Our Day Visiting Phoenix Zoo, Hole in the Rock and Desert Botanical Garden

By alantvuong on October 26, 2023

Earlier this year, a friend and I visited Phoenix and area to attend PHXLights Music Festival. We went to a few sporting events (I will post about them later) and had a full day where we got the chance to visit the Phoenix Zoo, Hole in the Rock and the Desert Botanical Garden.

Getting There

After arriving in Phoenix on the Tuesday morning, we used the full day on Wednesday to do our packed day of fun activities. We were staying at Holiday Inn Express & Suites Downtown which was about a 15 minute taxi to get us to the Phoenix Zoo.

transferred to this taxi to get to the zoo

Phoenix Zoo

bald eagles

The Phoenix Zoo opened in 1962 and is the largest privately owned zoo in the USA. There are over 3000 animals on over 125 acres of land. There is no discount for wheelchair guests and their companions as it costs $39.95 per adult ticket. There is a $2 discount per adult if tickets were bought online.

rhino

The zoo is divided into 4 main themed areas: Africa Trail, Arizona Trail, Tropics Trail and Children’s Trail. Once we entered, we started with the reptile building, saw some birds like vultures and flamingos. The zoo was fully paved everywhere which made it quite easy to wheel around.

baboon

We then saw monkeys, rhinos, giraffes and more. There were several spots that do have a bit of an incline uphill like the path leading from the Savanna exhibit. It is better to begin the Africa Trail from the camel rides. We stayed about 2.5 hours at the zoo before heading to our next destination.

mostly paved or flat pathways around the zoo

Hole in the Rock

a 10 min walk/stroll from Phoenix Zoo

Hole in the Rock is a natural rock formation in Papago Park. It has a unique and unusual shape which makes it a popular destination for tourists to see. It is located right beside the Phoenix Zoo which was very convenient for us to get to. We just had to walk/stroll through the zoo parking and take a side road to get to the Hole in the Rock.

I waited at the bottom while my friend climbed the rocks

There is no fee to visit this attraction which also has plenty of free parking. It is only open until 7pm and there are no bathrooms or water fountains so plan accordingly. We figured that this place would not be wheelchair accessible but I was fine waiting at the bottom while my friend got to climb the rock to explore it and take pictures.

up in the rocks

Hole in the Rock did look very cool and would be a great spot to watch the sun set or the sun rise from. We only stayed for about 30 minutes and that was all that was needed to visit. Our next stop was only about a 30 minute walk/stroll away and there was even a paved pathway to get there.

another pic

Desert Botanical Garden

there was a paved pathway from the Hole in the Rock

Desert Botanical Garden is also in Papago Park and costs $24.95 per adult admission. There was no discount for disabilities or companions. It closes at 8pm. It is 140 acre big and has 50,000 plants in over 4000 different cactus species and is divided into 5 thematic trails: Sonoran Desert Trail, Center for Desert Living Trail, Desert Discovery Trail, Desert Wildflower Trail and Plants & People of the Sonoran People Trail.

some trails were rocky but still easy to wheel around

Some of the pathways were paved while there were some that were rocky. They were all relatively flat and it wasn’t hard to wheel around. It wasn’t busy on the Wednesday we went so we didn’t have to worry about lines or crowds.

paved trail

We both learned lots as there were descriptions and details about all the plants everywhere. We had no idea of all the different cactus plants that exists. We got to see everything and stayed almost 2 hours.

cactus everywhere

Final Thoughts

My friend and I had a great time visiting all 3 attractions for a full day of fun. Even though Hole in the Rock wasn’t wheelchair accessible it was close to the Phoenix Zoo and is a quick stop to pass by and is close to the Desert Botanical Garden. I would revisit all 3 if I was ever in Phoenix again with extra time.