Greater Phoenix Gears Up for Super Bowl Frenzy

Greater Phoenix Gears Up for Super Bowl Frenzy 1/24/08

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Sunny weather, scores of downtown Phoenix events await 125,000-plus visitors

PHOENIX , Jan. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --- Greater Phoenix is ready for its close-up.

America's sunniest metropolis is putting on the shine for the more than 125,000 visitors and 3,000 media members who will descend on the region for Super Bowl XLII between the New England Patriots and New York Giants.

The big game itself will be played Feb. 3 at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, but the weeklong blitz of Super Bowl-related events and festivities will touch nearly ever corner of the Valley, from celebrity-studded parties to youth clinics to a free mega-concert.

Downtown Phoenix will be in the middle of it all, serving as the headquarters for Super Bowl media and a backdrop for several NFL-sponsored events.

Journalists from all over the globe will set up shop in the Phoenix Convention Center's new West Building, which will be the official site of the NFL Media Center. The NFL Network will broadcast from the West Building's exhibit hall, which will also house radio row.

"The Super Bowl gives us an opportunity to showcase the astonishing capabilities of the convention center to host not only large and complicated events, but also to provide exemplary meeting support and service," explained Steve Moore, President and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The Phoenix Convention Center will be venue for the famous "Taste of the NFL." And music will ring out at Symphony Hall and The Orpheum during Super Bowl Week. The former will provide the stage for the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration, which brings together big-name recording artists (including Patti Labelle) and NFL players for a soul-stirring evening of music and testimonies. The Orpheum, an immaculately restored theater that is on the National Register of Historic Places, will be the site of the Super Bowl XLII Fashion & Music Kickoff. Both events are slated for the evening of Feb. 1.

Downtown Phoenix nightspots also have big Super Bowl plans. Phoenix Suns basketball star Amare Stoudemire will throw a Jan. 31 "Welcome to Phoenix" party at the restaurant that bears his name. And Majerle's, a venerable sports bar owned by former Suns star Dan Majerle, will host a three-day block party on First Street during game week.

Even the host hotel for the New England Patriots, the Westin Kierland Resort and Spa, has made elaborate arrangements for the team. The Patriots will be able to use their pools, luxurious spa, Deseo restaurant, and golf course. The resort has stocked over 6,000 bottle of Gatorade. Or they can go next door to the Ocean Club for chowder.

Thanks to its mild winter weather, Greater Phoenix is the ideal setting for Super Bowl block parties and other outdoor celebrations. The sun shines on America's fifth-largest city during 85 percent of its daylight hours, and the average high temperature in winter is 67 degrees.

For fans and players of the Patriots and Giants -- teams that advanced to the Super Bowl by winning playoff games in sub-freezing temperatures -- Greater Phoenix's sun-burnished cityscape is a godsend.

"Now we're going somewhere warm," Patriots quarterback Tom Brady told reporters moments after his team won the AFC Championship on a frozen field in Foxborough, Mass. "Because I'm freezing my you-know-what off."

Booking flight and hotel together can often save money and travel packages to Phoenix are available on http://www.expedia.com/nfl.

SOURCE Greater Phoenix Convention & Visitors Bureau