We always like to get away for our anniversary but sometimes it can be difficult to get away for an extended period of time. That was the case this year, so we decided to stay close to home. Living in Phoenix, there are several great resort options to choose from in the Scottsdale area. After researching several of them, we decided to stay at The Hermosa Inn in Paradise Valley.
We chose this hotel because it was different from all of the rest. Being a smaller boutique hotel, we were hoping the Hermosa Inn would provide a unique experience. Let me tell you, it definitely delivered! Here’s what our stay was like. And just for the record, this was not a sponsored stay.
Booking
The Hermosa Inn a small, independent hotel. It’s not part of any of the major chains’ loyalty programs, so you can’t book a stay here using points. We chose to book our one-night stay using Hotels.com so we could still earn credit towards a free night. Hotels.com rewards gives you a free night after you book 10 nights directly with them.
Regardless of how you book the room, be sure to maximize the points you earn by using a credit card that gives you bonus points for travel purchases. One of my favorites is the Chase Sapphire Preferred® card. You can read my full review of the card here.
Hotel Location
The Hermosa Inn is located in the quiet, upscale neighborhood of Paradise Valley, Arizona. If you’re looking for a quiet and relaxing atmosphere, this is the place to be. The hotel is about a 15 minute drive north of Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, so it’s easy to get to after a long flight.
While the hotel is close to several great restaurants and shopping, none of them are within walking distance. If you don’t have a car with you, you’ll definitely need to take an Uber or Lyft to get to where you’re going. The Biltmore Fashion District is about 2 miles to the west and Old Town Scottsdale is 7 miles to the east. Either way, there’s plenty of things to do close by if you decide to leave the hotel.
Check-In
The lobby of the Hermosa Inn was cozy and decorated to give the look and feel of a Southwestern ranch with a large fireplace in the middle of the room. We were greeted warmly by the front-desk agent and the check-in process was fast and easy.
Once we were checked in, the valet walked us to our room. I loved that we were given vintage room keys instead of the plastic key cards you normally see.
The Rooms
The Hermosa Inn was once a guest ranch so the hotel is made up of 43 hacienda-style guestrooms. Outside of each room you had your own private patio that you could enjoy. Because we stayed there in the middle of summer, we didn’t get a chance to enjoy the patio.
We booked a deluxe casita that was about twice the size of a typical hotel room. The room had wood floors, a cozy fireplace in the corner and filled with Southwestern decor. The room had a sitting area with comfortable leather chairs and a canopy bed which you don’t see very often.
A flat screen TV was mounted on the wall and could swivel so you could watch it while in the sitting area or from the bed. A nice touch was that each TV gave you the ability to cast from your own device.
The bathroom was larger than most hotels and had beautiful stone counter tops.
Opposite the sinks, there was a beautiful clawfoot bathtub to relax it.
Or you had the option to enjoy the large walk in shower.
Dining
The Hermosa Inn has one highly-rated restaurant on property called LON’s. You can enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner here daily. LON’s is a nice upscale restaurant and the prices on the menu reflect that. Breakfast will cost you about $20+ per person, while dinner will average about $70+ per person. You can enjoy your meal inside in the dining room, or on the patio outside, which is beautiful when the weather is nice.
Amenities
The grounds of the hotel were meticulously kept and the landscaping was gorgeous. The casitas were separated into two wings and each was connected by beautiful open-air walkways.
Next to the lobby there was a small fitness center that had a limited number of free weights, as well as three exercise machines. While it’s not the best fitness center, it does the job if you’re looking to get a little exercise in while you’re on vacation.
The pool was located in the center of the hotel complex so it was easy to get to no matter which room you were staying in. With this being a boutique hotel, I didn’t have high hopes for a fancy pool. While the pool itself wasn’t anything special, there were plenty of padded lounge chairs around the pool and each one was covered by an umbrella.
This was essential during our summer visit when the temperature was well into the triple digits. You could also rent cabanas but with each chair having its own umbrella, I didn’t think this was necessary. One nice amenity which really came in handy, was the small refrigerator in the pool area that was stocked with free bottles of water.
Final Thoughts
This hotel in Flagstaff really delivered on the unique experience I was hoping for. The room far exceeded my expectations and the hotel itself was a perfect getaway without the kids. While you won’t find the size and quantity of the amenities of a large hotel, the amenities they do have are of an excellent quality. If you come in with realistic expectations of what to expect from a boutique hotel, you won’t be disappointed. I would absolutely love to come back and stay here again the next time we’re in need of staycation.
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