Nearly four million people have settled in and around the Arizona capital, Phoenix, all but obliterating any sense that the land here ever was, and still is, a desert. Golf courses, swimming pools, lakes, and fountains are everywhere, with only a few carefully coiffed cacti remaining to testify to the natural state of things. But there is something oddly charming about the place—an anything-goes, Wild West spirit manifest in the highest rate of car theft in the country, and a truly phoenix-like ability to grow and thrive despite the almost total lack of natural advantages.

  The best thing about visiting Phoenix is the chance to explore the marvelous Heard Museum (daily; $7; 602/252-8840), at 2301 N. Central Avenue, among the best museums anywhere devoted to the native cultures of the Southwestern United States. The permanent galleries trace the history and diversity of prehistoric peoples and contemporary tribes, while changing exhibitions focus on specific themes. Don’t miss the amazing collection of Hopi kachina dolls, collected by hotelier Fred Harvey and the late U.S. Senator Barry Goldwater. Just down the street is the Phoenix Art Museum (daily; $9, free Thurs; 602/257-1222), at 1625 N. Central Avenue, with the largest art collection in the Southwest.

  Another treat: Taliesin West (Thurs.–Mon.; $12–16; 480/860-2700), at 108th Street at the east end of Cactus Road, where every winter from 1937 until his death in 1959, Frank Lloyd Wright lived, worked, and taught, handcrafting the complex of studios, theaters, and living quarters that survives as an architecture school.

  The biggest thing to see in downtown Phoenix is Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks (602/514-8400). It’s the only major league ballpark with its own outfield swimming pool.