Looking to impress dad with a little adventure this year? Father’s Day is the perfect time for a fun-filled Arizona day trip or local outing with your old man. From spelunking to tubing at Scorpion Bay, these ideas include a dash of excitement to ensure this will be a Father’s Day he doesn’t forget.
- Lake Pleasant: Make it a lake day at the largest lake in the Valley–Lake Pleasant. With over 10,000 acres of water surface and 116 miles of shoreline, this destination always has room for more. The Lake Pleasant Discovery Center is perfect for kids, showcasing hands-on learning and displays about early settlers, area wildlife, and plants—combining learning with fun. Onsite gift and snack shops are also available.
Location: Discovery Center: 39345 N Overlook Rd, Peoria
Cost: Free - Scorpion Bay at Lake Pleasant is Arizona’s premier floating playground, offering daily pontoon and ski boat rentals. Go for the fishing or the frolicking—either way, incredible mountain views, fantastic dining, and world-class marina services will be found. Scorpion Bay offers wakeboarding and wake surfing lessons, plus kayaks, tubes, and paddleboard rentals the whole family will enjoy!
Location: Scorpion Bay Marina: 10970 Peninsula Blvd, Morristown
Cost: Water sport rentals start at $40 - Biosphere 2. Under acres of sealed glass, you will find an ocean, mangrove wetland, tropical rainforest, savanna grassland, and fog desert. Designed to mimic earth itself, Biosphere 2 was first conceived of as a scientific experiment and still supports research activity today at the University of Arizona. It is now open for public tours with prices ranging from $15 to $29.
Location: Biosphere 2: 32540 S Biosphere Rd, Oracle
Cost: $15 for children/$27 for seniors/$29 for adults - Kartchner Caverns. Start with a tour through the state’s coolest caves, just east of Tucson. A rare cave that offers visitors a look at an entire family of colorful formations; Kartchner Caverns’ visitors will see stalactites, stalagmites, soda straws, cave popcorn, shields, columns, totems, drapery, bacon and the massive 58-foot-tall Kublai Khan column in the Rotunda Room.
Location: 2980 Arizona 90, Benson
Cost: $5-15 for children/$30 for adults (Helmet & Headlamp tours are slightly more) - Colossal Cave Mountain Park. A few miles further southeast, is another Arizona favorite, with 3.5 miles of mapped passageways. The water source has disappeared, and the formations are not growing, so it’s now called a “dry” cave, but it’s still an awesome natural wonder.
Location: 16721 E. Old Spanish Trail, Vail
Cost: $14 for children/$24 for adults - Copper Queen Mine. Experience the rich history of Arizona by taking an unforgettable tour through active and inactive mines in Southern Arizona. Our top pick: the Copper Queen Mine in Bisbee. What beats getting dressed up in miner’s gear and riding a train into a copper mine?
Location: 478 N. Dart Rd, Bisbee
Cost: $8 for children/$16 for adults - Flagstaff Extreme Adventure Course. The Extreme Adventure team says it’s a chance to play with friends and family up in the trees. Enjoy the challenge, feel the sweat, and push boundaries. Forge new ground on the course, and in the relationships that matter most.
Location: FLG X: Fort Tuthill County Park, Flagstaff
Cost: $30 for Kids Adventure Course/$60 for Adventure Course - Fort Tuthill Bike Park. This little-known gem is free, great for all ages, and open from dawn to dusk. Created as a place where the community can practice their mountain biking skills, it offers beginner, intermediate, and advanced flow trails, pump tracks for kids and adults, drop zone, skills area, and cyclocross features available for riders.
Location: Fort Tuthill Bike Park: Fort Tuthill County Park, Flagstaff
Cost: Free - Haunted Downtown Tour. You can also try some ghost hunting when you explore the spookiest corners of Flagstaff during a Haunted Downtown Tour. Along with historical sites, your guide shows you scenes of altercations and experiences which have resulted in numerous reports of suspicious and supernatural activity. Hear fascinating stories about the original pioneers of Flagstaff and their struggle to build a civilized city on the border of the frontier.
Location: AZ Segway and Pedal Tours: 19 W Aspen Ave, Flagstaff
Cost: $89 for children/$129 for adults - Fishing at Sedona Rainbow Trout Farm. Kids love to fish—especially if they are pretty much guaranteed to catch one. If your family doesn’t have a favorite fishing hole, this is the place to get some fishing experience. It’s an enjoyable day trip, located off Highway 89A, before you get to uptown Sedona. The trout farm has everything you need—bait, poles and easy-to-catch fish. Plan to get there mid-morning so the kids can catch their fish by lunchtime.
Location: Sedona Rainbow Trout Farm: 3500 N State Rte 89a, Sedona
Cost: Plan to pay a $1.50 per fisher-person fee, plus $1.25 per inch per fish. Then you can pay $.50 to have your fish cleaned—sounds good to us! - Bearizona is another Arizona favorite. It’s a fantastic way to see a varied collection of North American animals (Bears! Wolves! Bobcats!) from the comfort and safety of your own vehicle or in the exhibit area after the drive-through portion.
Location: Bearizona: 1500 Historic Rte. 66, Williams
Cost: $20-$25 for children/$27-$32 for seniors/$30-$35 for adults - Musical Instrument Museum (MIM). 6,000 years of history and instruments, remarkable for their craftsmanship and artistry, all come together in this world-renowned museum. With more than 15,000 instruments from nearly every country on earth, it’s a visit sure to fill your day with sights and sounds.
Location: Musical Instrument Museum: 4725 E. Mayo Blvd, Phoenix
Cost: $0-15 for children/$20 for adults - Adobe Mountain Desert Railroad Park. The entire family can climb aboard at this railroad park! Every Sunday, the park offers free train rides for visitors along 13 miles of track. You can also enjoy railroad artifacts and model train layouts.
Location: Adobe Mountain Desert Railroad Park: 22822 N. 43rd Avenue, Glendale
Cost: Free - Verde Canyon Railroad. Next stop, tour the Verde Valley by train! From the moment you step onto one of the meticulously refurbished train cars, you and your family will be transported to a simpler, more leisurely time. It’s a chance to travel through 110 years of history along a 20-mile journey. Tickets start at $139 per person and the train departs from the Verde Canyon Railroad depot.
Location: Verde Canyon Railroad: 300 N. Broadway, Clarkdale
Cost: Tickets starting at $139
Scorpion Bay is Arizona’s premier floating playground, offering everything from daily pontoon and ski boat rentals to slips for carefree lifestyles. Come for the fishing or come for the frolicking—either way, incredible mountain views, fantastic dining and world-class marina services await less than an hour out of Phoenix http://www.scorpionbayaz.com/
Scorpion Bay is Arizona’s premier floating playground, offering everything from daily pontoon and ski boat rentals to slips for harboring your yacht (or dinghy). Come for the fishing or come for the frolicking—either way, incredible mountain views, fantastic dining and world-class marina services await less than an hour out of Phoenix. https://www.scorpionbayaz.com/