Hotel suggestions for Phoenix work trip next week?
 

I’m venturing out of my Covid-19 bunker for a work trip to Phoenix and area.

I’m looking for a decent business-friendly hotel for a trip that should last about a week.

Requirements:

-Clean, modern, quiet, free parking, free fast in-room wifi, good tv selection. Safe neighborhood.

-I don’t need to be downtown. I’ll be travelling all over the region and spending a bunch of time in Chandler/Glibert but also Scottsdale/Paradise Valley. So a location convenient to travelling around the region.

-Decent food options for takeaway. Don’t care about other amenities. It’ll be work and socially distancing in my hotel room.

-Marriott Bonvoy is preferable, but I’m not focused on status this year because I’ve done almost no travel. So not a must-have.

-Price-point: It’s a work trip so I’m expensing it, but they’re very budget-minded this year so looking to keep costs reasonable.

Thanks!

There are some very reasonable rates right now at some quite nice hotels that fit your description:

The McCormick Scottsdale

The Scottsdale Resort at McCormick Ranch

Both of these are on the border of Scottsdale and PV, and they are a quick drive down the 101 to Chandler/Gilbert.

While in no way "high end," the Candlewood Suites is clean and near lots of restaurants.
https://www.ihg.com/candlewood/hotel...br/hoteldetail

Business-friendly might mean different things to different people.
To one person it might be a no-frills place, to another it could be a full-service hotel with lounge and large pool area.
Also, value and budget-mindedness may be impacted by your status.

As a Hilton person who gets free breakfast, I would go for something like Chandler Hilton, based on the criteria of a reasonably-priced hotel with free pkg in a safe area that's convenient to the places mentioned with food nearby. I like Chandler a lot, it's a nice suburb with a lot of dining choices (best Asian food in the Valley is in Mesa/Chandler) although not really a place for vacationers looking for resort experience.
If you don't get free breakfast at a Hilton, go with Hampton Inn Scottsdale / Talking Stick which is a newer hotel that's clean and right off 101.
If you're doing a lot of takeout, though, and esp if you're going to be staying multiple nights with another person, I highly recommend getting a room with a kitchette (fridge/freezer, dishes, utensils, dishwasher) and a dining table. In that case, Residence Inn, Homewood Suites or Hyatt House type place would be it.

Agree on the Chandler Hilton and other properties in that area. I remember when the property opened, and I did a mattress run there while we lived in Chandler (we were painting so it kind of made sense to escape the fumes). Have stayed there since moving away also.
I also like the Homewood Suites just south of there (off of Price, south of the 202 freeway).

If you like Thai food, Yupha's in Tempe has been rated the, "Best," of the area for many years, without the price of Scottsdale.

Of course another option is to just forgo the hotel entirely and go with an Airbnb. I did that once when I visited last year for a swim series. I stayed not far from Old Town Scottsdale, near Hayden and Thomas. Close to the Scottsdale Greenbelt too. What I liked about it was that there was a full kitchen, washer/dryer, and it just felt comfortable for a longer trip.
There's plenty of options around the East Valley if you go this route.

We used to drive 30min from Scottsdale to Chandler just to eat at Phoenix Palace (dim sum) and Chandler Pho.
Two very solid places, although for whatever reason I see that Phoenix Palace is not rated highly anymore on Yelp anymore.
Wish I'd known about your Yupha place... I like Thai food.
A colleague took me to this pizza/microbrewery place in Chandler... wasn't paying attention to the name of the place, but the pizza crust was incredibly good.
This may not be everyone's thing, but I like Roy's a lot and it seems they're nearly extinct on the mainland.
Somewhat surprisingly, the Chandler one is still open.

ahh... I miss AZ. Everything is expensive and sort of overrated where I live now.
Sorry to go off topic a bit.

Fair comment about business-friendly being different things to different people. Pre-Covid I definitely appreciated a good lounge to go at the end of the day, and breakfast included. These days I mainly care about clean, quiet and not aimed at partiers, or families with kids.

I don’t have Hilton status, so no free breakfast to me. I do like a nice Hampton Inn if it’s new and clean. They seem to vary widely.

I have fond memories of the Arizona Biltmore. I haven’t been in several years, and it’s not really where I’m aiming to stay on this trip, but I thought about spending a night there at the end of my trip before heading home. Has it aged well?

Hi,

It has been a couple of years since I have been there ( lobby was being renovated then) and stayed in the Ocatilla rooms ( with lounge) and loved the rooms, the history, the landscaping and the pools.
Unfortunately, i have tried several dates in Sep/Oct and it says sold out ( I think it closed in March/April but do not know if it has reopened)

Regards

TBS

Ah, yep. The internet says closed until November.

There are new(ish) Hampton Inn properties in both Chandler (next to the Homewood, near Chandler Mall) and Gilbert (not far from the Gilbert mall area). They're both decent enough.

Do you have other hotel status? I'm a Hilton person and am not too familiar with other brands in the area.

Truthfully, if you have no hotel status, you'd probably be best off just getting an Airbnb. Find one that either has a pool or access to one. The water should be fine for another month. You'd have to worry about stocking it for at least breakfast, but it would be much more comfortable than a similarly priced hotel room.

I might consider the Home2 Suites off S Val Vista in Gilbert as it's off the 202 and near the Chandler/Gilbert border. The rates there are reasonable and since you will be there for a week having a small kitchen will be useful. There's a Hyatt Place right next door as well which I liked but the rates there are higher which I don't think is worth the premium in your situation. This area of Gilbert has a safe feeling and you would be near a lot of restaurants. Costco is just two blocks away if you need to grab a few things like water.

Is there a certain area of Chandler/Gilbert that you will be at most of the time? I might go with a hotel closer to those locations, depending on the neighborhoods. How would you split up the time in Chandler/Gilbert and Scottsdale/PV? Everything in the Valley is spread out so minimizing the time you spend on the road could be nice?

I ended up staying at Cambria in Chandler near the Fashion Mall. I apparently do/did have some status with Choice Hotels as last year one of them gave me some free food for being an elite member (I had no idea how as I never stay at Choice Hotels.) This booking wasn't points eligible though. I've pretty much given up on any hotel status since my company now requires us to use a travel booking service whose rates are not eligible for loyalty points.

The Cambria was fine. I've never stayed at a Cambria before. It was pretty no-frills. Newer, clean, good Wifi, plenty of food options around with the mall, good place to get around town. Walls were kind of thin and I had to move rooms due to some very loud neighbors (I had one of those adjoining rooms.) Couldn't get the Bluetooth mirror to work and rooms are only cleaned once every 3 days with COVID. Staff were a mixed-bag. Some very friendly, others not so much. Decent place if you're not planning to spend much time in the hotel.