Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX)
ASU's global office describes Sky Harbor as about 5 miles from campus and about a ten minute drive to downtown Tempe, with taxi, shuttle, light rail and bus service. The PHX Sky Train is free and runs 24 hours a day between the terminals, the Rental Car Center, East Economy parking and the Valley Metro Rail station at 44th and Washington streets. Daytime waits average about 3.5 to 7 minutes; between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. trains can come less often.
ASU's transit page notes light rail stops on the Tempe campus with service to the airport. For a student heading home at Thanksgiving without a car, that means a train ride instead of a rideshare.
Mesa Gateway (AZA)
Mesa Gateway Airport is at 5835 South Sossaman Road in Mesa. Rideshare drivers and taxis meet passengers at the curb outside Baggage Claim, and Valley Metro's Power Route 184 stops there too. Rental car counters are inside Baggage Claim. Compare the drive to Tempe with the fare difference before choosing AZA over PHX.
Driving and visitor parking
ASU Parking and Transit Services charges visitors by the hour. The Tempe garages (Apache Boulevard, Fulton Center, Mill Avenue, Myrtle Avenue, Novus, Packard Drive, Rural Road, Stadium, Tyler Street and University Towers structures) cost $4 for the first hour, rising $4 an hour to a $16 daily maximum. Pay machines at the exit lanes take Visa and Mastercard.
Surface lots such as Lots 3, 19, 45, 50, 55, 59, 63 and 67 cost $3 an hour up to $15, paid through the ParkMobile or AMP app. A few lots have short limits: Lots 9, 13 and 44 cap at two hours, and Lots 27 and 46 at one hour. Since July 2022, weekend visitors also pull a ticket and pay in the garages.
For Family Weekend, ASU Family sends parking details to registered guests closer to the event. On game day, cart service runs from the Packard Structure to the Family Weekend Block Party starting at 1 p.m. Saturday, and registered families can ride the intercampus shuttles with their badges.
Where parents stay
The Visit ASU travel page lists 11 Tempe hotels with ASU visitor rates. Most are in or near downtown Tempe: Omni Tempe Hotel at ASU and Canopy by Hilton on University Drive, Tempe Mission Palms on Fifth Street, The Westin Tempe on 7th Street, AC Hotel on Rio Salado Parkway, Vib Best Western on Farmer Avenue, Sonesta Select on Ash Avenue, and Hyatt Place and Hyatt House sharing an address on 6th Street. Graduate Tempe on Apache Boulevard is described as walking distance to campus, and Moxy is on South Rural Road.
Read the fine print on each rate. Several waive a nightly destination fee, while others charge for parking ($15 a night at the Hyatt pair, $10 at Vib).
For Family Weekend, ASU Family arranged blocks at more than 20 properties across five areas: Downtown Phoenix, Polytechnic, Tempe, West Valley and Scottsdale. The Scottsdale list includes Caesars Republic Scottsdale, Element Scottsdale at SkySong and The Scott Resort and Spa.
Weekends to book early
Family Weekend (Nov 6 to 8, with the Colorado game on Saturday) has its hotel blocks open until filled or Oct 7. Homecoming brings another home game on Nov 21, two weeks later. Commencement is Monday, Dec 14 and Monday, May 10, and the graduation office sends guests to the Visit ASU travel page for hotel discounts.