Hi all,

I know this is pretty far in the future, but my fiance and I are planning a trip to this resort in September. We need some advice on which part of September we should book...early, mid or late Sept. We want temps in the mid to high 80's with as little chance for monsoon rains as possible.

Also, is anyone familiar with this resort? Fiance loves to golf and is the reason that we are going to this place. Are the grounds/rooms worth the price? Pool area nice? The website has very few photos.

And finally, we were wondering if there are any restaurants nearby (any type of food, but I am a big steak lover and fiance loves seafood) that would be considered a "not-to-miss".

Thanks so much for any/all info!

It's been a while since I was in Scottsdale but when there I ate at a restaurant called something like The Stockyards which was in the same building as the cattle trading companies that sold meat wholesale. We came in a back door and passed blackborads with that days trading prices.

The restaurant itself was medium expensive, medium fancy, dark, and the steaks were very, very good. it's the kind of place worth dressing up for.

Princess Hotels are now part of Fairmont, in turn part of Canadian Pacific, and many are under going upgrading, so you should find that it is a very nice place to stay.

I can't offer any specifics on this one, though. I'm always surprised at just how lacking in information so many hotel web sites are.

BAK

I looked, via Google, and found Stockyard's Restaurant & 1889 Bar
5001 E Washington St
Phoenix , AZ 85034
Phone: (602) 273-7378
Cuisine: American

There's some commentary elsewhere about a bartender who worked there when there were feed pens beside it. they are gone now.

I did not find this under "steakhouses" in my search, and have no idea if it is as good now as when I was there.


BAK

The AVERAGE high temperature in Scottsdale in September is 99 F.
About half the days see temps in the 100's.
The average high doesn't reach the mid-80's until mid October.
Hotel high season rates start in October and go through May for this reason.

All that said, I don't find late September to be a bad time of year in PHX, but I like the heat. It is, after all, a dry heat

As for the Princess, the pros are: it's a nice hotel overall with good service, it's away form most of the hubbub (getting less so all the time though), and is situated on a large expanse of land which gives it a more insulated, quiet ambience.
Cons: the hotel is very spread out, and feels a little like an apartment complex, pool is OK, but can be a long way from your room (so request to be nearby if this is important), rooms are nice but not opulent. Used to be that the Princess was a long way from everything retail related, but this is changing rapidly.
If you got a good deal, the Princess is a nice relaxing place to get away to.

I'd offer alternative suggestions if there were better deals I knew of, but seems like nothing's a 'good deal' in PHX any more as far as the nicer resorts go.

The golf course there is very well regarded (I'm not a golfer, so no biases on my part).

The Princess is one of our premier resorts and very well thought of. It is located just north of a very busy area just full of shops, stores and all sorts of restaurants. The two golf courses, TPC and The Desert Course are the ones used for the Phoenix Open...golf prices will be alot lower at that time of year. It will definitely still be very hot, but Princess is located north so at the end of September it will cool off somewhat at night. If you are not into heat, you better plan on the end of September...it will still be shorts weather. Stockyards, while very good, is miles from The Princess.

There are a number of excellent steak restaurants along N. Scottsdale Rd,; they are expensive, however. Good seafood is harder to find. I like the bar at The Fish Market. There are 2 other eating places at this establishment--casual dining and more formal. The menu is different in the formal restaurant. I love seafood, and for some reason it doesn't appeal to me at all. The casual restaurant strikes me as cafeteria-ish; I haven't eaten there. The menu in the bar is great, and I've never been troubled by smoke or anything else you might associate with a bar. As for golf, there are so many courses, you couldn't go wrong wherever you stayed. The Hyatt at Gainey Ranch is a beautiful facility with a golf course. The Phoenician and The Arizona Biltmore also have great courses. Check out The Boulders in Carefree as well. All these resorts have great summer rates which may continue into September. Like others have said, the later in September, the better chance of tolerable weather. By the way, someone today was just raving about a great seafood dinner they had at The Princess.

Book Late Sept. Mopnsoon is pretty musch always gone by mid Sept., but hot days remain thru the month.

For steak, go to Pinnacle Peak Patio which is just a few miles north of the Princess.

The Princess is a great place to stay. They have spa services, very pretty pool with poolside services... Their high-end restaurant (the only one that serves good steak dinners), requires formal dress, so I suggest you eat elsewhere. My never miss restaurant when visiting Scottsdale is Michael's at the Citadel. He is an award winning chef, the restaurant is beautiful and the bar is among the most romantic and unique in PHX. Also has a great wine list. Flemings Steakhouse is superb, it is an old style restaurant,nice atmosphere, steaks, potatoes, good portions, superior quality. Try the wedge salad. It has over 100 wines offered by the glass. In old Scottsdale, we ate at Medizona, a mediterranean/southwest fusion restaurant. It is getting good ratings from critics. Finally, a bit trendy but still good food can be had at Roy's on Scottsdale Blvd. I believe there are some seafood dishes on the menu. We had lobster potstickers and a BLT pizza that were excellent.

Thank you so much for all the great advice!! I'm really looking forward to my first trip to the area!