April is a beautiful month in Tucson! Some of the desert plants are still in bloom and the terrible heat has not yet arrived. #1 place for me would be a visit to the Desert Museum, which is not a "museum" at all, but instead is a naturalized area housing all types of rescued desert critters including foxes, coyotes, and mountain lions. Fascinating place, natually lovely; wear good shoes, suntan lotion, and sunglasses. If you ask anyone, from your concierge to your waiter, they will smile and say "Yes, that's a must." Amazingly, when the builders of Monterey's famed Aquarium began planning this great water-space, they turned to the Desert Museum for advice on how to best house animals for a "normal" life.

I never think of Tucson for shopping (we lived there for ten years). For me, the best shopping centers and art galleries were in Scottsdale. You are in Santa Fe, fgs, nothing in Tucson can equal that, imo!

Our favorite place for good dining was always the Arizona Inn, an elegant old hotel-resort complex near the Arizona Medical Center, for any meal, and if not for a meal, then for drinks in its extremely comfortable bar, which is open to the outdoors. The Inn has welcomed presidents and royalty for a century!

1. Also, Sabino canyon, in the Catalina's is a treat. There are guided tram rides up into the canyon with 9 stops along the way. There are many mapped hikes with literature at the visitor's center. You can get off the tram at any of the nine stops and re board waving your tram ticket stub at the driver. Wear hiking gear and take water. I have spent many many hours hiking there. Hiking not necessary. The tram ride which is narrated is fun.
2. If you are not too tired, on your way back to the hotel, stop at Medicine Man gallery, Mark Sublette, m.d. Is the owner and has another outpost in Santa Fe. The gallery is in an unassuming shopping center with a Bashas supermarket, about 2 miles from Sabino, down Sunrise. Dr. Sublette has a great eye and you will be surprised at the excellent and serious offerings at serious prices. Or visit the gallery on another day. Your eyes will thank you.
3. i enjoy taking our visitors to Biosphere, about one hour north of Tucson. It is was an experiment in self contained and self sustained living by a group of scientists in the last century. Lots of walking. Now part of the U of A.
4. San Xavier Mission, going south, is a pretty, old, church with guided tours. Worth a couple hours, definitely. Sweet and low key. Gift shop has good prices.
5. La Encantada is an upscale mall close to your hotel with the usual suspects. Frost gelato shop, 1 on tripadvisor, is there and is yummy and has pretty displays. We also like Firebirds restaurant, a casual place. Several restaurants there but we have only gone to fb and frost. AJ is an upscale grocer in the mall and nice for lunch.
6. Funky, vintage shopping is on 4th, not far from the U of A. Touristy.
7. Check out whatever culture is in town---dance, theater, music.
8. I haven't been but will take dgs to Kitt Peak Observatory as he will soon begin college to become an aeronautical engineer. He would love it.
9. We are snowbirds and have our winter home here. My faves are the Desert Museum and Sabino Canyon.
10. the Tucson art museum is good but cannot compete and doesn't try to compete with the worlds great museums. Cafe ala Carte at the museum is nice.
11. Enjoy. As you have great southwestern stuff in Santa Fe, I didn't focus on that.

P.s. Medicine man gallery has paintings, sculpture, textiles, jewelry, a Maynard Dixon museum within the gallery, and other categories I may have missed. Imo, museum quality works. Definitely no art lite which can be prevalent in the southwest.

I worked for a company located in the Oro Valley about 9 years ago. I spent a lot of time on Tucson. I'm sure a lot has changed. My favorite restaurant was called Wildflower.