Canyon Suites vs. FS Scottsdale
Dec 18, 2012, 12:45 am
#2
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: YVR
Programs: Hilton*D, Marriott*LG, Hyatt*G
Posts: 6,268
I have stayed at both and I prefer the Four Seasons for a better overall experience.
The Canyon Suites is Virtuoso and comes with daily breakfast and a $100 F&B credit once per stay. The Canyon Suites are very nice and service is decent. It is far enough removed from the Main Phoenician building to give a separate hotel feel but is convenient to all the restaurants of the hotel but also Scottsdale. The Burger restaurant is quite good; I also liked Cowboy Ciao in Old Town Scottsdale.
The Four Seasons gives a more local feel and the F&B is quite strong. The only problem, which can also be its strength, is its location is quite remote. Talavera was fantastic, especially watching the glimmering lights down the valley and the stars above. Be sure to book with a Preferred Partner agent to receive Preferred Partner amenities of daily full breakfast, upgrade if available at check-in and $100 food and beverage credit once per stay.
Hope this helps!
The Canyon Suites is Virtuoso and comes with daily breakfast and a $100 F&B credit once per stay. The Canyon Suites are very nice and service is decent. It is far enough removed from the Main Phoenician building to give a separate hotel feel but is convenient to all the restaurants of the hotel but also Scottsdale. The Burger restaurant is quite good; I also liked Cowboy Ciao in Old Town Scottsdale.
The Four Seasons gives a more local feel and the F&B is quite strong. The only problem, which can also be its strength, is its location is quite remote. Talavera was fantastic, especially watching the glimmering lights down the valley and the stars above. Be sure to book with a Preferred Partner agent to receive Preferred Partner amenities of daily full breakfast, upgrade if available at check-in and $100 food and beverage credit once per stay.
Hope this helps!
Dec 18, 2012, 1:03 am
#3
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM
Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM
Posts: 100,413
Canyon Suites feels like a separate boutique hotel in many ways, with its own check in area, garage for valet parking, and swimming pool. IIRC there's a wine tasting in the lobby on weekdays and also morning coffee service. However, for meals (including breakfast) you must go to the main building, except for room service. The main hotel has a very different feel (not luxury at all IMO) but does offer lots of services such as shops (including a wine store that does tastings), a golf course and club, a huge iconic pool, several restaurants and bars, a spa, etc. It's therefore a mixture of an elegant boutique hotel and a huge resort complex. However, do not expect much in the way of SPG elite privileges. As a resort, they can and very clearly routinely do refuse late checkout requests and do not give upgrades unless pressed. Wifi seems to have problems. The good news is that, at least as of a year ago, there was no resort fee at the Canyon Suites although IIRC there is a substantial one at the Phoenician.
Dec 18, 2012, 3:13 am
#4
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Portland OR Double Emerald (QF and AA), DL PM/MM, Starwood Plat
Posts: 19,589
While Canyon Suites doesn't have a "wild west" feel in the room, it does have a wild west canyon right next to it on one side (sadly a golf course full of rabbits on the other). You can feel like you are on a John Wayne movie set if you position carefully 
Not too bad for a hotel with underground valet parking. It is surprisingly quiet and isolated feeling -- compared to the Phoenician. And as mentioned old town Scottsdale is a mile away.
Not too bad for a hotel with underground valet parking. It is surprisingly quiet and isolated feeling -- compared to the Phoenician. And as mentioned old town Scottsdale is a mile away.
Dec 18, 2012, 10:08 am
#5
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: NJ
Programs: UA LTG, AA LTG, Bonvoy LTP, IHG Plat, LHW Sterling
Posts: 2,405
My wife and I have stayed at the Canyon Suites every other year or so for the past 10 years. We both enjoy the secluded private nature of the building and the very pleasant and never crowded pool area. What I particularly like is the view in the pool area is pleasant no matter which direction you look, unlike many other places where if you stand just here, and look just there… it is great, but everything else is not. The Four Seasons web site in particular is great at finding just those spots to highlight in their photos.
A great plus: The underground parking at the Canyon Suites is so convenient valet parking is completely unnecessary.
The suites are spacious and nicely laid out, but I was disappointed by their renovation 4 or 5 years ago. The suites used to be well coordinated, residential, and more “desert” in appearance. The metro, city style refurb made them a bit disjointed, less residential, and seem less spacious IMHO… but not horrible by any means. We are now happy with a regular room there as they have fewer metallic kink knacks and black furniture in them. The base rooms are still very spacious at ~600SF. Doubles have great view across golf course, lake and Phoenix. Kings face pool and Camelback mountain (nice), but I do not like their layout… so we get the double.
Lobby at the Canyon Suites is very nice with a beautiful cascading waterfall fountain in the back.
A variety of “extra” services are offered: Services
I have also found the basic bones of the Canyon Suites to be very good. Quiet rooms with effective and quiet HVAC. Spacious bathrooms with large tub and separate shower with plenty of pressure and flow (some might find the various stone and marble to be a bit on the dated side).
Room service breakfast has been pretty good in the past. They bring a toaster too.
One negative is the hallways… a bit gloomy and dark.
I have not stayed at the Four Seasons, but did tour it once and had a look at the base room (all that was available to be shown). Avoid base rooms as they can have basically no view and be very dark. I did not like the room I was shown at all. To me, Four Seasons room photos look better online than in person although I imagine some of the top rooms and suites are pretty nice. I did not particularly like the pool area or the overall feel of the place. Although I was not wowed, the Four Seasons was certainly OK and I can easily imagine many would prefer it over the Canyon Suites for reasons other posters have mentioned.
Another factor to consider: If either resort is having some large corporate function during your planned stay, pick the other one.
A great plus: The underground parking at the Canyon Suites is so convenient valet parking is completely unnecessary.
The suites are spacious and nicely laid out, but I was disappointed by their renovation 4 or 5 years ago. The suites used to be well coordinated, residential, and more “desert” in appearance. The metro, city style refurb made them a bit disjointed, less residential, and seem less spacious IMHO… but not horrible by any means. We are now happy with a regular room there as they have fewer metallic kink knacks and black furniture in them. The base rooms are still very spacious at ~600SF. Doubles have great view across golf course, lake and Phoenix. Kings face pool and Camelback mountain (nice), but I do not like their layout… so we get the double.
Lobby at the Canyon Suites is very nice with a beautiful cascading waterfall fountain in the back.
A variety of “extra” services are offered: Services
I have also found the basic bones of the Canyon Suites to be very good. Quiet rooms with effective and quiet HVAC. Spacious bathrooms with large tub and separate shower with plenty of pressure and flow (some might find the various stone and marble to be a bit on the dated side).
Room service breakfast has been pretty good in the past. They bring a toaster too.
One negative is the hallways… a bit gloomy and dark.
I have not stayed at the Four Seasons, but did tour it once and had a look at the base room (all that was available to be shown). Avoid base rooms as they can have basically no view and be very dark. I did not like the room I was shown at all. To me, Four Seasons room photos look better online than in person although I imagine some of the top rooms and suites are pretty nice. I did not particularly like the pool area or the overall feel of the place. Although I was not wowed, the Four Seasons was certainly OK and I can easily imagine many would prefer it over the Canyon Suites for reasons other posters have mentioned.
Another factor to consider: If either resort is having some large corporate function during your planned stay, pick the other one.
Last edited by schriste; Dec 19, 2012 at 1:31 pm
Dec 19, 2012, 9:07 am
#6
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 210
schriste makes very good points.
I've stayed at the Scottsdale 4S property and don't care for the dowdy fabrics in the rooms and the employees aren't accustomed to giving the level of service you'd get at other properties (I'm guessing this is because of the location being so remote).
That said I think the 4S property is stunning and would stay there again. The location for me is a plus because I don't find much need to go to Old Town Scottsdale. They also have the absolute tastiest huevos rancheros that you will be likely to find without a local to show you around.
I've stayed at the Scottsdale 4S property and don't care for the dowdy fabrics in the rooms and the employees aren't accustomed to giving the level of service you'd get at other properties (I'm guessing this is because of the location being so remote).
That said I think the 4S property is stunning and would stay there again. The location for me is a plus because I don't find much need to go to Old Town Scottsdale. They also have the absolute tastiest huevos rancheros that you will be likely to find without a local to show you around.
Dec 31, 2012, 1:47 pm
#7
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: SFO/RDU
Programs: United Hotcake Preferred
Posts: 531
I've stayed at the Canyon Suites and found it very nice but by no means worth the price. True, it is quiet and private, but I don't don't get a true luxury feeling there. Among other things, my screen door was broken and the morning "silver service" is just a regular old plastic pot of coffee. The wine tasting is really just free wine and is not setup as an actual tasting, though I'm all for free wine. I have also added the property to my list of luxury hotels that cannot reliably deliver the newspaper I want each morning.