Mill Ave spills into Tempe Town Lake, a 2-mile-long recreational pond created by reclaiming the long-dry Salt River in the 1990s. Have a picnic at Tempe Beach Park and watch kids letting off steam at the waterfalls, rock slides and shallow pools of the ingenious Splash Playground. Free outdoor concerts and festivals bring crowds to the park on weekends.

There's no swimming in the lake, but you can rent boats.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. 'A' Mountain

0.4 MILES

For sweeping metro and mountain views, huff it up for half a mile to the top of Tempe's 'A' Mountain, so-called because of the giant letter 'A' painted…

2. Mill Ave

0.65 MILES

Along the western edge of Arizona State University, Mill Ave is Tempe's main drag and is lined with restaurants, bars and a mix of national chains and…

3. ASU Art Museum

1.04 MILES

This airy, contemporary gallery space has permanent collections of contemporary, Southwestern, North and Latin American art, hosts regular temporary shows…

4. Arizona State University

1.12 MILES

South of Scottsdale and sandwiched between downtown Phoenix and Mesa, Tempe is home to the 50,000 students of Arizona State University's main campus…

5. Phoenix Zoo

1.25 MILES

Home to more than 1400 animals, including local natives such as the bald eagle and bighorn sheep, Phoenix Zoo houses species rare and common in several…

6. Desert Botanical Garden

1.94 MILES

Blue bells and Mexican gold poppies are just two of the colorful showstoppers blooming from March to May along the Desert Wildflower Loop Trail at this…

7. Pueblo Grande Museum

2.57 MILES

The O'odham Indians use the word 'Hohokam' ('all used up') for the ancestors who mysteriously abandoned this adobe city and the intricate irrigation…

8. Museum of the West

4.15 MILES

Opened in 2015, the Museum of the West has a rotating cast of temporary exhibits, ranging from Taos painters to Barry Goldwater's black-and-white…

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