22221 With 2026 more than halfway through, it's time to look at the major openings in metro Phoenix.
Buc-ee's and Seafood City opened their doors to lines that stretched for what seemed like miles. For both stores, this is their first location in Arizona.
Other supermarkets still expected to open include multiple Aldi locations, new Trader Joe's stores in metro Phoenix, Costco, Osaka Marketplace and Whole Foods.
Aside from grocery stores, many entertainment venues have made their way to the Valley, while others are still in the works. Here are all the fun places that have opened in Phoenix and others underway.
Arizona Boardwalk SkyWheel
To celebrate 10 years of the Arizona Boardwalk, the Boardwalk Big Wheel officially opened on July 10.
At 80 feet tall, the colorful Ferris
wheel, located near Scottsdale, has 18 fully enclosed, air-conditioned gondolas. There will also be music onboard, vibrant LED lighting and 360-degree views of the Valley and surrounding mountains.
Harkins Theatres 4D experience
Harkins Theatres is stepping up the movie-going experience with a new 4D auditorium.
After partnering with Lumma 4D E-Motion, the Arizona chain is equipping theaters with a 4D experience. There will be full sensory-engaging effects like synchronized motion seating, coordinated scents and air, water and environmental cues in order to connect audiences with what's happening on screen.
The first 4D auditorium opened in August 2026 at the Harkins Norterra located at 2550 W. Happy Valley Road in north Phoenix.
There are also five additional 4D theaters planned for Arizona, officials said, though no further details on the other locations were provided.
The Roosevelt
A hot new spot is opening soon in downtown Phoenix at the former FilmBar location.
The Roosevelt, located at 815 N. Second St., will wear many different hats, from a restaurant and cocktail lounge to a music room and late-night nightlife spot.
This will be the first Function One sound system installed in a downtown Phoenix venue.
"The level of detail that's gone into acoustic treatment, and designing the space around the sound system, is probably something that very rarely happens," co-owner Michael Hooker said. "Most spaces are designed and then the sound system is installed. Here, we had the sound system and really designed the venue around that."
The Roosevelt soft launch was held on Aug. 20-22 and the first Open House Sunday was Aug. 23. The officially opening will be in September.
Other entertainment venues still to come
Pablo's
"Pablo’s is the house party you never want to leave — an immersive nightlife hideaway in the heart of downtown Phoenix," according to a press release. "Each room reveals a new mood: three high-spirited bars, the Den, Pablo’s Living Room, the Billiards Room, a central courtyard, a lively front patio and Night Tiger — a pulse-quickening nightclub built for dancing until the lights come on."
The multilayered nightlife venue was designed to surprise and connect guests at every turn. It will be located at the northwest corner of McKinley Street and First Avenue in downtown Phoenix.
Run by Saguaro Nights Entertainment Group, Pablo's will open in a 9,000-square-foot historic 1952 building originally constructed as a medical office. The group also enlisted Barter & Shake Creative Hospitality, the award-winning team behind Century Grand, Platform 18 and Undertow, for their cocktail program.
Construction began in October 2025 and an opening was planned for sometime in 2026.
International Dark Sky Discovery Center
The International Dark Sky Discovery Center in Fountain Hills was under construction and was originally slated to open in Fountain Hills in the fall of 2025.
The $28 million observatory and science center will cover 23,000 square feet and feature the largest telescope in metro Phoenix, a hyperspace planetarium, a theater, an Einstein exploration station and more. The center's mission is to educate visitors, support scientific research and promote astrotourism, all while raising awareness of how dark skies benefit human health, wildlife and the environment.
The center was set to open in the fall of 2026.
The Rush Funplex
The Rush Funplex is an indoor entertainment chain with go-karts, bowling, mini-golf, arcade games, bumper cars, rock-climbing wall with a foam pit, laser tag, kiddie cars, private party rooms and a cafe.
There will be two locations opening in Arizona: one in Goodyear, at the northeast corner of Yuma Road and Estrella Parkway, and the other in Laveen at the northeast corner of Loop 202 and Dobbins Road in Phoenix. The Laveen location was expected to be a 75,000-square-foot facility and will offer both hourly and daily passes that include access to all attractions.
The Goodyear location was expected to open in spring 2026. The grand opening of the Laveen location was scheduled for December 2026.
Paradise Earth
The entertainment district, which houses OdySea Aquarium, Butterfly Wonderland and the recently opened SkyWheel, was planning to build the largest indoor rainforest in North America. Paradise Earth would include a 92,716-square-foot indoor exhibit. The proposal would span 10.5 acres of land at 8450 N. Dobson Road on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, off Loop 101.
The interactive experience would be in a four-story building with bird-safe glass on the upper floor, a retail store, snack bar and restaurant. It is described as an "environmental adventure" with experiences such as an indoor rainforest, animal encounters, an avian air show, a walkthrough aviary and a children's play area.
Paradise Earth was announced in 2017 as a new attraction to be added to the Arizona Boardwalk in 2020. However, COVID-19 and other issues delayed the project.
The idea was recently resurfaced by the Arizona Boardwalk and presented to the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community council for permits and approval.
The tribal council unanimously decided to postpone a vote on the permit until they received more information about the indoor rainforest at a future meeting.
The timing of any future council consideration will be determined by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community's review process, according to a statement sent to The Republic.
Mattel Adventure Park/VAI Resort
Mattel Adventure Park originally planned to open in late 2023 but has been delayed three times since, once to 2024, then to the end of 2025 and now to an unknown future date.
The theme park is the first of its kind and will be at the VAI Resort, which is also under construction in Glendale. It will bring Mattel favorites to life, including Barbie, Thomas & Friends, Hot Wheels and Masters of the Universe.
The 9-acre park will have an indoor-outdoor design with air-conditioned spaces designed to appeal to all ages. Food and beverages will be available.
VAI Resort will announce its opening date approximately nine months in advance, according to its website. If their website is accurate, then VAI Resort may not open until February 2027 at the earliest.
A representative for Mattel Adventure Parks did not answer The Arizona Republic's request for updates about the project.
The Nox
The East Valley is getting a new 70,000-square-foot entertainment venue in early 2028.
After four years of planning, the Bongiorno family, who opened the first of several Potato Barn Unique Home Furnishings locations in 2002, has plans to break ground on a venue called The Nox as early as September 2026 near Ray and Sossaman roads in southeast Mesa.
Potato Barn founder Greg Bongiorno and his sons, Mike and Keaton Bongiorno, have spearheaded the project with Mesa-based developers The Streamline Companies, whose CEO is David Hrizak.
“We're in the process right now of building a 50,000-square-foot warehouse for Potato Barn, which is our phase one of the entire project,” Hrizak says. “The 50,000-foot warehouse will be an ancillary parking lot for the Nox, which is right across the street from this warehouse. So as we're building this warehouse, people are thinking that's The Nox.”
The 70,000-square-foot building should be open for business by March or April 2028 with an expected capacity to “hold upwards of 2,000 people, depending on the type of entertainment going on at the time,” Hrizak says.
Arizona Republic reporter Ed Masley contributed to this article.
Do you have a tip or a question you need answered? Reach the reporter at dina.kaur@arizonarepublic.com. Follow @dina_kaur on X, formerly known as Twitter, and on Instagram @dina_kaur.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: All the major entertainment venues opening in metro Phoenix
