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Trip from Scottsdale, AZ to Carefree, AZ

Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

35m

Distance

24.3 mi

39 km

Drive Score

8/10

Great drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$5

one way

EV Charging

Unknown

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 9 min
4 AM
0h 33m ★
6 AM
0h 36m
8 AM
0h 42m
10 AM
0h 38m
12 PM
0h 37m
3 PM
0h 38m
5 PM
0h 42m
8 PM
0h 34m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

Best Time Drive vs Fly
Google Maps Waze Apple Maps
Download GPX
city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States

Scottsdale, AZ

Wikimedia Commons

Downtown Carefree, AZ, AZ

Carefree, AZ

Serg Alesenko

Trip Overview

The drive from Scottsdale, AZ to Carefree, AZ covers 24.3 miles and takes about 35m behind the wheel. This route is realistic as a one-day drive if you keep your stops efficient.

The route leans on Pima Freeway, North Scottsdale Road, North Tom Darlington Drive for much of the mileage, and the overall profile is mixed drive. The longest uninterrupted segment is about 11.3 miles on Pima Freeway. At current regular gas prices, budget about $4.84 one way before food or hotel costs.

About the Cities

Starting in Scottsdale, AZ

Full guide →

Scottsdale is a city in the state of Arizona. Scottsdale is home to many galleries, high quality resorts, and golf courses. It is also one of the wealthier parts of the Phoenix Metro Area.

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 35m. Total distance: 24.3 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

35m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (47%). Straightforward navigation.

Drive Character

The drive from Scottsdale, AZ to Carefree, AZ covers 24.3 miles and takes about 35m, using a mix of highways and local roads.

Expect a mix of faster highway mileage and slower local approaches near the beginning or end.
There are about 10 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
Pima Freeway is the longest continuous segment at about 11.3 miles.

How Hard Is This Drive?

This route mixes highway mileage with some local-road sections near the start or finish. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes early in the drive near East Chaparral Road.

Driving Effort 4/10

Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a straightforward 35m drive. You will face about 5 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: near the start (East Chaparral Road): Navigation decision point; at 0.7 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 1 miles (AZ 101 Loop / Pima Freeway): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.

Critical Maneuvers

5 of 5 key points

These are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.

3
0 mi into trip | ~0m in | East Chaparral Road

Turn right onto East Chaparral Road

Navigation decision point

6
0.7 mi into trip | ~1m in

Turn left toward AZ 101 Loop North

Lane positioning matters here

Use the left lane. Toward AZ 101 Loop North
5
1 mi into trip | ~2m in | AZ 101 Loop / Pima Freeway

Merge onto AZ 101 Loop / Pima Freeway

Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight right lanes.
7
12.2 mi into trip | ~15m in

Take the exit toward Scottsdale Road

Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here

Use the slight right lane. Exit 34 Toward Scottsdale Road
5
12.7 mi into trip | ~16m in | North Scottsdale Road

Turn right onto North Scottsdale Road

Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / right lanes.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
Pima Freeway 11.3 mi 13m
North Scottsdale Road 9.7 mi 15m
North Tom Darlington Drive 1.4 mi 2m
East Chaparral Road 0.7 mi 1m
North Bloody Basin Road 0.4 mi 1m
North Tranquil Trail — —

Some road-level metrics are being recalculated.

Longest stretch: Pima Freeway — 11.3 mi, about 13m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Scottsdale, AZ and Carefree, AZ.

1

Start on this road

64 ft · 6 sec · this road
2

Turn right onto East Chaparral Road

0.7 mi · 1 min · East Chaparral Road
3

Turn left

0.4 mi · 50 sec
Toward AZ 101 Loop North Use the left lane.
4

Merge onto AZ 101 Loop

11 mi · 12 min · Pima Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
5

Take the exit

0.3 mi · 44 sec
Exit 34 Toward Scottsdale Road Use the slight right lane.
6

Turn straight onto Pima Freeway

0.1 mi · 14 sec · Pima Freeway
7

Turn right onto North Scottsdale Road

9.7 mi · 15 min · North Scottsdale Road
Use the straight / right lanes.
8

Continue on North Tom Darlington Drive

1.4 mi · 2 min · North Tom Darlington Drive
Use the left lane.
9

Turn slight right onto North Bloody Basin Road

0.4 mi · 1 min · North Bloody Basin Road
10

Arrive at destination

North Tranquil Trail

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$4.84 one way

$9.68 round trip

$5.06/gal 25.4 MPG avg 9 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $5.36 $5.12 $10.25
premium $5.59 $5.35 $10.70
diesel $5.61 $5.37 $10.73

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$5

Estimated CO2 emission: 8.5 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.

Driving Electric?

About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 7.3 0 $2.55 $1.17
Efficient EV 6.1 0 $2.13 $0.97
EV Truck/SUV 9.7 0 $3.40 $1.56

Gas CO2

9 kg

EV CO2

3 kg (67% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 17, 2026

Origin

Scottsdale, AZ

Night in Scottsdale on Friday

Local time

11:21 PM

MST

Current temp

84°F

Sunny

SW 0 to 5 mph 0% chance Live forecast

Wind Advisory

Wind Advisory issued April 17 at 4:56AM PDT until April 17 at 11:00AM PDT by NWS Las Vegas NV

Wind Advisory

Wind Advisory issued April 17 at 4:56AM PDT until April 17 at 5:00PM PDT by NWS Las Vegas NV

Destination

Carefree, AZ

Night in Carefree on Friday

Local time

11:21 PM

MST

Current temp

79°F

Sunny

SSW 0 to 10 mph 0% chance Live forecast

Wind Advisory

Wind Advisory issued April 17 at 4:56AM PDT until April 17 at 11:00AM PDT by NWS Las Vegas NV

Wind Advisory

Wind Advisory issued April 17 at 4:56AM PDT until April 17 at 5:00PM PDT by NWS Las Vegas NV

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

5 degrees cooler at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

35m on the road

The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

Frequently Asked Questions

The drive from Scottsdale, AZ to Carefree, AZ covers 24.3 miles and takes about 35m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.

The main roads are Pima Freeway, North Scottsdale Road, North Tom Darlington Drive. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.

This is a comfortable same-day trip.

The midpoint is about 12.1 miles from Scottsdale, AZ. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.

At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $4.84 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.

Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.

This is a straightforward 35m drive. You will face about 5 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.

The main spots that need attention: near the start (East Chaparral Road): Navigation decision point; at 0.7 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 1 miles (AZ 101 Loop / Pima Freeway): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.

The route from Scottsdale, AZ to Carefree, AZ does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.

How this page is built

Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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