AZ Travel Guide
Tags: Holiday Cocktails / Desert Retreats / Marriott Hotels / → All Tags
Aw Snap! The Gingersnap Egg Nog Martini at The Camelback Inn
You know how much we love our cocktails here at HotelChatter. We'll find any reason to celebrate with a cocktail and fortunately for us (but not for our liver), hotels feel the same way. We've slurped down Summer Cocktails and Halloween Cocktails and now we're ready for the main event, Holiday Cocktails. We'll be taking a look at these concoctions all season long. If you have a suggestion, don't hold out on us. (Photos, recipes and prices are helpful too!)
It's understandable that those who live in a "Winter Wonderland" year after year, may want to hightail it to the desert for the holidays to get some sun on their skin and to ditch the layers, even if it's just for a few days. But just because you're celebrating near the pool overlooking the landscape of mountains and cacti doesn't mean you can't indulge in a little festive cocktail.
The Camelback Inn in Scottsdale is serving a Gingersnap Egg Nog Martini ($12) at their R Bar, which also has outdoor seating, a circular fire pit and live music. And in case you drink too much egg nog, room rates start at $189 a night.
If you can't make it to the desert, we've got the recipe for you after the jump.
Tags: Hotel Renovations / Arizona Hotels / Sedona Hotels / Hotel Anniversaries / → All Tags
L'Auberge de Sedona Gets a $25 Million Makeover for Turning 25
The grounds at L'Auberge de Sedona
Time, energy, and millions of dollars are often fed into resort overhauls to prove that they are bigger, better, and more luxe than their swanky competitors. The $25 million dollars that L'Auberge de Sedona invested into Phase One of their expansion project was a symbolic expense, meant to coincide with the property's 25th anniversary. And here, we thought that a sterling silver plaque would suffice.
Previously honored by Wine Spectator and Condé Nast Traveler, the message L'Auberge de Sedona seems to be sending with the renovation is, "The more frills, the better." Many of the lodgings are meant to be private mini-retreats, with 64 brand new cottages recently added to the grounds. At 1,200 square feet, with indoor and outdoor spaces, outdoor showers, and gas fireplaces, the phrase that comes to mind is "rental property," not weekend getaway.
With prices ranging in the $400-500 range for cottage accommodations, you're definitely paying a premium for all of those extras. However, there are rooms and Gardenside Cottages available at a comparatively more reasonable $200-300.
Tags: Hotel Bars / Hotel Restaurants / JW Marriott Hotels / Tucson Hotels / Arizona Hotels / → All Tags
JW Marriott Starr Pass Gets a New Sports Bar (Just in Time for Football Season)
If you're ready for some football, spend the season opener at the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa's new Catalina Sports Bar and Grill in Tuscon, Arizona.
Formerly dubbed Catalina Steakhouse, Catalina Sports Bar and Grill was reopened on Sept. 4 with a new casual tavern-style look, menu and focus on sports fans. Watch the kickoff from one of seven HDTVs and guzzle some beer from local breweries like Barrio and Thunder Canyon. If you visit during happy hour, daily from 4 to 6 p.m., all pints of draft beer cost $2.50, glasses of selected wines are $3 and all cocktails are $5. There are also daily specials available.
Tags: Summer Cocktails / Hotel Cocktails / Hilton Hotels / Sedona Hotels / Tequila / → All Tags
The Hilton Sedona's Prickly Pear Magarita
We've kicked off our Summer Cocktails series where we profile fun new summer drinks that hotels are making. Got one we should know about? Send us the recipe with a photo of the drink. Otherwise, enjoy and @reply us when you're wasted!
Summer is sadly winding down and this weekend is probably your last weekend to indulge in Summer Cocktails at hotels. But while folks at the Jersey Shore and The Hamptons will be mourning this unofficial end of Summer, we prefer to mark the passing of summer by the Autumnal equinox which means we have about three more weeks left to down some drinks.
At the Hilton Sedona in Arizona, they've been celebrating the desert heat with their Prickly Pear Margarita. The drink can be (probably should be) enjoyed poolside where you can admire the famous Red Rock formations of Sedona. The drink usually costs $10.37 but sometimes the hotel makes it their special Drink of the Day for $6.75 so you can splurge for a few.
Just make sure you don't drink and drive the Red Rock Scenic Byway. Save your margs for after the road trip. Room rates here begin at $189 a night.
Recipe is after the jump.
Tags: Summer Cocktails / Hotel Cocktails / Tequila / Waldorf-Astoria Collection / → All Tags
The Biltmore's Historical Tequila Sunrise
We've kicked off our Summer Cocktails series where we profile fun new summer drinks that hotels are making. Got one we should know about? Send us the recipe with a photo of the drink. Otherwise, enjoy and @reply us when you're wasted!
The last news we heard from the Arizona Biltmore was about the not-in-a-hurry renovations (dates like "sometime before 2020" were getting tossed around) so we're happy to have something more concrete to report: the Biltmore's got a special summer cocktail, and it's a classic.
Something we didn't know is that the Tequila Sunrise was apparently invented at the Biltmore, back in the 1940s when a frequent guest asked the bartender to make him up a refreshing drink to sip by the pool. So to help celebrate the Biltmore's 80th anniversary this year, they've brought their classic cocktail back to life for the summer. Of course, the price is a little more than that first guest paid back in the 1940s – these days you can get a Biltmore Original Tequila Sunrise for $14.
Tags: Labor Day Hotels / Intercontinental Hotels / Scottsdale Hotels / TravelZoo / → All Tags
Spend Labor Day in Scottsdale For Only $95 a Night
President Obama might be requesting privacy in Martha's Vineyard during his vacation but for your Labor Day getaway you can hit up the hotel he checked into a few months back, The Intercontinental Montelucia in Scottsdale, Ariz.
The hotel is offering rooms over Labor Day for just $95 a night through September 7. That includes a $25 daily resort credit and an upgrade to a Kasbah Village Poolside Room or Oasis Village Room (if available.)
The deal can only be found on TravelZoo. Guests must use the code TZ8 to book. We went and tested it ourselves and unlike some other low rates we've seen, this one actually worked. Without the code, a signature room was going for $160 a night. The Presidential Suite, where we assume President Obama stayed, was going for $10,000 a night. Hmmm...we'll pass.
Tags: Family-Friendly Hotels / Arizona Hotels / Travel and Leisure / → All Tags
Honeymooners Beware: T+L Lists The World's Best Hotels for Families
The list-makers at Travel + Leisure don't strictly cater to single jetsetting types. There's an active sect of family travelers out there, and those that don't consider Disneyland the Alpha-Omega of getaways. Sorry, Mickey.
Their survey of the "World's Best Hotels and Cruises for Families" in the U.S. and Canada is topped by the Enchantment Resort of Sedona, Arizona (which, coincidentally, sounds Disney-esque). It's no rough-it campsite or—shudder—Comfort Suites, but a luxury resort where adults are known to enjoy playtime as much as their young counterparts.
The hotel's site explicitly tells prospective travelers not to "worry about the kids," citing activities like Camp Coyote exploration as a selling-point. The Camp is an educational program designed for kids aged 4-12, where they can partake in "scavenger hunts, outdoor games and Southwestern-inspired cooking classes," with a full day of Camp priced at $70.
Tags: Hotel Lawsuits / Hotel News / Marriott Hotels / Phoenix Hotels / In-Room Coffee / → All Tags
Another Reason to Avoid the In-Room Coffee Maker
Quite often, hotel guests stay away from the in-room coffee because it either tastes like crap, the machine is difficult to figure out or worse yet, it costs money. But now there could be another reason to avoid the in-room coffee machines--they could really mess your hand up. From the NY Post:
Former Columbia University researcher Kristopher Karnauskas yesterday filed a $10 million suit against an Arizona hotel, claiming its percolator shattered in his hand, hurting him so badly he couldn't deliver a speech on global warming.
And what's more, the 27-year-old climate scientist claims he can no longer play his trumpet. His conflict with the carafe took place in January at a Phoenix Marriott, where he'd planned to deliver a speech on "The Response of the Equatorial Pacific Ocean to Global Warming."
A shard of glass severed a hand tendon, he said.
Thankfully, there's a new trend on the horizon in hotels to use Keurigs or other single-cup coffee makers in the rooms (see the Westin's Wakeup coffee maker) meaning we don't have to do deal with any glass percolators. But it will take a while for the big brands to get these installed in all of their rooms. Until then, you might be better off dragging yourself downstairs for a cup of coffee.
[Photo: LakersFan/TripAdvisor]
Tags: Hotel Video Tours / HotelChatter Reviews / Arizona Hotels / Sedona Hotels / → All Tags
Inside The La Vista Motel: Decor Needs A Facelift, But Lovely Staff
Getting your aura cleansed can be expensive, as we found out in Sedona this weekend. We arrived on Thursday, looking for a motel on spec – except everywhere seemed to be full up or over $100 for a room.
Finally, a guy in the tourist office suggested we try the La Vista Motel on the edge of town in North Sedona (actually it’s pretty much in the centre of town, just a few minutes walk from the shops). Our room cost $65. Was it half as good as the ones that cost twice as much? Well the lady at check-in (Kate) was positively angelic and made us feel completely at home. So that was a good start.
Room Reaction:
There are two levels to the motel – rooms on the top are level with the road and have views out over the famous Sedona red rocks. Those on the lower level don’t get the views because of some trees in the way, but they do get their own little seating areas, and a bit more privacy, because they’re tucked away under the main road.
Tags: Hotel Video Tours / HotelChatter Reviews / Arizona Hotels / Grand Canyon Hotels / → All Tags
Inside the Grand Canyon Hotel: 'The Oldest Hotel in Arizona'
After our trip to Vegas this week, we decided to go see the Grand Canyon, and stopped off at Williams on Route 66. Lucky for Williams that it is – as its two streets would definitely not be crawling with tourists if it wasn’t. Not that it’s not cute – we like Route 66 t-shirts and peanut brittle as much as the next person - but boy it was small. Still, it’s the nearest town to the South Rim of the Canyon, and it’s cuter than Flagstaff, so it’s a good place to spend the night,
We shacked up for the night at the Grand Canyon Hotel, which reckons it’s the oldest hotel in Arizona (built in 1891) and describes itself as a “European style boutique hotel”. The present owners revamped it after buying it four years ago.
Tags: Movie Set Hotels / JW Marriott Hotels / Tucson Hotels / → All Tags
JW Marriott Starr Pass Featured in 'Away We Go'
Guh, did you see 'Away We Go' with John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph? It looked promising and Garden-State-esque, and it definitely delivered — lots of cute moments with generous shots of John Krasinski's face, backed by some pretty acoustic music and a whole lot of scenery changes. The movie is the story of a young couple (Krasinski and Rudolph) who goes on a journey across the country to search for a place to raise a family.
And in the scene where they go to Arizona to see Verona's sister, did anyone else manage to catch the hotel the couple dropped by? You know, where they had drinks on the patio and Krasinski's character awkwardly sorta-fell off the side of the balcony? It was the JW Marriott Starr Pass. Gorgeous, no?
Tags: Hotel Renovations / Sedona Hotels / TripAdvisor / → All Tags
Sedona's Orchards Inn Gets Seemingly Long-Overdue Renovation
Sedona, Arizona, has recently seen a swirl of activity — and for once it’s not related to vortexes or even the New Agey doings of the hippy-trippy guests the town attracts. Hilltop hotel Orchards Inn got a facelift! And from the sounds of more than a few painful-to-read TA reviews, it sounds like the update might have been long overdue.
The official word from Orchards Inn is that the hotel has been “updated inside and out to truly give this classic property an upscale contemporary feel.” The one aspect that even the mean TA reviewers admit is pretty amazing — Red Rock views — got centerpiece treatment, with new oversized framed mirrors placed just so to reflect the ahh-inducing views.
But, you know, new mirrors do not a renovation make. Guestrooms have also been “fully upgraded, from the custom designed dark oak furniture and beds with leather upholstered headboards to new carpeting and bathroom fixtures.” Also new: flat-screen TVs, nicer bedding, new lounge chairs on the sundeck, and individual climate controls in each room (hmm, OK, we’re not sure we’d be bragging that one as a “perk;” seems pretty standard).
Overall, the renovation doesn’t exactly sound earth-shattering (leave that to the vortexes!) but hopefully it means the place is less, uh, "disgusting.”
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