United States Personal Chef Association 2008 Conference
August 1 - 4
JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort - Tucson, AZ
JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort - Tucson, AZ
Welcome to Arizona's Second Largest City
Tucson (pronounced "too SAHN" or "TOO sahn") is one of the oldest towns in the United States. Tucson was originally an Indian village called Stook-zone, meaning water at the foot of Black Mountain. Hugo O'Conor established the Tucson Presidio in 1775. August 20th, 1775 is considered Tucson's birthday. Spanish settlers arrived in the area in 1776. Tucson officially became part of the United States with the Gadsden Purchase of 1854. Tucson served as capital of the Arizona Territory from 1867 to 1877.
Tucson boasts the best of both worlds...the progress and innovation of a metropolitan community and the friendly, caring atmosphere of a small town. Tucson's rich cultural heritage centers on a unique blend of Native American, Spanish, Mexican and Anglo-American influences. Blessed with the natural beauty of the Sonoran Desert and an unsurpassed climate of 360 sunny days a year, Tucsonans embrace a rare lifestyle and are committed to preserving that quality of life.
Tucson's climate varies from the 2400 foot desert basin to the 9100 foot forests of the Santa Catalina Mountains. Tucson enjoys more sunshine than any other city in the United States - about 350 days each year. The days, with very few exceptions are warm and sunny. Our mild temperatures during spring, fall and winter are legendary. Temperatures rise in the summer, but low humidity keeps even the warmest days comfortable. Tucson's surprisingly lush landscape is replenished by our two rainy seasons - in late summer and early winter.
Additional Travel Info
Can I fly into Tucson?
Yes, flying here easy. Tucson is served by 12 different airlines with nonstop service to 24 cities and connections to more than 125 destinations. There are 71 flights departing daily with approximately 7,500 seats available. Visit www.tucsonairport.org for more information and www.AirTucson.com to search for the best airfare.Travel Q & A
Q: How far away is Phoenix, Arizona?
A: The distance between Tucson and Phoenix is roughly 100 miles.
Q: How long is the drive from Phoenix to Tucson?
A: The drive via Interstate 10 at the posted 75 mph speed limit is a little under two hours.
Q: Is there a shuttle service between Tucson and Phoenix?
A: Arizona Shuttle Service is the largest statewide shuttle service between Tucson and Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport.
Restaurants
Tucson Restaurant Guide
Stroll through Tucson and you'll encounter the delightful smells of mesquite-fired grills, the distinctive sizzle of fajitas and brightly decorated restaurants with piles of tortillas and multicolored salsas. Tucson is known for our fabulous Mexican and Southwestern cuisine, but we have so much more. There are hundreds of original restaurants including many run by some of the finest chefs in the world. Here are a few examples:Barrio
Barrio is an intimate bistro in heart of downtown with contemporary little plates, greens, pastas, daily specials and an upbeat bar. Featuring cozy booths, an upbeat bar and Chef Jeffrey Glomski's sumptuous fare.
Café Poca Cosa
Cuisine from across Mexico--daily changing menu! Mole sauces, unusual preparations and so much more, so come in and see the daily changing menu and enjoy a margarita!
Touring and Sites to See
Bizbee, Arizona
Copper mining in the late 1800s put this town on the map—and this is where you’ll find real Bisbee turquoise. Bisbee is one of the best-preserved turn-of-the-century towns in the United States—its architecture has changed little since the early 1900s. The historic buildings now house art galleries, antique shops, and restaurants. The Bisbee Trolley and walking tours from the Bisbee Chamber of Commerce take you past old brick buildings lining narrow, winding streets—patterned much like old San Francisco.
Colossal Cave Mountain Park
The first formal tours of this cave were conducted in 1923 and involved ropes and lanterns. Today’s tours offer a much safer and more comfortable peek at this area’s underground geology. Colossal Cave is called “dry” or “dormant,” meaning that, due to a lack of water, it no longer is “growing” crystal formations. Yet the preserved stalactites, stalagmites, and flowstone are beautiful to behold. And the temperature inside the cave is always a pleasant 70° Fahrenheit.Desert Museum
For a half-century the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum has enchanted millions of visitors with its exhibits of live animals in astonishingly natural settings, while intriguing and instructing them with fascinating educational programs. At the same time, the Museum has gained a worldwide repute in the scientific community as an institution committed to researching and protecting the land, plants, and the animals of the Sonoran Desert region.
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is a world-renowned zoo, natural history museum and botanical garden, all in one place! Exhibits re-create the natural landscape of the Sonoran Desert Region so realistically you find yourself eye-to-eye with mountain lions, prairie dogs, Gila monsters, and more. Within the Museum grounds, you will see more than 300 animal species and 1,200 kinds of plants. There are almost 2 miles of paths traversing 21 acres of beautiful desert.Grand Canyon National Park
A powerful and inspiring landscape, the Grand Canyon overwhelms our senses through its immense size. Unique combinations of geologic color and erosional forms decorate a canyon that is 277 river miles (446km) long, up to 18 miles (29km) wide, and a mile (1.6km) deep.Kartchner Caverns State Park
One of the great natural wonders of the western United States. It’s believed that no human had ever seen this huge living cave prior to its discovery in the 1970s by two Tucson cave enthusiasts. Care has been taken to preserve the pristine conditions within. Remarkable because it is a “wet” or “living” cave, meaning the calcite formations are still growing. See a stunning variety of multicolored cave formations.
Phoenix Zoo
Phoenix Zoo was voted one of the nation’s top 5 zoos for children.
Sedona, Arizona
Ever since the early days of movies, when Hollywood has wanted to show the unique beauty of the West, it has gone to Sedona, a place that looks like nowhere else. Beginning with The Call of the Canyon in 1923, some hundred movies and TV shows have been filmed in and around town. We fell under Sedona's spell, too, and while debating our No. 1 spot kept returning to it for the same reasons Hollywood does: The area's telegenic canyons, wind-shaped buttes and dramatic sandstone towers embody the rugged character of the West -- and the central place that character holds in our national identity. There's a timelessness about these ancient rocks that fires the imagination of all who encounter them. Some 11,000 years before film cameras discovered Sedona, American Indians settled the area. Homesteaders, artists and, most recently, New Age spiritualists have followed. Many cultures and agendas abound, but there's really only one attraction: the sheer, exuberant beauty of the place. People come for inspiration and renewal, tawny cliffs rising from the buff desert floor, wind singing through box canyons, and sunsets that seem to cause the ancient buttes and spires to glow from within. We hear the canyon's call and cannot resist.