Barb

Hello everyone, my husband and I are interested in visiting the Arizona area in early December for our anniversary (we originally planned on vacationing in the Caribbean..however, due to the current situations in the US...we agreed that we should stay closer to home (and support the tourism industry in our homeland!)

We have our eye on playing lots of golf, spending time at a wonderful spa, and visiting the Grand Canyon. Will you please recommend an area to stay in...that has all the amenties we're searching for...(someone, mentioned Flagstaff...great resorts..driving distance to the Canyon...etc?)

Our options are wide open!

steph

Barb - I don't know how long your vacation will be, but I'm inclined to suggest Phoenix/Scottsdale for golf and spas. A day or two in Sedona is also good - it's truly a beautiful area. Of course, don't miss at least a day visit to the Grand Canyon. Check out www.arizona.com for starters. If you belong to AAA, try to get one of their guide books. And happy anniversary.

Dale

I think I have the answer for you. Check out the Enchantment Resort in Sedona. Website is www.enchantmentresort.com. It is a beautiful resort with spa. It is about 2 hours from Grand Canyon (whereas Phx/Scottsdale is more like 4 hours away). Hope this helped!

dj

If you are interested in golf and a resort in December, you better stay in Scottsdale. The weather should be excellent there and great golf and pool weather. Sedona (about 5,000 ft) and Flagstaff (above 7,000 ft)are in the northern part of the state, much higher elevations and will be cold and likely snow. Take one of the commercial trips from Scottsdale up to Sedona and Grand Canyon. It is about a 4 1/2 hour trip to GC and driving can be rough in winter if the weather is bad up North. That is the great thing about Arizona. You can be sitting around the pool in the morning and in 2 hours be skiing at Flagstaff.

rqf

I just went through page after page of hotels/motels in Flagstaff and not one seems to have a golf course as part of the facility. I thing the person who told you Flagstaff has "great resorts" was overstating the kinds of facilities available in Flagstaff. It is about 80 miles from Gr. Canyon. Williams is about 60 miles from Gr. Canyon and I don't think you will find what you are looking for in that town. Sedona, about 110 miles south of the Canyon, does have some places that meet your requirements. Plenty of what you are looking for can be found in Phoenix/Scottsdale - about 240 miles to the Gr. CAnyon.

Kameha

I'm kinda partial to Tucson, myself. It is truly gorgeous here in December and so much less crowded and less expensive than snooty Scottsdale. Loew's Ventana is beautiful with a great golf course. Miraval has the spa ranked number one by Conde Travel. Flagstaff may be nice for skiing at that time of the year, but depending on where you're coming from you may not want snow. Enjoy wherever you go!

Al

Because Fodor's in all its majestic wisdom chose to wipe my post to you about Sedona, you may contact me directly.

Barb2

Ditto Kameha's post. Having spent the last 12 years going to AZ in spring, I avoid Phoenix. Tucson is much prettier and there are dozens of great places to visit around Tucson.

ingrid

If you're even mildly interested in astronomy, stay for a day or two at the Skywatcher's Inn, about an hour SE from Tucson. It's a very nice B&B and they organize your own private astronomy class. We stayed ther ein April with our kids and relly loved it. It's also not too far from Karchner's Caverns and Tombstone.

Karen

In Phoenix I would stay at Arizona Biltmore(two golf courses) or Camelback Inn(one course), Hyatt Gainey Ranch(one or two courses)......all in good locations for getting around town and also are reported to have terrific spas.

Don

Do you have any idea how bloody cold you'll be at the GC in December?
Even Phoenix is not balmy in December much of the time. You can certainly golf, but it's not exactly pool weather.
And if you're splurging, the best resorts in AZ are the Phoenician and Boulders (Phoenix and Carefree), Four Seasons Scottsdale (but desert-y and not much charm), then the Biltmore/Hyatt Gainey Ranch/Princess.
Tucson has Ventana Canyon and the Westin La Paloma which are just about on par with the Biltmore.
Enchantment's rooms aren't spectacular (They're certainly OK, but only the newer suites are worth crowing about) but the setting is easily worth the trip. Truly spectacular.