Below you will find fun things to do in Tempe, the places I choose to eat at, and the hotels I have stayed in and recommend for family, friends, and clients who visit Tempe. 

Feel free to email or call and ask any questions about living in Tempe. If you are visiting feel free to pick our brains or we can guide you to a certain restaurant, hotel, or things to do.  Treat me as your own personal guide and live like the locals while down here. 

Tempe, Arizona is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona. The city is named after the Vale of Scottsdale in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley Section of Metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale on the north, Chandler on the south, and Mesa on the east.

Tempe Economy

Tempe is the headquarters and executive office of two fortune 500 companies US Airways and insight Enterprises.  Limelight Networks, LifeLock, First Solar, the Salt River Project, Circle K, Fulton Homes and Mobile Mini are also headquartered in Scottsdale.  Cold Stone Creamery was originally headquartered in Tempe location #0001 is still in operation today at 3330 S. McClintock Drive in Tempe, Arizona.  Tempe is home to the largest campus of Arizona State University.  It was the longtime host of the Fiesta Bowl, although the BCS game moved to University of Phoenix Stadium, located in Glendale, in 2007.  Tempe now hosts the insight bowl. Edward Jones has a regional headquarters in Tempe. China Airlines operates the Phoenix offices in Tempe.

Tempe is home to several great performing venues including Gamage Auditorium and the Tempe Center for the Arts.

On New Year’s Eve, the city hosts the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl Block Party, one of the nation’s largest New Years Eve Parties. The even almost always has a national band headlining, along with several local and national bands. Gammage Auditorium was also the site of one of the tree Presidential Debates in 2004, and Super Bowl XXX was played at Sun Devil Stadium. Tempe is host to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim during spring training.

Tempe is also home to one of Arizona’s largest shopping malls, Arizona Mills.  The city also serves as the first Arizona IKEA branch location.  Tempe Marketplace a large open outdoor mall features live music and water and laser shows is located just southeast of Tempe Town Lake.

Mill Avenue, located just west of Hayden Butte, is a shopping and entertainment area in the city popular with pedestrians and students. With the completion of Tempe Town Lake, commercial and high-rise development along the reservoir quickly transformed the city scape of Mill Avenue and the skyline of downtown Tempe.

Tempe Education

Tempe is served by multiple school districts.

Most of Tempe is within the Tempe Elementary School District and the Tempe Union High School District; however other portions are served by the Kyrene School District (K-8), Tempe Unified School District (K-12), and Mesa Public Schools (K-12)

Tempe also contains one of the States three major universities, Arizona State University, the Maricopa County Community College District administrative offices and headquarters of Rio Solado Community College.

Tempe is also home to the University of Advanced Technology, a school that offers degrees in game art and animation, game programming, game design, and assorted other degrees related to technology.

Sports in Tempe

There are currently no major league professional sports teams playing in Tempe.  However, from 1987 to 2006, Sun Devil Stadium hosted the Arizona Cardinals of the NFL. They have since moved to the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale for games, but maintain their headquarters and training facility in Tempe.

The Arizona State University Sun Devils compete in Football, basketball, baseball, softball, as well as a number of other sports in the Pac-12 Conference. The Sun Devils football team plays their games at Sun Devil Stadium, which had hosted the annual Fiesta Bowl, until 2007 game moved to the new University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have their spring training at Tempe Diablo Stadium. Tempe Diablo Stadium was built in 1968.

The city also hosts the Insight Bowl at Sun Devil Stadium

Tempe is home to Arizona Combat Sports, a mixed martial arts training organization as well as Rage in the Cage training center.

Tempe Transportation

Tempe is one of the most densely – populated cities in the state and serves as a crossroads for the area’s largest communities.

Freeways make up the major transportation system for the Valley. The freeways surrounding Tempe are I-10 Interstate 10, Loop 202, Loop 101, and U.S Route 60.

Valley Metro operates bus routes and the METRO Light Rail system that serves Downtown Tempe and Arizona State University, providing service to Phoenix and Mesa. The city of Tempe operates a free neighborhood circulator service called Orbit involving five free shuttle routes near Arizona State University that operate on a regular basis seven days a week.  Three other FLASH (Free Local Area Shuttle) circulates in Northern Tempe around the University.

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, located 2 miles North West of Tempe, provides extensive air service and is one of the busiest air ports in the United States.