Downtown Tempe and Mill Ave Guide

Downtown Tempe is the stretch of Mill Avenue between the lake and ASU, plus the blocks around it. It's dense, walkable and young. On a weekday afternoon it's coffee and study groups. On a Friday night it's packed bars and a very long line for pizza.

It's also the best-connected part of the Valley if you don't want to drive, which is the right energy for a smoke-friendly crowd. Light rail, the streetcar and a flat street grid do most of the work.

Smoking around here

Arizona is legal for adults 21 and up, so reup with your favorite flower or concentrate and take it home. The statewide rule still applies here: smoking weed in a public place or open space is a petty offense. In Tempe that means Mill Avenue sidewalks, bar patios, Tempe Beach Park and the lake paths. Plenty of people try it by the water. It's still a ticket.

ASU is the big one. The campus is state university property, and ASU says recreational and medical cannabis are prohibited on all its campuses because federal drug-free campus rules are tied to its funding. Legal under state law doesn't change that. Don't light up on the malls, in the dorms or at the stadium.

Home base is private property where the owner or landlord is cool with it. A lot of apartment complexes around downtown ban smoking in their leases, so check yours. Visiting? Rentals and hotels often say no smoking too. Our where to smoke guide and FAQ have more.

Getting around: Tempe is the easiest place in the Valley to go car-free. The light rail runs right through downtown with a stop at 3rd Street and Mill, and the Tempe Streetcar runs a 3-mile C-shaped route from the lake along Rio Salado, down Ash and Mill and out Apache Boulevard to the south edge of campus. The streetcar used to be free, but these days you pay with a Copper Card or the Valley Metro app, so set that up before you go. Downtown itself is flat and very walkable, and bikes and scooters are everywhere. Parking is mostly garages and meters and fills up on game and event nights. In summer, walk at night or ride: the blocks feel a lot longer at 4 p.m. And if you're smoking, the train is your designated driver.

The real deal on the law →

Tempe history and what downtown feels like now

Long before Mill Avenue, the Hohokam were farming this stretch of the Salt River with irrigation canals, and later settlers dug those old canals back out. In 1870 Charles Trumbull Hayden homesteaded here and ran a ferry across the river. Hayden's Ferry turned into the trade hub for the south side of the Valley, and he built a flour mill soon after that shipped flour to forts and towns.

The name came in 1879. "Lord" Darrell Duppa, an English settler, is credited with suggesting Tempe after the Vale of Tempe in ancient Greece. In 1885 the territory picked the town for a teachers' school, the Territorial Normal School, and that school became Arizona State University in 1958.

Today the butte south of the lake, the one with the big A on it, is the downtown landmark, and Mill Avenue is the main drag. It's more bar crawl than art crawl. For the artsier side of the Valley, try Roosevelt Row in Phoenix.

Things to do in Tempe

Most of downtown's best hours happen outside, so plan around the sun. Mornings and nights in summer, anytime in the cooler months.

Rio Salado
Tempe Town Lake

A lake in the dry bed of the Salt River, sitting just north of the butte. It opened to the public in 1999 and runs nearly 2 miles long, filled mostly with Colorado River water. There are about five miles of paths around it for biking, running and skating.

You can rent boats at Tempe Beach Park, fish with an Arizona license (they stock rainbow trout in winter) or just walk the shoreline at sunset and watch the rowing crews. The Mill Avenue bridges at dusk are the postcard shot.

TipWalk the north shore paths at night when it cools off. Way fewer people.
Tempe Town Lake
Tempe Beach Park

The big lawn and amphitheater on the south shore of the lake, right off Mill Avenue. It's where the city throws its concerts and festivals, and on a quiet day it's a good spot to sit by the water. The boat rentals are here too.
Downtown Tempe
Mill Avenue

The main street runs from the lake down to the edge of campus, lined with bars, patios, shops and late-night food. Walk the length of it once just to see what's open. The side streets, especially around 5th and 6th, are where some of the better patios hide.

TipStart at the lake end and drift south. Save the loud bars for last.
University and Mill
ASU Tempe campus

The campus butts right up against downtown, and walking through it is free and a nice shady detour between bars. Just know it's state university property, and ASU bans cannabis on all its campuses, medical included. More on that below.

Where to eat and drink on and around Mill Avenue

Tempe is patio country. These are open and solid, and most are a short walk or one streetcar stop from each other. More picks across the Valley live on our eat page.

Ash Avenue
Casey Moore's Oyster House
850 S Ash Ave, Tempe, AZ 85281

An Irish pub in an old house a few blocks off Mill, famous for its oysters, plus crab cakes and fish and chips. The big yard patio is the scene on weekend nights. Old Tempe in one building.

TipGet there before dark if you want a patio table.
Mill Avenue
Caffe Boa
398 S Mill Ave, Tempe, AZ 85281

Been on Mill since 1994. Handmade pasta, seafood and a shaded, leafy patio that feels like a different city. The grown-up dinner on the strip.
8th Street
Four Peaks Brewing Company
1340 E 8th St, Tempe, AZ 85281

The hometown brewery, pouring in an old historic creamery building. Big dog-friendly patio, brewery tours and the kind of bar food you want after a sesh.

TipIt's a bit east of Mill. Grab a ride, it's not a fun summer walk.
6th Street
C.A.S.A.
15 E 6th St, Tempe, AZ 85281

An upper-deck patio bar with misters, live music, 30-plus beers on tap and a view down onto Mill Avenue. Good for people watching from above the chaos.
College Avenue
Postino Annex
615 S College Ave, Tempe, AZ 85281

Wine and bruschetta boards in a 1940s building with a sunny patio that looks out at ASU and A Mountain. A calm move in a loud neighborhood.
Farmer Avenue
Culinary Dropout at The Yard
149 S Farmer Ave, Tempe, AZ 85281

Gastropub with a giant patio, yard games and live music on weekends. Bring a crew and settle in for a few hours.
Mill Avenue
Daily Jam
310 S Mill Ave #A101, Tempe, AZ 85281

Counter-order breakfast, brunch and lunch with a downtown patio. The fix for the morning after.

Questions about Tempe

Can you smoke weed on the ASU campus?

No. ASU prohibits recreational and medical cannabis on all of its campuses, citing federal drug-free campus requirements tied to its funding. State legalization doesn't override that, so keep it off campus and on private property where it's allowed.

Is the Tempe Streetcar free?

Not anymore. It was free when it launched, but riders now pay a fare using the Copper Card or the Valley Metro app. It connects to light rail downtown and at Dorsey and Apache.

Does the light rail go to Tempe?

Yes. Valley Metro light rail runs through downtown Tempe with a stop at 3rd Street and Mill Avenue, and it connects with the Tempe Streetcar there and at Dorsey and Apache. It's the easy way in from downtown Phoenix or the airport area.

How did Tempe get its name?

Darrell Duppa is credited with suggesting the name in 1879, after the Vale of Tempe in ancient Greece. Before that the settlement was known as Hayden's Ferry, after Charles Trumbull Hayden.

Is Mill Avenue walkable?

Very. It's a flat, compact strip from the lake down to ASU, with light rail and the streetcar running through. In summer, do your walking after sunset.

Tempe, Mill Ave and the lake

Tempe history and what downtown feels like now

Things to do in Tempe

Tempe Town Lake

Tempe Beach Park

Mill Avenue

ASU Tempe campus

Where to eat and drink on and around Mill Avenue

Casey Moore's Oyster House

Caffe Boa

Four Peaks Brewing Company

C.A.S.A.

Postino Annex

Culinary Dropout at The Yard

Daily Jam

Questions about Tempe

More neighborhoods