If you're in exploration mode, add the Bike Church to your list! Bike Church is a "walk-in"…read moresculpture made entirely of recycled bike parts. It's lovely both day and night, but the at night it is illuminated. It's really cool! It's also interactive in that the public is welcome to play the musical chimes made from bike parts. The bike church not only references the bike culture of the Old Pueblo but it is also serves as shared community memorial for cyclists. It's a reminder to please share the road :) There's room for all of us! Bike Church is located in Barrio Anita, (downtown ) on the southwest corner of W. Davis Street and N. Main Ave.

The 22-foot-tall-sculpture is on North Granada Avenue and West Davis Street near Barrio Anita. It…read moreserves as a gateway to a six-mile bike path. A walk-in metal sculpture made of hundreds of bike frames, wheels and rims with stained-glass windows and musical chimes made from bike parts, that I have driven past many times with curiosity. It's a nondenominational celebration of bike culture featuring traditional religious architecture. The sculpture's stained-glass windows resemble those of church; the top is similar to those on Islamic temples; and there are two Stars of David on the sides and a mold of a Pascua Yaqui dancer, O'Connell said. Joe O'Connell is one of the sculptures along with Blessing Hancock of Creative Machines. It serves as a permanent memorial for cyclists killed on the streets, but it's also a place for celebration. They want you to play with the chimes! You can attach pictures and mementos to remember cyclists who have passed. Let's be honest, Tucson is very bike friendly, BUT it seems like every time you turn on the news, you hear of a bike accident. At night, solar lights light up the stained glass. It is a way-cool sight!

Looks like a giant donut!…read more This piece of public art is very simple, just an upright circle that lights up at night. It was was originally created for the Luminarias del Pueblo fundraising auction in April 2005. It is located in the median on West Alameda Street between El Presidio Park and the Tucson Museum of Art. I put in a location edit on Yelp back in Nov. 2022 since the location marker was incorrect. Hubby & I drove all over looking for it. Since then, it has been corrected. Be careful crossing the road to get to it! Desert O is a translucent ring that is 6 feet in diameter This object has a steel skeleton inside that can be seen both during the day and at night. It basically looks white and pretty unremarkable during the day. The ring displays a pattern of colored LED lights that circle slowly inside the sculpture. It is covered with frosted acrylic panels that make it glow brightly. This art is a solar-powered. There is one 'secret' touch-sensitive button that allows visitors to control the lighting. You have to find it from the hundreds of metal fasteners holding the sculpture together. It was nice to get out and take a look at this public art!

nothing really special here. when it was built I was in high school and we called it the glass…read moreDonut. sounds allot better than glass O . around the holidays they decorate it as a wreath, or art least I remember they used to.

Zoo Lights is a nice festive holiday activity. The entry fee isn't too crazy compared to entry to…read moreTBG. The zoo is small, but I like that. Animals are not out which is think is probably best for them. There are food and drink vendors, none of which we stoped at. But they sell big pretzels, and items of that sort. The schedule is new night so you have plenty to choose from. The times entry helps mitigate humongous crowds, so walking in was easy.

I love that the animals are not put away while people come enjoy the zoo lights here. Where I live,…read morethe animals are not out and about, and it is just a Xmas light walk. Here we got to see the beautiful lights along with some critters, most exciting of which was an elephant. I was not pleased with the one guy with his super strong flashlight constantly shining it at the elephant, but some folks just don't know how to be respectful of the animals. We got our tickets ahead of time, which really expedited the entry. The line for getting tickets on-site was kind of long, so get yours ahead of time and beat the crowd. Parking is shared by the various businesses, so expect to walk a little ways to get to the zoo entrance. Inside the gates it is like any other day at the zoo, with all stores, food vendors, and exhibits open for you to walk through. The night we went one section of the zoo was closed off, though it didn't say why. They also had a dance group performing at the center stage, which was neat.

If you ever wanted to relive the bar cave moment from the first Christopher Nolan Batman movie then…read morethis is the place to go. Except it's under a bridge. After scaring away the potential homeless sleeping under the bridge you will arrive upon a plaque with various fun facts describing the massive colony under the bridge. The bat shit crazy part is the fact that you'll definitely either step into bat feces or have them dropped on to you by the flying rodents themselves. Best time to go is about an hour before sunset. The bats typically emerge 45 minutes before sunset.

It might have been a little early in the season because there weren't many bats that came out, but…read morethis is a great spot to see them later in the season. I love that the community put a sign with information on Mexican Free-tailed Bats. I also love the quirky bat structure where they're riding a bike! You can get right under the colony by walking the bike path. Gentle reminder- not disturb their home or touch them. View respectfully

While we were staying in Tucson, we discovered that we were so close to Saguaro National Park…read more(particular the East side), so we decided to come by early in the morning when gates open at 8 am and did the Cactus Forest Drive for 8 hours. Worth it! Saw lots of cacti and got out of the car to take photos close up with the cacti too. While the cacti were more spread out in this location, it was definitely a sight to see! So random how we discovered this place on our roadtrip (as it wasn't even planned)! After completing the drive, the visitor center opened up and we were able to go inside for the gift shop and other learnings. So fun!

April is the perfect time of year to make the jaunt over to Saguaro National Park East for the…read moreCactus Forest Drive. The weather is not yet scorching and the blooming flora is beautiful. My family and I took the 8 mile drive on a Saturday afternoon over a span of about three hours, we stopped at many of the pullouts for a bit of exploring and photography. The entrance cost is $20 for a regular vehicle and an annual pass is $80, pricing varies for large groups and tours. I highly recommend a stop and short climb at Javelina Rock, although we didn't encounter any javelinas, the view was one of our favorites from the drive. The visitor center also has a fun gift shop you shouldn't miss! Can't wait to visit again when I have more time for hiking and exploration.

I attended last year's June Momentos event and in comparison to that prior experience, this one was…read moresuper interactive and fun. I think that it can be different per type of people who attend, artist style and music... typically the drinks and snacks are similar enough. This was fun! 'Club' like music and a truly beautiful earthy artist. I enjoy how these events challenge community to come together and interact over art. What a cherish-able experience.

I enjoy this MOMENTOS series so much at the TMA! This is second one and was focused on poetry …read more The TMA staff at event check in and our discussion guide are excellent and the atmosphere inviting with the design layout. Always enjoy looking around at any and all this peaceful place houses. It is encouraged to think, feel, jot down thoughts, smile, tear up- any of a number of emotions as every person finds at the least-1-art piece(me- many!) that make them feel one way or another! Just an absolute gem in the heart of Tucson to enjoy anytime. Thank you TMA for the welcome and wonderful event! #yelptucson #tucsonmuseumofart

I had an amazing time meeting up with friends and experiencing All Souls Processions. Some of us…read morecarried photos and items from lost loved ones and some didn't. Our group wasn't dressed up as we had been part of some community conversations from varying view points around the appropriate-ness of the event. However after meeting and speaking with a lovely Mexican American couple at our hotel we changed our opinion. They were very inviting to us and encouraged us to join in the festivities. They told us they annually travel to the event from Mexico to celebrate and dress up with their family. We thought it would at least be ok to attend and check it out for ourselves. The costumes and floats/props people made were beautiful. There was a large metal basket and ornately costumed "characters" collecting hand written remembrances and depositing them in the basket. When everyone began walking some music broke out from time to time, people began to sing, sometimes protest and resistance songs. Groups of dancers performed as we moved down the streets - the curbs lined were with onlookers. It was solemn, peaceful and reflective. At the end of our walk a huge crowd gathered around a barricaded stage backlight by a mega screen. We had VIP passes and were allowed into the barricade for a warm meal. There were a few large tables to eat at or rows of seating to watch the performance. Wow! Stage acts, live drumming, wacky jellyfish costumes, fire jugglers, live rock band, aerialists and fireworks. The big metal cage got lit on fire and hoisted up on a crane to let everything burn. It turned out to be a very epic evening. Lots of great local after parties, live bands and specials at neighboring bars.

This is a must see/participate in Tucson event. Look on Pinterest to see how you should dress/…read morepaint your face. The first time I went, I tried using the cheap Halloween face paint which looked awful. This year I bought the lightest coxed (porcelain) tinted moisturizer to make the light/whiteish background color for my face and it worked way better! There are also people who do professional face painting in the area (find on facebook). It gets cold at night so be sure to dress warm. I still haven't made it to the procession part yet but I want to next year. The walk ends in MSA Annex area and there are a bunch of performers and ALOT of food trucks. Then it's fun to go over to Mercado san Augustin courtyard. There is a live band and dancing here as well as food and drinks. If you want to go to Augustin Kitchen, you need a reservation.

We visited on the last Saturday of Oktoberfest this past weekend, and unfortunately, the food…read moreoptions were quite limited. They only offered bratwurst plates, which isn't great if you don't eat pork. To make matters worse, they wouldn't allow you to buy sides individually, and the potato side dish contained bacon. You also couldn't double up on any sides with your meal. Unsurprisingly, no one seemed to want the sauerkraut, and the red cabbage wasn't very good either. I ended up scraping the bacon off the potatoes and making a potato sandwich, which was pretty much my only food option. Even then, the potatoes were surprisingly sour. They really need to offer more variety in their food options. As for drinks, I only noticed beer, but I did see someone with wine, though I'm not sure where they bought it. The music was on and off throughout the event. If you plan to go, I recommend bringing a blanket to sit on since the walk from parking is likely long and chairs would be too heavy to carry. Or you can have the driver drop everyone off with the stuff, while they go park. Parking is free. Leashed dogs are welcome, and I'd suggest bringing your own picnic food as well.

So disappointed we can't bring our well behaved standard poodle!…read more Recommend vegan brats for some folks.