Travel Party of 5 | Points & Miles for Family Travel

Visit Arizona: Where to Stay in Phoenix/Scottsdale Using Points!

• Raya & Duane

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This episode is the first episode in a series all around visiting the great state of Arizona!!! First up - we explore everything you need to know when you visit Arizona, with a focus on where to stay in Scottsdale and where to stay in Phoenix and Tempe. Whether you're a first-time visitor or a seasoned traveler, we’ll help you find the perfect place to stay while sharing tips on how to make the most of your trip using points and miles.

We start by discussing why Arizona is a top travel destination, especially for those interested in experiencing the beauty of the desert landscape. From the best time of year to visit Arizona to how to handle the summer heat and cooler winter months, we break down the key points to consider before booking your trip. Whether you want to explore the outdoors or just relax by the pool, this episode will give you all the essential details for planning your visit to Arizona.

Next, we dive into where to stay in Scottsdale, covering a range of hotels and resorts that cater to different travel styles. If you’re using points, we highlight some excellent options for Hyatt, Marriott, Hilton, and IHG members. For those wondering where to stay in Scottsdale, we recommend the Hyatt House and Hyatt Place in Old Town for convenient access to shopping, dining, and nightlife. For a more luxurious experience, we suggest the Andaz Scottsdale and the Royal Palms, which offer unique, upscale settings perfect for couples or special occasions. If you're traveling with family, we also explore the soon-to-be Grand Hyatt Scottsdale, a fantastic choice for family-friendly accommodations.

For Marriott points users, we discuss where to stay in Scottsdale, such as the JW Marriott Camelback Inn Resort & Spa and the Phoenician. Both properties offer luxury and comfort with beautiful views and top-notch service, making them ideal for romantic getaways or family vacations. If you're looking for where to stay in Scottsdale using IHG or Hilton points, we mention options like the Holiday Inn Express and the Hilton Garden Inn, both centrally located in Old Town Scottsdale. For a more extravagant stay, the Fairmont Princess is a top pick, especially during the holiday season when the property transforms into a winter wonderland perfect for families.

Beyond Scottsdale, we also guide you through where to stay in Phoenix if your trip includes events, concerts, or sports games. We suggest properties like the Hyatt Regency Downtown Phoenix and the Kimpton Palomar, both of which are great choices if you're looking for where to stay in Phoenix and want to be close to Chase Field or Talking Stick Resort Arena. These hotels offer convenience for those wanting to stay near the heart of the action while enjoying top-tier amenities.

So, if you're planning to visit Arizona, tune in to this episode for the full rundown on where to stay in Scottsdale, where to stay in Phoenix, and how to make your trip unforgettable. Whether you're traveling for relaxation, adventure, or a special event, we’ve got you covered with all the tips and tricks you need to make your Arizona trip a success!

Speaker 1:

If you've been considering a trip to the Phoenix Scottsdale area, today's episode is for you. We are two Phoenix locals sharing all the details on best places to stay, using points, things to consider before you book your trip, and much more. Tune in. Hi, I'm Rhea. And I'm Dwayne. And we are your hosts of the Travel Party of Five podcast, where we share how we travel as a family of five around the world.

Speaker 2:

We will also share how we use points and miles to travel as affordably as possible and sometimes even completely free.

Speaker 1:

So if you're wanting to travel more with your family but you're not sure how, we'd love for you to listen in.

Speaker 2:

So welcome to our podcast, where we hope you learn a thing or two to get you closer to your next trip.

Speaker 1:

Hello, welcome back, welcome back, happy Monday to all of you. If it is Monday when you're listening to this, maybe it's not, but we are jumping in right to the main topic of today's episode, which is all about Phoenix. To the main topic of today's episode, which is all about Phoenix. So, if you've been planning a trip, or already have a trip booked, we're going to give you the details on best places to stay, using points, a lot of which we've stayed at ourselves so we can share personal experience and maybe some things to consider that you might not have known about the Phoenix area. So, before we jump in, I figured we could just share how long we've lived in Phoenix. So I have been here since, actually, my first day living in Phoenix was January 1st 2011. And so it has been a little over 13 years for me. And how about you? Years for me and how about you? I moved here in August of 1999, so 25 years. Oh, that's crazy. And you?

Speaker 3:

so you moved to Phoenix, from Japan, from Japan the motherland.

Speaker 1:

What was that like for you?

Speaker 3:

because you were what like 18, 19 yeah, I was 18, straight out of high school, came here to go to ASU. Um yeah, it was crazy. I my parents, left me, went back to Japan and I had all this freedom but what was it like?

Speaker 1:

like going from like Tokyo to Phoenix, because they are very different.

Speaker 3:

I mean, yes, very, very different. Um, like were you? Were you even thinking about that?

Speaker 1:

as an 18 year old. No, I mean. I, yes, very very different, like were you even thinking about that as an 18-year-old? No, no.

Speaker 3:

I mean, the only thing I remember is that when I moved here I thought holy shit, these roads are huge.

Speaker 1:

The roads are huge. Are the roads in Japan really small, really small? Huh, that's well, that's interesting. Okay, so you want to visit Phoenix, so we're going to give you a quick rundown of the Phoenix area. We'll share some of our favorite places to stay, and I think this is part one of what may be a two part series.

Speaker 1:

Maybe there will end up being more than two parts to the series, but my thought was it would be cool to do a special series on Arizona, because one we live here, but also two we have traveled within the state a good amount, and so I feel like we have a lot of knowledge, especially because this is a pretty popular place for people to visit. So TBD on how many episodes will be in this Arizona series, but for sure we've got two planned. If there's any more than two, it probably won't be anytime soon, but I do know today's episode is on Phoenix and next week we will be sharing some trips you can take from Phoenix, so both day trips or overnight trips, and if you're doing an overnight trip, we will share some options to stay on points that we personally have used. So before we get into the different areas within Phoenix that you might want to stay in. There's a few things to consider before you start planning a trip. Those things are number one.

Speaker 3:

Weather.

Speaker 1:

The weather. Tell us about the Phoenix weather, Dwayne.

Speaker 3:

And the weather. Tell us about the Phoenix weather, dwayne. I mean, you definitely don't want to come here in the summer. It's brutal. I mean, shoot. This year we've done over 100 days in a row of 100 degrees or more, which is, yeah, it's brutal.

Speaker 1:

It's not very pleasant. Yes, pleasant, yes, I was gonna say polite. It's also not polite. How rude, how rude. Yes, phoenix is incredibly hot during the summer.

Speaker 1:

It is the desert, and so I think, if you're wanting to go hiking or spend a lot of time outdoors, I would not come in the summer definitely not the other thing, though, that I think maybe people don't realize, because they think of it as a warmer climate, which it is, but it can also be kind of cold here in the winter. So I mean, it's not going to snow for the most part, but our lows at night in the winter can be in the 30s, and sometimes we have freezes, which I think is surprising to some people which, for someone that's lived here for 25 years, it's cold.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's it's cold, which I think is surprising to some people.

Speaker 1:

Which, for someone that's lived here for 25 years, it's cold. Yeah, it's cold. January, I think, is probably our coldest month. We often get a good amount of rain also in January. So if you're wanting to spend time poolside, I would not plan on coming in December or January, unless you're cool with swimming when it's like I don't know 60, 70 degrees, maybe if you're Canadian, or swimming when it's like I don't know 60 70 degrees, maybe if you're Canadian, or something.

Speaker 3:

that's fine for you, but that's not fine for me, or if you stay at a resort, I'm, the pool is.

Speaker 1:

I mean, they say pools are heated, but like I don't know, it's when you get out of the pool yeah, so best time of year for more mild weather is going to be October through April or May, again factoring in what we just said about December, january being fairly cold. If you do want to come in the summer, I will say the one positive thing is that that's when you can find the best prices on hotels, because summer is our off season, which I know can seem backwards, but no one wants to come here in the summer, so you can really get some hotels for cheap. So if you are planning to come in the summer, I would check the cash price of the hotel before you use points, because it might actually make more sense to pay cash.

Speaker 3:

But if you do decide to come in the summer, there are some things you can do with or without kids. First, I mean, you would have to stay in a nice hotel with a nice pool, because being by the pool or poolside during the summer is actually pretty great. The heat isn't too bad when you're sitting by a pool. Beyond that, I would do indoor activities, um. So think of, like children, museums, uh, chandler, scottsdale malls pretty big if shopping is your forte the Chandler and Scottsdale malls are both like pretty fun, I would say.

Speaker 1:

And Chandler specifically has some stuff for kids, like they have a Crayola exhibit. You can pay to go in and that's fun and air-conditioned. Um, they have Build-A-Bear. Uh, they, they have a Crayola exhibit. You can pay to go in and that's fun and air-conditioned. They have Build-A-Bear. They also have a little playground. That's free. That's indoors.

Speaker 3:

It's pretty small, but our kids still really like it, yeah, but I mean I think our Otis is too old to go in it, but he still goes in it.

Speaker 1:

I mean I think it's like seven and younger maybe I don't know, but younger.

Speaker 3:

there's always older kids in there too, and it I mean the kids still think it's like seven and younger. Maybe, I don't know Maybe 10 and younger.

Speaker 1:

There's always older kids in there too, and I mean the kids still think it's super fun.

Speaker 3:

So yeah, Theater restaurants. Yeah.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, there is. So in Scottsdale there's something called the Odyssey Aquarium. We have actually never been to this because we don't like to support um, I don't know what. What do you even call it like because they had dolphins? And I don't think they have dolphins anymore because they died, or do they still have dolphins?

Speaker 3:

I have no idea.

Speaker 1:

I don't know. We don't support it. We don't support, we don't visit sea world. We don't do any of that stuff. Um, our kids have been there on field trips, like with summer camp or school, but we personally have never been. So the other thing if you're coming in the summer is you want to wear layers because it's incredibly hot outside but air conditioning inside is actually pretty cold. To me, dwayne doesn't agree.

Speaker 3:

I will definitely not wear layers.

Speaker 1:

I'm always hot? If you're not always hot, you want to bring a sweater? Okay, the other thing that's different about the desert in the summer is that it does not really cool down to a comfortable temperature at night, so there isn't a lot of relief, and so even at night it can still be like 100 degrees at 10 pm which is no fun yeah, so factor that that into.

Speaker 1:

If you're planning like outdoor nighttime activities, you can also leave the phoenix area and drive up to higher elevations where the weather is better in the summer, and again, next week's episode will be on a few trips like that that you can do yeah, but if you come during the summer, just please do not plan on hiking.

Speaker 3:

There are so many people that, yes, think they can hike during the summer and then are airlifted from the mountain, or yes people die every year, and it's usually tourists who have gone hiking and are just not prepared for the heat.

Speaker 1:

So please do not do it, like people might say on online threads oh, you'll be fine if you get up early and you get out at like 5 am and you bring a lot of water, and maybe that's true, but also maybe it's not.

Speaker 3:

I mean, it is true, if you get up at 5 am and you're done by, you know 7 am.

Speaker 1:

But keep in mind that it's still like probably in the 90s, between 5 and 7 am, so make sure someone knows where you're going if you're going to do it. But we do not hike here in the summer and we live here, so yeah, it's just stupid, don't do it Okay.

Speaker 1:

Other two things to consider are going to be where to stay and what to do while you're here, and those things kind of go hand in hand. Because Phoenix is huge, it's super spread out. So if you're coming for a specific reason, I would recommend staying near wherever you need to be. For that reason, you're very likely going to need a car, so we do not have good public transportation at all. The only exception I might say here is if you're staying in Tempe or Old Town, scottsdale, and you have no plans to really go anywhere else, then I think you can easily get by with, like Ubers or Lyfts or, you know, maybe an airport shuttle if the hotel has one, and then that would be fine. Scottsdale and Tempe are, if the hotel has one, and then that would be fine. Scottsdale and Tempe are well, scottsdale is pretty walkable, tempe it depends where you stay. And to give you an idea of how big Phoenix is, how, how big is Phoenix?

Speaker 3:

I mean it's pretty big. So from one, from the West end of Phoenix, the East end of Phoenix you're looking at, probably a 45 minute drive. But, if you go, you know, to like the East Valley, which is like Mesa Mesa, gilbert Chand, probably an hour drive, and traffic here, and that doesn't include traffic.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, traffic here can be pretty hectic and doing means an hour drive like on a highway, yes, like. So it's pretty far. So I think here's what might be helpful. So I'm going to list off, kind of like, the main areas of Phoenix that someone might want to stay in if they're coming here to visit, and then we'll talk about a few of the more popular ones. But I've really come up with like seven kind of main areas. Let me know if you think I'm missing anything. So number one we have downtown Phoenix. That is where Chase Field is, if you're here for, like a baseball game, talking Stick Resort Arena, which is where the Suns play.

Speaker 3:

And the Mercury.

Speaker 1:

Oh, and the Mercury. Okay, thank you. Thank you, um. Concerts, entertainment, phoenix science center, like all of those, are in downtown phoenix, so if that's your reason for coming, that's when it would make sense to stay there. I will say, though, like there are parts of downtown phoenix that are not super safe, so you just want to be careful.

Speaker 3:

I mean, if you're in the heart of downtown, it's safe.

Speaker 1:

It's fine. Yeah, it's fine, but, like, let me give some background. So I moved to Phoenix from Orlando, florida. Phoenix is way bigger than Orlando and in Orlando one of the fun things to do on the weekend is go out downtown.

Speaker 1:

And you've been downtown Orlando with me once and it's pretty fun, right, they close down the streets, it's a great time. So when I moved to Phoenix, I went out in downtown Phoenix and I quickly learned, oh, this is not, this is not where you go out for fun, like we literally had to call the police. And that was like my first month living in Phoenix and we had to call the police. And that was like my first month living in phoenix and we had to call the police because there was a guy choking a girl on the sidewalk and I was just like what is happening?

Speaker 3:

I mean yes, there are again, this was 2011. Yes, it's definitely changed the downtown scene is up and coming. Yes, it is getting way better, even for food and nightlife. But okay.

Speaker 1:

So the second area would be like Scottsdale, so shopping, nightlife, a little bit ritzy, is kind of the Scottsdale vibe. Tempe is the third one. That's where ASU is located. It's a big college town. Mill Avenue is the main hub on the weekends there for like college partying. I would say the fourth area would be Glendale. Glendale is kind of far from the downtown Phoenix area. Really. The only thing that's there is the football stadium, so that's where the Cardinals play.

Speaker 3:

Arizona Cardinals Hockey team used to play there, but now the hockey team has moved to Utah.

Speaker 1:

Oh, I didn't know that. So I think if you're coming for a football game and that's the only thing you're really going to do here you should stay near the stadium. Paradise Valley is another kind of popular area that's really more for like golfing and hiking, so those are why you're coming. I would look in Paradise Valley and then the last area is going to be Chandler, slash, gilbert, which is on the east side of Phoenix. Those are like more family oriented suburbs. They both have fun downtown areas that I would say have a more mature vibe than like a Mill Avenue.

Speaker 1:

Definitely fun, but definitely small, oh yeah, small, Like when I say downtown, like don't think city, Think like a main street. Yes, yes, yeah. So I think that of those areas that I just listed tell me if you disagree but the three most popular and common ones for people to stay are going to be downtown Phoenix, Scottsdale and maybe a little bit of Tempe.

Speaker 1:

Yes, I would think Scottsdale would be number one, it for sure is yeah, so those are also the most central areas, and so I also think, like if you're going to a football game or you're going, you know, somewhere in Chandler Gilbert, like those are also really good places to stay because they're very central and they're like a good jumping off point if you have to visit. Yeah, you know another.

Speaker 3:

I mean, if you decide to go to a football game and stay in Scottsdale, you're gonna pay a good chunk of money for like a uber if you don't have a car. Yeah, I mean, if you don't have a car, yeah, because it's a good 30 40 minute drive.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, um, we're going to give you a few hotels in each of those areas. I do want to call out, though, that there are a ton of hotels bookable by points in the Phoenix area, no matter who. You have points with IHG, hilton, hyatt, marriott, etc. You're going to be able to find something. We're only going to touch on a few in each of the those three locations that we talked about. Most of these are properties that we have either stayed at or at least been to in one for one reason or another. So downtown phoenix, where, personally, I would stay is the hyatt regency downtown phoenix, so this is obviously bookable with Hyatt points. It's a category three hotel, so points will range anywhere from nine to 15,000 points per night. If you have any Hyatt category one through four free night certificates, you can use those here.

Speaker 3:

And I've been to this hotel several times for various events and it's fine.

Speaker 1:

It's totally fine if you're here for entertainment or a game basketball or baseball it's definitely. It's walkable to those stadiums and, yeah, yep, um. If you have Marriott points, I would either do the Westin Phoenix or the Renaissance Phoenix downtown. If you have IHG, there's really only one option I would consider in downtown Phoenix, and that's the Kempton Hotel Palomar. And then here is one that I think deserves an honorable mention and it's a Hilton.

Speaker 1:

But this is not downtown, but it's a property that has a ton of history, and so it is called the Arizona Biltmore and it is a Waldorf Astoria resort. I've been here for work conferences and the history of the property is actually really interesting. In fact, maybe we should do a whole episode on this. But basically, the hotel opened in 1929. It is said that the tequila sunrise was invented here at the bar in the 1930s.

Speaker 1:

Wow, us presidents have stayed here. Frank Sinatra, marilyn Monroe, dignitaries, like a lot of famous people, have stayed here, and they even offer in the hotel 90 minute walking tours of the resort with a historian, which I think would be actually pretty interesting, and the design of it was influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, and you can book it on points. Wow, 90 minute tour at a hotel. It's crazy. Yeah, it has a ton of history. You can even go onto their website and get like a brief rundown if you want. So again, that one is not in downtown Phoenix, but like I've even heard people say that that is like a bucket list property for them, and the fact that you can book it with Hilton points is pretty cool. Ok, let's move on to Scottsdale.

Speaker 3:

So if you choose Scottsdale, scottsdale is fairly big, but if you're visiting, you likely want to stay in, like the old town Scottsdale area, like the old town Scottsdale area. This is where there's a lot of little shops, clubs, restaurants, fashion Square Mall, which we touched upon earlier, which has a ton of really high-end shops, louis Vuitton.

Speaker 1:

Like shops that make you give them your name before you can enter.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I mean, we went into one shop one time and they looked at us like what are?

Speaker 1:

you doing? Yeah, I mean, I'm pretty sure I was wearing like leggings and sneakers and we just turned right around and left. Now, not all shops are like that, but they have like a high-end wing, yeah, so so the farther north you want scottsdale, the more ritzy it is more snobby I think, but whatever scottsdale yeah, it's beautiful.

Speaker 3:

I mean it's beautiful it's a lot of people a lot of uh, bridal parties come here for bachelorette parties. So yeah, I mean it's, it's cool if that's, that's your thing, but if you like clubs and partying, scottsdale's the place to be.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, a couple of hotel options, so I'm going to break it down again by, like, a hotel brand. So, starting with Hyatt, the only Hyatt that's walkable to Old Town Scottsdale is the Hyatt House and the Hyatt Place Old Town. They're like literally the same property basically, but there's Hyatt House and Hyatt Place old town. They're like literally the same property basically, but there's Hyatt House and Hyatt Place. For whatever reason, they're both category three hotels. They're going to be fairly basic, as most Hyatt Houses and Hyatt Places are, but the other options that are a bit more luxurious, they're a bit outside of the old town part of Scottsdale but still super doable if you have a car or you can take an uber or a lyft.

Speaker 1:

So those are going to be the Ondas Scottsdale which is a really nice property the Royal Palms another nice property which we have stayed at, and the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale, which is currently being renovated renovated and will be rebranded to be a Grand Hyatt Grand Hyatt yes, this is definitely family friendly hotel the last one.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, so the first two the Ondas and the Royal Palms I would not stay at with kids probably. They're definitely more geared for like a couple's getaway or a girl's weekend. But the last one, the Hyatt Regency, scottsdale, which is going to become a grand Hyatt that is the one I would stay at with kids if I were coming here. It's super family friendly. They have a lot of activities that you can do with kids. We did a podcast episode of I don't know a month or two ago, because we stay there every summer for a little staycation.

Speaker 3:

Yes, kids love it.

Speaker 1:

All three of the Hyatt hotels we mentioned are category six, so cannot use any of your free night certificates but you know, obviously can still book any of them with points. The Royal Palms, I do think like it also has a lot of history, so similar to that hilton that we talked about, and it's super unique, like a lot of the rooms are kind of like little casitas and you stroll down these little walkways to get to your room.

Speaker 3:

It's very charming and presidents have stayed there as well yeah, it's tucked in right at the base of Camelback Mountain um very, very nice property.

Speaker 1:

Yep, yep, super good service. Yeah, um. Moving over on to Marriott in the Scottsdale area, there is a Scottsdale Marriott Old Town and then the W Scottsdale. So I've actually done yoga and been to a couple of other events on the rooftop at the W. It's night like they have a rooftop pool. It's nice. It's a great little, um, it's a great little hotel. And then they also have the JW Marriott Camelback Inn Resort and Spa, which is a mouthful yes which I've never been, but I've heard it's a pretty nice property.

Speaker 1:

It's a very nice property and same with the Phoenician, so you can book both of those using Marriott points as well. Again, those are a bit outside of Old Town but again still doable with a ride share or a car. And then the IHG. I mean this is probably not where I would stay, but they have a Holiday Inn Express and Suites in Old Town and there's also a Hilton Garden Inn in Old Town. If you have Hilton points, so you can make any of those work. But if you're wanting like luxury, you want either the Royal Palms, the Ondas, the JW Marriott, those sorts of hotels. The last hotel I want to talk about for Scottsdale is also super good for families but it's kind of hard to book. On points you can do it, but it's probably not going to be the best value. That hotel is the Fairmont Princess in Scottsdale. Especially over Christmas they have like an incredible Christmas setup for kids and families. They basically turn the hotel, like the whole hotel, into a magical winter wonderland. There's ice skating and lights and cocoa and you can use points to book this one of two ways. But full transparency. I don't think I would do either one of these for points. The first option is Fairmont.

Speaker 1:

Hotels are bookable using Accor points. Accor is A-C-C-O-R. These are kind of hard to earn within the United States but they do have transfer partners of Capital One and City Thank you Points. So if you have Capital One miles or City Thank you Points, you can transfer those to Accor. However, they transfer at a two to one ratio, so meaning 1000 Capital One points would only get you 500 Accor points, so it's not good. And then to book you need at least 2000 Accor points, which again is 4000 Capital One or City points transferred, and every 2000 points only gets you $45 off of your hotel reservation. So I did the math and for a hotel that costs $450 a night you would need 20,000 Accor points, which would actually equal 40,000 Capital One points right Once before you transfer them. That is not a great deal in my opinion. The other way you can book is through the Chase Travel Portal and I looked this up earlier today to see how many points this would be and it was around 43,000 points for one night in mid-December.

Speaker 1:

So the cash rate was around 650 and I could have used 43,000 chase points to book it yeah that's not a good redemption not at all so I think if, like, if that's a bucket list property for you, like I guess, go crazy. Um, but no, not something I would do, but again, totally up to you. You know, you do you all right.

Speaker 3:

Next up would be tempe. Um, like she said earlier, it's college town, so when college is in session it's crazy packed with people, but summer months it's pretty slow, pretty dead. So where would you stay in Tempe?

Speaker 1:

So I think, like I actually only have one hotel on my Tempe list, because number one, I think this is the best place to stay in Tempe. Because number one, I think this is the best place to stay in Tempe. And number two, I don't think a lot of people know about it and it's a Hyatt, yeah.

Speaker 3:

So, and let me just add, it's called Tempe, not Tempe. A lot of people, oh yeah, the city yeah.

Speaker 1:

Tempe, it's Tempe, okay. So the Tempe Mission Palms is a Hyatt hotel. It is in Tempe, arizona. This is, in my opinion, the best place to stay, not only for location it has a great location but also the service there is fantastic. So this is a category three hotel. It is under the destination brand, under the Hyatt thing. So if you're doing your Hyatt bingo, this would check off your destination brand and here's okay, oh sorry, bookable with between nine and 15,000 points a night because it is a category three. You could also use a free night certificate here if you have it. And so here's why I think this is the best hotel to book with points if you need to be in Tempe.

Speaker 1:

Number one they have a free airport shuttle for guests which is great yes, and it and the hotel itself is like 10 minutes from the airport.

Speaker 3:

It is not far at all and I just want to add, they have also complimentary valet, like it's free to valet your car there. So if you do decide to rent a car, it's free valet. I mean obviously you tip them.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I didn't even realize that that's great. Um, okay, number two the location cannot be beat. You are directly off of Mill Avenue, so you're literally minutes walking from shops, restaurants, and you can walk to asu from there too. And then number three we've stayed here more than one time and the staff is super kind, super welcoming. One time we stayed here when our air conditioning went out and so we had to, like unexpectedly, go and stay there in the summer. And then, number four the hotel backs up to what's called a mountain, which is a short but fun little hike.

Speaker 1:

Again, just don't do it in the summer maybe you could maybe even do that one in the summer yeah, it's small.

Speaker 1:

It's a very small mountain, yeah, but from the top you can see phoenix, scottsdale, tempe, you can yeah, and the entrance to the mountain is like literally in the parking lot of the hotel, so like the self parking lot, so it's just. There is no better location, in my opinion, than that hotel. There are obviously a lot of other hotels you can book. There's a graduate in Tempe which is a Hilton property bookable with points, and there's a ton of others. It's a huge college town, so like parents are always coming in to go.

Speaker 3:

And I want to just add that the it's a huge college town, so, like parents are always coming in to go. And I want to just add that the hotel, the Mission Palms, is right next to the light rail, so if you wanted to go to a game downtown or some kind of event downtown, you could stay there and hop on the light rail, which is that's true.

Speaker 1:

The light rail is like, very easy to use the one piece of public transportation we have here. That doesn't suck so, but it only is. Is that the the end point, or does it go one more stop past? The end point no the end points in like gilbert the light rail goes all the way to gilbert, yeah oh, I didn't know that.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's like gilbert and main or something, maybe even farther now oh, that's great.

Speaker 1:

Keep expanding it I had no idea. Look at that. I even learned something on this podcast. Wow, love that. Um, so, yes, the light rail is the one piece of public transport here that doesn't doesn't totally stink. Yeah, that's a good tip. Um, okay, anything else?

Speaker 3:

I mean again. You just gotta reiterate that summertime in phoenix is is it's very hot, hot. Yes, you know, people say it's a dry heat, but when it's 118 degrees out, it's 118 degrees out.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, it doesn't matter if it's dry. Yeah, your hair might look good because there's not a lot of humidity.

Speaker 3:

But beyond that, my hair always looks good.

Speaker 1:

Beyond that it's still very hot, so I hope this was super helpful. If you are planning a trip to Phoenix or Scottsdale, please find us on Instagram, message us. We are happy to give you like some additional tips and things to do, especially if you're looking for things to do with kids. We would love to chat about that and next week we will be sharing a few of our favorite both day trips from Phoenix and also like weekend getaways, so think like Sedona, grand Canyon, antelope Canyon, lake Powell, all those sorts of things. So let us know if you have any questions and we will catch you next week yes, thanks for tuning in.

Speaker 3:

Have a good one, bye.