2 Best Sights in Eastside, Tucson

This limestone grotto 20 miles southeast of Tucson is the largest dry cavern in the world. Guides discuss the fascinating crystal formations and relate the many romantic tales surrounding the cave, including the legend that an enormous sum of money stolen in a stagecoach robbery is hidden here.

Forty-five-minute cave tours begin every hour on the hour and require a ½-mile walk and a climb of 363 steps. The park includes a ranch area with trail rides through saguaro forests (from $38), hiking trails, a gemstone-sluicing area, a petting zoo, a gift shop, and a café.

This huge facility ranks among the largest private collections of aircraft in the world. More than 300 airplanes are on display in hangars and outside, including a presidential plane used by both John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson; a full-scale replica of the Wright brothers' 1903 Wright Flyer; the SR-71 reconnaissance jet; and a mock-up of the X-15, the world's fastest aircraft. World War II planes are particularly well represented.

Meander on your own (even leashed pets are allowed) or take a free walking tour led by volunteer docents. The open-air tram tour (an additional $6 fee) narrates all outside aircraft. A two-hour tour of Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG)—affectionately nicknamed "The Boneyard"—provides an eerie glimpse of hundreds of mothballed aircraft lined up in rows on a vast tract of desert. This $10 AMARG tour, available only on weekdays by reservation, is a photographer's delight. An on-site restaurant, The Flight Grill, is open daily.