want it all handled? Our concierge trip planning team can build the whole weekend for you.

Ready to lock in the best part of the trip? Call us at (480) 837-3966 or book your desert tour, and we’ll make sure your Scottsdale weekend has a moment nobody forgets.