Oct 10, 2013, 1:05 pm
Last edit by: aztimm
Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa
Hotel Website: http://www.arizonabiltmore.com/
http://waldorfastoria3.hilton.com/en/hotels/arizona/arizona-biltmore-a-waldorf-astoria-resort-PHXBMWA/index.html
Address: 2400 East Missouri Avenue
Phoenix, Arizona
United States
Phone/Fax: 800.950.0086
602.955.6600
fax 602.954.2571
Other:
Hilton HHonors Properties in Phoenix (consolidated thread)
Hotel Website: http://www.arizonabiltmore.com/
http://waldorfastoria3.hilton.com/en/hotels/arizona/arizona-biltmore-a-waldorf-astoria-resort-PHXBMWA/index.html
Address: 2400 East Missouri Avenue
Phoenix, Arizona
United States
Phone/Fax: 800.950.0086
602.955.6600
fax 602.954.2571
Other:
Hilton HHonors Properties in Phoenix (consolidated thread)
Arizona Biltmore, A Waldorf Astoria Resort {US-AZ}
Jul 28, 2011, 3:02 pm
#61
Join Date: May 1999
Location: CVG
Programs: DL DM 4MM, Lifetime Marriott Plat Elite, HH Diamond
Posts: 1,429
UPDATED BELOW: I have a 5 night stay booked at the Biltmore in October and as a 10 year Diamond member, I decided to call and ask what are they doing for diamonds at this property:
1. The Ocatilla is a "boutique" hotel within the Biltmore and is NOT eligible to be upgraded to.
2. The Executive lounge in the Octilla is NOT eligible for a diamond member UNLESS paying to upgrade to the Ocatilla property.
3. The Biltmore does NOT have an executive lounge. (Curious though, the hotel within the hotel does)
3. Diamonds will receive a "one level" room upgrade within the hotel (NO suites) - again, not for the Ocatilla. (update: my "upgraded" room was the same as many of our staff with no status)
4. Various coupons for use at the property: Water, 2 free drinks, 20% discount at food and spa.
Once again, HHonors continues to completely devaluate the program they worked so hard to create.
You really have to wonder if anyone from the Biltmore or the HHonors program reads any of these posts - I gather from the posts I've read that the Biltmore has beautiful grounds, lousy staff, mediocre food, and almost no benefits to highest teir members of the HHonors program. If it wasn't for a conference, I would definately stay elsewhere!
Update:
Actually stayed 7 nights and had Mrs. DL Platinum join me for the weekend. Overall, what they told me on the phone was correct, though they did finally offer access to the Ocatilla lounge after some requesting. Previous posts about the lounge are very accurate: Fabulous hot food in the evening (5:00pm - 6:30pm), with free wine and beer and an honor bar beyond that. Breakfast was "continental" and somewhat disappointing. The staff of the Ocatilla lounge were very friendly and accommodating.
If you stay, make sure to take the tour of the property at 10am. It is a bit over an hour long and covers much of the history of the property. You need to sign up for it at the concierge desk. During the course of my stay, we utilized every restaurant and bar at the property:
- Convention services food and service: Fabulous! (albeit expensive - 4$ for a 8 oz coke bottle)
- Quality of food in general - Again Fabulous! The quality, presentation, and taste show a great master chef in the kitchen
- Service in the restaurants - DISMAL. If it weren't for the quality of the food, this place would not make it.
- Service at the bars - Fabulous! Those ladies and the bar tenders work together to get the drinks out quick!
Pools: Nice, note that the Octatilla pool is for Octatilla guests only. Water slide and pool side bar at the Paradise pool close at 5pm.
In general: If you like Wright architecture and old world looks, then this Biltmore should be on your list of places to stay at when in Phoenix. If not, there are many other properties in the area that offer a much better stay.
1. The Ocatilla is a "boutique" hotel within the Biltmore and is NOT eligible to be upgraded to.
2. The Executive lounge in the Octilla is NOT eligible for a diamond member UNLESS paying to upgrade to the Ocatilla property.
3. The Biltmore does NOT have an executive lounge. (Curious though, the hotel within the hotel does)
3. Diamonds will receive a "one level" room upgrade within the hotel (NO suites) - again, not for the Ocatilla. (update: my "upgraded" room was the same as many of our staff with no status)
4. Various coupons for use at the property: Water, 2 free drinks, 20% discount at food and spa.
Once again, HHonors continues to completely devaluate the program they worked so hard to create.
You really have to wonder if anyone from the Biltmore or the HHonors program reads any of these posts - I gather from the posts I've read that the Biltmore has beautiful grounds, lousy staff, mediocre food, and almost no benefits to highest teir members of the HHonors program. If it wasn't for a conference, I would definately stay elsewhere!
Update:
Actually stayed 7 nights and had Mrs. DL Platinum join me for the weekend. Overall, what they told me on the phone was correct, though they did finally offer access to the Ocatilla lounge after some requesting. Previous posts about the lounge are very accurate: Fabulous hot food in the evening (5:00pm - 6:30pm), with free wine and beer and an honor bar beyond that. Breakfast was "continental" and somewhat disappointing. The staff of the Ocatilla lounge were very friendly and accommodating.
If you stay, make sure to take the tour of the property at 10am. It is a bit over an hour long and covers much of the history of the property. You need to sign up for it at the concierge desk. During the course of my stay, we utilized every restaurant and bar at the property:
- Convention services food and service: Fabulous! (albeit expensive - 4$ for a 8 oz coke bottle)
- Quality of food in general - Again Fabulous! The quality, presentation, and taste show a great master chef in the kitchen
- Service in the restaurants - DISMAL. If it weren't for the quality of the food, this place would not make it.
- Service at the bars - Fabulous! Those ladies and the bar tenders work together to get the drinks out quick!
Pools: Nice, note that the Octatilla pool is for Octatilla guests only. Water slide and pool side bar at the Paradise pool close at 5pm.
In general: If you like Wright architecture and old world looks, then this Biltmore should be on your list of places to stay at when in Phoenix. If not, there are many other properties in the area that offer a much better stay.
Last edited by DL Platinum; Oct 11, 2011 at 8:16 am Reason: Updated to add trip report
Oct 6, 2011, 7:28 pm
#62
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Las Vegas
Programs: DL DM, AA PlatPro, Hilton DM, Hyatt Glob, Marriott Titanium, Hertz PC, National EE
Posts: 1,532
Just completed a two-night stay. I booked an Ocatilla room for $175/night with a $10/night resort charge through an email promotion.
Front desk was very nice and explained all the amenities of Ocatilla. While Valet parking is a little expensive, self parking is only $12/night and was waived for us. (Not sure if that was because of Ocatilla or because I'm a diamond.) The self parking lot is very close -- not sure what a previous poster was saying but it's maybe 30 seconds to walk from the front portico to the start of the self parking. You can also cut across the villa areas directly onto the grounds -- self parking is very convenient.
Was booked into a nice king room facing north. The Ocatilla pool is nice and the lounge is pretty good. They only have alcohol in the evening, but lots of good selections. Breakfast is just ok -- a little disappointing that there isn't any hot items. The lounge itself is pretty large and has an outdoor seating area as well. You can order coffee/juice/tea to your room the next day if you want.
We called after the first night and they happily switched us to a first floor room (the only rooms with balconies/porches at Ocatilla) facing the pool -- the room was a bit larger as well. I wish they would have suggested this from the beginning as it was much nicer to sit outside since the weather had just started to cool down.
As a hhonors amenity they provide coupons for two free drinks at The Wright Bar or Frank & Albert's Bar, 20% off dining, and two bottles of water from the minibar. We didn't use ours so if anyone wants extras PM me and I'll send them to you. They expire Oct 31.
While maybe not the best Waldorf property it's just such a unique experience with the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture and the history. We enjoyed ourselves.
Front desk was very nice and explained all the amenities of Ocatilla. While Valet parking is a little expensive, self parking is only $12/night and was waived for us. (Not sure if that was because of Ocatilla or because I'm a diamond.) The self parking lot is very close -- not sure what a previous poster was saying but it's maybe 30 seconds to walk from the front portico to the start of the self parking. You can also cut across the villa areas directly onto the grounds -- self parking is very convenient.
Was booked into a nice king room facing north. The Ocatilla pool is nice and the lounge is pretty good. They only have alcohol in the evening, but lots of good selections. Breakfast is just ok -- a little disappointing that there isn't any hot items. The lounge itself is pretty large and has an outdoor seating area as well. You can order coffee/juice/tea to your room the next day if you want.
We called after the first night and they happily switched us to a first floor room (the only rooms with balconies/porches at Ocatilla) facing the pool -- the room was a bit larger as well. I wish they would have suggested this from the beginning as it was much nicer to sit outside since the weather had just started to cool down.
As a hhonors amenity they provide coupons for two free drinks at The Wright Bar or Frank & Albert's Bar, 20% off dining, and two bottles of water from the minibar. We didn't use ours so if anyone wants extras PM me and I'll send them to you. They expire Oct 31.
While maybe not the best Waldorf property it's just such a unique experience with the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture and the history. We enjoyed ourselves.
Jun 27, 2012, 10:21 am
#64
Flyertalk Evangelist and Moderator: Coupon Connection and Travel Products
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Milton, GA USA
Programs: Hilton Diamond, IHG Platinum Elite, Hyatt Discoverist, Radisson Elite
Posts: 19,040
My partner just stayed there this past week... and LOVED it!
Question for people who have stayed... do you know what the bed brand is they have? He loved it... but I cannot tell if it was the best or some mattress topper they had. Thought I would check here before reaching out to the property.
Question for people who have stayed... do you know what the bed brand is they have? He loved it... but I cannot tell if it was the best or some mattress topper they had. Thought I would check here before reaching out to the property.
Aug 13, 2012, 1:43 pm
#65
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 54
I just completed a 3 night stay here. Here are my thoughts.
- Booked a Classic room but was upgraded to a Resort room (one level upgrade). Asked about a better upgrade but was told it wouldn't be possible as the hotel was very busy with a convention.
- Checked in after 10pm and was given a very small map of the property so I could find the cottage my room was in. Lighting around the property is not very good and I must have walked past my cottage at least 3 times before I saw the little sign indicating it was mine.
- The bed in the room was extremely comfortable.
- The rest of the room was a big disappointment.
1) Very large furniture made for very tight areas to walk in the room. Barely any room to get into the bathroom between the bed and desk.
2) Bathtub had a hole in it that was now covered with a big patch.
3) Sink was chipped and discolored.
4) WiFi signal strength was almost non-existent.
5) AC fan speed never varied from low even when switching to medium or high.
6) AC vent was in a weird spot of the room causing most of the lounge/bed area to remain warm.
7) Desk had a horribly uncomfortable chair and no easy to reach power outlets anywhere in the room.
- I should mention that I was talking to the front desk about something and they asked how my stay was so far. I mentioned that I really felt like the rooms needed to be updated and that it didn't seem like a Waldorf Astoria property when it was in that condition. She nodded her head in agreement and whispered to me that they just got a new GM for the property and he is not happy with the condition of the rooms either. He immediately shut down the rooms in the main building (the building with the lobby/front desk/restaurants/etc) for renovation. I could tell from the look on her face that this has been a common complaint and that she was slightly embarrassed to have it brought up again. Hopefully the rest of the rooms will see some updates in the coming year.
Enough about the room. Let's talk food.
- I was given breakfast vouchers for The Cafe valued at $13. I used one of them. They have a selection of bagels, pastries, fruit, and other small breakfast items. I only had a bagel and cream cheese but the other items did look good.
- I also ate one breakfast at Frank & Alberts. They have a full breakfast menu and I had the french toast with bacon and a large orange juice. Total with tax & tip came out to around $30. Very pricey, but very delicious.
- At check-in I was given a voucher for 2 free bottles of water from the mini-fridge.
- At check-in I was also given a voucher for 2 free drinks at the Wright bar located off of the lobby. Drinks were good, not watered down. Nice service. The bar was a very popular place.
- I ate dinner at Frank & Alberts on Friday night. Got there at 8pm and the place was fairly busy. Placed my order and proceeded to wait nearly an hour for my food to arrive. Thankfully I had some of the stalest bread in existence to hold me over.
I was none to pleased and expressed my disappointment to the manager. She apologized, comped my meal, and gave me her card asking that I give her another chance the following night.^
- Against my better judgement, I decided to go back to Frank & Alberts on Saturday night and see if they could improve at all. The place was not nearly as busy at 6pm which enabled quick service. I had my food within 20 minutes of ordering this time and it tasted quite good. Even the bread was in better shape. The waiter and manager were checking in on me frequently to ensure the experience was improved. Kudos to them for making sure I had a pleasant experience. Just a shame that it took the poor experience the night before for this good experience to happen.
The only amenities I used at the resort was the main pool area. There were 2 pools next to each with a hot tub in between. Pool area was nice with a lot of umbrellas to keep the sun from completely baking you (116 degrees on Friday). There are 6 other pools around the property that are available for use.
Checking out at 5am on Sunday was a fairly seamless process. The front desk was able to take off my charge for a movie as that was free for being a Diamond HH member (Watched Battleship. Just ok. Give it 2 stars). Corporate rate for my stay was $86. I was not charged the $28/day resort fee but did pay the $27/day for valet parking.
Overall, I was not blown away with the resort in its current condition. I'm not sure that I would recommend the property until the renovations are complete. I'm sure some may disagree with my assessment, but this is what I experienced.
- Booked a Classic room but was upgraded to a Resort room (one level upgrade). Asked about a better upgrade but was told it wouldn't be possible as the hotel was very busy with a convention.
- Checked in after 10pm and was given a very small map of the property so I could find the cottage my room was in. Lighting around the property is not very good and I must have walked past my cottage at least 3 times before I saw the little sign indicating it was mine.
- The bed in the room was extremely comfortable.
- The rest of the room was a big disappointment.
1) Very large furniture made for very tight areas to walk in the room. Barely any room to get into the bathroom between the bed and desk.
2) Bathtub had a hole in it that was now covered with a big patch.
3) Sink was chipped and discolored.
4) WiFi signal strength was almost non-existent.
5) AC fan speed never varied from low even when switching to medium or high.
6) AC vent was in a weird spot of the room causing most of the lounge/bed area to remain warm.
7) Desk had a horribly uncomfortable chair and no easy to reach power outlets anywhere in the room.
- I should mention that I was talking to the front desk about something and they asked how my stay was so far. I mentioned that I really felt like the rooms needed to be updated and that it didn't seem like a Waldorf Astoria property when it was in that condition. She nodded her head in agreement and whispered to me that they just got a new GM for the property and he is not happy with the condition of the rooms either. He immediately shut down the rooms in the main building (the building with the lobby/front desk/restaurants/etc) for renovation. I could tell from the look on her face that this has been a common complaint and that she was slightly embarrassed to have it brought up again. Hopefully the rest of the rooms will see some updates in the coming year.
Enough about the room. Let's talk food.
- I was given breakfast vouchers for The Cafe valued at $13. I used one of them. They have a selection of bagels, pastries, fruit, and other small breakfast items. I only had a bagel and cream cheese but the other items did look good.
- I also ate one breakfast at Frank & Alberts. They have a full breakfast menu and I had the french toast with bacon and a large orange juice. Total with tax & tip came out to around $30. Very pricey, but very delicious.
- At check-in I was given a voucher for 2 free bottles of water from the mini-fridge.
- At check-in I was also given a voucher for 2 free drinks at the Wright bar located off of the lobby. Drinks were good, not watered down. Nice service. The bar was a very popular place.
- I ate dinner at Frank & Alberts on Friday night. Got there at 8pm and the place was fairly busy. Placed my order and proceeded to wait nearly an hour for my food to arrive. Thankfully I had some of the stalest bread in existence to hold me over.
I was none to pleased and expressed my disappointment to the manager. She apologized, comped my meal, and gave me her card asking that I give her another chance the following night.^- Against my better judgement, I decided to go back to Frank & Alberts on Saturday night and see if they could improve at all. The place was not nearly as busy at 6pm which enabled quick service. I had my food within 20 minutes of ordering this time and it tasted quite good. Even the bread was in better shape. The waiter and manager were checking in on me frequently to ensure the experience was improved. Kudos to them for making sure I had a pleasant experience. Just a shame that it took the poor experience the night before for this good experience to happen.
The only amenities I used at the resort was the main pool area. There were 2 pools next to each with a hot tub in between. Pool area was nice with a lot of umbrellas to keep the sun from completely baking you (116 degrees on Friday). There are 6 other pools around the property that are available for use.
Checking out at 5am on Sunday was a fairly seamless process. The front desk was able to take off my charge for a movie as that was free for being a Diamond HH member (Watched Battleship. Just ok. Give it 2 stars). Corporate rate for my stay was $86. I was not charged the $28/day resort fee but did pay the $27/day for valet parking.
Overall, I was not blown away with the resort in its current condition. I'm not sure that I would recommend the property until the renovations are complete. I'm sure some may disagree with my assessment, but this is what I experienced.
Nov 7, 2012, 5:57 am
#66
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Herts, UK
Programs: BAEC GGL, HH Diamond.
Posts: 3,178
I see a lot of people here have great rates of $90ish
Does anyone have a code, It seems to be approx $160 for me on december 1st.
I would like to give the hotel a go, but arrive late,and may leave midday
Thanks in advance
Does anyone have a code, It seems to be approx $160 for me on december 1st.
I would like to give the hotel a go, but arrive late,and may leave midday
Thanks in advance
Nov 7, 2012, 6:38 am
#67
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: ATL
Programs: AA Gold, HH Diamond
Posts: 1,061
I think most if not all the sub-$100 rates you have seen applied to stays in the middle of Summer, the low season for Arizona hotels. December 1 is high demand season.
Nov 7, 2012, 8:18 am
#69
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Astraveln
Programs: AA ex Plat, IC Plat , Hilton Diamond
Posts: 491
In the summer, they run rates 90-120. In December 160 is a great rate and wont go lower, it will actually be substantially higher starting in Mid December. I would try to lock into a rate, they dont drop during "snow bird" season and will often approache 250++
Nov 7, 2012, 9:48 am
#70
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Chicago
Programs: Marriott Lifetime Platinum, AA Platinum
Posts: 373
Stayed here in spring 2012 and LOVED it. Used a q4 cert For 1 night and it was a free room. Got upgraded as Diamond a large suite with pool for about 10 other suites on the far side of the hotel, near the tennis court. Beautiful grounds, friendly staff and close to great shopping mall and restaurants. We had the Sunday brunch which has only been topped by brunches in SE Asia. Awesome spead including a decent caviar, pastries, etc. there was a 10 dollar surcharge which gave us our choice of all you can eat entrees...loved the lavender donut and a mean lobster Mac and cheese.
Brunch is only Sundays...but I would go out of my way to have it again, and again and again!
Lot of history at the resort too...cool Frank LLoyd Wright displays and a wall of all presidents who have stayed at the property.
Probably the best US Hilton I have ever stayed at from top to bottom.
Brunch is only Sundays...but I would go out of my way to have it again, and again and again!
Lot of history at the resort too...cool Frank LLoyd Wright displays and a wall of all presidents who have stayed at the property.
Probably the best US Hilton I have ever stayed at from top to bottom.
Nov 7, 2012, 10:00 am
#71
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Herts, UK
Programs: BAEC GGL, HH Diamond.
Posts: 3,178
Stayed here in spring 2012 and LOVED it. Used a q4 cert For 1 night and it was a free room. Got upgraded as Diamond a large suite with pool for about 10 other suites on the far side of the hotel, near the tennis court. Beautiful grounds, friendly staff and close to great shopping mall and restaurants. We had the Sunday brunch which has only been topped by brunches in SE Asia. Awesome spead including a decent caviar, pastries, etc. there was a 10 dollar surcharge which gave us our choice of all you can eat entrees...loved the lavender donut and a mean lobster Mac and cheese.
Brunch is only Sundays...but I would go out of my way to have it again, and again and again!
Lot of history at the resort too...cool Frank LLoyd Wright displays and a wall of all presidents who have stayed at the property.
Probably the best US Hilton I have ever stayed at from top to bottom.
Brunch is only Sundays...but I would go out of my way to have it again, and again and again!
Lot of history at the resort too...cool Frank LLoyd Wright displays and a wall of all presidents who have stayed at the property.
Probably the best US Hilton I have ever stayed at from top to bottom.
Nov 7, 2012, 10:28 am
#73
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Astraveln
Programs: AA ex Plat, IC Plat , Hilton Diamond
Posts: 491
[QUOTE=JimJ321;19641580] We had the Sunday brunch which has only been topped by brunches in SE Asia. Awesome spead including a decent caviar, pastries, etc. there was a 10 dollar surcharge which gave us our choice of all you can eat entrees...loved the lavender donut and a mean lobster Mac and cheese.
Brunch is only Sundays...but I would go out of my way to have it again, and again and again!
QUOTE]
Also, there is the Wrigley Mansion, on top of the Hill at the Biltmore(not part of the Biltmore, but you wouldnt know it). They do a Sunday brunch with free flow Champagne. Unbelievable views and history as well..... I frequent both, depends if you want Champagne or not. Biltmore is slightly better, with the cavier ect. But the Wrigley has great carving stations, and good selection. Both are great Sunday Brunch options.
Brunch is only Sundays...but I would go out of my way to have it again, and again and again!
QUOTE]
Also, there is the Wrigley Mansion, on top of the Hill at the Biltmore(not part of the Biltmore, but you wouldnt know it). They do a Sunday brunch with free flow Champagne. Unbelievable views and history as well..... I frequent both, depends if you want Champagne or not. Biltmore is slightly better, with the cavier ect. But the Wrigley has great carving stations, and good selection. Both are great Sunday Brunch options.
Nov 7, 2012, 7:55 pm
#75
Join Date: Sep 2012
Programs: HHonnors Diamond, AA Gold, UA Silver
Posts: 293
We usually stay for a long weekend during the winter to get out of the cold. We've always been treated very well. The state rate is usually very good (and no resort fees to boot), as a diamond I'm batting 1.000 in upgrades to a suite... sample size is roughly a half dozen stays). along with the upgrade you will get a couple of drink vouchers as well as a card that gives you a discount at any of the restaurants (good at the bars as well... it's basically 20% off any food or drink at the resort and can be reused as often as you like). There is a decent happy hour in the frank and alberts bar.
I happened to be there over labor day weekend and they had an all inclusive deal for roughly $160 per night (included vouchers for breakfast lunch and dinner with a cap on each meal... you could use it for what ever you wanted, we usually ate a late breakfast, then drank lunch. Dinner allowed for enough for two entrees and appetizer and four drinks. Tips were included in the voucher).
Good property, I've heard some of the main rooms are a bit dated, however I can tell you the suites are fine. I second the wrigley mansion, a bit pricey, however the view and food are both great.
If you are thinking of going, book a room (non prepaid), and watch for specials (travelzoo a has few deals for the biltmore throughout the year). If a good deals pops up you can book the deal and cancel your existing reservation.
I happened to be there over labor day weekend and they had an all inclusive deal for roughly $160 per night (included vouchers for breakfast lunch and dinner with a cap on each meal... you could use it for what ever you wanted, we usually ate a late breakfast, then drank lunch. Dinner allowed for enough for two entrees and appetizer and four drinks. Tips were included in the voucher).
Good property, I've heard some of the main rooms are a bit dated, however I can tell you the suites are fine. I second the wrigley mansion, a bit pricey, however the view and food are both great.
If you are thinking of going, book a room (non prepaid), and watch for specials (travelzoo a has few deals for the biltmore throughout the year). If a good deals pops up you can book the deal and cancel your existing reservation.