Do you mean Tucson, Arizona? I’ve always liked the city of Tucson. If you like lots of big cacti, there’s no better place than southern Arizona. Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument on the Mexican border is wonderful. However, in all honesty, I’m not too sure I’d pick Southern Arizona as the first place to visit east of California.
If it were me, I’d either fly into Phoenix, Las Vegas, or Salt Lake City. There’s the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches, and Canyonlands. There are other lesser-known places, such as Lake Meade, Lake Powell, Snow Canyon, Escalante Canyons, and the San Rafael Swell, San Rafael Reef, and Goblin Valley.
However, many of the best places require long trips on dirt roads or hiking for considerable distances. The more accessible spots with paved roads, like Arches or Zion, can be packed with people during the summer — sort of like Yosemite. Spring and fall are probably the best times to visit.
That said, not everyone likes endless redrock deserts, canyons, and mesas. I was parked off the side of a highway a few years ago near Goblin Valley, waiting for some friends to arrive so we could hike a few slot canyons in the San Rafael Reef. A big motorhome pulled over beside me with Louisiana license plates. The guy rolled down his window to ask me if I knew where Molly’s Castle was. I pointed to a large, stand-alone mesa a couple of miles away, maybe, 300 feet high.
He started cursing that it wasn’t a castle — just a big #@#$%? rock, and that he’d driven with his complaining wife and crying kids to see never-ending rocks. He said, "This whole place is a #@#$%? desert. There are no trees. The little towns are pieces of %#! with no decent restaurants. This trip has been more like a voyage to Hell than a vacation. It’s no wonder nobody lives here. I hate this place." With that, he rolled up his window and drove off. We have some nice, green mountains here too, but he seemingly didn’t like those either.
So if you take my recommendations, don’t say I didn’t warn you. 
