Airport
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
IATA Code: PHXLocation: The airport is situated 4 miles (6km) southeast of Phoenix.
Time: GMT ?7.
Contacts: Tel: +1 602 273 3300.
Transfer between terminals: The three terminals (Terminals 2, 3 and 4) are connected by a free inter-terminal bus system.
Transfer to the city: Public buses and airport-to-door Supershuttlevans all go to the city centre (Tel: (602) 244-9000). Vans run 9am to 9pm every 15 minutes although 24 hour service can be arranged. A free airport shuttle also connects passengers to and from the Metrolight rail that connects to the city centre. Fares for the rail line or bus both cost US$1.25 (Tel: 602-253-5000). Many hotels and resorts provide a free pick-up service for their guests. Taxis and limousines are also available for hire; taxis should cost around $15 to downtown, and the trip takes 10 minutes (Tel: (602) 437-4000). There are a number of ground transportation companies that provide shuttle service from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to other Arizona cities.
Car rental: Car rental companies include Advantage, Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Fox, National, Hertz, Payless and Thrifty.
Facilities: Facilities include shops, restaurants, pet parks, ATMs, currency exchange, wireless Internet, mailboxes and ground transportation facilities. All terminals are fully wheelchair accessible and there is a shuttle bus between terminals for the disabled.
Parking: Short and long-term parking as well as cell phone waitng lots are available.
Departure tax:
Website: www.phxskyharbor.com
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Phoenix
Arizona's capital city, Phoenix, has risen from the mythical ashes of an ancient agricultural Indian village to become a sprawling modern metropolis, the sixth largest city in the USA. Its rapid urban growth has filled what is known as the 'Valley of the Sun', encompassing the neighbouring towns of Scottsdale, Mesa and Tempe as suburbs and is America's fastest-growing urban centre, claiming to have more five-star hotels than any other city in the USA.
With luxurious resorts and spas, glitzy shopping plazas, upmarket restaurants and superb golf courses, together with over 300 days of sunshine a year, the area has become a popular winter getaway for the rest of the country. However while some may know it as a retirement community, it is home to both the University of Phoenix and the University of Arizona as well as over a dozen other colleges, ensuring a huge student population of roughly 200,000.
Phoenix has a number of interesting museums, including the Heard Museum of Native American culture and the Phoenix Art Museum. A scattering of parks, a wide variety of restaurants, and a well-developed arts community makes a vacation in Phoenix an attractive prospect for travellers of all ages.
Phoenix's greatest attraction however, is its location: surrounded by a vast cactus-studded desert and the magnificent scenery of the Red Rock Country around nearby Sedona, whose landscape of canyons, pinnacles and red cliffs have been the setting for numerous 'Wild West' films and novels. The Apache Trail is a winding scenic drive that passes through some of the beautiful rugged terrain of central Arizona, passing ghost towns, ancient ruins and the Superstitious Mountains.
