VISIT THE NW VALLEY

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Each year, thousands visit the Northwest Valley for sunshine, blue skies, and spring training. The region offers golf, museums, dining, and outdoor trails, with easy highway access to top attractions like White Tank Mountains, Westgate, Desert Diamond Casino, Old Town Glendale, Wickenburg, Phoenix, and the Wildlife Zoo & Aquarium.


The West Valley: Your Gateway to the Majestic White Tank Mountains and Expansive Regional Park

The Northwest Valley: Gateway to the White Tank Mountains & Regional Park


Spanning 30,000 acres, White Tank Mountain Regional Park is Maricopa County’s largest park and a premier destination for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and nature exploration. Visitors can experience stunning Sonoran Desert landscapes, ancient petroglyphs, and a seasonal waterfall after heavy rains.


Part of the nation’s largest regional park system, White Tank offers 40 miles of trails, a mountain bike competition track, campgrounds, picnic areas, and a Nature Center. Located in Waddell, AZ, it’s a must-visit for outdoor enthusiasts seeking adventure and breathtaking desert views.

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Featured Destination – The Crown Jewel of the Northwest Valley

Desert Diamond White Tank – The Northwest Valley’s Crown Jewel Casino

8200 N. Sarival Ave., Waddell, AZ 85355  


Located in the stunning White Tank Mountains, Desert Diamond Casino is a premier entertainment destination at the southeast corner of Loop 303 and Northern Parkway, west of Glendale. 


This $450 million destination features a 184,000-square-foot casino with 900 Class III slot machines, a poker room, a sportsbook, and table games like blackjack, craps, roulette, and baccarat.  


Guests can indulge in fine dining at Morton’s Steakhouse, with future expansions set to include a hotel, conference center, and amphitheater. 


About the Tohono O’odham Nation

The Tohono O’odham Nation spans four separate land areas, including Florence Village, San Xavier, and San Lucy. The Nation operates Desert Diamond Casino, using its profits to enhance community services and improve quality of life. The casino employs over 1,200 people, supporting both Native and non-Native communities while generating millions in state tax revenue.  

BASEBALL
Enjoy some exciting baseball. Voted the best place to catch a spring training game, Surprise Stadium is the proud Cactus League home of the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals.  The Phoenix metropolitan area holds claim to the greatest concentration of professional baseball facilities found anywhere in the United States. The NW Valley offers easy access to all your favorite team games. 
Cactus League Click Here

GOLF  Courses
With near perpetual blue skies, Surprise and the Sun Cities offer lots of golfing opportunities including three Greg Nash-designed golf courses.
Golf Courses Click Here

HIKINGS THE WHITE TANK MOUNTAIN

Flanked by one of Arizona’s largest mountain preserves, the White Tank Regional Park is situated in the saguaro-dotted Sonoran Desert and is only minutes away. Plan a day trip for some fun adventure, like hiking, biking, and horseback riding (no experience required).
Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Click Here 

TENNIS, RACQUET and PICKLEBALL
Play tennis, racquetball, pickleball and table tennis at one of several locations in the NW Valley. One of the top centers in the country is the Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex. Sun City and Sun City West also boasts some outstanding courts and and facilities!

ARTS AND CULTURE
Arts and Culture: Stunning natural beauty is just the beginning. We have arts and culture with Arts HQ, WHAM, and the  West Valley Symphony. Surprise  has an impressive variety of outdoor art treasures, like the 12’x78’ media mosaic called Reflections of Surprise that depicts the history of the area. For a map of art experiences in Surprise Click Here 
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In Arizona, creativity is not only fostered – it's encourage! Click Here to learn how Arizona is truly a state of the art.

WILDLIFE ZOO
Enjoy the nearby Wildlife Zoo, Aquarium, and Safari Park, pick-your-own citrus farms, the Roses at Leyton Farms and Uptown Alley. Uptown Alley is a local gathering and entertainment complex complete with dining, sports bar, bowling, laser tag, billiards and kid’s activities.
​Wildlife World: Zoo, Aquarium and Safari Park Click Here.

Desert Diamond Casino, White Tank
The Northwest  Valley’s Crown Jewel Casino! The new $400 million casino hosts a full-scale casino featuring a 75,000 square-foot gaming floor, poker, blackjack, live bingo, 5 restaurants and more! Desert Diamond Casino is the Official Casino Partner of Westgate Entertainment District. With shopping, dining and nightlife there is always something to do. Best of all the casino is only 18 minutes by car and ten miles away from the center of Surprise. There’s plenty for you and your friends to explore and a lot to experience! Click Here.

​The NW Valley is the gateway to several of the Valley's largest tourism and vacation destinations! 

  • 200,000 + People attend spring training games at Surprise Stadium each year!
  • 300,000 + Visitors go the White Tank Regional Park each year!
  • 400,000 + People visit the Wildlife World Zoo each year! 
  • 750,000 + Visitors to Lake Pleasant Regional Park! 
  • 22 Million + Visit Westgate Entertainment District annually!

Climate:
CLIMATE Surprise is graced with near-perfect weather featuring more than 330 sunny days a year and an average temperature of 86 degrees. 

  Average High    Average Low    Average Precip.

  • January        68 F/20 C       42 F/6 C        1.0”/25.4mm
  • February       72 F/22C       45 F/7 C        1.3”/33.0mm
  • March          78 F/25C       50 F/10 C      1.1”/27.9mm
  • April           85 F/29 C       56 F/13 C      0.3”/7.6mm
  • May            95 F/35C        65 F/18 C      0.1”/2.5mm
  • June           104 F/40 C      73 F/23 C      0.0”/0.0mm
  • July            107 F/41 C     80 F/27 C       0.9”/22.9mm
  • August         105 F/40 C     79 F/26 C      1.2”/30.5mm
  • September    100 F/38 C      73 F/23 C      0.8”/20.3mm
  • October       89 F/32 C       60 F/16 C       0.6”/15.2mm
  • November     76 F/24 C       48 F/9 C        0.7”/17.8mm
  • December     66 F/19 C       41 F/5 C        1.1”/27.9mm 

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ROAD TRIPS
All of the sights below are within a 20-minute to one-hour drive from the center of Surprise.
The times and mileage may vary based on traffic conditions and route selected. ( drivetime/miles)

  • ​Westgate Entertainment District 18 min. or 10 miles
  • Old Town Glendale 21 min. or 18 miles
  • Phoenix Children’s Museum 23 min. or 22 miles
  • Desert Diamond Casino 24 min. or 13 miles
  • Arizona Science Center 25 min. or 22 miles
  • Pioneer Living History Museum 28 min. or 36 miles
  • Castles-n-Coasters 30 min. or 27 miles
  • Cerreta Candy Company 31 min. or 17 miles
  • Wet-n-Wild 32 min. or 20 miles
  • Deer Valley Rock Art Center 34 min. or 31 miles
  • ISM Raceway 35 min. or 25 miles
  • Wickenburg 39 min. or 35 miles
  • Heard Museum 40 min. or 29 miles
  • Lake Pleasant 41 min. or 29 miles
  • Desert Botanical Garden 45 min. or 36 miles
  • Phoenix Zoo 45 min. or 36 miles
  • Cave Creek and Carefree 48 min. or 35 miles

SPRING TRAINING &
Sports Lovers

Surprise is also a popular destination for fans who want close proximity to Phoenix and Glendale for Major League Baseball’s 2001 World Champs, the Arizona Diamondbacks, as well as the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury. The NHL’s Arizona Coyotes and NFL’s Arizona Cardinals both play in nearby Glendale.

Whether you’re a spectator, participant or a little of both, Arizona is a sports lover’s paradise. With year-round sunny skies, you never have to lose a day or two of your vacation due to inclement weather. Surprise is the spring training home of the Kansas City Royals and the Texas Rangers baseball teams. These Major League Baseball teams use Surprise Stadium for their activities.  As Major League Baseball fans know, Spring Training has been an annual rite in Arizona for many decades and the city of Surprise is proud to be one of the host cities for the Cactus League. Surprise Stadium, Spring Training home of the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers, was ranked the #1 Spring Training Stadium in the Cactus League by USA Today. Whether you want to take in the Arizona sun, or looking for unparalleled player access with up-close encounters of veteran stars and blossoming prospects, Surprise Stadium brings you the BEST of everything! 

 The Budweiser Legends Deck features a different restaurant every day where fans can taste the local flavor while enjoying the game in a fun atmosphere. Plus, the stadium offers signature eats and craft beverages that will have your taste buds hitting home-runs, including Arizona local favorites, as well as staples from Kansas City and Dallas. 


TICKETS
To purchase tickets: Online: Surprisespringtraining.com Phone: 623.222.2222 In Person: Surprise Stadium Box Office; 15850 N. Bullard Avenue, Surprise, AZ 85374

Parks, Zoos and the Outdoors


​Surprise Park: 57-acre Passive Park

The Surprise Stadium, Spring Training home of the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals along with a Regional Library, aquatic center, tennis and racquet complex, youth baseball complex, Mark Coronado Park and Surprise Community Park are centerpieces of this new square mile plus downtown development, putting Surprise well on its way to becoming the playground of the


West Valley Wildlife World Zoo, Aquarium & Safari Park Zoo
Open: 9am–9pm 365 days a year, including holidays
623-935-WILD (9453)
This is home to more than 600 exotic and endangered species, and more than 6,000 individual animals. Wildlife World Zoo offers free animal shows, feeding stations and the opportunity to get up close and personal with some amazing animals.

Roses at Woolf Leyton Farms
8805 N Reems Rd
623-935-5887
Rows and rows of roses on four farms display their colors and fragrance to passers by. With about 800 acres used for the two-year crop, the locale ranks in the top three rosebush growing areas in the nation. Rose bushes grown in Arizona account for half of all the roses sold in the nation. It’s not a farm that gives unannounced tours, but to see and smell the fields in bloom in early spring is worth at least a drive by.

Horseback Riding White Tank Mountains
20300 W Olive (Waddell)
whitetanksstables.com
928-679-2884 (Call for reservations)
Experience the White Tank Mountains on horseback! Ages 5 and up. Tours range from one hour to four hours. No experience required. Tours are professionally guided. Sunset rides, wagon rides, etc. 

The Maricopa Trail 


The *Maricopa Trail offers visitors to the Northwest Valley easy access to expansive Sonoran Desert landscapes and mountain hiking.


Stretching 242 miles, this evolving trail system connects major regional and municipal parks across Maricopa County, including White Tank Mountain Regional Park, which features 25 miles of additional shared-use trails. 


Designed as a loop encircling the Phoenix metro area, the trail includes four spurs linking outlying mountain parks. It crosses U.S. 60 in Surprise, with 15 miles running west of Loop 303.


Conceptualized in 1997 by the Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Department, the trail was envisioned as apedestrian beltway connecting nine regional parks and South Mountain Park*, encouraging outdoor exploration for residents and visitors alike. 



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