Any description of the Phoenician in Scottsdale, Arizona, leaves the indelible impression of a resort that has sailed beyond good taste into the perilous waters of ostentatiousness. Acres of polished Italian marble spread from the lobby down halls and stairs, under Aubusson carpets, and into elevators, with enough left over to fill every one of the baths in the 647 rooms and suites. Mother-of-pearl lines one of its swimming pools and an outdoor Jacuzzi. Almost $2 million in art decorates the public spaces. Yet even guests who arrive expecting to be appalled, as I did, soon end up falling under the Phoenician's spell, even to the point of happily soaking in that mother-of-pearl Jacuzzi.

From the moment it opened in 1988, this $300 million desert palace set a new standard for resort excellence. Architecturally self-effacing, its four- and five-story wings blend into Camelback Mountain, which rises immediately behind. Its rooms stand out not only for those marble bathrooms but also for their size—none is smaller than 600 square feet—and appointments, including textured Berber carpets and furnishings in pale woods and leather. All have lanais, the best with views south across the Valley of the sun. More spacious still are the one- and two-bedroom suites in villas below the swimming pool.

All the accommodations are an easy stroll from 27 intimidating holes of golf laid out through the desert (signs warn "Beware of Rattlesnakes"), a well-designed tennis center with a grass court, a New Age spa and fitness center, a Funicians Club for kids ages 5 to 12, and eight food outlets, which range from the sumptuous Southwestern fare of Windows on the Green to poolside dining and even an ice cream parlor (its highly rated French restaurant Mary Elaine's closed after 20 years of operation and will be replaced in October by J&G Steakhouse, part of the family of renowned restaurateur Jean-Georges Vongerichten). There is scarcely any reason to leave.

Tennis Features

Pro Shop: 480-423-2587

The Phoenician's 11 courts—one of them a sunken exhibition court, another a grass court—fan out through a garden of oleander, palm, and flowering orchid. It's a thoughtfully designed complex with an elegant clubhouse and shade-giving courtside trellises, and the staff makes playing here even more pleasant by circulating through the courts every half hour or so, bringing fresh towels and pitchers of icewater and Gatorade. Two of these courts are Rebound Ace, the same cushioned surface formerly used at the Australian Open.

Tennis Staff. Tennis director Yaz Tavatli was born in Iran but left in 1979 when his family fled to Colorado Springs during the revolution. He went on to play for the University of Colorado and teach in clubs in the Denver and Colorado Springs areas, including a stint under the late, legendary biomechanist Chet Murphy who used to be at the Broadmoor. He came to the Phoenician in the 1990s and had been there ever since. He's been at the Phoenician since
Tennis Programs. Except over major winter holidays like Thanksgiving and Easter, when the resort's touring pro John Lloyd conducts special sessions or Christmas, when former world No. 1 Stan Smith does, the menu at the Phoenician Tennis Garden consists mainly of private lessons and a daily clinic supplemented by junior programs during the major winter holidays. Finding a game, on the other hand, is easy as the staff can draw on a stable of 120 locals as fodder. They are not members but friends of the Phoenician, people they can call on when a guest needs an opponent. Tavatli has elected not to start a membership, saying "I want guests to be able to call and get a pro which might not be the case if we had a membership." In short, only hotel guests compete for the pros' attention. "I try to make sure they get what they need to be happy," Tavatli says and then adds that the in-house Guest Satisfaction Index is typically above 95 percent.
Courts & Fees. The Tennis Garden has a eleven courts, which fan out around a sunken clubhouse court. Two of the courts have been surfaced with Rebound Ace, the absorbent surface used at the Australian Open. The clubhouse court has a different type of cushioning, Premier Cushion. While all but one of the remainder are hard courts surfaced with Plexipave, one of them equipped with a self-feeding ball machine. The exception is a grass court, which is also the only one to run east-west rather than the traditional north-south.
Calling this a "garden" is appropriate. The whole complex backs up to the golf course and its lagoons. It is surrounded by oleander hedges that often rise to the tops of the fences and extensively landscaped with beds of flowers, pots of magenta bougainvillea, and palm trees. The clubhouse contains a full-service and very boutique-like pro shop—well stocked with such brands as Lily's, Bolle, Fila, and Kaelin—as well as an air-conditioned lounge with comfortable sofas and a television, a small cafe where you can get coffee, juice, Gatorade or have room service deliver anything on their menu. A recent expansion added a room for kids and teens. Between the clubhouse and the sunken court is a broad patio, partly beneath an overhanging roof, furnished with heavy decorative metal chairs with padded seats around table with marble tops. Court fees: $15/person/day on the hard courts; $60/hour on the grass.

Your Call

Here's what others have had to say about Phoenician.

• "Friendly staff, terrific accomodations, great value."—K.T., Adv., September 2008

• "A simply superb resort, with a great tennis center as well. Even my wife, who isn't a tennis player, couldn't say enough. The tennis staff is very professional and helpful. Very easy to take a lesson or get into a match. As for the resort, 27 holes of golf, hiking at Camelback mountain, a beautiful pool and outdoor bar, great food (indoor or outside)and simply impeccable service throughtout. How could you ask for more."—P.R., Adv. Int., July 2008

• ""—P.B., Adv. Int., January 2008

Other Recreation

Golf Courses. As designed by Homer Flint, the generally tight, 6,487-yard, par-71 course demands accuracy rather than length. The front 9 is relatively flat, but the middle holes of the back 9, which skirt Camelback Mountain, combine elevation changes with the intimidation of desert rough and probably account for a disproportionately high number of golfers seeking relief at the bar of the 19th Hole. The 14th tee is a tiny island of grass in a sea of desert foliage. Though the drive only needs to carry 50 yards to reach the bent-grass fairway, it must thread a narrow alley formed by 30-foot sentinels of saguaro cactus, all of which bear dozens of black, golf-ball-sized scars. A few, in fact, have golf balls embedded in the woody branches of their upright arms. Anything that falls short or veers right disappears into the desert, though not before flushing out the occasional chukkar partridge. The intimidation continues on the following hole, whose elevated tees on the side of Camelback Mountain can only be reached by hiking up a zigzag path past signs warning to "Beware of Rattlesnakes." The 115 yards between tee and green contain nothing but cactus, rocks, brittlebush—and, presumably, the odd rattlesnake.

See Also

If you like the sound of the Phoenician, also check out:

• The Boulders Resort & Golden Door Spa, Arizona, though it's not as good for children
• The Breakers, Florida
• The Broadmoor, Colorado
• The Greenbrier, West Virginia

Travel Essentials

Phoenician
6000 E. Camelback Rd.
Scottsdale, AZ 85251
480-941-8200
Toll-free: 800-888-8234
Fax: 480-947-4311
Web Link: The Phoenician

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Book Online: The Phoenician

 

Travel Instructions. The resort is a little less than 8 miles from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

General Tourist Information. Visit the Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau web site or contact them at 7343 Scottsdale Mall, Scottsdale, AZ 85251; phone (480) 945-8481 or (800) 877-1117.

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