Appendix : Driving to Academy Village

from Tucson Airport
from I-10, east or west, including northwest Tucson
from downtown Tucson
from the University of Arizona
from various points in East Tucson

To pinpoint your destination inside the Village, you may want to look at the Site Plan.

(1) From Tucson Airport

(a) The easiest and fastest route :

• Coming out of the airport, you will be on Tucson Boulevard going north.  Turn right at the first light onto Valencia.
• Stay on Valencia, approximately 3 miles, till you come to Interstate 10.
• Take I-10 EAST, i.e. toward El Paso, NOT toward Tucson.
• Drive approx. 12 miles on I-10 and take exit 279.  At this exit you are approx. 7 miles from Academy Village.
• Turn left at end of exit ramp.  After crossing over I-10, you will be going north on Vail Road.
• After a mile or two, you will traverse downtown Vail, which you may not notice, except for a gas station, 2 railroad crossings, and a couple of schools.   Stay on the main road.  After Vail, this is Colossal Cave Road.
• There is a downhill, then you cross Pantano Wash, then there is an uphill.  You will see the Rancho del Lago Golf Couse on the left, with its adjacent housing development.  Soon you will see on the right a standard roadside yellow sign announcing the intersection with Camino Loma Alta.
• Turn left on Loma Alta and stay on it for 3.1 miles.  On this stretch there will be a sharp right hand jog (slow down!).  After 3.1 miles you will come to a Stop sign marking the intersection with Old Spanish Trail.
• Turn left on Old Spanish Trail.  Within half a mile, after a cattle-guard, a cow sign, and a leaping deer sign, you will see the street sign for Galileo Lane on the right.  Turn there for Galileo Lane, Langtry Lane, and Vivaldi Court.  Langtry Lane is the first left (very soon!) off Galileo; Vivaldi Court is the first right off Langtry.
• For other destinations, including the Community Center (and the Senior Academy), continue on Old Spanish Trail for approx. 0.7 mile to Rainwater Lane, which is the main Village entrance.  Rainwater Lane ends in front of the Community Center.  For Eliot Lane, turn left and look for the third street on the left.

(b) The shortest route (by 1.3 mile) :

This is a more quiet route on which you will see lots of old airplanes.
• Coming out of the airport, you will be on Tucson Boulevard going north.  Turn right at the first light onto Valencia.
• After approximately 3 miles, Valencia intersects I-10.  Stay on Valencia.
• Continue on Valencia approx. 3 miles and turn left (north) on Kolb.
• Stay on Kolb for less than 2 miles.  Turn right (east) on Irvington, which is the first traffic light.
• Go 4 miles on Irvington and turn left (north) on Houghton.
• Go 1 mile on Houghton and turn right (east) on Escalante.
• Go 2 miles on Escalante until it ends at Old Spanish Trail.  Turn right (south).
• From there it is 5.9 miles along Old Spanish Trail to the main Village entrance at Rainwater Lane, on the left.  There is a cow sign, and then a leaping deer sign, just before the intersection.
• Rainwater Lane ends in front of the Community Center (and Senior Academy).  Turn right for Langtry Lane, turn left for Galileo Lane.  Vivaldi Court is the first left off Langtry, Eliot Lane is the third left off Galileo.
• For houses on the southern end of Galileo Lane, it is better to stay on Old Spanish Trail past Rainwater for roughly 0.7 mile and to turn left directly onto Galileo.

(2) From Interstate 10, east or west, including northwest Tucson

This is the way you will arrive if you are driving from faraway places, such as Phoenix, or California, or New Mexico, or even the East Coast.

• Leave I-10 at exit 279, which is 21 miles southeast of downtown Tucson.  At exit 279, you are approximately 7 miles from Academy Village.
• Turn north at the end of the exit ramp.  You will be on Vail Road.
• After a mile or two, you will traverse downtown Vail, which you may not notice, except for a gas station, 2 railroad crossings, and a couple of schools.   Stay on the main road.  After Vail, this is Colossal Cave Road.
• There is a downhill, then you cross Pantano Wash, then there is an uphill.   You will see the Rancho del Lago Golf Couse on the left, with its adjacent housing development.  Soon you will see on the right a standard roadside yellow sign announcing the intersection with Camino Loma Alta.
• Turn left on Loma Alta and stay on it for 3.1 miles.  On this stretch there will be a sharp right hand jog (slow down!).  After 3.1 miles you will come to a Stop sign marking the intersection with Old Spanish Trail.
• Turn left on Old Spanish Trail.  Within half a mile, after a cattle-guard, a cow sign, and a leaping deer sign, you will see the street sign for Galileo Lane on the right.  Turn there for Galileo Lane, Langtry Lane, and Vivaldi Court.  Langtry Lane is the first left (very soon!) off Galileo; Vivaldi Court is the first right off Langtry.
• For other destinations, including the Community Center (and the Senior Academy), continue on Old Spanish Trail for approx. 0.7 mile to Rainwater Lane, which is the main Village entrance.  Rainwater Lane ends in front of the Community Center.  For Eliot Lane, turn left and look for the third street on the left.

(3) From downtown Tucson

• Leave downtown on Broadway going east.
• Immediately after the underpass, exit to the right on route 210, Aviation Parkway.
• Stay on Aviation Parkway, a very fast route.  Then follow the signs for Golf Links Road, also a very good through route.  After you have crossed all of East Tucson, Golf Links ends at Houghton.
• Turn right (south) on Houghton.  Go 1 mile.  Turn left (east) at Escalante (traffic light).
• Go 2 miles on Escalante until it ends at Old Spanish Trail.  Turn right (south).
• From there it is 5.9 miles along Old Spanish Trail to the main Village entrance at Rainwater Lane, on the left.  There is a cow sign, and then a leaping deer sign, just before the intersection.
• Rainwater Lane ends in front of the Community Center (and Senior Academy).  Turn right for Langtry Lane, turn left for Galileo Lane.  Vivaldi Court is the first left off Langtry, Eliot Lane is the third left off Galileo.
• For houses on the southern end of Galileo Lane, it is better to stay on Old Spanish Trail past Rainwater for roughly 0.7 mile and to turn left directly onto Galileo.

(4) From the University of Arizona

• Get on Campbell going south.  After Broadway, it becomes Kino Parkway.   Follow the signs for route 210, which branches to the left. This is Aviation Parkway.
• Stay on Aviation Parkway, a very fast route. Then follow the signs for Golf Links Road, also a very good through route. After you have crossed all of East Tucson, Golf Links ends at Houghton.
• Turn right (south) on Houghton.  Go 1 mile.  Turn left (east) at Escalante (traffic light).
• Go 2 miles on Escalante until it ends at Old Spanish Trail.  Turn right (south).
• From there it is 5.9 miles along Old Spanish Trail to the main Village entrance at Rainwater Lane, on the left.  There is a cow sign, and then a leaping deer sign, just before the intersection.
• Rainwater Lane ends in front of the Community Center (and Senior Academy).  Turn right for Langtry Lane, turn left for Galileo Lane.  Vivaldi Court is the first left off Langtry, Eliot Lane is the third left off Galileo.
• For houses on the southern end of Galileo Lane, it is better to stay on Old Spanish Trail past Rainwater for roughly 0.7 mile and to turn left directly onto Galileo.

(5) From various points in East Tucson

If you are near Grant or Tanque Verde Roads :
• Follow Tanque Verde east past Pantano Wash and Sabino Canyon Road.  Stay in the right lane and exit on Wrightstown Road.
• After going east for 2 miles, Wrightstown Road turns south and becomes Harrison Road.  Turn east again at the first light, which is Speedway.
• Follow Speedway for 3 miles to Freeman Road.  Turn right (south).
• Follow Freeman for 3.5 miles until its end at Old Spanish Trail.  This is a scenic route; the last 2.5 miles follow the border of Saguaro National Park East.
• Turn left on Old Spanish Trail. From there it is 6.4 miles by Old Spanish Trail to the main Village entrance at Rainwater Lane, on the left.  There is a cow sign, and then a leaping deer sign, just before the intersection.
• Rainwater Lane ends in front of the Community Center (and Senior Academy).  Turn right for Langtry Lane, turn left for Galileo Lane.  Vivaldi Court is the first left off Langtry, Eliot Lane is the third left off Galileo.
• For houses on the southern end of Galileo Lane, it is better to stay on Old Spanish Trail past Rainwater for roughly 0.7 mile and to turn left directly onto Galileo.

If you are near Speedway :
• Follow Speedway east all the way to Freeman Road, which is 2 miles past Houghton.
• Turn right (south) on Freeman.  Continue as in "If you are near Grant or Tanque Verde"

If you are near Broadway :
• Follow Broadway east all the way to Freeman Road, which is 2 miles past Houghton.
• Follow Freeman for 2.5 miles until its end at Old Spanish Trail.  This is a scenic route which follows the border of Saguaro National Park East.
• Continue as in "If you are near Grant or Tanque Verde".

If you are on 22d Street west of Pantano :
• Go east on 22d until Pantano. Turn right on Pantano Parkway, which is a fast shortcut to Golf Links.
• Continue with Golf Links as in "From downtown Tucson".

If you are on 22d Street east of Pantano :
• Going east on 22d, turn right on Old Spanish Trail southeast, soon after the corner of 22d and Harrison.  This is a slower route, but pleasant if you are not in a rush.
• Follow Old Spanish Trail all the way to the Village.  For the last 6.4 miles, see "If you are near Grant or Tanque Verde".

If you are near Golf Links :
• Take Golf Links east and continue as in "From downtown Tucson".