Wyndham Buttes in Phoenix -- Great Resort, but where's the bed???
Written: Nov 23 '00 (Updated Jun 04 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Unique layout, big room, very interesting hotel
Cons: Murphy bed, Noisy ice maker in my room
The Bottom Line: Unique architecture, with plenty of pools and hot tubs. Great food with a fabulous view from the restaurant. Interesting place to stay!
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| diverpam's Full Review: Wyndham Buttes Resort |
This is probably the most unusual hotel in which I've ever stayed. It is built literally inside a small mountain (butte). Surrounded by desert, it reminded me somewhat of a miniature fortress, as if had been built inside and around the buttes for protection.
The spacious lobby is entirely separate from the rest of the hotel. It is very open, with lots of glass. There's a small waterfall trickling behind the front desk.
An Adventure to Find Your Room
Upon checking in I was given my room key and somewhat vague directions. As I set off in search of my room I had to go outside the building, then down several steps. This was not a fun task with a rolling laptop case in hand. Those rollers did me no good on the steps. (The bellman had promised to deliver my suitcase, but I never leave my laptop with anyone.)
I crossed over a stone bridge and passed by at least two swimming pools, a bar and a hot tub on the way. Once inside the next building I got on the elevator to reach my floor.
What a Room!
When I reached my door, I immediately decided there had been a mistake. I had a set of large double doors for my room. I slipped the plastic card key into the lock and -- much to my surprise -- it opened.
I walked into a large entryway and a huge room! There were two sofas, a coffee table, a large console tv, stereo system, a 10 foot conference table and about 8 chairs. Hmmmm... quite a lot of room. Even an icemaker, coffeemaker, and large countertop.
Only one problem. No bed. Seems they had put me into a conference room.
Then I noticed the wall away from the windows... I suspected a Murphy bed was lurking behind the paneled wall. Sure enough, there it was.
Then I began to search for the bathroom. Back to the entry hall, then through a narrow hallway there was a close, a table, a chair, and a marble countertop with two sinks. To make it even more perfect there was a large variety of Bath and Body Works (my favorite) products!
There was a large tub/shower combination and a separate "potty room" with door.
Just outside my window was a large pool, complete with semi-circular slide. It was about 105 degrees that day and I was really wishing I had brought a bathing suit. (I was traveling on business and usually don't bother.)
Responsive to My Call
I cranked up my laptop to check email and when I tried to plug in the charger, the power went out on one side of the room. Fortunately, I didn't damage me or the computer. I called maintenance and someone was there in less than 10 minutes. Apparently I had thrown a breaker somewhere and the problem was quickly remedied.
They had squeezed me into the hotel at the last minute, so I assumed I got a room they normally used for meetings.
Ice Maker + Murphy Bed = Little Sleep
However, the Murphy bed was firm and comfortable. By 11:00pm I was sound asleep. And much to my surprise, I was sleeping really well in that Murphy bed. At least I was until about 2am when the ice maker began to go wild. It made so much noise it kept waking me up. Just as I would doze back off, it would start making noise again. I finally got up at one point and tried to turn it off. However, it still continued to gurgle and chug throughout what was left of the night.
At one point I briefly thought about try to fold myself and the bed back into the wall to muffle the sound. Luckily, I thought the better of that one.
The next morning, I compared notes with the rest of my group. I was the only one with a huge meeting room and ice maker. I let them envy the sheer enormity of my room -- I kept the icemaker part to myself.
Really Good Food
The restaurant "Top of the Buttes" was recommended as one of the best in town. We had a great table with a nice view of the city and were treated to some excellent food.
I had the filet and vegetables with a garden salad. Everything was delicious, although a bit on the pricey side. I wasn't picking up the tab, but the steak itself was about $25, plus extras.
The following morning I had room service. I left the card out the evening before with my selection. There were there promptly at the appointed time.
When the room service man brought my tray inside he asked,"Where would you like me to put this?"
I had to laugh and say, "See if you can find some room on the table!"
Needless to say, I felt like the chairman of the board as I ate my bacon and eggs at the head of the large conference table, sitting in my leather chair.
I'm sorry I didn't have more time to explore the rest of the hotel and check out one of the pools or hot tub. It looked like everyone was having a blast.
The next morning was a challenge trying to get my suitcase and my laptop case back to the lobby. Next time, I would call for a bellman.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
diverpam
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Member: Pam
Location: Collierville, TN
Reviews written: 263
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About Me:
~~~~So many oceans...so little time!~~~~
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