Here are some of our recommendations for Things To Do In Bisbee, AZ plus Lodging, Dining, History, Events, and lots of photographs. You will be amazed and delighted at how little Bisbee has changed since it’s mining days, other than the mining, of course.
Things To Do
Bisbee is a mining town or was. Like many mining towns, it is situated up against a steep hill. Walking the streets of Bisbee is a journey back to the late 19th and early 20th century. Just exploring the shops, restaurants, galleries, and other establishments housed in these fine old buildings is a pleasant way to spend a morning or afternoon. Visit the Bisbee Mining and Historical Museum and the Muheim Heritage House.
Take a Golf Cart Tour of the city. Much easier on the knees than walking and get a good dose of history to boot! There are also jeep tours of the historic district and mines.
The primary historic district includes Main Street, Brewery Gulch, OK Street, Tombstone Canyon, and much of the surrounding hillsides.
Bisbee has several fine art galleries and antique shops. A lot of folks go there just to people-watch. One might describe Bisbee’s hippy & biker inhabitants as “colorful”. The old saloons, such as St. Elmo’s along Brewery Gulch, are good places to make acquaintance with the indigenous population.
I have generally found Bisbee-ites of all stripes to be friendly and helpful. More than anything, Bisbee is a pleasant state of mind: laid-back, a little quirky, but with a definite sense of community. The people who live here really want to be here.
Bisbee’s History
Bisbee was resurrected from the ashes of the Mining Industry into an Arts Community. The Queen Mine, Bisbee’s largest employer, closed in 1975 and opened for tourism in 1976. In its hey day in the early 1900’s Bisbee was one of the largest towns between St. Louis and San Francisco. Bisbee is really two cities. The Warren District was where the employers lived and old town was the home of the miners. It is the Center of Bisbee Tourism today. Visit the Bisbee MIning and Historical Museum for a good look at Bisbee’s history. It was the Corporate Offices of the Copper Queen Consolidated Mining Company. It sits in front of the Copper Queen Hotel, another piece of history.
The Bisbee Massacre is about a robbery in 1883 that went bad … real bad.
In 1917 one of the most egregious violations of workers’ rights was perpetrated on the people of Bisbee. It is called The Bisbee Deportation.
For other stories of Bisbee’s History visit here.
Bisbee’s Attractions
Bisbee’s main attractions are the Bisbee Mining & Historical Museum and the Queen Mine Tour.
Watch these videos on some of Bisbee’s Attractions.
Bisbee Mining & Historical Museum and Meet Pete on the Queen Mine Tour.
Stay at the Calumet and Arizona Bed & Breakfast in the Warren District.
Have a 5 Star Hot Dog at Jimmy’s Hot Dog Company.
Lodging Recommendations
Hotel San Ramon, wonderfully restored, excellent service and attention to detail.
The Calumet & Arizona Guesthouse is a fine Bed & Breakfast located in the Warren District two miles south of Old Town Bisbee. In this video, you will meet Joy Timbers, the proprietor.
Eldorado Hotel Suites
The Eldorado is 12 roomy suites located on OK Street. The front suites overlook Brewery Gulch. Very comfortable.
Inn at Castle Rock. As quirky as the town itself. A fun experience.
The Copper City Inn is a fine addition to the Bisbee Hotel group. See the Review.
Other Bisbee Lodging Reviews You May Find Useful.
Bisbee Grand Hotel
Copper Queen Hotel – A piece of history.
Here is a page and a map to all of our Lodging Reviews!
Dining Recommendations
Bisbee has some of the best restaurants in all of Southern Arizona. Of the 9 Southern Arizona Restaurants that we rate 5-Saguaro (Best of the Best), three are in Bisbee. For our Bisbee Dining Reviews, click here
Bisbee Slideshows
Bisbee is extremely photogenic. Take your camera and see what compelling images you can capture. See our slideshows below.
Other Bisbee Resources
Cochise County Tourism Council
Bisbee Chamber of Commerce
Bisbee Visitors Center
City of Bisbee
Reading Recommendations
First there is Miss Karen’s Favorite:
Going Back to Bisbee
One of Bisbee’s Best Selling authors is J.A. Jance. She has a room named for her in the Copper Queen Hotel. Jance is famous for the Joanna Brady novels, a series of books about the Sheriff of Cochise County. Ms. Jance uses Cochise County and Bisbee as a backdrop for her detective novels. Quite entertaining, especially if you know the area. The Brady novels begin with this one: Desert Heat (Joanna Brady Mysteries)
Baseball History in Bisbee Arizona; Warren Ballpark
Bisbee, Arizona boasts an exciting piece of baseball history. It is home to the Warren Ballpark, considered the oldest continuously used professional baseball venue in the country. The field was built in 1909, five years before Wrigley Field in Chicago!
Copper Queen Hotel – Bisbee, AZ
The Copper Queen Hotel still stands majestic after more than 100 years.
Worth a look around the lobby and saloon. Relax with a drink on the front patio. Take a Ghost Tour.
11 Howell Ave.; Bisbee, AZ 85603
Hotel San Ramón In Bisbee Arizona: A Review.
Recommended Tucson FeaturesSponsor : Tucson Loop Bike Rentals Bisbee’s Neighborhoods Bisbee’s Lowell Neighborhood An “Historic Stay” at the Greenway Manor Shady Dell in Bisbee: A
Bisbee Grand Hotel Bed & Breakfast: A Review
I have had the pleasure of staying in many historical hotels & inns, including European castles. Considering their antiquity, travelers have to decide if the experience of living temporarily in a relic is worth doing without certain modern amenities and putting up with a few quirks & inconveniences.
Scenes from Bisbee, Arizona
In this pictorial slideshow you will find colorful scenics in and around Bisbee, Arizona describing what is so unique about this old copper mining town.
A Slideshow of Unique and Historic Homes in Bisbee
A self-guided tour of some of the unique historic and colorful homes, around the old downtown area of Bisbee.
Ghosts and Ghost Tours of Bisbee
Ghosts like Bisbee or perhaps Bisbee likes their Ghosts. I have stayed overnight at the Eldorado Suites Hotel in Bisbee, but did not encounter any ghosts. Nor was I promised any such encounters. Lots of places in Bisbee are “said” to be haunted. The historic old Grand Hotel on Main Street, for example. Lindsey, the bartender there described to me several otherworldly “events” she had personally experienced. Spooky.
Eldorado Suites Hotel, Bisbee Az: A Review.
This is a very fine historic hotel. It features a private courtyard with patio seating & BBQ in back and panoramic views of the city from its long balconies in front.
Inn At Castle Rock, Bisbee: A Lodging & Dining Review.
I was given a tour of the Inn At Castle Rock recently. What a delightful old hotel. Built for local miners in 1895 by the first mayor of Bisbee, the Inn has 14 comfortably furnished rooms, all with their own theme: Asian, Geronimo, Sultan’s Harem … you get the idea. “Eclectic” would be a gross understatement. Somewhere between quaint and quirky. But none so outlandish that I would describe it as “kinky”.
Bisbee Breakfast Club
We have had breakfast and lunch at the Bisbee Breakfast Club. Every local I talked to recommended the place, so I felt compelled to test
Jimmy’s Hot Dog Company
A five star hot dog restaurant in Bisbee, Arizona as featured in Gourmet Magazine.
Bisbee Queen Mine Tour
Take a tour of the Queen Mine with Pete, one of the original Phelps Dodge employees at this mine. After close to 100 years of production the Bisbee mines closed in 1975.
Bisbee Mining & Historical Museum
Copper, lots of copper, once made Bisbee the biggest, most prosperous city between St. Louis and San Francisco. The Director of the Bisbee Mining and Historical Museum, a long-time resident, shares her sense of this grand city of the Old West. Visiting Bisbee is like going back in time more than a hundred years.
Calumet & Arizona Guest House – Bisbee
I’ve stayed overnight in Tombstone and Bisbee several times. I have not discovered any accommodations as fine as Joy’s Calumet & Arizona Guest House.
Cafe Roka – Bisbee
Is Cafe’ Roka the best restaurant in Baja Arizona? You decide. But I’ll tell you this little story. Mr. Woodry and I have been dear
