Tucson Staycation with Kids

Summer in Phoenix is brutal. I mean 120-degrees-gotta-get-outta-town brutal. We’ve lived in the Phoenix valley for 10 years, and have planned a mini escape just about every summertime. This year, we traveled south for a Tucson staycation with kids in tow. Tucson averages 10 degrees cooler than Phoenix, which is a drastic difference!

I received a complimentary press stay at Hilton El Conquistador with meals and attractions provided for. All opinions are my own. 

There are a few ways you can book a vacation or staycation. You can go with a really cheap, crummy room with no amenities and spend all of your time away from where you are staying, you can go frugal and stay at a campground, or you can pick a beautiful resort where no one in the family will want to leave the property because everything you can want to do is right there steps from your door.

This trip, we got to stay at the absolutely stunning Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort nestled into the mountainside on the east side of Tucson. It’s close to many attractions and lots of shopping and dining, but it feels like a world away from everything when you are at the property surrounded by the mountains. We settled into a Junior suite that gave us plenty of room to relax and an adjoining double queen room that my boys quickly filled and flipped on the TV – their favorite way to unwind. The views outside our room were amazing, that’s looking off our patio.

The resort has three pool areas with a main pool that starts shallow with a wide stair area for the kids and ends at 9′ for those who want to dive and play. The featured a dive-in movie Friday and Saturday night, my boys loved playing in the pool while watching Toy Story 3. There is a poolside grill so you can fill up between playing. There are two other pool areas perfect for kids: one with a splash pad feel and the second with a full water slide!

We could hardly pull the boys away from the pool and especially the water slide. They would go down time after time and had an absolute blast. I even went down the slide a few times, it was really fun!

By evening, it was time to dine so we headed over to the amazing on-site restaurant, Epazote Kitchen & Cocktails. Everything we tried from the hummus appetizer to the filet mignon entree and the creme brulee dessert was absolutely fantastic.

The server, presentation, and taste were absolutely top quality. We enjoyed one dinner inside and moved our second dinner appointment to when the sun would be down and sat outside on the patio which was so wonderful with the beautiful surroundings. 

The next day, we headed out to explore parts of Tucson. We headed to the Children’s Museum of Tucson, a perfect way to entertain the kids and keep us all cool. The museum is so cool with interactive exhibits every step of the way.

We started off exploring a room set up with a play shopping store, an adorable pet vet, and a tree you could pick the magnetic fruit. My boys loved picking the fruit and putting them back on the tree again. Next, we moved into a technology room where the boys loved jumping to “squish” the bugs. Then we spent some time playing in the train room – my 18 month old was in heaven pointing and yelling out “car” everywhere he looked! We spent a ton of time building and playing in the build it center.

Everyone’s favorite part of the museum was getting to climb in and experience emergency vehicles first hand. This part of the museum had an ambulance, fire truck, and a police motorcycle. They all thought it was so cool to pretend to be a fire fighter with real jackets they could try on, too. The Children’s Museum of Tucson is a great place to escape the heat and enjoy time playing together as a family.

When everyone was getting tired, we hopped into the car and took a drive through the Saguaro National Park. It’s a beautiful scenic drive that let our youngest boys take a short nap while the older boys tried to count the millions of Saguaro cactus that covered the mountainside.

We stopped at a picnic spot for pictures and a closer look at the cactus. Then, we headed back to our hotel to hit the pool, grab lunch, and enjoy the rest of our very relaxing stay.

If you’re looking to get away for the weekend, Tucson is just a short 2-2.5 hour drive south from the Phoenix valley and a beautiful place to retreat to and get away creating memories together as a family. You can find live music, star gazing, junior archery, a mad science and cooking workshop, and fireside s’mores all right at the resort. They also have a full spa, champion golf course, and tennis courts for grown up fun. Visit Hilton Tucson El Conquistador’s website for pricing, activity schedules, and more information.