We went to Phoenix to visit some friends who had moved there the past year. Our plan wasn't to stay around the hotel, expect when sleeping at night. However, the hotel was so nice, we had our friends come hang out with us at the pool for one of the days. If in Phoenix, the JW Marriott Desert Ridge is worth checking out.
The staff was friendly and had cookies upon check in. The rooms were a nice size (although not huge). Our room had a balcony. The hotel was landscaped beautifully with many water features. I believe the high was 114 degrees the weekend we were there. The hotel was great about having water stations throughout the property.
The pools are sort of “choppy” in design...meaning you have to leave one pool to go to the next and then to go to the lazy river. We had five kids total, so lugging their things from one pool to the next was sort of a disadvantage.
The lazy river also had a slide. The kids had a great time swimming in all areas. The Marriott provided a schedule for the weekend; there were many activities for the kids as well as the whole family.
Our package included golf. TravelMan and one of our friends took advantage of this. Even with temperatures well over 100 degrees, they enjoyed the course. Children under 12 eat free was also part of our package. We tried the breakfast buffet one morning. This southern girl was pleasantly surprised with biscuits and gray, homemade peach jelly, grits, oatmeal, fresh fruit... There seemed to be something each person in our family was happy to see on the buffet.
The resort is very large and caters to conferences, families, and couples. There is something for everyone! The hotel is located near shopping and restaurants which is great. (You could walk; I heard there is a hotel shuttle as well.)
TravelLady Rating: When going to Phoenix again, this hotel will be on our list of places to stay! Definitely worth checking out!