Nobbi

After reading the FT threads on the AZ Biltmore I was hesitant about going again. Had it really gone done since joining the Waldorf=Astoria Collection?


Not at all. The service is still as good as ever.

I still recommend this place.

lovetotraveleverywhere

My family is going to be staying at the Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa in April and I was hoping to get a contact name and email at the property who might be able to assist me with getting upgraded. Any help is appreciated.

nub2travel

I have reservations for dinner next week and I would like any feedback on the food, prices and general impression of the restaurant. I am not staying at this property but I would very much like to check it out and I figured dining there would give me acces to the grounds. I also have reservations for their Sunday Brunch. Any thoughts?

jumpdogjump

I thought this deserved it's own thread:

From Travelzoo:

A few months ago, a room at the legendary Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa cost more than $300 per night. But as part of its 80th anniversary celebration, the property is offering an $80 per night special for stays May 21 - Sept. 7, including weekends.

Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa has received AAA's 4-Diamond award and was recognized in Conde Nast Traveler's Gold List and Top 50 U.S. Resorts. The hotel has hosted celebrity guests and historical events -- guests have ranged from Fred Astaire to Shaquille O'Neal, and last year John McCain gave his election-night concession speech at a ballroom in the hotel.

Guest rooms feature marble baths and complimentary high-speed Internet.

Book by May 6.

For more information and to book, click here and be sure to enter code TZOO4 in the "Group/Convention Code" field. Or call 800-950-0086 and mention promotion code TZOO4. Note: This offer is non-refundable. There is an additional $28 daily resort fee, which covers access to the fitness center, local and 800-number calls and access to the spa.

EDIT:
Actually looks like some of the advanced purchase rates may be the same or better - check for your dates.

Eastbay1K

$28/day resort fee?

freebee

It's this non-refundable nonsense, along with the resort fee, that makes this offer less attractive than it might seem at first glance. Between the bad economy and the sizzling Phoenix heat, I expect there will be many fabulous deals to be found at non-Hilton five star resorts this summer. For instance, in mid-July, the Marriott Camelback Inn has a $90 AAA rate that has no cancellation penalty and no resort fee.

omegadeal

Everything in Phoenix gets cheap during that timeframe. The Ritz Carlton is only a few blocks away and a little over $100 as well during the summer, but not a resort property and more of a business property.

mikeef

Ooh, but you get free local, 800-number and credit card phone calls, in case you are one of the few travelers in the world who don't have cell phones. Not to mention that free newspaper!

I hate resort fees. Just a way to make the rate look 25% cheaper without actually lowering prices.

Mike

squeakr

no worries, but in the future please read the stickies on the Hotel Deals forum ot see if a deal qualifies to post there.

Especially as others have said, this isn't all that amazing a deal.

thanks

squeakr
MOD Hilton

SAGA

I plan to spend a few days with the family at the Arizona Biltmore soon and was wondering if anyone has a report on the new Ocatilla rooms and lounge.

Also, has anyone booked a regular room and been upgraded to an Ocatilla room with lounge access?

Thanks!

kellio33

I spent last weekend there. Check in took 20-25 minutes with only 1 person at the counter and could see no dedicated honors desk.

I no longer have any status with HH but was offered a late 2pm check out without asking.

The lounge is ok to decent. Nice decor but service is so-so. Very busy and staff had trouble keeping the food stocked as well as serving plates stocked. Many people just started to dig in the cabinets to see if they could find a plate. Soft drinks, lemonade, iced tea and waters always seemed to be replenished.

Continental breakfast from 6a-10am (not positve on the hours) Usual stuff. Fruit, granola, yogurt and bagels. Runs out fast and the staff can't keep up.

5p-9p open for comp. wine, prosecco and beers. Red wine was fine, nothing to write home about. Saw Amstel Light and Bud light for beers but didn't really look closely. 4 or 5 hot appetizers and a couple of cold that were quite nice. Again, they seemed to be running out of everthing and couldn't keep up.

8-9pm. Dessert time. A few very nice after dinner bites available. Once again staff couldn't keep up with demand.

Self Service Latte, Espresso and Cappucino maker. A couple of computers available for use.

Lounge Concierge messed up our dinner reservations at Wrights but came through after I told her the alternatives were not acceptable. Took some time but the problem was corrected.

Asked for turn down service while we were at dinner which was not done. I called when we got back to the room and was handed about 20 chocolates but beds not turned down.

Very prompt service on the drawn bath with sea salts service

The main pool was very crowded and when went there on Saturday early afternoon was told no pool towels available and none were expected for 30 minutes. We went back to the pool at the Ocatilla building and while they didn't have towels either we just grabbed some from our rooms and the pool was much more relaxing.

My 12 year old was NOT impressed with the water slide.

Dinner at Wright's was nice but not memorable. I think they have dumbed down the menu since The Grill is still closed. Not many choices on property for lunch or dinner.

Jcea

Diamond award stay. Booked standard double queen room and was upgraded to Ocatilla. Nice big room with big bathroom, pool view, so far we are impressed. Saturday afternoon pool was PACKED, but we were still able to find seats at the bar and lounges. No problem with towels. Bar menu was good, nice Greek salad, drinks were reasonably priced for a resort. Service at the bar was fine, a chef came out and did a salsa demonstration and gave samples to all who wanted. It was part of the Biltmore's 80th birthday celebration.

So far so good..... right? .....not. Two teens we brought were VERY unimpressed witht he water slide and complained of bordom for the entire stay. The dive in movie that was promised and the kids were looking forward to didn't happen. As happy hour rolled around we went to use our key to get into the executive lounge (that is supposed to come with the Ocatilla upgrade) and lo and behold, it won't work. So I make a call to the front desk and was told since we recieved the room upgrade we were not entitled to the executive lounge too. BS! I went to the front desk and had a chat with the supervisor and was given new keys and access to the lounge.

We had a glass or two of wine and a few snacks (all accurately described above) and headed back to the pool area for a light dinner. We didn't feel like getting gussied up for the fancy restaurant. Apparently we showed up about 20 minutes before closing time (8PM on a Saturday night!)
and the waiter took 15 minutes in an almost empty place (only one other table occupied) to even come offer drinks.

We ordered some chicken wings and salads and sandwiches which took another 25 minutes to arrive at our table. The wings were completely burnt to a crisp. My daughter and her boyfriend, both veteran fine dining establishment employees, were agast at both the quality of the food and the service.

After a complaint to the server, the wings were taken off the bill, but too little too late. We were offered free dessert too but know better about ordering more food from a kitchen after complaining. You never know what you are going to get Forest.

The resort is absolutely beautiful, the grounds, the views, the art and the history are impressive to us as 17 year Arizona residents. Don't waste your money staying or dining there. Maybe it was a skeleton summer crew in Phoenix and the service may be better there in the "season". I'll never go back. If you want to see the place and have a drink at Wrights bar, walk about the property for a few hours, you can get a feel for the place it used to be.

Its nothing like that anymore. Very very dissappointing after all the hype.

SAGA

Thank you both for very useful information. I have booked a regular room and see what kind of upgrade I get (if any)....too late to cancel. How unfortunate that Hilton can't do better.

Uniter

I'm staying here soon at the government rate. I was wondering if anyone has had any luck getting the resort fee waived since my office won't pay for that. Thanks!

rolltide2

My husband stayed there recently at a federal government rate, and they waived the resort fee for him. It was a fairly large group -- I'm not sure if that makes a difference.