A Brief Update of News Around Arizona
August 2018
The Arizona Office of Tourism is pleased to provide this monthly update of new and noteworthy items regarding Arizona’s tourism industry. For more information, contact Becky Blaine at bblaine@tourism.az.gov, Kim Todd at ktodd@tourism.az.gov or Marjorie Magnusson at mmagnusson@tourism.az.gov.
Culinary
New Camp Verde Vineyard Salt Mine Wine Now Open
Only an hour from North Phoenix, Salt Mine Wine is one of the closest vineyards and wineries to the Valley of the Sun. Nestled between pecan groves, pastures, small farms and produce stands, Camp Verde’s newest vineyard is now open on Saturdays and holidays. Salt Mine Vineyard is currently growing six Italian varietals. Primitivo, Montepulciano and Aglianico vines are planted where the soils are fertile and temperatures are cold. Malvasia Bianca, Sangiovese, and Barbera vines are planted on the hillside where the soils are well drained and the summer temperatures are warm. The tasting room is open on Saturdays and holidays from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Culture/Heritage
New Spanish-Language Audio Tour for Children at Desert Caballeros Western Museum
Starting in September, the Desert Caballeros Western Museum will offer a Spanish-language audio tour for children, made possible by a recent grant from Arizona Humanities. The new audio tour introduces young visitors to Western art and the history of Wickenburg and Arizona through engaging descriptions and first-person narration. It complements the Museum’s existing audio tour offerings, which include adult tours in Spanish and English, as well as an English-language children’s tour. The existing audio tours were first made available in 2014 with the installation of a guidePORT™ audio system at the Museum, a project also made possible by Arizona Humanities. The guidePORT™ system is hands-free and activates based on the user’s location within the Museum, making it effortless for speakers of any age to operate. The Spanish-language tour will serve the Hispanic community of Wickenburg and its surrounding areas, as well as international visitors the Museum welcomes from countries such as Mexico, Spain, and Italy. The Museum plans to add additional languages such as Chinese, German and French in the future.
Attractions
The Churchill is set to open in Phoenix in Late Summer
The Churchill, a shipping container marketplace, is set to open late summer 2018. The 14,000-square-foot shopping and restaurant project will house 19 repurposed shipping containers. The Churchill will be located at Garfield and First Streets near Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix. Some of the confirmed tenants include: State Forty-Eight, an Arizona-centric sports apparel brand; Provecho, a Mexican eatery focusing on the flavors from central Mexico; Sauvage, a wine shop; and Gather, a boutique selling home and lifestyle goods. This is Phoenix’s first marketplace made of shipping containers.
General
New Canadian Low-Cost Airline Coming to Arizona
Canada’s newest low-cost air carrier is coming to the U.S. market with several international flights, including one in Arizona. Swoop, a subsidiary of Canadian air carrier WestJet, will begin winter service flights between Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport and Edmonton, Alberta, starting October 27, 2018 and running through April 27, 2019. The flights will operate two days a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It operates 189-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft and expects to have six aircraft in operation by the end of the year. Because of the new service from Swoop, WestJet will discontinue its own seasonal flights from Mesa to Edmonton. WestJet continues to operate winter flights between Edmonton and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
SkyWest Airlines-United Express Selected for Essential Air Service at Prescott Municipal Airport
The U.S. Department of Transportation has selected SkyWest Airlines, operating as United Express, to provide Essential Air Service (EAS) at Prescott Municipal Airport(PRC) for a period of two years, beginning in late August 2018. United Express will operate 50-seat CRJ 200 jets from Prescott, with roundtrip flights daily to Denver, and six days a week to Los Angeles, every day except Saturday. Passengers will be able to connect through Denver or Los Angeles to hundreds of destinations throughout the world. Travelers are able to book tickets using the United Airlineswebsite, or they can use online travel websites or local travel agents.
Adventure
Camping Cabins Now Open at Lost Dutchman and Patagonia Lake State Parks
New camping cabins are now available for reservation at Lost Dutchman and Patagonia Lake state parks. The new cabins are located at the base of the Superstition Mountains in Lost Dutchman and near the water at Patagonia Lake. The cabins have space to sleep up to six people, with a fire ring, picnic table and ramada right outside. Each cabin is also wheelchair-friendly, with accessibility to restrooms and parking. The newly built cabins feature a queen bed with mattress and two pairs of bunk beds with mattresses. The cabins at both parks have a two-night minimum stay on weekends. Reservations can be made up to a year in advance.
.jpg){kind=tracking}