Stayed in November with the whole family- booked a casita, which was quite spectacular in appointments, decor and size. With an enormous living/dining room, giant terraces, separate master bedroom and two big baths Plus a full kitchen- perfect for our family of six. With two kids on the pullout and a couple of rollaways (the room could have fit 10 of them), we still had tons of space to relax and spread out.

The waterslide was a bit slow for the kids but they didnt seem to mind. The many pools are beautiful, plenty of quiet spaces if needed. The property is high end, but not snobby- they were welcoming of kids and had activities for them. Breakfast buffet on the deck in the main building was beautiful. Great service tops it all off. We look forward to staying again.

Upon arrival we had some bumps. I had EXPRESSLY booked 2 rooms in a certain area, been guaranteed by email twice that all was set BUT when we got there, it wasn't all set. After almost an hour and a half, we got it straight. (Thank you Scott Pate!) I will say that their resolution turned out to be better then what I had originally booked too! The grounds are beautiful- the villa we were put in was DELIGHTFUL (will book that next time we go.....and we will go back!) What I was most impressed by though was the service level of the entire resort. From the restaurants, to the front door guys this is a VERY service oriented place. The tennis facilities are wonderful. The spa was WONDERFUL....didn't go golfing BUT it looked wonderful too! Again, the service level is what blew me away the most- the location is great as well- close to airport and to shopping-dining area BUT with spectacular views so you don't even feel like you are in town. I just want to say thanks again to Scott (and the front desk clerks who worked with him) for turning the rough start into a SPECTACULAR finish for us! See you again soon!

We were here from 27th to after new years eve. Clearly very high season for this resort. Despite that, we didn't feel crowded in. Only time I regretted having a full resort was one evening when my family wanted to stay outside near the outdoor firepit. There are four large outside and they were all full. We settled for a room with a fabulous view, lobby live music seating instead. Not a bad compromise but nevertheless we would've preferred the former.

The resort is beautifully kept with clean pool, freshly stocked towels, large koi pond with hundred of fish that you can feed. My daughter thoroughly enjoyed doing this. there is a hiking trail about a mile and half from the property that is quite challenging but beautiful.

My only regret is that food prices are astronomical. Thankfully we rented a car and drove out for breakfast, lunch and dinner but usually we prefer to eat in the resort since we had little kids with us. The spa and gym are also nicely appointed.

If you have kids keep in mind the resort is quite spread out so be prepared to walk a lot from one part to another. For instance, Relish a restaurant that is open for lunch is clear on the other side of the resort, whilst our room near the cactus garden were one small lake, three pools, one elevator ride and a short hike away. whew. I really felt those distances when my daughter forgot her swimming goggles or something she really needed.

We checked-in at The Phoenician from Christmas Eve and left the following Saturday. This was our first time away from home/family for the holiday. The resort was decorated just enough for my taste, the smell of evergreen gently filled the lobby air. On Christmas eve Mrs. Claus was reading stories to the children and hot chocolate and decorated sugar cookies were layed out for all to enjoy. Turndown service on Christmas Eve consisted of cookies instead of the usually chocolates. We waited too long to book Christmas brunch and ended up eating off site. Our room was on the 3rd floor over-looking the pools, I agree with other reviewers, the higher the room the better. Room was spacious, bathroom was huge but had poor lighting and cold tile floors. We did have an issue with a lint-filled air vent in the closet, after two calls and cleanings the problem was resolved. However, I was suprised I was the first person to have complained, clearly the vent had been dirty for sometime. Rooms were extremly quite at night. The pool was lovely, but the air-temp was a bit too chilly for us to enjoy it. Instead we visited the huge hot tub, however had to bail several days due to it being over-run with unsupervised kiddos. The other travel compainions golfed and throughly enjoyed the experience. We ate at Il Terrazzo several times for breakfast, the buffet was very good. Ate at Relish once for lunch, good food, but the service was a bit spotty. Self-parking is free and super easy. I really appreciated having this option. The resort is conviently located, we went into Phoenix and Scottsdale quite often. Absolutely would return to The Phoenician.