Golf Courses: There are two 18-hole golf courses, both designed by Ted Robinson, and an unusual 18-hole championship putting course.
The Palms: Built in 1987, these 18 holes wind around the resort’s waterways.
The Valley: This course shows such classic Ted Robinson features as effective water usage, multi-tiered greens framed by palm trees, and undulating fairways.
The Greens: Located adjacent to the lobby bar at the hotel, this 18-hole putting course stands out for its use of classic features of full-length courses, including sand bunkers, water hazards, strategically placed trees, and rolling “fairways,” all played with only a putter. Par 54, 1,435 feet.
Spa & Fitness Center: Located along the lake, a couple of hundred yards from the hotel lobby, the 38,000-square-foot Spa Desert Springs has adopted a “California casual” decor of split-face limestone and Brazilian ipe wood throughout its interior. Both the men’s and women’s areas have saunas, steam rooms, and hot and cold plunge pools, and outdoor whirlpools, the latter overlooking the resort’s Ted Robinson-designed golf course. A door from each leads to a Spa Bistro, which serves light snacks. New to both areas, however, is a Turkish hammam: a spacious steam chamber infused with essential oils and set at 105 degrees (which allows for a longer relaxation period than a traditional steam room). Digitally programmable Kohler Desert Rain showers with five heads let guests fully choreograph their shower experience. The men’s side also has a 50-inche flat-screen TV. Outside, there’s a saltwater pool with views of the golf course and homes lining the lake.
The spa treatments draw heavily on the healing ingredients and customs of the surrounding Sonoran Desert—including locally harvested citrus and dates, cactus flower, and aloe. However, it remains eclectic in also adopting European customs of using mud as a detoxifier, Ayurvedic warm oil and crushed herb treatments, Turkish sea salts, and more. There is also a new emphasis on “spa together,” in which couples and groups can enjoy treatments together. Finally, they have added a 600-square-foot Spa Sanctuary, a private suite destined to cater to VIPs and the Hollywood elite. It has a private entrance and butler.
Those wanting to workout have the Fitness Center, a complete workout center with lines of treadmills, exercycles (recumbent and upright), and elliptical and standard StairMasters plus a full suite off LifeFitness machines, free weights, and dumbbells. It’s is a partly mirrored room with windows on outside entrance. TVs hang from ceiling in front of workout machines and each of the cardio stations has its own television. There are also a variety of classes, including morning power walks (3.5 miles in about 45 minutes), spinning, yoga, and mat Pilates. There’s also a shop with spa products and workout gear, a salon and hallways leading to women’s locker in one direction, men’s in the other. These each have tile showers, sauna, steam, and menthol steam and hot and cold plunge pools. A door from each leads to the Bistro, which serves light snacks, and to an outdoor lap pool bordered by lounge chairs. There’s another small fitness center, with a handful of cardiovascular machines, at one corner of the tennis building where it has windows on the outside.
Children's programs: There is a wide variety of kid's recreation and programming available.
Dining: The main restaurant is the Rockwood Grill, open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in a garden terrace just off the lake. It is supplemented by the Mikado Japanese Steakhouse, seafood at Fishermen’s Landing, sushi in the Lobby Bar, a poolside grill, and a Starbucks.
485 Reviews on “JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa - Peter Burwash International”
We had Pat as our instructor and he was just fantastic. I have had a lot of tennis lessons in my 35 years playing tennis. I was blown away with hid technique. Thanks a lot Pat. you made it a lot of fun!!
I was so impressed with the quality of instruction. Jim Leupold was professional, talented and very attentive to my goals. I have taken clinics at JW Marriott several times and have always come away a better player. I would recommend this resort highly as a top notch experience! Thank you Jim!
Great tennis clinics and great pros. Jim (the pro) was a fantastic teacher. Beautiful club and facilities.
no weaknesses. Jim Leupold Director of tennis is absolutely fantastic! He is knowledgeable, friendly, humorous and has a high tennis IQ. As a beginner player, I learned a great deal in two days and dramatically improved my tennis game – ability, perception, control and my confidence has improved as well. My husband who is an advanced player was able to improve his control and direction to an extremely consistent level. Thank you Jim.
The staff is great; especially Dave (and Tess this past year). I’ve visited four times and am always a better tennis player by the end of the week. I wish I didn’t forget much of what I learned by the time the snow melts back home! Great facilities and terrific instruction. The grand slam round-robin is a lot of fun (except when you get a too serious opponent or partner . . . some don’t seem to realize it’s not an actual “Grand Slam). My only complaint is related to signing up for the drill classes. The system is really archaic and often no one picks up the phone when you call.
Great teaching. Excellent step by step instructions with great visuals. Instructor was high energy and enthusiastic with positive critiques. Loved it!
The court facilities are excellent. The grass courts are well maintained. Clay courts are har-tru not red clay but fun to play on anyway.
Tennis staff are very friendly and quite knowledgeable. Jim Leupold heads the tennis facility and is a great guy–funny, friendly, and super helpful. I especially appreciated the bday cake he surpised me with after a great morning of tennis.
Overall, had a great time, and would definintely consider playing here again.
We had a fantastic experience! We are beginners, and our instructor Tess explained the basics in an easy way to understand, and gave us a lot of great tips/exercises to practise at home. She also gave our 10 year old his first tennis lesson, and thanks to Tess, he is already hooked on tennis! He took another lesson during our stay from Josh, and he too was excellent. We look forward to returning next year!
My husband and I took lessons at the Marriott in Palm Desert with Tessa and found her knowledge and enthusiasm very refreshing and motivating. We were very impressed with Tessa and hope to return soon for more lessons.
Jim Leupold is the most outstanding coach that I have experienced in over 40 years of playing tennis. He is knowledgeable, a great communicator, always enthusiastic and refreshes my continued interest in the great game of tennis. He is an asset to the Marriott Tennis Resort family. Richard Corrales
I just love the Tennis Club, they have the best instructors. Jim Leupold’s classes are always fun, informative & adds just that needed touch to enhance your game. The round robin (clay, hard & grass) is just awesome!! I’ve been going there for over 10 years & have never been disappointed.
We stayed at the JWMarriott while in the area for the Indian Wells tournament and liked the tennis center so much that we went back two months later for vacation. The courts are well maintained, the setting pretty and serene. But the best part is the tennis staff. They are great tennis teachers. Our kids took lessons, we played as a family, took part in clinics and just generally had a great time. LOTS of other tennis players at all levels there so you can always find a game. Initially we weren’t sure about staying at such a large resort, and it can get crowded on weekends, but the JWMarriott staff strives to make the hotel feel smaller than it is, and responsive to needs.
Awesome tennis instruction and all things tennis.
I have been all over this entire country playing competitive tennis, and this was my most outstanding experience, thus far. From the receptonst and axillary staff to the non-pareil didactic education from Jim, Tess, et.al., all of who demonstrated the succinct dynamics and ability to accommodate any level of play. I had multiple lessons from Jim and Tess that elevated my tennis ability more than one level. I strongly recommend this facility and I will return each year if possible for further instruction.
This place is an amazing tennis destination. The grounds are fantastic and the tennis staff is so hospitable, accomodating and knowledgeable. If you’re going to a conference take your tennis shorts and shoes. They will provide everything else. Ask to hit with one of the pro’s (I recommend Tess) and enjoy your court time with a beautiful background.
Would definitely recommend the “Build Your Own Camp” option if you have a group of diehard tennis players and would like a good mix of instruction and play over a 3-4 day period. I brought a group of 8 Advanced Players during the first week of the BNP Paribas and enjoyed the attention we received, especially from Head Pro Jim Leupold who we have worked with on previous occasions. Being able to watch top level pros hit on courts adjacent to you is an added bonus – we saw Federer this year and David Nalbandian a few years back. We’ll definitely be coming back.
Hello. it is a pleasure for me to write this review: I have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort and Spa as my ‘Number One’ Tennis resort in the entire world. I travel a great deal and JWM Desert Springs has that ‘magic’ factor. The location is unparalleled, a beautiful, sheltered ‘Shangri-La’ surrounded by lavender toned mountains that seem to keep the bad weather (and the world’s cares) at bay. The property itself is highly impressive, situated in beautiful Palm tree lined, landscaped grounds with lovely flowers and water features, it is like living on your own estate! A dedicated Tennis Center with an incredible number of impeccable tennis courts, including grass courts, and a stunning hotel with epic views and whatever you wish on offer, be it spa time with peace and quiet after your game or social activities. The best ‘gift’ of all – The finest group of Tennis Professionals you will ever meet are there, (lead by the amazing Jim Leupold)and they are focused on YOU. I have visited the resort countless times on business and on vacation and it never gets old. In fact, I return to be the best ‘Tennis Me’ when I am there. The energy, care, enthusiasm, positive spirit and dedication I experienced from ‘day one’ has never wavered. Over time they have improved my game, coached me on my strengths, worked with me on what needs to be improved and recognized when it was time for a change and recommended racquets and match ups which thoughtfully took my game to the next level. And I’m talking about coaching on a professional level and (for those that wish it) a more relaxed level. They are brilliant at it all. Serious, caring, and highly constructive instruction all round. Bottom line the experience is always professional, thoroughly enjoyable, and something I always look forward to because the team consistently go ‘above and beyond’ to customize your tennis experience, you will learn (sometimes laugh!) and ultimately make progress by living the tennis life to the fullest when you are there! A favorite of the Tennis ‘greats’ – It really is a dream come true.
The facility is beautiful and they have great tennis pros. The clinics are excellent and you have fun and learn a lot. I highly recommend a visit for any tennis fan.
Very friendly and competent staff. Jim is amazing. His passion for teaching is unsurpassed. He runs a very good operation. My brother and I frequently visit for lessons.
Great with kids. We had two private lessons and our son made huge progress.
Great teaching staff, really clean and nice, all encompassing facility, three types of courts
One of the most professional staff of tennis pros I have ever met in a setting that is unsurpassed! Tessa was instrumental in figuring out my forehand and giving me easy, practical tips to remember when it needs adjustment. Jim is a natural at taking you at the level you are and raising your game – a lot of wisdom is shared. Josh has great enthusiasm and was encouraging. The only weakness is not scheduling enough time to enjoy this more!
My wife and I have attended clinics and taken part in tennis programs all over the country in our travels. One that we have consistently found to be among the best is the tennis center at the JW Marriott in Palm Desert, CA. Jim and Dave organize drills and set up matches with skill, efficiency and warmth. We learn each time we are with them. Over the past year, the program has taken a major step forward with the addition of Josh and Tess to the teaching team. These two are outstanding players themselves. However, they both are tremendous teachers. They know how to analyze a person’s game, to address those things that might keep improvement from happening, and to encourage things that seem to be headed in the right direction. We had lots of fun, experienced a good workout, and left the time with them with a new enthusiasm for the game.
The daily AM and PM clinics were nice. They are great affordable options to try out specific areas to work on. THe 1×1 instruction was great for my wife and I. Josh and Dave were great instructors – patient, detailed-oriented, skilled.
Tess Lang was an outstanding coach. I particularly liked the couple of tips she gave to me which had immediate and long-lasting results. She demonstrated the skills of a very astute and experienced coach, despite her young age in that she knew what she and I could and could not accomplish given the situation of a one-time hitting session. With a one-time hit, she was not going to be able to revamp my service motion or groundstrokes like a full-time, regular coach can do, but she provided me with two very valuable tips to focus on, which is doable for a given match or day. Her tips made a difference as we played and then for weeks after, as well. That is quite clever. I would highly recommend her. The facility allowed me to play on their grass court, too, which is a unique opportunity. The whole experience was tremendous!!
I was so impressed by my experience with Joshua Searle today. I am a demanding person, a high energy/fitness 4.5 player, and not the easiest person to please-at 44, I look purely for substance in a lesson (no ‘fluff’ allowed!).
Joshua is very talented as a player, but even more so as a coach and tennis pro. He is humble, low key, very friendly, and all about the person taking the lesson. He very constructively broke my game down within 30 minutes, and gave me nuggets of wisdom on how to approach my serve and maximize the strengths/minimize the weaknesses of my groundstroke approach to the game. I have enjoyed taking a lesson from him as much as any lesson that I have taken. If he is the average pro at this resort, then it is very easy to see why the JW resort was #4 in the US in 2013. The 3 resorts in front of them have good reason to worry about slipping in the rankings in 2014. Well done JW and Joshua. Your organization is as good as it gets for tennis instruction at a beautiful facility!
I attended the morning clinic each day and thoroughly enjoyed them all. The staff was tremendous not only in their tennis knowledge and skill but their ability to call each of us by name & they were all VERY pleasant. I learned a lot and my only disappointment was I like to work out and some clinics the pros talked more then we actually played. I realize it’s hard for them to please everyone as other players may prefer to stand and listen to instruction but I wanted to MOVE and play. The staff was also a bit too nice, as I felt they were hesitant to correct my strokes but I can’t learn if they don’t jump in and make suggestions.
The courts were impeccably clean and the grass court was amazingly beautiful. As a bonus, I ate my 1st ever grapefruit straight from the tree which was courtside – it was wonderful! Finally, the tennis show on Saturday was terrific. It was funny, entertaining and instructional. I just happened to read about the show in a brochure so would suggest the staff talk this up in the clinics so more people are aware of it. Finally, there were a lot of options for play and other clinics & drills. Perhaps they could offer a “frequent player” discount . . .if you take 5 clinics, you get the 6th one free. I would definitely come back to this hotel and this tennis facility – it was terrific!
Teaching pros are excellent and break down the skills of the game in a very easy to learn way. Can’t wait to put these ‘new tips’ into practice!
The grand slam surfaces at JW Marriott Desert Spring is a fantastic experience. We also experienced the private lessons with Jim Leupold and attended several clinics including the junior program. The entire experience was great and Jim Leupold has a wealth of experience in providing valuable insight for tennis player at all levels.
My daughter and I had lessons with Joshua Searle. He was energetic and fun and offered us many suggestions and skills to work on. It was overall a wonderful experience!
Jim Leupold, Dave Kensler, and their staff run the best resort tennis program we have found anywhere in the US. We enjoyed the instruction, the guest round robins, and the tennis facility (grass and clay courts to go with hard courts) so much on our first trip 10 years ago, that we bought a time share there.
Lessons with Dave and with Tess Lang, who is new to the staff in 2013-14, are the perfect tune-up for the spring season.
The “Grand Slam Round Robin,” mixed doubles played on all three surfaces, has been a favorite of my wife’s, my daughter’s, and mine for five years, and we continue to be friends with many of the couples we met playing in them.
We love the PBI tennis staff here and the coaching philosophy they promote. I can’t say enough good things about the entire experience.
We stayed at the resort for 3 days and did 3 days of private lessons and clinics. We had great instruction, great personal service and a lot of fun.
Filling 180 minutes over two mornings never turned out to be so fruitful. Tess, Josh and Dave put on 2 clinics covering groundstrokes and doubles. From basics through advanced strategy, this group of professionals covered quite a spectrum of knowledge. I left with a great boost of confidence in my game. Only regret was not staying an extra day for the serve clinic.
excellent
I attended the PBI tennis show and was fully entertained and benefited from both their tips as well as a free hour on their grass courts. I had an hour lesson with Tessa. I would highly recommend her to everyone, from those starting to play tennis right up to those only needing a little tweek to their game. Easygoing lesson, with a lot of practical tips to work on, fun and humourous throughout.
Strenghts only. Climate in January is fantastic. Both tennis and golf available in abundance. Tennis facilities including coaching first class.
Grass, clay, and hard courts – and I got to play on all surfaces. Beautiful facility and friendly, knowledgeable teaching professionals. I took part in a private round-robin tournament, and took two clinics, leaving with my tennis game in much better shape. Awesome experience.
Excellent instruction from Josh at the JW Marriott. Recently returned to tennis after twenty year hiatus, and his advice was very helpful in re-building my groundstrokes. He was patient and easy to work with and the coaching atmosphere was very positive. Highly recommended.
My tennis lesson from Tessa Lang was amazing! I have not touched a racket in 25 years. She improved my serve, my ground strokes and most importantly taught me how to volley. Her disposition is open and friendly. She puts you at ease immediately and her easy manner makes you more comfortable. She also reinforces the positive lessons but explains how improving on what you are not doing correctly appears to be positive as well! She also bullet points the highlights I need to work with. Loved the Tennis lesson with Tessa!
Pauline and I have had several hours on the remarkably good courts at Desert Springs and a very enjoyable and useful lesson with Tess. The Saturday PBI exhibition is good fun and surprisingly insightful. The staff are very helpful. Weather also superb! Pity the resort is 5000 miles from where we live!
great instruction from Josh. Enjoyable and very helpful.
This is an outstanding tennis resort. Every year I take a tennis vacation and this ranks up there with the best facility ever. What I learned from my 5 tennis sessions at JW Marriott was this: Even if you’re not staying at this resort, by all means make a point to sign up for the Doubles Round Robin on 3 different surfaces, clay, hard and grass. This event alone is worth the trip. This was my first experience on clay and grass. Clay is fantastic, now I know why Rafa Nadal loves clay; it really is easier on the knees. And it’s really fun to play on all the surfaces in a rotation. Their grass courts are outstanding and people on the patio can watch you play.
My experiences were: The Volley Clinic, Doubles Round Robin, the PBI Tennis Entertainment Show (they give out good prizes at the end) and 3 private lessons with Tess. I made a request that my lessons would be for me to play live ball points and then when I made an error to stop play and have a short discussion of my error with Tess (who is a superb instructor). We discussed what I could have done better and then I did a short drill on my shot that generated my error.
If you love watching the WTA players (Serena, Vika, Maria, Petra), getting instruction from Tess (from Wisconsin), is like having a WTA instructor, not only does she have the effortless beauty of a professional tennis star she’s also played tennis for 14 years and really knows her stuff. Plus, she has exceptional listening abilities and a way of communicating that is top-notch when discussing aspects of the game.
During our instruction Tess would point out lessons from “Tennis For Life” by Peter Burwash. (I also bought the DVD (21 Secrets DVD) for the visual aspects of the material from “Tennis for Life”. At this point in my almost 3 years of getting tennis instruction, Tess pointed out a lot of new concepts and strategies that I really appreciated and that I put into practice when I got back home and played locally with my group. Also, to make it even more challenging Tess is able to play at your level and really make you work for your points. It is really gratifying to win a point off someone at her level and experience. Tess is also genuinely supportive of your efforts and I really like that style. (I’m hard enough on myself as it is).
The volley clinic is good and you really get a good workout, the Tennis front desk is very organized and I got signed up quickly and they made every attempt to help schedule my lessons.
Jim Leupold runs a marvelous facility and he puts on a very entertaining show for the whole family that is not only humorous and fast-paced but also instructional. Dave, Josh, Tess and Jim do tennis skits on several aspects of the game and not only are they good at giving instruction Jim’s staff are very funny at performing. At the end you get a chance to serve with the speedometer and hit with a pro instructor.
What are you waiting for; take a tennis vacation soon.
Excellent instruction, high level of professional feedback, excellent facilities, highly recommended
Great instruction for both juniors and adults. Coach Josh was very patient with my four year old daughter. She loved her lessons and she looks forward to learning/playing some more. The goal was attained to instill a love for the game and to give mommy some ideas of what to do with her. This was her first experience and I would recommend his classes to anyone just starting out from 4-100 years.
I wish there was more than one junior tennis clinics offered during our one week stay. We started with a clinic and continued with a half hour tennis lesson each day for four days. I had a lesson with Tess and she was very patient and encouraging with me. This was my first lesson ever as an adult. I was nervous, but she helped take those nerves away with her positive attitude. She gave me a few pointers which helped improve my ground strokes immensely. Thank you very much. Too bad she doesn’t live in Las Vegas because I would befriend her and play with as often as I could.
The next comments might be more directed to the Marriott. I am not sure. My parents are Villas I owners and used to have access to as much tennis (and spa time) as they wanted to for the entire seven day stay. It is too bad we now have to pay for more than one hour of tennis per day on week days only (and this includes the lock-off room). This is not fair as my parents have paid for this timeshare and this was part of their original contract many moons ago. I noticed there were many empty courts. The main draw of the resort are the tennis and the spa. That is why they purchased this time share.
In any case, back to the tennis lessons, I would recommend taking lessons here to any of my friends/family and next year I will budget more money for this. Perhaps offering deals for more than one lesson will entice players to sign up for lesson packages. It did me. Thank you to Coach Josh for working with me on this so I could buy a week’s worth of lessons for my daughter. Also, the PBI Tennis Show was very good – both entertaining and educational. Thank you!
I met my sister at this resort for a tennis getaway. The courts are in great condition as you would expect and the surrounding hills provide gorgeous views in every direction.
More important for me, the instruction was excellent. I had 4 short days to try and jumpstart my game, and I left with a few solid improvements. They didn’t try to reinvent my game, but focused me on a few core techniques. I learned these techniques during group sessions which were scheduled each day, and I had a private session with a newer instructor – Tess – who really worked with me to develop my serve, a particular area of frustration for me. It was obvious she wanted me to succeed, and her tips helped loosen up my service stance and motion.
An obvious downside to tennis in the desert is the heat. There were times I wanted to continue playing after an early morning session but found it too hot. However, playing early morning or late afternoon – under the court lights when it’s just getting dark – is wonderful. It actually works well to go off during the heat of the day to do other things, return for the late afternoon/early evening session, and then shower for a nice dinner. Onsite spa is also helpful for working out any soreness.
I would definitely recommend this resort for tennis. I will be back!
We have returned to the JW Marriott for the past 10 years, specifically for the tennis program. The tennis clinics, lessons, and programs have been top quality. The coaching staff is outstanding. Jim, as head of the program, has been consistent in his teaching, and I always learn new techniques. Dave is very attentive to everyone’s needs and loves showing visuals during the clinics. Josh and Tessa, new to this program, were outstanding teachers – high energy, attentive to individual needs, positive in their approach and, most importantly, very patient. We will definitely return for another vacation.
Fantastic instructors , always good humored and patient , Josh did a great job during the week in dramatically improving my game . Its wonderful to have the 3 types of court and the grass was great fun. The clinics were very useful and the fellow players were great fun . Interestingly , a lot of them come back year after year , which has got to be a good advertisement ! To be honest , hard to think of any real weaknesses . I would highly recommend the resort .
A wonderful program. I think Dave and Jim, the head pros are fantastic; and the two new pros, Josh and Tessa, are absolutely wonderful. We love the grass courts, as well as the clay and hard courts. Very helpful, very accommodating – and great teaching in clinics and individually. The weather cannot be beat in December and January.
The teaching indeed is ideal – It takes your game where you’re at and just pushes it forward, without tearing it apart in any way.
Annually I return to this resort to participate in clinics, lessons and opportunity to play on my choice of court: clay, hard court or grass. I love their matching me with other players to enjoy singles or doubles play while I am visiting for the week. I have participated in the round-robin tennis too. The staff are always pleasant and the head pro is very knowledgeable and with a great team of other pros available for lessons.
I love working with the folks at PBI. This is my second year working with Dave in the tennis clinics. I always learn something new that I can apply easily to my game. Tess was so helpful in straightening out my backhand and just great all around coaching. The one thing that I appreciate is the PBI pros do not try to change your game, just enhance it. Works well for me. Thanks!