GUIDED TUCSON WALKING TOURS
Tucson History Tours
& Tucson Architecture Tours
ABOUT US:
Short Video About Us!
Join Scott, your Tour Guide, for a Guided Walking Tour as we stroll the charming sidewalks of historic Downtown Tucson, PLUS the adjacent El Presidio and Barrio Viejo neighborhoods. Scott loves a good story, and has found many interesting tidbits & historical points of irony to share on his history walking tours!
See and learn about the Sonoran Row Houses and how they were built to adapt to our harsh summer climate with 18 inch thick walls! Learn of Tucson's 4,000 years of Native American History, hear the tales of Tucson's Spanish Colonial founding as a walled Presidio, and learn of our Pioneer Founders as we meander past their mansion homes in the El Presidio, also known as Snob Hollow!
We chat about Mid Century Entrepreneurs and the Downtown Department Store Tycoons that built Tucson into a shopping destination that gained national acclaim in the post WWII era.
We visit the El Tiradito Wishing Shrine and learn of the tragic story that brought this shrine to be, and hear how the shrine eventually saved the neighborhood, stopping urban renewal! Plus we see the site of the original natural spring that supplied the Presidio with water. Scott will share the tales of bathhouses and lush gardens! PLUS stories of western outlaws and the Dillinger Gang's capture in Tucson! See stunning architecture by famed southwest architect Henry Trost and the locally distinguished Roy Place.
NEW - If you are looking to experience attractions beyond downtown Tucson, please see our Tucson Audio Tour Packages menu tab, plus other Southwest Destination Audio Tours including Bisbee! Narrated by Scott your tour guide...enjoy the fascinating tales and interesting tidbits with Scott's entertaining narration!
BOOK A
TUCSON WALKING TOUR:
Read MoreDowntown Tucson & El Presidio Guided Walking Tour, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays & Sundays
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35 US dollars
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35 US dollars
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35 US dollars
Read MoreStrolls the charming sidewalks of Downtown Tucson! See historic buildings & hear fascinating tales
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35 US dollars
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Custom Price
Read MoreAccess 10 days of our narrated audio video tours of select Tucson Attractions & Hidden Gems
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Strolls & Stories Tours
Guided Walking Tours of Historic Tucson
Private Tours & Custom Tours Available
NEW - Tucson Audio Tours! See Audio Tour Tab for Packages Available!
For a Fun, Quirky & Informative Experience
- Learn "All Things Tucson" -
Book One of Our Tucson Guided Walking Tours!
NEW Las Cruces Walking Tour - Self-Guided
Downtown Las Curces, the Town of Mesilla, and New Mexico State University
THINGS YOU SEE ON OUR TOURS
Custom Tours Available
Are you planning a Corporate Retreat or Group Outing?! Contact Us to discuss a Private Group Tour! We are available for private group tours seven (7) days a week. Custom quotes based on your needs. Choose from our existing tours or ask about a custom tour such as a Garden Walking Tour or we can narrate a bus ride up Mount Lemmon, and more!
Contact Us
Meet Your Tour Guide
Scott, Owner & Tour Guide
Scott is an avid traveler with a passion for uncovering the stories that make a destination unique and the history and culture that bring a destination alive! Scott currently lives in Tucson for the second time in his life and loves exploring the wild Sonoran Desert and the urban historic areas of the city. He grew up in "The Small Town" of Seymour, Indiana, and lived in Seattle, WA for 14 years where he explored the Pacific Northwest extensively.
Scott - Continued
Scott has traveled through parts of Europe, Asia, South America and North America and considers Tucson to be one of the most unique destinations in the United States! Join him on a tour to uncover stories about Tucson's Spanish Colonial past, the cities rich cultural history, unique desert flora and fauna, stories of outlaws, shrines to a sinner and so much more!
Scott - Concluded
Scott is known to be an enthusiastic story teller with a knack for uncovering interesting tidbits that bring the surrounding setting alive with a unique and insightful perspective. Booking a tour with Scott ensures you will return home with vivid memories of Tucson and the Sonoran Desert!
Tucson Walking Tour Blog Posts
Tucson Walking Tour
Join us for a Guided Tucson Walking Tour by Strolls and Stories Tours! On our tours we traverse the charming sidewalks of Downtown Tucson, the Historic El Presidio neighborhood and Barrio Viejo neighborhood. We will discuss Tucson Architecture seeing the last remaining Southwest Art Decor styled Movie Palace, mission revival styled mansions by Henry Trost, historic Sonoran Row Houses and so much more! Plus, we chat about Tucson History as guests learn the tales of our Spanish Colonial founding as a walled Presidio, stories of Western Outlaws and our Pioneer Founders plus tales of Mid Century Entrepreneurs when downtown thrived with a cluster of department stores, luxury hotels and theaters! Join us for a Tucson Guided Walking Tour by Strolls and Stories Tours!
Barrio Viejo Walking Tour
One of our Guided Walking Tours includes the Barrio Viejo. You can also request a private tour to include the Barrio Viejo. Join Scott, your Tour Guide, as we stroll the charming sidewalks of this historic neighborhood. We meander past restored and non-restored row houses and learn how they were designed for our harsh summer climate, and see actual exposed original adobe blocks on some of the buildings!
The Barrio Viejo was a working class neighborhood. Hear the tales of the barrio including stories of buried treasure, using the stove to heat the home on cold nights, and sleeping porches on the back!
We visit the El Tiradito Wishing Shrine where we hear the tale of a young married man from the 1800s caught naked in bed with his mother-in-law! See the site of the original natural spring that fed the walled Tucson Presidio with water, and hear the tales of lush gardens and bathhouses. We stroll past a historic Spanish language theatre that once hosted top traveling acts from Spain and Mexico.
At the end we have time for shopping in several art galleries and a Native American crafts gift shop. Book a Strolls and Stories Tour today!
Tucson History Tours
Each of our tours covers Tucson History from our early Native American inhabitants and our Spanish Colonial founding as a walled Presidio to our Pioneer Founders and the Mid Century Entrepreneurs when downtown thrived with locally owned department stores, luxury hotels, theaters and more! There are some fascinating tales about Tucson's History - Join us on one of our Strolls and Stories Tours to hear the stories and learn the History of Tucson! Each of our tours is a Tucson History Tour!
Tucson Architecture Tour
Take the plunge and join us for a Tucson Architecture Tour! The lady on the sign outside the former Pueblo Hotel has been ready to take the plunge for decades! Each of our guided tours has an architecture history component to it!
Join us to learn about our historic Sonoran Row Houses adapted for our harsh summer climate. We meander by several mansions designed by Henry Trost in Mission Revival Style and multiple downtown buildings designed by Roy Place in the decorative Spanish Colonial Revival Style. Learn of former historic hotels designed by both of these architects and see many examples of their works still standing!
We stroll past the last remaining Southwest Art Deco Movie Palace. We visit two mid century modernist sculpted art pieces by Charles Clement, including his Presidio Fountain that has been newly restored, and so much more! Join us on a Strolls and Stories Tour for a discussion of Tucson Architecture! Each of our tours is a Tucson Architecture Tour!
So "Dive In" with Strolls and Stories Tours for a Tucson Architecture Tour!
Develop A Marketing Story For Your Hotel Or Tourism Attraction
Scott with Strolls and Stories Tours is available for an affordable fee to help develop a "story" for your hotel or tourism attraction! Scott has a passion for story telling, and loves uncovering the historic stories, fascinating tales and his interesting tidbits for hotels and tourism attractions! Learn More by clicking the Read More button below!
Tucson Walking Tours
Join a Tucson Walking Tour guided by Strolls and Stories Tours for an urban hike of sorts! Tucson's downtown neighborhoods meander and wind around past charming Historic Sonoran Row Houses, adobe ruin shrines, a Historic Southwest Art Deco Theater, Spanish Mission Revival Architecture by famous architects and so much more! On our urban hike guided walking tours guests will learn the History of Tucson as a walled Spanish Colonial Presidio, hear the tales of Western Outlaws and our Pioneer Founders, learn how many national flags have flown over Tucson and hear the stories of mid century entrepreneurs when downtown had a cluster of department stores, luxury hotels and theaters. Join us on a Strolls and Stories Tour for a Tucson Walking Tour that is an Urban Hike!
Downtown Tucson Walking Tour
Join Scott, your Tour Guide, for a guided Downtown Tucson Walking Tour! All of our tours pass through parts of historic Downtown Tucson! Join us as we learn of historic luxury hotels designed by Henry Trost and Roy Place. Hear the tales of downtown department store tycoons that gained national acclaim and attracted an international clientele! See where Doc Holliday partied the night away and the spot where Wyatt Earp chased a guy down and shot him. We visit the hotel where John Dillinger's Gang stayed and see the courtroom where they were arraigned. All of this and sooo much more when you book a tour with Strolls and Stories Tours!
El Presidio Tucson Walking Tour
Join Scott, your Tour Guide, for a Guided Walking Tour of the El Presidio neighborhood plus the western side of Downtown Tucson! See a rebuilt section of adobe wall and hear the stories of Tucson's Spanish Colonial founding as a walled Presidio. Learn the number of national flags that have flow above Tucson...the number might surprise you!
We will stroll down Main Ave which was once the Calle Real, The Royal Road, stretching all the way down to Mexico City as part of New Spain! Here we see the mansion homes of Tucson's Pioneer Founders including several homes designed by Henry Trost. The tales of our founders are fascinating!
Next we meander into the Historic Pima County Courthouse designed by Roy Place and head up to the Dillinger Courtroom to hear the tales of Public Enemy #1 and his capture inTucson. See a handwritten letter from Wyatt Earp, then a stroll past the Presidio Fountain by Charles Clement, newly restored and turned on.
See the plaza where Doc Holliday partied shortly before the O.K. Corral Gunfight and learn the tales of mid century department store tycoons who gained national acclaim along with a former luxury hotel and the last remaining Southwest Art Deco Theatre. All of this and sooooo much more...join me on or El Presidio and Downtown Tour!
Things To Do In Tucson
Tucson Attractions
While our Strolls and Stories Tours are primarily focused on Guided Walking Tours of Historic Downtown Tucson and the adjacent Barrio Viejo and El Presidio neighborhoods, we are available for private and custom tours of other areas of Tucson. In addition, on our Guided Tours, we do share with guests other attractions in Tucson that they might want to consider visiting.
Some of these include DeGrazia Gallery In The Sun in the Catalina Foothills on the north side of town...a spectacular art gallery with DeGrazia's art which includes many style.
A 45 minute trip up Mount Lemmon adjacent to the north side of Tucson, where you pass through thick cactus forests, then scrub brush pastures, next sparse ponderosa pine before arriving at the top at 9,171 feet with lush Douglas Fir, the charming community of Summerhaven, and the southern most ski area in the Continental United States, Ski Valley! Mount Lemmon is one of few peaks in North American named for a woman!
Stop by American Eat Company in South Tucson featuring several local food vendors and a bar all under one roof with a focus on Sonoran Mexican Food. It's a festive environment and always fun!
San Xavier del Bac Mission, founded by Father Kino in the 1692. The building dates to the 1780s and it sits on present day Tohono O'odham Nation land. It is the oldest intact European structure in Arizona. The original murals have been beautifully restored. It continues to be a working house of worship.
The Titan Missile Museum, located south of Tucson, housed a secret nuclear warhead during the cold ward era. Take a tour and see the silo and living quarters of this top secret site. Visit the control room and see the early punchcard computer technology that protected Americans during the Cold War!
Saguaro National Park located on both the East and West side of Tucson with visitors centers on both sides. Learn all about the majestic Saguaro Cacti, how old they are when they grow their first arm, and other cacti and vegetation of the lush Sonoran Desert!
Visit the SkyCenter on top of Mount Lemon for an evening of Astronomy through the high powered telescopes! Guests have access to the Schulman 32" inch and the Phillips 24" telescopes. These are two of the largest telescopes available for public outreach in the Southwest. The center is located on a former top secret cold war military base at the top of Mount Lemon at an elevation of 9,157 feet. Book an unforgettable evening of astronomy at The SkyCener!
And finally...A Guided Walking Tour with Strolls and Stories Tours! No visit to Tucson is complete without strolling the charming sidewalks of Downtown Tucson, plus the El Presidio and Barrio Viejo neighborhoods, to hear of Tucson's Spanish Colonial founding, learn the tales of our Pioneer Founders, and hear of mid century downtown department store tycoons...all the while seeing beautiful historic buildings and mansions plus public art by famous architects and artists.
DeGrazia Gallery In The Sun
Mount Lemmon
American Eats
Mission San Xavier del Bac
Titan Missile Museum
Saguaro National Park
SkyCenter Astronomy on Mount Lemon
Tucson Walking Tours by Strolls and Stories Tours
Tucson Walking Tours
Owls Club Mansion - This Story Is A Real Hoot!
Sonoran Row House Construction
El Tiradito Wishing Shrine
Tucson's All Souls Procession on
The Day of the Dead, El Dia de los Muertos
Things To Do In Tucson
Tucson's All Souls Procession on The Day of the Dead or El Dia de los Muertos, takes place on the first Sunday in November. With around 200,000 participants and spectators this is the largest such procession in the United States! This procession is rooted in Mexican Culture where on the Day of the Dead, El Dia de los Muertos, it is believed the boundaries between life on earth and the spirit world dissipate, with the souls of the dead returning to dance, eat and drink with their loved ones. During the procession, which is filled with music and dancing, the urn is filled with slips of paper from participants and spectators containing their wishes and hopes. At the conclusion of the procession the ceremonial burning of the urn takes places. It is a wonderful evening of celebration bringing together a wide array of cultures to create a uniquely Tucsonan event. I highly encourage a visit to Tucson over the first Sunday in November to take in and participate in this procession.
