Scottsdale & Phoenix, AZ

Thanks to good friends and a great graduation gift—Sarah discovered the magic of Scottsdale and Phoenix, AZ.  She’s been back quite a few times as it provides the perfect warm escape from the Northwest during the Spring, Fall, and Winter months (maybe she’ll brave the summer there one day).  It only made sense that she would want to enjoy it with John.  We went to Scottsdale our first year of marriage in the Spring, and then we explored Phoenix for John’s birthday this last year in February.  Both are truly wonderful, and places we hope to continue to explore.

One of our favorite views (not Sarah's feet, but a pool beneath some sunshine)

Scottsdale:

The trick:  Stay at a resort.  We figure we would rather spend the money on a nice place to stay (most important: good pool!), since our goal is usually relaxation and warmth.  Then we get some groceries (snacks, breakfast items, and drinks) to cut costs there.  We’ll splurge on a few poolside drinks (hello luxury!) and a few dinners (In n’ Out-YES! And some other sit down style restaurants).  Also, it’s always ok to get a coffee—that’s our motto and what keeps a lot of the happiness in our marriage ;)

“How do you pick a resort?”  So glad you asked!  Sarah has stayed at both FireSky Resort & Spa and Hilton Scottsdale Resort & Villas.  Both have their perks.  FireSky pros:  great pool area, s’mores, good service, & friendly staff.  Cons:  rooms are a little outdated.  Hilton pros: Amazing villas-so comfortable, especially for multiple people & really close to a Starbucks & nail place (clearly this is Sarah’s perspective)  Cons: pool was nice, but not as fun as FireSky’s.  However, we are always open to trying new places.  We searched high and low (aka Groupons, travel deals, different price comparison sites), but wound up finding that the best deal was FireSky…did we mention how important a pool is?  We have a shared love of water!

An illustration of how we spend our time

We arrived in the Scottsdale airport—so tiny and perfect!  Paid a few dollars extra to get our car there instead of taking a shuttle, and took off for…Target!  Yay!  After getting some sunscreen, snacks, and beverages we headed to our resort.  Most of our time was spent:  Reading, laying poolside, reading, getting some drinks delivered (every vacation needs a mojito), coffee or dinner breaks, reading, and laying poolside.  Notice a theme? 

We had one hiccup:  our reservation at the spa was mismarked so we weren’t able to try it out.  However, the spa and hotel handled it great by sending us free champagne—which we gulped down to ease our tears and get some kind of relaxation.  We followed it up with a private booth at The Melting Pot and forgot all about it until..well, right now.

Shockingly, we also left the resort occasionally in the late afternoons/early evenings, this way we were able to maximize our sunshine time!  We haven’t tried a large amount of restaurants in the area (some good ones: Veneto Trattoria, Fork, and In n Out are some good ones), but there are lots of reviews on those.  Besides food, here are some of the things we occupied our time with:

• Explore Old Town Scottsdale (bring your camera for fun pictures)
• Walk the Riverwalk in Scottsdale
• See a Movie (hey, if it’s hot and you need AC, movies are great): We’ve tried Studio Movie Grill (it’s fun to order food during the movie. It’s overpriced, but it’s the experience that counts, right?) and IPic Theatres (this is one of our favorite lazy day treats.  We became members for free to get cheaper tickets..you get food delivered to you, blankets, and recliners.  Life is pretty great!)
• Take a bike ride (some resorts rent them for free to guests)
• Visit Fashion Square-not John’s favorite so we didn’t do this much
• Check out local festivals/events
• See Museums or Frank Lloyd Wright’s Talisein West
• Camelback Mountain exploring (we haven’t gotten to do much of this)
• Or…go into Phoenix for a comedy show!

Speaking of Phoenix, let’s talk about that next.

Phoenix:

John had a conference in Phoenix so Sarah met him the weekend after—just in time to celebrate his birthday and Valentine’s Day.  We decided to try something new: a bed and breakfast.  After some research we chose Maricopa Manor Bed & Breakfast.  Sarah actually did it as a surprise for John and mentioned the special occasion in the booking.  Shortly afterwards, Joan, the owner, e-mailed her and told her she’d upgrade her to the “Reflections Past” suite and have some wine or champagne awaiting them.  How great is that?!  Pretty great.

After John picked Sarah up from the airport in Scottsdale (remember, it’s really great to fly in there), we headed to the B&B.  We were greeted with chocolate covered strawberries, wine, & cookies.  Oh, and a basket of snacks.  Joan showed us the grounds (which were really lovely) and explained that she’d drop a picnic basket off at our door every morning.  We love that we were able to have breakfast just the two of us AND that it was delicious!  Coffee, juice, “quiches,” fruit, and pastries.  Mmmmm.  So good!   (And no seafood was involved...)

That night we celebrated John’s birthday and had dinner at The Compass Grille, a rotating restaurant with a beautiful view of the city!  At first the motion of turning was a bit much, but we were quickly able to get used to it and just enjoy the intimate atmosphere, delicious food, and a gorgeous view together. 

Dinner at the Compass Grille

The next day Sarah continued John’s birthday date by taking him to Arizona Broadway Theatre and seeing The King and I.  Lunch was included and the servers were great—as was the show.  We accidentally got there early…like 2 hours, but don’t worry--we were able to waste time at Target (ok, so that may not have been for John’s birthday, more for Valentine’s Day ;) ).

After the show we rushed to see an Arizona Coyotes game.   We were wearing the shirts Sarah had gotten us, but quickly realized we were the odd ducks…apparently there’s more New York Rangers fans in Phoenix than Coyotes.  Oops!  Sarah received her first rose from an entire hockey team (as did every other female in attendance since it was Valentine’s Day).  Afterwards we had some Arizona Mexican food.

The next day we celebrated Valentine’s Day and John set up a couple's massage for us at one of the BEST spas we’ve been to:  Renaissance Glendale Hotel & Spa.  They have such great locker rooms with relaxing sectionals to lounge on while sipping fruity water.  In addition, you get access to the pool area so we spent some time at their pool.  It was all great—the massage, the service, and the pool—we can’t wait to visit again.

Afterwards we headed to…a ballet!  Napoli at the Symphony Hall in Phoenix.  John is really, really good at surprising Sarah (and listening when she mentions things.  Guys, take notes.  Literally.  If the significant other in your life mentions “I’ve always wanted to ____”, jot it down!  Ladies, you too.  Then when you need ideas you’ll have a list).   The dancers were beautiful, but we were extra impressed with the scenery.  Such a beautiful ballet.  Here’s a summary if you’d like.

Afterwards we had dinner in Scottsdale at  Veneto Trattoria.  Perfect Valentine’s Day.  The next day we headed back to reality.

Clearly there is much left to explore in both Scottsdale and Phoenix (like the chocolate train they have!).  We can’t wait for our next adventure there!  Have you been?  What’re some things you’ve done or want to do?

Chasing Time Zones,

J&S