A thriving desert metropolis, Phoenix offers some of the best Mexican food this side of the border, a number of fine museums, a vibrant artist community, and 300 days of sunshine. Start your visit with a stroll through Roosevelt Row Arts District, or RoRo as locals have taken to calling it. Art galleries, studios, restaurants and bars sit side by side in this walkable creative district in the downtown core. Don’t miss the Desert Botanical Garden, which with more than 50,000 plants has one of the world’s largest collections of desert flora. Want to see some cacti and succulents in their natural element? Take a close-up look at Camelback Mountain. Summit trails are not for the faint of heart, especially in 100-degree heat, but the base of the mountain offers easier and equally beautiful trails for beginners. If you’re looking for a respite from the heat, visit the Phoenix Art Museum where Carlos Amorales’ Black Cloud, a site-specific installation consisting of 25,000 individual, life-sized, black paper moths and butterflies, weave their way in a swarm up the walls and ceilings of a gallery space.