Summertime in Tucson can be a hard sell when the ocean breezes and sparkling beaches of San Diego and Rocky Point are beckoning a few hours away by car.
That fact is not lost on Tucson restaurateurs, resorts and attractions operators.
Every summer, right around the time that the students flee the University of Arizona and our winter visitors head home to cooler climes, Southern Arizona Attractions Alliance unveils its annual passport program, offering BOGOs and other discounts to local and regional attractions that often are out of reach during the height of tourism season.
Local restaurants and resorts get in on the action with dining deals and special βstaycationβ rates.
βWe like to reward our local market, which is why we do our Christmas in July sale,β said Ray Flores, president of his familyβs Si Charro restaurants (El Charro, Charro Vida, Charro Steak, The Monica, Charro Chico). Christmas in July is Si Charroβs bonus round of its hugely popular holiday gift card program.
If weβre being honest, we could do without the 100-degree days, but we year-rounders β we donβt have a summer beach or mountain home to retreat to β love feeling that local love.
Business owners will happily tell you itβs a quid pro quo. Summertime can be brutal in a town whose lifeline hinges on tourism eight to nine months out of the year.
Anything they can do to keep us engaged and showing up is worth the effort, they say, even if it means they have to settle with breaking even.
In 2022, some 5.8 million tourists visited Tucson, up 18% over 2021, when the world was coming back to life after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Visit Tucsonβs most recent annual report.
Those visitors spent $2.75 billion, contributing $812 million in local travel industry earnings and supporting some 21,710 travel-related jobs, the report stated. The impact on local government coffers through tax receipts was $81 million while the state saw $141 million in tax receipts.
But those numbers donβt reflect the realities of a Tucson summer on the tourism industry.
Flores estimates business at his familyβs restaurants easily drops 20%-30%, which Tucson restaurateurs have come to anticipate.
βAs restaurateurs, we all just sort of know it and itβs part of the cycle,β said Tucson Originals President Terry Kyte, whose family owns Bisbee Breakfast Club and Bashful Bandit Barbecue. βWe plan for it, but it can be rough.β
Bisbee Breakfast Club extended its early bird dining hours from 6 to 8 a.m. daily at its six Tucson area restaurants.Β
To make up for some of that loss, restaurants roll out special deals. At Bisbee Breakfast Club, the $7.99 early bird special is now available from 6 to 8 a.m. at the familyβs six Tucson-area and two Phoenix-area stores; they will open a location in Gilbert, the familyβs 10th, this month, Kyte said.
Si Charroβs annual Cinco de Summer campaign, which runs June 17-July 22, offers $5 deals on appetizers, cocktails and other menu items at its seven Tucson restaurants, including The Monica and Charro Steak & Del Rey downtown and three El Charro restaurants, including
its flagship on North Court Avenue.
The summertime program originated during the 2008 recession when the national Subway chain introduced its $5 footlong sandwich. El Charro rolled out its own $5 campaign and offered locals a chance to buy gift-with-purchase gift cards as part of its Christmas in July campaign.
βI think for us, we want to remind people weβre here and we want to give value,β Flores said.
Even though this is βour slow time of the year,β Tucsonβs official destination marketing organization Visit Tucson works overtime to keep the tourism dollars flowing, said CEO Felipe Garcia.
βThatβs why we push a campaign in the Phoenix market especially. We ask our hotels and resorts to give us some discounts,β Garcia said. βWe want to promote it as a staycation.β
Visit Tucson year-round promotes all things Tucson, from our restaurants and resorts to our attractions and film and commercial shoots. One of its biggest summertime pushes is the Southern Arizona Attractions Alliance's Attractions Passport, which offers more than $600 in advertised savings at more than 100 local and regional attractions.
You can get BOGOs (twofer admissions, for example) to some attractions including Main Event Tucson and
Colossal Cave Mountain Park, or half-off admission deals to tourist hot spots including Old Tucson or Reid Park Zoo.
This is the 25th anniversary edition of the passport, which you can get digitally or a paper version ($25) online at tucsonattractions.com/tucson-passport-2 or a number of locations including Fox Tucson Theatre, 17 W. Congress; Hacienda del Sol, 5501 N. Hacienda del Sol; and Tucson Metro Chamber, 212 S. Broadway.
The passport is valid through Dec. 31, which is a good thing; some of the offers are seasonal including half-off admission at Arizona Zipline Adventures on Mount Lemmon, which shuts down in the summer months; and BOGOs for Arizona Theatre Company and Arizona Arts Live, whose performances start up in late September, and Tucson Auto Museum, which is closed until the fall.
If youβre not one who likes to commit long-term, you can opt for the three-day ($12) or seven-day ($18) digital passport good for all the attractions if used within those time limits.
Here are five attractions we plan to visit with our passport:
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
2021 N. Kinney Road, desertmuseum.org; 520-883-2702
One of our favorite things about the Desert Museum in the summertime is its Cool Summer Nights series Saturday nights from June 8-Aug. 24. They stay open until 9, which means it cools down a bit. But the cooler temps are not why we love those Saturday nights; nighttime is when the desertβs nocturnal residents wake up and put on a show.
Bats perform aerial tricks in pursuit of dinner and the ringtail, a cousin of the raccoon, emerges from burrowing in the eves of buildings on the 100-acre museum or its underground tunnels.
Thereβs a good chance you can catch a glimpse of a ringtail, relative of the raccoon, when you visit Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum on its Cool Summer Nights. With the Attractions Passport, your kiddo gets in free with paid adult admission.
This is a chance to see beavers splash in their pond and packrats scamper in their playhouse while scorpions glow green under the ray of a black light.
The theme changes each week, and the park offers $5 off the regular ticket price for adults who can show proof of Arizona or Sonora residency.
Golf βNβ Stuff
6503 E. Tanque Verde Road, golfnstuff.com; 520-296-2366
Guests browse the large indoor arcade at Golf Nβ Stuff on May 29.
With the passport, we can get 18 free holes of miniature golf when we buy 18 holes, which means we can let the kiddos invite their friends or make it a family outing.
It might be a bit challenging for mom and dad; those golf clubs are not the same as the ones we use on the real golf course or at Topgolf. But walking the course will be a breeze; the holes are yards apart and the most strenuous part of the walk will be the slight inclines.
In addition to miniature golf, Golf βNβ Stuff has Litβl Indy Raceway cars, bumper boats, laser tag, batting cages and an arcade.
University of Arizona Bookstores
1209 E. University Blvd., shop.arizona.edu; 520-621-2426
Customers can shop summer sales at the University of Arizona bookstore pop-up inside of the USS Arizona Memorial Lounge at the Student Union, 1303 E. University Blvd.
The main bookstore across from the Student Union is temporarily closed for a massive renovation, but a pop-up location is a few doors down. We personally like the A-Store At McKale, 1721 E. Enke Drive, where they sell all the team gear. With the passport, we get 20% off one insignia item. This might be the last chance to get something from the UAβs PAC-12 era.
Mt. Lemmon Ski Valley
10300 Ski Run Road on Mount Lemmon, skithelemmon.com; 520-576-1400
With the 25th annual Tucson Attractions Passport, you can get discounts on the popular Mount Lemmon Sky Ride.
We are already into the 100s down here in the valley, which means we are definitely taking the BOGO offer from Ski Valley to take a trip on the Sky Ride. The 30-minute ride on the ski lift takes you up over the breathtaking pine-dotted slopes to the mountainβs top. There you can hop off and take a hike or just stand there and take in the fresh mountain air and unmatchable scenery.
When youβre done, get back on and ride the lift down, where you can grab a bite to eat or snag some fresh fudge from the Mt. Lemmon General Store.
The Sky Ride runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays; itβs closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Titan Missile Museum
1580 W. Duval Mine Road in Green Valley, titanmissilemuseum.org; 520-625-7736
If youβre a Cold War or military history buff, youβll happily take the drive south to Green Valley to see the only remaining Titan II missile site in America.
Once upon a Cold War time, there were 54 sites across the United States, ready to alert Americans when a missile threatened our airspace. What once was one of the most top secret sites in the nation is now listed as a National Historic Landmark whose mission is to bring the story of the Cold War to life in the 21st century.
With the passport, you can get 10% off a gift shop purchase, which means you can take home a memento from your experience.
The museum is open from 9:45 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursdays through Mondays and the last tour is at 4 p.m. Reservations are recommended.
Other deals include:
$3 Tuesdays at Reid Park Zoo, 3400 Zoo Court in Reid Park, for the months of June and July. This is the perfect excuse to introduce yourself to the new giraffe calf Moyo and catch the elephants splashing in the cool mud. Summer hours through Sept. 30 are from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. daily. Discounted tickets are only available at the gate. Details: 520-791-3204 or reidparkzoo.org
Get up to four kids 17 and younger in free with a paid adult admission at Tucson Botanical Gardens, 2150 N. Alvernon Way, with the promo code TBGFAMILY4. The gardens are open daily from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Details: tucsonbotanical.org or 520-326-9686
Staycation specials
Some Tucson resorts have spectacular summertime deals geared toward residents. Itβs our chance to play tourist and stay at some of the areaβs finest resorts without breaking the bank. Here are five that piqued our interest, courtesy Visit Tucson.
Loews Ventana Canyon, 7000 N. Resort Drive, 520-299-2020, loewshotels.com: The resort, tucked into the foothills of the stunning Catalina Mountains, offers not only amazing desertscapes but impeccable luxury. And you can enjoy that luxury a little longer courtesy the summertime incentives program: $50 daily food and beverage credit, waived resort fee and late checkout to give you more pool time.
The Lodge at Ventana Canyon, 6200 N. Club House Lane, 520-577-1400, ventanacanyonclub.com: The golf courses are stunning, and with the resortβs βStay & Play Golf Package,β you can hit the links for 20% off the going rate. The resort also has complimentary breakfast and if you make it a long weekend (three nights or more), you can get a $50 resort credit.
As part of your stay at Tombstone Monument Ranch this summer, you can grab breakfast in the morning and enjoy a ranch activity at night.
Tombstone Monument Ranch, 895 W. Monument Road in Tombstone, 520-457-8707, tombstonemonumentranch.com: Get your cowboy on at this real-life dude ranch in the shadow of the town too tough to die and as part of your stay, you can grab breakfast in the morning and enjoy a ranch activity at night. You can choose from horseback riding, archery and UTV tours.
Omni Tucson National Resort, 2727 W. Club Drive, 520-297-2271, omnihotels.com/hotels/tucson-national: Get 20% off your three-night stay at this northwest side resort with its cool green links and sparkling blue pools. If you stay two nights, you can knock 15% off your bill for a close-to-town getaway that includes pickleball and tennis courts, 18-hole PGA golf courses, sweet water pool with the infinity edge and six unique on-site restaurants, including Bobβs Steak & Chop House.
Adobe Rose Inn, 940 N. Olsen Ave., 520-318-4644, adoberoseinn.com: This gem of a bed and breakfast in the Historic Sam Hughes Neighborhood will make you forget you are in Tucson. Itβs within walking distance of the University of Arizona, but once you cross the entryway and stroll the courtyards, you will be transposed to a time when the word old in Old Pueblo still resonated as truth. The innβs main house dates back to 1933 when it was a family residence before new owners in the 1950s added a casita, then a swimming pool and then, in the 1980s, a second building. Book two nights between now and Aug. 10 for a 15% discount; the inn is closed the month of July.
