Do You Need a Car in Scottsdale?
For most visitors, yes. There is no light-rail connection into Scottsdale from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport or downtown Phoenix, so a rental car or a consistent rideshare habit is the standard approach. How much you actually need one depends on where you stay: an Old Town-adjacent hotel puts galleries, restaurants, and nightlife within walking distance, while a resort in the North Scottsdale golf-and-spa corridor generally means a short drive for anything beyond the property itself.
If your plan mixes Old Town evenings with resort days and a McDowell Sonoran Preserve trail, a car or a reliable rideshare budget makes the trip considerably easier to string together. See our where to stay guide for a closer look at how each lodging area affects your transportation needs.
Flying In: Phoenix Sky Harbor and Scottsdale Airport
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX), located in Phoenix, is the primary commercial airport serving the entire Valley of the Sun, including Scottsdale. It is generally a short drive from Sky Harbor to Old Town or the closer parts of Scottsdale, and longer if your resort sits deep in the North Scottsdale corridor -- check current traffic conditions or a mapping app for a real-time estimate before you book a ride, since exact drive times vary by time of day and destination.
Scottsdale also has its own airport, Scottsdale Airport (SDL), a general-aviation field used mainly for private and corporate aircraft; the City of Scottsdale states it has had no scheduled major-airline service since 1990. The semi-private carrier JSX does fly scheduled routes out of SDL to a handful of cities, such as Las Vegas and Denver, so it is not purely a private-aircraft-only field. Unless you are flying JSX or arriving by private aircraft, plan on flying into Sky Harbor.
Rental Cars, Rideshare, and Taxis
Rental car counters are available at Sky Harbor, and a rental is the most flexible option if your itinerary includes day trips outside Scottsdale, such as Sedona or the wider Phoenix area. Rideshare services operate throughout the Phoenix metro area, including Scottsdale, and are a practical alternative if you would rather not deal with parking at busy Old Town venues or resort valet lines. Pricing and wait times for both rentals and rideshare fluctuate with demand and time of year, so check current rates through the relevant app or rental site rather than assuming a fixed cost.
Traditional taxis exist but are used less often than rideshare by most visitors; hotel front desks and resort concierges can typically arrange one if needed.
The Scottsdale Trolley and Getting Around Old Town
The City of Scottsdale operates a free trolley system, though the dedicated Old Town (OLDT) route has been suspended since 2020. The current routes -- 68th/Camelback, Miller/Hayden, and Mustang -- serve other parts of the city, and the 68th/Camelback route stops at the edge of Old Town along Goldwater Boulevard. Routes, hours, and service areas are the kind of detail that changes over time, so check the city's current trolley information before you build a day around it rather than relying on older route maps.
Once you are actually in Old Town, walking is usually the easiest way to move between galleries, restaurants, and bars -- the core district is compact. See our Old Town Scottsdale guide for more on how the district is laid out.
Getting to Nearby Cities and Day Trips
Scottsdale sits immediately east and northeast of Phoenix and borders Tempe and Paradise Valley, connected by a network of freeways and surface streets, including Loop 101 along the city's northern and eastern edges. Most visitors treat Scottsdale and the wider Phoenix metro as one connected trip rather than separate destinations, and a car makes moving between them straightforward.
If you are planning a longer excursion, Sedona's red rock country is roughly a two-hour drive north via I-17. See our Scottsdale day trips guide for more destinations and a look at what each one takes to reach.