I spent two nights at the Canyon Suites, the first paying 116,000 Marriott Points, the second $893 as an opportunity to relax after a fun 2000 mile, two week Palm Springs/Vegas/Grand Canyon Road Trip from Los Angeles. I spent a few nights at this property around 2010, and was excited to experience this this exclusive enclave once again.
We spent the morning visiting Frank Lloyd Wright’s fascinating nearby winter home and former Architecture School, Taliesin West before arriving around noon.
VALET
The valets at this property are superb and friendly, but also professional; there is now an option to self park which I felt was a great improvement since I last visited, but it’s just as easy to use the valet and they are great about giving tips about the local surroundings.
CHECK IN
Martin was superb and engaging during check-in - a real credit to the property.
FIRST, THE POSITIVES
This “hotel within a hotel“ is a real find, and I was looking forward to reliving my previous stay remembering the perfect, personalised service, spacious and luxurious rooms, wonderful breakfast and quite simply one of the most pleasant swimming pools in the USA.
Prices have risen significantly since my previous visit and I suppose if Canyon Suites is still delivering at that level it would be absolutely worth it, but having stayed at many high end resorts globally, I think this was more of a $650 grade property rather than something that is fishing in the thousand dollar market.
Breakfast is a standout winner at this property; such a range of carefully curated foods, from the honeycomb honey to the delicious Eggs Benedict all to be enjoyed outside overlooking the relaxing man-made waterfall really set the tone, although it would’ve been great to have seen the on-property trained Hawk present at a few of these morning sessions to scare off the aggressive birds which attacked the plates of anyone who absented themselves to recharge coffee or OJ!! Perhaps play some of this Hawk’s warning calls to try and put off these irritating creatures!
Contrary to some feedback, I found the towels, soft and fluffy, the shampoo and other amenities in the bathroom were fragrant and of the highest quality.
The golf cart transfer to the main property worked well, avoiding the extreme heat even at this time of year. The nearby gym is almost brand new, superb machines and has terrific views.
I discovered the sunset pool/Jacuzzi a short walk from the main pool Which was a great touch. The sunbeds had comfy mattresses on them, were plentiful and the pool staff were professional, engaging but not invasive and it was great great to have frozen berries and cold towels from time to time; sunglass cleaning used to be something which was offered at top resorts and I wish this was still done today.
It was disappointing that I could not see any complimentary sunscreen available, except in the cabanas, as this is standard in most high-end properties these days particularly given the difficulty of travelling with large volumes of liquids.
NOW TO THE ISSUES I EXPERIENCED
INTERNET
Signal was intermittent in the master bedroom which was very frustrating when checking emails and stocks; fortunately it was the weekend so was manageable, and when I brought this to the attention of the hotel managers my $60 resort fee was credited back but either way this shouldn’t have happened as Internet is a real “hygiene item“ these days, and would have been seriously problematic had it been a midweek stay.
ROOM INTERIOR
As a Marriott Platinum, we were generously upgraded to a suite from the double room initially booked; this was a luxurious space, and although the bathroom was still top notch it was clear from the mismatched furniture (ugly, leather-clad dining chairs arranged as a seating area) that the property is in need of a thorough interior upgrade to unify the interior decor scheme, and justify the premium prices charged; it’s very clear that some work has been done in this regard (there was a great elliptical mirror on the wall and modern console table), but the whole room doesn’t quite hang together and it lacked the “wow factor” one might expect at this level.
SOFABED
We had booked a room with two beds. The generous upgrade meant that the sofa bed would be able to be used in this suite so we both had individual sleeping spaces, which suited us fine.
However, the sofa bed itself was uncomfortable in the extreme, with the mattress springs being easily felt while sleeping, and noisy when turning.
Fortunately this was discovered during an afternoon nap, so a deeply uncomfortable night was avoided.
Housekeeping did try to remedy this by adding a pillow top mattress and an additional duvet underneath the fitted sheet, but this was still far from adequate There are plenty of sofa beds on the market these days with extremely comfortable mattresses. These really need to be replaced urgently. In a property like this, there is no excuse for uncomfortable sleeping arrangements, even on a sofabed.
POOL
Again, a small issue about the iconic pool which has a clear white and yellow design theme; somebody has decided that lime green umbrellas are a good idea and yet these cheapen the property and do not fit within the original classic scheme of the Canyon Suites; it does suggest an uncoordinated approach is being taken to design and improvements around the property, which is a concern for the future.
The poolside menu was great with lots of options although I did think that the bright, multi-colour design used was a little bit cheap and this is further evidence of the creeping influence of the mass market Phoenician impacting on the luxurious high-end approach one expects at the Canyon Suites.
Many people gripe about music played round the pool if it isn’t to their taste; I had no particular objection to the volume or the music which was played, but it would be great to limit this until after at least 11am to allow people to unwind in the mornings and understand that nearly everyone listens to music through headphones these days and for most people on vacation listening to the wind rushing through tree leaves and the gentle lapping of water at the edge of the pool is soundtrack enough.
PLASTIC BOTTLES
It’s summer in Arizona, and obviously it’s essential to keep hydrated. But it’s also 2024 and offering multiple plastic bottles poolside in ice coolers and in room really isn’t the most environmentally friendly approach.
Other properties work to reduce use of plastics. Why not give every resident a branded Canyon Suites metal reusable water bottle for the duration of their stay and to take away with them as a memento, including detachable Polypropylene insulation. Great advertising for use as a gym bottle. Add filtered chilled bottled water fillers around the pool and property; even if the plastic bottles are recycled, a new approach to keeping guests hydrated needs to be considered.
FUTURE CONCERNS
There was no construction underway when I visited because it was the weekend, but there are 2 acres beneath the property which have been flattened, ready for construction; this will be become an increasing issue over the course of late 2024 and through to mid 2025 at least and it certainly something you should consider if you are planning to stay stay here.
It’s unclear what this new building will be used for (perhaps residential/long stay suites) but if as suggested, it increases the number of Canyon Suites hotel rooms then I will be very concerned that the high touch professionalism could be impacted. The previously spacious and relaxing pool could become something of a zoo. The Phoenician really needs to guard against this, and those planning stays once this is completed should be very clear about the changed nature of the facility.
SUMMARY
Despite my specific concerns, this is a great property if you want something a little more special than the already good Phoenician Hotel.
The sofa beds urgently need to be switched out to something with comfortable mattresses. The elegant lobby interior needs to be matched to the current partially-improved room interiors with a joined up professional approach which is worthy of a property of this calibre and price-point.
Potential guests should be fully appraised of potential construction noise over the next twelve months. Once construction is concluded, be certain to check that the exclusive and relaxed nature of this unique property has not been spoiled by additional demands from guests in the new annex.
Keep your standards high, Canyon Suites!!
