I have actually been a guest at both the Desert Ridge and the Camelback, and they are as different as night and day. I would not necessarily consider Desert Ridge like new money per se, it is just a modern luxury hotel, and the Camelback is an old classic. Camelback was truly the first resort in the Marriott chain, personally purchased by the Marriott family back in 1968, after vacationing there multiple times over the previous two decades. AFAIK, it is still owned personally by the Marriott family, if not, then it is owned by MI now, but it has never been franchised like most hotels under the Marriott umbrella. I first stayed at the Camelback Inn in 1969, for a family wedding, and have stayed there several times since, and it is a timeless classic, never disappointing. I have also stayed at Desert Ridge, for a professional conference, and I loved that hotel too, with incredible golf course and/or mountain views from many/most of the large rooms. My memories at Desert Ridge were spending time with friends in the lobby and bar and of course in the business facilities for the conference, and the hotel never disappointed. I wish that I had checked out the club (it was Cloud Club at that time), but in reality, there was not much time. If I was going there now, I would pay the daily fee, it looks grand in all respects. I doubt that anyone would feel they went wrong going to either of these great resorts, with the only proviso being that Desert Ridge is farther removed from most of the Phoenix area attractions and better restaurants (even though there are lots of restaurants nearby, most of them are not what I would describe as unique or special, more chains) are not nearby, and same with the better shopping (higher end stores and boutiques which my female relatives frequent), which is more down by Old Scottsdale Scottsdale proper or in the Biltmore area of Phoenix. I have been to Phoenix MANY times (I have a very large extended family of over 23 relatives there) in the last 44 years, plus a few business trips, and have stayed in a variety of Marriott branded hotels and resorts in the area, my last visit to PHX was in 2010. I loved my experiences at both resorts, and I expect this would still be true for a return visit today.