Looking for a fun, unique, and totally entertaining way to experience Tucson? Tucson Trolley Tours is the city’s most exciting way to explore the Old Pueblo, and it’s owned by none other than Tony Ray and Darren, the dynamic duo behind GayTucson.com! Whether you’re visiting for the first time or a longtime local wanting to see Tucson from a fresh perspective, this tour is packed with history, hidden gems, and plenty of laughs. Hop aboard and discover why everyone is raving about this one-of-a-kind adventure!
Forget boring, run-of-the-mill tours—Tucson Trolley Tours is all about fun, storytelling, and unforgettable sights! This open-air trolley takes you through Tucson’s most vibrant neighborhoods, showcasing historic sites, iconic landmarks, and hidden treasures you might never find on your own. Whether you’re into historic architecture, colorful street art, or Tucson’s legendary foodie scene, this tour has something for everyone. Plus, with lively commentary from your hosts, you’ll get the inside scoop on Tucson’s best-kept secrets!
Perfect for LGBTQ+ Travelers & Locals Alike
Tucson is one of the most welcoming cities in the Southwest, and this tour highlights the charm, diversity, and rich culture that make it so special. Owned and operated by two proud members of the LGBTQ+ community, Tucson Trolley Tours is a safe and inclusive space for everyone to enjoy. Whether you’re in town for a weekend getaway, celebrating with friends, or just looking for a fun date idea, this tour is a must-do!
More Than a Tour—It’s an Experience!
This isn’t just a sightseeing tour—it’s a rolling adventure through Tucson’s past, present, and future. You’ll hear fascinating stories, get insider tips on the best local spots, and enjoy plenty of photo-worthy moments along the way. Plus, with stops at some of the city’s best shops, restaurants, and attractions, you’ll leave with a whole new appreciation for Tucson.
Book Your Trolley Adventure Today!
Ready to experience Tucson in a way you never have before? Visit TucsonTrolleyTours.com to book your spot today! Whether you’re flying solo, planning a group outing, or looking for the perfect way to entertain out-of-town guests, this tour is guaranteed to be a highlight of your time in Tucson. Seats fill up fast, so don’t wait—hop on board and let the adventure begin! 🚋🌵
Tucson’s Rising Phoenix Self-Defense & Fitness is a unique, queer-friendly martial arts and self-defense gym open to all ages, skill levels, and fitness levels. Rising Phoenix has named this branch of their program The Rainbow Connection.
Our Approach
Founded in 2014, Rising Phoenix takes a different approach to self-defense training by using therapeutic martial arts instruction to promote healthy human connection, emotional control, and the importance of consent.
Each class focuses on street-smart self-defense skills and concepts designed to be immediately applicable to real-world situations. The self-defense we teach is based on Israeli Krav Maga, specifically intended to be practical, functional, and quick to learn.
In 2021, the Israeli Martial Arts Hall of Fame named Rising Phoenix the Best Krav Maga School in Tucson.
The Rainbow Connection
Rising Phoenix provides a welcoming environment for people in the LGBTQIA+ community to be themselves, gain confidence, and learn valuable skills. Rainbow Connection is our weekly donations-based self-defense class for the LGBTQIA+ community and allies.
Rainbow Connection was established as part of Rising Phoenix in 2016. The program was created by former gym member James Cook, who saw the need for self-defense training among his fellow members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Our Rainbow Connection classes provide training specifically designed to address concerns in the queer community. We practice trauma-aware instruction, focused on helping students take ownership of their minds and bodies to challenge their comfort zones and discover what they’re capable of.
Rainbow Connection is a safe place. Its dedication is to helping participants effectively learn and use assertiveness and self-defense skills in uncomfortable, intimidating, and scary situations. Our instructors and students use their strengths to help, support, and encourage each other to succeed.
Our Classes
Tucson’s Rising Phoenix offers a variety of self-defense, martial arts, and fitness classes, ranging from Krav Maga, Yoga, and Group Fitness, to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Weapons Tactics, and more!
We have two donations-based classes that are open to the public: Our Rainbow Connection LGBTQIA+ self-defense classes every Saturday from noon – 1:00 p.m., and our women’s self-defense classes every Friday from 6:00 p.m. –7:30 p.m. and every Saturday from 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
One-on-one private lessons, small-group private lessons, customized group workshops, and corporate training sessions are also available.
Our Owner
The founder and owner of Rising Phoenix, Jesse James Tucker, has been teaching self-defense and Krav Maga for over 15 years. He holds black belts in four different Krav Maga systems. He is also a certified Krav Maga instructor with the Federation of Israeli Martial Arts (FIMA).
Jesse has been inducted into both the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame and the Israeli Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He was named Defense Master Instructor of the Year in 2021 by the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame.
Reviews
Matt S.
“Stepping into a martial arts gym can be really scary, especially when you’re not a “Tough Guy,” but summoning my courage and walking through the doors at Rising Phoenix is the best thing I’ve done since relocating to Tucson three years ago. Jesse and his fellow instructors go out of their way to make people of every age, body type, culture, and orientation feel welcome and empowered with the best in modern martial arts training.
Rising Phoenix’s Krav Maga isn’t static: It’s constantly evolving and incorporating techniques from kickboxing, jiu-jitsu, and catch wrestling, alongside the tried and true martial education in Israeli Krav Maga you’d expect. Rising Phoenix also offers more stuff than Krav Maga, too: specialized instruction in Judo, BJJ, and Muay Thai, weapons, and you can take as much as you want for one price. I look back at the years I’ve spent training here and see a totally changed me. I’m tougher physically and psychologically, and my day-to-day life is better for it. Thanks, Jesse!”
Kristina S.
“I can honestly say training at Rising Phoenix is one of the best decisions I have EVER made. Whether you are at a beginner or advanced level in Krav Maga, BJJ, etc, this place makes you feel right at home. I have never met any instructors who are as passionate about teaching self-defense. Jesse, Chance, and Alicia are three of the most amazing people I have met in Tucson. I can ask endless questions, pose endless scenarios, and someone is ALWAYS ready to help and answer my questions.
Instructors will stay after class with you for more than an hour to discuss your personal training plan, answer any questions you might have, or just to talk about your experiences and what brought you to Rising Phoenix. They care about your personal experience and want to help you get what kind of training you’re looking for.… I have learned so much from Rising Phoenix, and I cannot wait to continue my training. I have gone to other gyms in Tucson, but there is no place better to train than Rising Phoenix. The atmosphere and the instructors are unbeatable.”
Jeremiah Thomas
“The people here are amazing. The instructors are professional, helpful, willing to show techniques that meet your fitness level, and very supportive. The training here is awesome. From real-life situations to multiple scenarios per technique, the instructors here are on top of their game. The group fitness class is great. It will work you into fighting shape pretty effectively. If you come, just say hi to anyone, and you will find a friend at this gym. I have been coming here for a couple of years now. Every new person is immediately treated as someone you’ve known for a lifetime. It really does make this such an inviting place to learn how to defend yourself and others.”
Company Name: Tucson’s Rising Phoenix Fitness & Defense
Office Address: 4500 E Speedway Blvd, Suite 4, Tucson, AZ 85712
Contact Name (s): Jesse James Tucker
Phone (s): (520) 838-1592
Email: tucsonrisingphoenix@gmail.com
Pricing: sliding scale
Website:https://tucsonselfdefenseandfitness.com/Office hours: (Please check our website for class times)
Antigone Books was founded in 1973 as a predominantly lesbian-owned feminist bookstore. This was at a time when there were more than fifty independent bookstores in Tucson. In the decades since the number of indie bookstores in the city has dwindled. Still Antigone Books has remained a pillar of the local book-loving community, expanding our mission to be a community bookstore with feminist roots. Although ownership has changed hands a couple of times since we originally opened in the 70s, we’ve remained women-run from the start. The current owners and long-time Antigone Books employees Kate, Melissa, and Morgan took over in 2018. They have expanded the store’s selection of books, gifts, and cards while remaining true to the store’s original focus on the recently-published boundary-pushing literature.
The Store
We keep a circulating stock of Pride supplies on hand throughout the year. From flags representing all identities across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum to dog- and cat-themed rainbow stickers. We also maintain a thriving queer literature section (see photos!), where we keep classic gay, trans, lesbian, and ace titles in stock. Readers can find everything on our shelves from LGBTQIA+ children’s books and YA fiction to queer graphic novels and LGBTQIA+ non-fiction. We also get regular issues of Sinister Wisdom and RFD as well as the latest lesbian romances from Bella and Bold Stroke Books. Whatever we don’t have in stock we’re happy to order for our customers at no extra charge! You can place orders in our store, over the phone, or online and we can get most titles in within a week.
Though our events program is on hold indefinitely due to COVID-19, pre-pandemic we were home to seven local book clubs and we featured regular book signings, author readings, and we had just begun to host Drag Queen Story Hours. We look forward to supporting our community with these and more exciting options in the near future; keep an eye on our website for updates! We also run a local authors consignment program for Tucson writers whose books are self-published or not available through major book distributors. We’re always looking for new voices, so definitely reach out if you’re interested after checking out the “Consignment” page on our website. In addition, we proudly carry local free periodicals of the Tucson queer community such as the 55+ LGBT newsletter Senior Forum and the Tucson Pride guide. Whether you’re new to town or a regular search for that perfect book, we’re excited to welcome you!
REVIEW:
“LOVE Antigone Books! This is generally my first stop if I’m looking for gifts or a physical book. Love their selection of adult coloring books, blank journals, cookbooks, and local authors. Their feminist and LGBTQ+ selection is also pretty impressive. And, they host a few book discussion groups. The staff is always friendly, and I like the sense of community.”
Kasser Family Wing of Latin American Art exterior
The Tucson Museum of Art has been a leader in the fine arts and education in Southern Arizona for nearly a century. It was established in 1924 and is in Tucson’s historic downtown and moved to its current location in 1975. TMA features permanent and traveling exhibitions of Modern and Contemporary, Indigen
Patrick Martinez’ neon signs on view in the Kasser Family Wing of Latin American Art
ous, American West, Latin American, European, and Asian art. The museum resides on a four-acre campus, and its exhibits and arts education programs are central to its mission. In addition, the museum hosts events serves as a steward of five historic properties and has a 6,800-square-foot art education center and research library. It has a permanent collection of over 12,000 works spanning continents, centuries, and media.
View of the gallery for Latin American Folk Art
The museum will take you on a journey through art, history, and culture and with artwork ranging from ancient to contemporary, there is something for everyone! Thousands of lives have been enriched by the museum’s programs and exhibitions including: an award-winning outreach program serving Tucson’s refugee community, robust k-12 programs, one of the state’s longest-running biennial exhibitions, public programs, and lifelong learning programs like TMALearn! Docents. The museum provides numerous opportunities to connect and engage with the arts and local community, such as free First Thursday and Second SundAZe, lecture series, annual spring and fall artisans market, youth studio programs, K-12 field trips, and more!
Teacher leading a group of students during summer camp
Reviews
“This place is a quiet gem. It was so much more than what we expected. Masterful artworks on careful display. I’m no art expert but I found this museum to be an excellent way to spend a relaxing few hours. Although as an introvert I found myself exhausted after exploring the many displays. Go if you haven’t been! We also enjoyed salad for lunch at the attached café.”
Paul H on Yelp 9/27/2021
“The Tucson Museum of Art was a great stop. We took three generations of our family to visit it. The layout of the museum is expansive. We covered a lot of ground (not all of the buildings were open, so we didn’t get to see everything) over a two-hour period.
The exhibits on display were definitely thought-provoking and got us talking about topics that may not have come up otherwise. I’m glad we made the trip there for the discussions it invoked.
Wear comfortable shoes and plan enough time to really soak everything in!”
Karl A on Yelp—1/11/2019
North Entrance to TMATucson Museum of Art and Historic Block
Office Address: 140 North Main Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85701
Contact Name (s): Marianna Pegno
Phone (s): 520-624-2333
As of July 1, 2023 the following will go into effect for hours and pricing related to admissions:
HOURS
Wednesday – Sunday 10 am – 5 pm
First Thursday of every month 10 am – 8 pm
ADMISSION
General $15
Senior/ Educator $12
College Students $10
17 and under/ Veterans and Military/ Members – Free
TOURS
PreK – 12 Student $7
Art-making $5 ($12 total)
NOTE: Discounts for College and Senior tours will no longer be offered.
777 W. Cushing Street Tucson, Arizona 85745 520-239-2300 Ramada by Wyndham
Located less than 3 blocks from the Tucson Convention Center and within 3 miles of the U of Arizona and Pima Community College, the Ramada is one of our favorite gay-friendly hotels because of its amazing location! Located right along the light rail, stay here and get to wherever you are going without a car making this a great launching pad to go explore Tucson’s vibrant downtown.
This is the closest hotel to the Roadrunners Hockey Arena, you could even walk to the game! It’s also next to the Tucson Convention Center where Tucson’s Comic-Con is held!
When you’re ready to get some exercise or simply connect with nature there are biking and jogging paths right at the River Walk.
Enjoy resort-like ambiance on 8-acres with courts and lawns and be well-positioned to explore all the best things Tucson’s downtown has to offer.
Have you ever felt seen, valued, or important? Here at Creatively Queer Press, we want everyone to experience that feeling through the media they consume. We’ve seen in popular media that many people in the LGBTQ+ or BIPOC communities lack representation with accuracy or empathy if represented at all.
Our mission as a publishing company is to change that. We look to media for versions of ourselves and for visions of who we could be. If we don’t see ourselves represented then our dreams can feel limited, or at worst, discouraged. Diversity is something we believe should be visible and celebrated.
The Media
One of our first publications does that for the queer Latinx community: Cuentos. This bilingual Latinx mythology art anthology came to fruition by our Creatively Queer Press team. With the help of two dozen queer Latinx artists and writers. Every entry is a painting or illustration about a myth, legend, or creature from folklore. The artworks are accompanied by either fiction or non-fiction writing about the subject in both Spanish and English.
Through Cuentos our founder Luis Silva discovered our first editor for the CQP team: A. Dante Bravo. Originally a contributing artist and writer, Dante took on the task of editing the book layout and running the Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the print books of Cuentos. To help finish Cuentos, our second editor Joelle Blot was also invited to join us on the book’s publishing journey. Together our team of three queer creators works to share our books all across the town of Tucson, AZ, and far beyond. By collaborating with queer and POC creatives from all over the world, Creatively Queer Press strives to create and publish accessible entertainment for fans of all genres of comic books, art anthologies, gaming books, and so much more.
We are also working towards building an animation team to help us create groundbreaking animated films that serve our mission of inclusive representation. We invite everyone who values diversity to discover a new favorite on our website at www.creativelyqueerpress.com
Southern Arizona Psychology
Bryce Paradis, MA, started Southern Arizona Psychology after years of professional experience working with children, young adults, and adults in diverse settings. Ranging from private practice consultations to community mental health and professional athletics. Bryce, a South Dakota native, has resided in Southern Arizona since 2015. Bryce’s background in Freudian psychotherapy has been integrated into the treatment of protocols in private practice, community mental health, professional athletic organizations, and family medical practices and training programs.
Bryce Paradis, MA
Bryce has received extensive training in improving the lives of individuals experiencing various areas of mental and emotional discomfort or distress. As a master’s level professional Bryce has years of professional experience working with individuals who experience moderate to severe mental health issues struggle with addiction and life/functional difficulties in response to personal trauma. As a member of the LGBTQ community, Bryce provides first-hand knowledge and understanding of the struggles that the community faces in his clinical practice and interventions.
The Mission
Southern Arizona Psychology operates with the mission and goal of providing patients with top-of-the-line mental health services. Your well-being is the number one priority. Southern Arizona Psychology goes above and beyond to cater to the needs of every client with gold standard personalized services. Services provided by Southern Arizona Psychology include couples coaching, individual coaching, family coaching, and athletic performance/mental health coaching. Emotional and behavioral issues are addressed by guiding patients every step of the way and implementing various methods to help individuals develop new attitudes towards all of life’s most complex matters. The goal of the process is to solve current problems and improve positive thinking and behavior. I will help you “re-frame” your reactions and provide you with valuable tools to cope with life’s obstacles.
Southern AZ Psych exterior
Personal growth and the cultivation of self (self-discovery, self-worth, and self-esteem) is paramount to Southern Arizona Psychology’s practice. It is our mission to provide our clients with tools, emotional regulation, and positive self-worth to lead healthy, productive, and fulfilling lives.
Contact
Southern AZ Psych Logo
Company Name: Southern Arizona Psychology, LLC
Office Address: 183 W. Broadway, Tucson AZ 85701 (Downtown Tucson &
Via Zoom)
Contact Name (s): Bryce Paradis, MA
Phone: (424) 234-9591
Pricing: $80 – $100 per session (sliding scale available based on income and/or economic hardship).
Website: www.southernAZpsych.com
Office hours: 7 Days a week based on appointment availability
Southern AZ Pychology Services
Northside Barbershop 3900 W Costco Dr #184, Tucson, AZ 857415205054624 9-530 (Mon – Fri)
After working towards getting a master’s license in Barbering I decided to move to Tucson Arizona from Boston Massachusetts a year ago. I take great pride in my work and also, I strive to make anyone feel comfortable especially those of us who are LGBT and do not always seek traditional barbershops for reasons we all can relate to. So; for that, I am here. I am skilled in any haircut that comes my way.
I am excited to meet new people and build a client base for both Men, Women, and Anyone who is looking for a haircut or beard trim.
Arizona Folklórico Dance Company LogoArizona Folklórico Dance Company LLC was established in December of 2022 under the direction of Maestro Bruno A. Loya III in Tucson, Arizona.
Arizona Folk (AZ Folk) seeks to preserve and promote the Hispanic performing arts throughout the greater Arizona community by presenting traditional & innovative Mexican folkloric dance works infused with techniques from a variety of dance disciplines including jazz, ballet, modern, ethnic dance, salsa, merengue, hip hop, and more.
Arizona Folklórico Dance Company provides dance and performance opportunities to students beginning at 4 years old. We invite you to become a part of the AZ Folk family by enrolling today!
