Western Charm: How Scottsdale, Arizona became the hub of true New West culture

Arizona, the Grand Canyon state — known for its warm climate, vast desert and patchwork of lush golf courses and high-end hotels sprinkled across the landscape — has changed in recent decades, particularly in the Scottsdale Old Town, from the remnants of  the ‘Old West’ to something far more interesting.

I’m visiting Scottsdale, the upscale desert oasis first founded in the 1800s – intended to be called Orangedale before it was named instead for US Army chaplain Winfield Scott. Agricultural Scottsdale was originally settled by a scant 10 households, who, unaccustomed to the sun, recruited Mexican and Native American workers whose influence is evident to this day. Particularly in Scottsdale’s Old Town, where Navajo and Hispanic goods are found nestled between the cowboy boots and cactus saltshakers, alongside a rich array of Mexican and Arizonian restaurants.

Chatting to the locals, they’re happy to acknowledge how young the town – known as America’s most western town — truly is. “Nobody is from here,” says Captain Kirk of JoyRides AZ, a Scottsdale-based private tour company. It becomes a common theme of conversation; finding anyone who’s more than second generation Scottsdale an accepted rarity, but the pride the incomers have in their community is apparent. Scottsdale is all the more loved for being a home of choice rather than chance.

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Up in Fountain Hills, my introduction to Arizona begins at the Adero Scottsdale Resort, an Autograph Collection hotel; a haven of calm and cool, surrounded by epic hikes and the rolling McDowell Mountains. Nestled in this corner of the surprisingly lush Sonoran Desert, the hotel has been built with the landscape in mind, with expansive views of both desert and sky at every farm.

The serene hotel offers an abundance of pools, pickleball courts, yoga classes, spa treatments, and other activities – it’s the dedicated stargazing terraces, however, that draw a crowd. Each week after dark, guests and locals collect around telescopes, impatient for a stargazing session with ‘the Star Dudes’ – local experts and educators. Boasting a community rich with astro-enthusiasts and astronomers, Eagle Ridge is even home to ex-NASA employees, drawn to the area by its Dark Sky Community designation. 

For guests to the hotel, add in complimentary use of the Star Walk night sky app, in-room telescopes, and choice of Dark Sky Corner or Celestial Suites, and this spot in Scottsdale is undoubtedly a stellar destination for visiting astro-tourists.With even Beyoncé getting on the country music wagon, a trip to this western state wouldn’t be complete without a taste of cowboy country, and Scottsdale offers it in spades. From the bona fide draw of the Old Town’s Rusty Spur saloon bar to the riding and hiking trails of the National Park, live country music, cowboy boots, stetsons, rodeo and mutton bustin’ abound.

At Scottsdale’s very own Cowboy College, subject of its own US TV series, childhood imaginings of the wild west come to life. Looking every inch the consummate cowboy — from shiny belt buckle and spurs to statement stetson — owner Rocco talks us through working with animals. An appropriately serious safety briefing ensues, as we’re instructed that horses only spook when humans overlook the basics. Slightly unnerved, we were reminded not to be anxious as the animals can sense it, and take deep, meditative breaths as we’re packed off to prep our new steeds.

Once groomed and mounted, we’re taught the basics of western riding. A far cry from the typical decorum of a British riding school, we’re let loose in jeans with reins in one hand, to master the art of directing our mounts.“Imagine it’s like a video game,” we’re told, and with the idea of a joystick in mind we were adeptly weaving our rides in and out of cones in no time, racing each other — and the clock. This crash course comes in handy a few days later as we meet on Scottsdales fringes for a sunset hack in the McDowell Sonoran Preserve with Windwalker Expeditions. 

Exploring the remote desert on horseback, dramatic gullies dip and rise as we try to keep our ponies in check. My steed attempts to have a quick snack on the surprisingly abundant vegetation as I navigate the changing terrain, from sand to rock, down and up and down again. A breeze beckons and a sense of peace and solitude falls as we ride deeper into the desert, entranced by the changing light and landscape.

Seeing it first-hand in the shimmering dusk, you can understand why so many have been caught by the desert and its charms, despite the very real challenges a life here can offer.

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One such visionary called by the allure of the desert was Frank Lloyd Wright, one of North America’s preeminent architects. It was here he built his winter home, Taliesin West, now a Unesco Heritage Site and essential excursion when in Scottsdale. A working example of Wright’s core tenet of organic architecture, it’s a monument to desert living. Every desert rock, canvas, and water feature is positioned with the elements in mind, from a carefully placed pond designed to soothe the stifling breeze, to a passageway shaped to funnel air through, and openings positioned to provide horizontal light, shading the glare of the desert sun.

In Scottsdale’s Paradise Valley another historic building beckons – the Hermosa Inn, once the 1930s abode of painter Lon Megargee. Famed as “Arizona’s first cowboy artist”, his desert hideaway is now a sophisticated and intimate boutique hotel, combining historic charm with luxurious furnishings, original artworks by Lon adorning the walls.Characterised by its 43 spacious casitas, I follow a path through the leafy grounds to Lon’s restaurant and the adjacent Lon’s Last Drop bar. Making the most of the balmy Arizonan evenings, both embrace the outdoors, with a picturesque, lantern-strewn terrace for dining. and multiple fireplaces perfectly placed for a postprandial digestif.

Despite eating well throughout my visit, Lon’s reputation as one of Scottsdale’s leading dining destinations is undisputedly well-earned. The Last Drop’s accomplished team are delighted to recommend Scottsdale-based brands and spirits, alongside those from further afield.

On the final evening, sitting beneath the original Last Drop painting which — found embellishing every Stetson silk — takes pride of place in the bar, I reflect on my week-long whirlwind. Scottsdale has surprised me. From its Museum of the West, and the boutiques and bars of the Old Town, to delicious dining and lofty hikes and hacks, it’s a tapestry of the diverse communities that shape it. Drawn by the landscape, the climate and the spirit of its untameable desert.

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