Hey there!

My family stayed at the Arizona Grand Resort in Phoenix during spring break, and its' now one of my kids' favorite hotels EVER.

The Arizona Grand Resort and Spa in Phoenix is a luxury resort, but it's friendly, unpretentious and fun for families. The resort offers a lot of activities to keep you from wanting to leave the resort during your stay, such as swimming pools, golf, spa and seasonal family activities. You'll only need two words to convince your kids: Water Park.

Here is what you can expect at the Arizona Grand Resort and Spa.

Camelback Guest Suites

We were given a guest suite in the Camelback Building. The Arizona Grand Resort is a large resort and we found Camelback to be centrally located between the Oasis Water Park, the lobby, spa and conference center. Our balcony overlooked the water park.

Arizona Grand is an all-suite resort, with a living area separate from the bedroom for every guest. We had two queen beds and a pull-out couch in the living room. We found the room and the beds to be comfortable, but my 10-year-old daughter gave up quickly on the pull-out bed, because it was not comfortable at all. The only other thing we would have liked to have at the Arizona Grand Resort was an in-room refrigerator and microwave. There was a mini bar, into which we crammed a few provisions.

There are two pools in Camelback. According to the map, the smaller pool is adults-only, but I spotted families in both pools. We spent time swimming and sunbathing at the larger pool, and it was perfectly refreshing on the warm Phoenix week we were there.

Oasis Water Park

The Oasis Water Park is a huge selling point for families. This 7-acre water park is reserved exclusively for resort guests, and four wrist bands are included in your resort fee. Additional wrist bands can be purchased, or may be included in special package rates.

The Oasis Water Park has a wave pool, a lazy river, splash pad, water volleyball, a large hot tub and water slides. The wave pool, Zuni River and splash pad are fun for families with young children. For older kids, the water slides are big, and my kids (ages 8 and 10) loved them. My daughter was the only one of us to try the 8-story free fall slides, and she got back in line three more times. My son was all smiles coming off the long twisty slide.

The resort was at capacity during our stay, and there was a long line for the water park at opening time. We were in the middle of that line, and easily claimed four deck chairs together. The rest of the chairs filled quickly, but there were still lots of tubes and plenty of space on the water attractions. If you don't want to worry about finding deck chairs, private cabanas are available for rent.

Spa

Not every spa welcomes children, but the spa at the Arizona Grand Resort offers spa packages especially for children and teens. My daughter and I were treated to pedicures, and this was her favorite thing about the resort by far. The professionals who pampered us were both exceptionally skilled and exceptionally friendly. In my daughter's words, “They were so nice!” My pedicure looked good for weeks afterward.

The Spa also has a large fitness room and a lap pool. Fitness classes and programs for adults and teens are frequently offered.

Golf

The Arizona Grand Resort has an acclaimed golf course that has been named one of Golf Digest's “Best Places to Play.” We didn't play, but the course has beautiful views, and it's one of the top attractions at the Arizona Grand.

Dining

The Arizona Grand Resort has several on-site restaurants scattered throughout the sprawling property. We tried Rustler's Rooste, a Western kitsch restaurant overlooking the resort from a hilltop, and it exceeded our expectations. The food was good, but add panoramic views of Phoenix, tableside entertainment, an indoor slide and live Western band and Rustler's Rooste is more than just a place to eat. It's a family memory waiting to happen. Read my full review of Rustler's Rooste here.

The Arizona Grand is located within walking distance of the Arizona Mills Mall, and offers a complimentary shuttle. There are many more dining, shopping and entertainment options near the resort.

Seasonal Activities

The Arizona Grand Resort and Spa offers fun family programs year-round. We were there during spring break, and there was a family-friendly DJ and dive-in movie at the Oasis Water Park every night of our mid-week stay. My son joined the dance party while I was at the spa. I wish my husband had a camera for that!

Summer is not an obvious time to plan a Phoenix vacation, but it is a great time to enjoy all the luxury amenities and fun activities at the Arizona Grand Resort for a discounted price. The Stay and Play Package includes a $50 per day resort credit, six Oasis Water Park wristbands and free meals for kids.

The Athletic Club offers indoor and outdoor classes and activities for adults and teens, including guided hikes, Frisbee golf, games and fitness classes.

Disclosure: Our stay and spa treatments were sponsored by the Arizona Grand Resort and Spa, so that we could share our experience with other families. I received no additional compensation, and all opinions are my own.

Allison

Hi there! I am the founder of Tips for Family Trips. I am a married mom of two children, ages 17 and 20, living near Salt Lake City, Utah. We took our first child on a two-week road trip when she was four weeks old and we have been traveling as a family ever since. We love to get out of the house to see and do fun things, both far away and in our own neighborhood.