As the 14th largest metropolitan area in the US, Phoenix covers quite a bit of ground. With diverse suburbs such as Scottsdale, Mesa, Chandler, and Tempe, there’s something for everyone. The city of Tempe, as home to Arizona State University, is especially vibrant, and the Mill District in Tempe is home to over 100 shops and restaurants. In the center of it all is Downtown Tempe’s only full-service hotel – the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel, part of Destination Hotels and Resorts. I recently spent three nights at the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel with my family, and we really enjoyed our stay.
Although the resort offers complimentary shuttle service from the airport (you must call the hotel once you have your luggage to be picked up), we opted to rent a car and drive ourselves. After a short 10-minute ride from the airport, we were greeted by friendly bellmen. After checking in, we were given our room early and were offered luggage assistance (which we declined). It was a quick walk across the beautiful outdoor courtyard to our room from the lobby.
Our room – a two-double bed deluxe room – was a standard-sized room and had plenty of space for our family. It was adjacent to the pool area, but was surprisingly quiet. The hotel offers a total of 303 rooms and suites in various configurations, including king bed rooms, junior suites, and one-bedroom suites. A $14.95 nightly hospitality fee includes amenities such as high-speed wireless internet and a business center. The hotel seems to cater to business customers as well as families – we saw conference attendees walking around the courtyard throughout our stay.
In addition to a great location, the Tempe Mission Palms offers some great amenities including a rooftop pool and two jacuzzis. The pool area was very active while we were there, although it never felt overly crowded. There’s also a pool-side bar and grill that’s open seasonally. The hotel also offers a small fitness center, and combination tennis court/basketball court (equipment is available to borrow from the front desk).
Although we did have dinners outside of the hotel, we did have one breakfast and one lunch at the on-site Mission Grill. It features an a la carte menu along with a buffet. Seating is available indoors and outdoors. There’s also a lobby bar, called Harry’s Place Lounge, that’s more appropriate for those without kids. It seemed to be especially busy for happy hour.
Rates at the Tempe Mission Palms range from $100 per night in the summer to $200+ per night in the busy season for a family of four. To learn more, visit the Tempe Mission Palms’ website. You can also compare rates with Priceline or Hotels.com.
My stay at the Tempe Mission Palms was complimentary as part of a media trip. All opinions are my own.
