The city of Scottsdale, Arizona is located within Maricopa County, which is within the eastern part of the state next to Phoenix. The population was 217,385 based on the U.S. Census Bureau. The downtown area of Scottsdale has been described by the New York Times as "a desert version of Miami's South Beach." It has been described as having a lively hotel scene and is home to lots of late night partying.
Tempe, Arizona borders the city of Scottsdale to the south, Carefree is situated by the Fountain Hills and the Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community to the east, and Phoenix and Paradise Valley towards the west. Scottsdale is found in the "Valley of the Sun," or the Salt River Valley. It lies in the northern area of the Sonoran Desert. The McDowell Mountain Range is found immediately to the northeast and the east of Scottsdale.
The Scottsdale tourism business is the city's major employer and accounts for nearly 40% of the total labor force. There are over 7.5 million visitors who travel through the city of Scottsdale each year and they contribute over $3.1 billion dollars to the economy. Scottsdale has more than 15,000 hotel rooms at its more than 70 hotels and resorts.
In the entire nation, Scottsdale has the 3rd most AAA Five Diamond resorts and hotels, trailing only Las Vegas and New York City. In 2008, AAA awarded 5 Scottsdale properties with their highest honor. These properties were the Canyon Suites, the Fairmont Princess Resort and Spa, the Troon North, the Scottsdale Camelback Inn and the Four Seasons Resorts Scottsdale.
Scottsdale has an abundance of sunshine and is famous for its year round warm conditions. These are amongst the main features of Scottsdale's tourism. There are lots of tourists in wintertime who come from as far away as Canada, the Midwest and the northeast. When these winter travelers come and stay for long term visits, they are locally known as "snowbirds." usually, these tourists normally purchase second homes in the region as they practice this migration routine on an annual basis.
Over the past few years the region has grown considerably with numerous art galleries, upscale restaurants and high end nightlife. There is many luxury shopping destinations as well making the area a famous travel place for the more style conscious travelers.
In Scottsdale, the aviation industry has also grown. The Scottsdale Airport, constructed in the 1960's is currently amongst the nation's busiest single runways airports. The majority of all the operations are corporate or general aviation as there is no commercial air service.