What to Do with Kids During the Summer in Phoenix

Awesome Ways to Keep Kids Entertained and Beat the Heat

Phoenix, Arizona, is an oasis in the desert lined with palm trees and surrounded by mountain landscapes. Phoenix and its neighboring cities—known collectively as “the Valley” to locals—is a hot destination in the winter for anyone trying to escape the snow and ice of colder states and countries.

The Valley has hosted the Super Bowl multiple times and is the home of major league baseball teams for spring training every year.

In the summer, well, Phoenix is just HOT! Think fry an egg on the pavement-hot! Temperatures normally rise up to 115℉ or 46℃ throughout July making the Phoenix metro area one of the hottest places in the United States.

During heat waves, temperatures have soared to 120℉ or 48℃! The scorching summer may not be the most popular time to visit Phoenix, but there’s actually so much to see and do—especially with kids. As a local, I’m going to share with you the best things to survive the summer heat in Phoenix: 

1. Water Parks

2. Splash Pads

3. Museums

4. Summer Camps

5. Arizona Boardwalk

6. Resorts

7. Activities after Dark

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links which means that if you purchase a product, I make a commission at no cost to you. Please see my disclosure policy for details. 

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

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1. Water Parks

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor

If you are going to be outside in the sweltering temperatures of Phoenix, the best place to be is submerged in water. The kids in my family love the first destination on my list—Six Flags Hurricane Harbor. The biggest water park in Arizona boasts a multitude of water slides from gentle to thrilling. The Anaconda was even featured on The Travel Channel’s “Extreme Water Parks” show. There is also a big wave pool, a lazy river, a relaxing pool, a kids’ splash pool, and Splash Island, a multi-level water playground. 

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Here is my disclaimer—Hurricane Harbor is not a Disney park in amenities, service, cleanliness, or overall experience. If you’re accustomed to Disney standards like I am, you will probably not be overly impressed.

However, the water park is convenient, and it gets the kids outside and off their tablets for awhile. 

Bargain Cha$ing Tourist Tip: If you can visit two or more times, the season pass is worth the money because parking is included (otherwise parking is $20 per car each time). Six Flags runs promotions quite a bit for $50 season passes which pay for themselves within two visits.  

I recommend arriving before the park opens to line up to have the first pick of chairs in the shade, and be first in line for the most popular slides. I realized my first visit that there aren’t enough tubes for the number of people visiting.

After the park gets busier (around noon), you end up waiting in 2 lines for each slide—the first to wait for an available tube and the second to wait for the actual slide. Six Flags is fully aware of this because they rent out tubes—a single tube for $10/day or double for $15/day.

We made it work without renting for several visits. On one particularly crowded day, we rented tubes, and it definitely allowed us to ride the slides a lot more times. 

What to Bring:

Water shoes are essential! You cannot walk on 115℉ pavement barefoot. My flip flop broke early on one visit, and I was kicking myself for not buying water shoes.

For little kids, I think wearing an Apple Airtag in crowded places like water parks is essential. I have confirmed that this kids’ Airtag holder is waterproof. I could still track my daughter even after the Airtag was repeatedly submerged in the wave pool.

You can’t bring in coolers, but snack bags and water bottles are allowed. We survived on snacks from home without any issues. We ate lunch outside Hurricane Harbor on the way out because the park food is pricey, and the lines are long. 

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Great Wolf Lodge

If you want to avoid the sun altogether, consider going to Great Wolf Lodge Arizona in Scottsdale which is an indoor water park and resort. 

The resort offers a variety of water slides—again from gentle to thrilling—a lazy river, a toddler splash pad, and a water playground called Talking Stick Treehouse—all are entirely indoors. There is also a big outdoor pool with several hot tubs which were a hit with the kids in the evening when the sun went down. By far, their favorite attraction was the Slap Tail Pond which is the wave pool. A wolf howl signals the start of some pretty rockin’ waves about every 10 minutes.  

In addition to the water park, the Great Wolf Lodge offers mini golf, bowling, a rock-climbing wall, a ropes course, arcade games, character visits, crafts, story time, and a live-action game called MagiQuest. On our visit, the kids wanted to stay in the water park the entire stay which was fine with me. 

You can reasonably stay at Great Wolf Lodge Arizona for only one night. The resort allows you to arrive as early as 1pm on your check-in day to start enjoying the water park and stay until 8pm on check out day. There are also day passes available, but for the price, you might as well stay the night. The kids loved the themed wolf-den suite with the bunk beds. I highly recommend opting for a themed suite over a standard room.

Bargain Cha$ing Tourist Tip: Groupon regularly has great deals for the Great Wolf Lodge during the summer because it’s the low season for Phoenix-area resorts. 

Meals and snacks at the resort are pricey, and I wasn’t very impressed with the quality. If you have a car at the resort, there is a shopping district one block south at Indian Bend Road with sit-down options as well as fast food. Barros Pizza is delicious, and the location makes it very easy to order, pick up, and take a pizza back to the resort room. 

2. Splash Pads

If you are looking for free activities for younger kids to cool off from the scorching sun, the Valley has numerous splash pads. Traditional neighborhood parks with splash pads like Goodyear Community Park are all over the Valley. Goodyear Community Park also has a skate park, picnic tables, and play areas. If you're looking for public swimming pools where the whole family can cool off, Mesquite Groves Aquatic Center in the East Valley and the Goodyear Recreation Campus in the West Valley boast water slides and lazy rivers in addition to swimming pools for a nominal fee. 

Kids love the Aquatic Center at the Goodyear Recreation Campus

3. Museums

Exploring museums is one of the best places to get out of the heat and into the air conditioning! Luckily, Phoenix has a plethora of interactive museums to choose from. Here are my three favorites: 

Children’s Museum of Phoenix

First and foremost, the Children’s Museum of Phoenix is the recipient of many awards and my personal favorite. Located in a historic school originally built in the 1920s, the Children’s Museum of Phoenix has three floors packed with endless interactive exhibits and hands-on activities designed for kids from infancy to age 10. Kids can venture up the multi-level tower called “The Climber”, paint in the art studio, ride bikes and tricycles on the Pedal Power Track, get lost in the Noodle Forest and so much more.

“The Climber” at the Children’s Museum of Phoenix

We can never get the kids out of the Market, a child-size grocery store. The Children’s Museum of Phoenix encourages creative play and exploration, and the sensory opportunities are abundant which I love!

The Market at the Children’s Museum of Phoenix

Check the schedule for special classes and summer events like the Foam Zone bubble party: childrensmuseumofphoenix.org

Bargain Cha$ing Tourist Tip: Visit the Children’s Museum of Phoenix on the first Friday of every month for FREE admission from 5-9pm. Exploring the museum at night will definitely wear the kids out before bed!

Visitors are allowed to bring sack lunches, snacks, and beverages with a lid from home to keep the costs low. 

Arizona Museum of Natural History

Next on my list of awesome museums in Phoenix is for the dinosaur fans! The Arizona Museum of Natural History spans 80,000 square feet in Mesa and incorporates paleontology, archeology, geology, and art of the Southwest into many engaging exhibits. The museum is also a Certified Autism Center—offering noise-canceling headphones, light sensitivity glasses, designated quiet areas, and the Exploration Station for sensory opportunities.

My daughter is a dinosaur expert, so she appreciated learning about all the dinosaur fossils that have been found in our area.

Dinosaur Mountain is a 3-story exhibit complete with animatronic creatures and a waterfall.

There’s plenty more to do even if you’re not crazy about dinosaurs! There are exhibits highlighting the more recent past from the indigenous cultures of the Southwest to the Spanish conquistadors that arrived in Arizona in the 1500s. There is also a section dedicated to celebrating Arizona’s role in countless Western films. Kids can pan for gold and even check out the original territorial jail cells of the old West.

An authentic jail cell from Arizona’s territory days

The museum is closed on Mondays. Check out Arizonamuseumofnaturalhistory.org for hours and ticket information.

The Musical Instrument Museum

Finally, the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) is home to over 7,000 musical instruments from about 200 countries. I’ve never seen anything like it! Kids of all ages will love the Experience Gallery where they can handle and play all the instruments. My favorite is the Artist Gallery which showcases the real instruments and memorabilia of amazing musicians from the recent past. We didn’t get to finish the Geographic Galleries before we had to leave because of the sheer volume of things to see, read, watch and listen to! Plan to spend several hours here if you don’t want to miss anything. I can’t imagine the amount of time and dedication necessary to collect this volume of instruments. The attention to detail of each exhibit is beyond belief. 

Outside the MIM

The MIM holds children’s classes during the summer with a different theme each session. Mini Music Makers is split into babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. Musical Adventures for ages six through ten lets participants collect stamps for each accomplished music activity. Look for dates, availability, and museum ticket information at MIM.org

4. Summer Camps

If you are in Phoenix for awhile, summer camps are another great option to keep kids busy and cool. In fact, the Valley has more summer camps than anywhere I've ever lived. There is actually a summer camp showcase in the spring that is so big that it's held at the Phoenix Zoo. From day camps to sleep-away camps, from sports to theater to even zoo camps, the Phoenix metro area offers nearly every type of summer camp imaginable. My daughter loves going to camp in the summer especially when the camp offers field trips. With summer camps, she has been able to visit the Arizona Science Center, multiple indoor play spaces (Uptown Jungle, Elevate), and even a sanctuary for reptiles (the Phoenix Herpetelogical Sanctuary)!

5. The Arizona Boardwalk

The Arizona Boardwalk in Scottsdale is my next go-to summer activity because two of my daughter’s favorite attractions are here, and both are completely indoors and air-conditioned. 

OdySea Aquarium

The biggest attraction here is OdySea Aquarium, the largest aquarium in the Southwest housing 6,000 animals in over 70 exhibits. You can get up close and personal with turtles, crocodiles, fish, otters, sharks, and more.

OdySea also features the world’s only “rotating aquarium experience” which is very cool and offers an opportunity to sit down after you have walked around exploring the aquarium. My daughter really wanted to visit after seeing OdySea featured on “Blippi”! If we hadn’t seen that episode of Blippi, we would have missed the bathroom where sharks swim behind the sinks every few minutes. The bathroom was voted “America’s Best”, but you’ll miss it if you aren’t looking for it. Taking a selfie with the sharks is a must!

Photo Courtesy: OdySea Aquarium

There are three small-group experiences that must be booked in advance and are sold at a premium—the Penguin Encounter, the Sloth Encounter, and the Sea Trek Underwater Helmet Diving. Who doesn’t love penguins? My niece gave the Penguin Encounter a big thumbs up!

Bargain Cha$ing Tourist Tip: OdySea Tickets are reduced in price after 4:30 each night. 

Pangaea, Land of the Dinosaurs

My daughter’s other top attraction is Pangaea, Land of the Dinosaurs. There are multiple animatronic dinosaur exhibits and a scavenger hunt for the kids. Pangaea is small compared to OdySea, and unless you’re traveling with a huge dinosaur fan, you will finish the walk-around rather quickly. Pangaea offers fossil digging, excavation, and art activities—these are all for an additional price.

Bargain ChaSing Tourist Tip: You can often find discounted tickets to Pangaea on Groupon.

Butterfly Wonderland

Finally, Butterfly Wonderland is the third main attraction at Arizona Boardwalk. Walk through the conservatory full of thousands of ethereal butterflies and then experience them in 3D in the theater. Butterfly Wonderland also features a honey bee exhibit and reptile enclosures.

I don’t recommend trying to see OdySea, Pangaea, and Butterfly Wonderland all in one day. You could combine Pangaea and Butterfly Wonderland in one visit, but give yourself enough time to enjoy Odysea on its own day. Arizona Boardwalk has a couple smaller attractions as well as shops. Meal options are Johnny Rockets and the Pangaea Grill. 

6. Resorts

Phoenix and its surrounding cities have no shortage of really nice resorts. Whether you prefer classic elegance like the nearly 100-year old Arizona Biltmore or modern style with rooftop views like the Cambria in downtown Phoenix or a Spanish colonial desert retreat with mountain views like the Royal Palms Resort and Spa, Phoenix has you covered! 

The Arizona Biltmore

Looking for a lazy river and sparkling turquoise swimming  pools? Phoenix has multiple options. The Arizona Grand Resort and Spa has the Oasis Water Park which was named one of the country’s top 10 by the Travel Channel. The Hilton Phoenix Resort at the Peak (located at the base of Piestewa Peak) offers the River Ranch water park, dive-in movies, and mini-golf. 

Both resorts feature a restaurant I highly recommend: the adorable Aunt Chiladas with fantastic Mexican meals, a lot of character, and a little Arizona history. What is now the Aunt Chiladas dining room next to the Hilton at the Peak was originally a general store in the 1890s.

The JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort and Spa debuted an $18 million (!) upgraded 140,000-square-foot Aqua Ridge Water Park in 2023. There are some giant water slides as well as an enhanced lazy river, a waterfall, and infinity pool for the adults. I can’t wait to check this out! 

All of these resorts (and many more) offer summer deals and packages to entice travelers during the low season. Visiting the Valley of the Sun in the summer means you may be able to experience luxurious resorts at a much lower cost than the $900/night rates charged in the springtime. You can often find Groupon deals on the most popular Phoenix area resorts. 

I also love Expedia to search for Phoenix hotel bargains:

Coming Soon: There will even be a BEACH in the desert! The VAI resort in Glendale (currently under construction in 2024) will feature a Mediterranean-style beach and island. The first-ever Mattel Adventure Park is being built next to the VAI resort. This amusement park will be indoors (and air-conditioned!) and feature Barbie, Hot Wheels, and Thomas Train. 

7. Activities After Dark

It is true that the desert comes alive after dark! If you want to experience the natural wildlife of the Sonoran Desert during the summer, the only time that isn’t scorching hot is after the sun sets. Sadly, it doesn’t significantly cool off after dark, but you can still appreciate a slight temperature drop.

I don’t recommend leading your family off the beaten path into the desert or on a hiking trail at night by yourself.

Instead, I recommend organized activities like Flashlight Nights every Saturday at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix. Bring your own flashlight to search for creatures in the dark. There is a farmers’ market and kids’ activities as well. Look at DBG.org for updated prices and dates.

Another option is Creatures of the Night Walk at several regional parks: Estrella Mountain Regional Park in Goodyear, White Tank Mountain Regional Park in Waddell, Cave Creek Regional Park in Cave Creek, Usery Regional Park in Mesa, and San Tan Mountain Regional Park in Queen Creek. A park ranger leads a hike to search for and learn about snakes, lizards, spiders, owls and other desert creatures. This is a small-group activity that must be reserved in advance. Park entry is $7 per vehicle. 

Check out Maricopacountyparks.net for dates and times. 

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There is plenty to see and experience if you find yourself in Phoenix during the summer months! Summer is a great time to take advantage of water parks, splash pads, museums, summer camps, and the indoor attractions at the Arizona Boardwalk. In addition, you won’t find the fancy resorts in Phoenix any cheaper than summertime. Finally, the kids can still experience the natural habitats of Phoenix with outdoor activities after dark. What are some of the ways you keep kids entertained in the summer in Phoenix?