Arizona

Phoenix
A 280-room Courtyard by Marriott will be built in downtown Phoenix, with construction slated to begin next month. At press time, meeting and event space details were  not available.

The new luxury boutique Hotel Palomar is set to open in June in the downtown Phoenix area as part of the new CityScape mixed-use development. Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants will operate the 250-room hotel in a 34-story tower at One South Central that also will include 200 luxury residential condominium units. At press time, meeting and event space details were  not available.

Meeting Hotels
Properties include the 1,000-room She­ra­ton Phoenix Downtown Hotel, 950-room JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa, 740-room Arizona Biltmore, 740-room Arizona Grand Resort, 712-room Hyatt Regency Phoenix, 643-room The Phoenician, 563-room Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak Resort, 584-room Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort and 242-room Westin Phoenix Downtown.

Convention Center
Phoe­nix Convention Center; exhibit space, approximately 872,000 square feet; number of meeting rooms, 109; (602) 262-6225

Airport Transit
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Air­port, three miles east of downtown Phoenix. Transfer cost by taxi, $15-$20; by shuttle, $12

Taxes
Room tax, 5%; sales tax, 8.27%; total tax on hotel rooms, 13.27%

Group Venue
Attendees can take in the gorgeous flora of the region at the Desert Botanical Garden. The 50-acre facility, which features cacti in all shapes and forms, can host events for up to 300 in its Dorrance Hall. The facility has more than a dozen other spaces for more intimate gatherings. (480) 481-8104

Contact
Greater Phoe­nix Convention & Visitors Bureau, (602) 254-6500 or (877) 225-5749

Scottsdale
The 270-suite Scottsdale Marriott at McDowell Mountains has completed a $2 million renovation of its 15,000 square feet of meeting space; the project cost $2 million. In addition, the property's executive boardrooms were renovated and refitted with 60-inch LCD flat-screen televisions, and the fitness center was updated and expanded.

The 649-room Fairmont Scottsdale Princess has broken ground on a new conference center that will add 52,331 square feet of meeting space to the property, for a total of 150,000 square feet. The $20 million center will open in October.

The 195-room former Hotel Theodore, has reopened as The Seguaro. The downtown property, near to the Arts District and the Civic Center Mall, is now under the management of Joie de Vivre Hotels and offers a total of eight meeting rooms, along with a Jose Garces signature restaurant.

Meeting Hotels
Properties in the city include the 732-room Westin Kierland Resort & Spa; 649-room Fair­mont Scottsdale Princess; 647-room Phoenician; 490-room Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Gainey Ranch; 453-room Camelback Inn, a JW Marriott Resort & Spa; 404-room Scottsdale Plaza Resort; 270-room Scottsdale Marriott at McDowell Mountains, and 210-room Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North.

For a more complete listing of hotels, go to mcvenues.com.

Airport Transit
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, about 10 miles southwest of downtown Scottsdale. Transfer cost by taxi, $20; by shuttle, $20

Taxes
Room tax, 5%; sales tax, 6.5%; total tax on hotel rooms, 14.92% (includes 1.77% Maricopa County transaction excise tax and 1.65% City of Scottsdale transaction tax)

Contact
Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, (800) 782-1117

Fast Facts

• Arizona has five distinct regions: Northern, North Central, Phoenix/Central, Tucson/Southern and the state's so-called West Coast (named for the Colorado River and numerous lakes).

• Among the state's key attractions are its parks, including the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Petrified Forest and Seguaro National Park. For more information: arizonaguide.com.

 

• For fishing, swimming, boating and more, Arizona has dozens of lakes worth exploring. For a guide to some of the best, including lakes Havasu, Mead and Powell, go to bit.ly/zhADyA.  

Illustration: ©iStockphoto.com/
jsnyderdesign

Tucson
Brent DeRaad has been named president/CEO at the Metropolitan Tucson Convention and Visitors Bureau. Prior to this, he served as executive vice president of the Scottsdale Convention and Visitors Bureau. DeRaad replaces Jonathan Walker, who held the post for 18 years.

The 241-room former Westward Look Resort and Spa has been reflagged as the Westward Look Wyndham Grand Resort and Spa. The property, designated as a Certified Green Hotel by the Arizona Hotel and Lodging Association last year, has 20,000 square feet of meeting space.

On 500 acres of colorful, high Sonoran Desert terrain in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains, the 428-room Hilton Tucson El Con­quistador Golf & Tennis Resort will open its new Executive Conference Center this spring. The facility, which will span approximately 11,000 square feet and contain eight meeting rooms, has applied for membership in the International Association of Conference Centers and is now offering all-inclusive meeting packages. The hotel currently has more than 100,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space,

The Casino del Sol Resort, Spa & Conference Center opened last fall. The 215-room property has 65,000 square feet of meeting and event space.

Meeting Hotels
 Properties include the 575-room JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa, 487-room Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa, 428-room Hilton El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort, 398-room Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, 307-room Ho­tel Arizona at the Tucson Convention Center, 301-room Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Tucson Airport North, 299-room Radisson Suites Tucson, 295-room Doubletree Hotel Tucson at Reid Park, 267-room Hotel Tucson City Center Conference Suite Resort, 250-room Tucson Marriott University Park, 244-room Westward Look Wynd­ham Grand Resort and Spa,  233-room Hilton Tucson East and 216-room Sheraton Tucson Hotel & Suites.

Airport Transit
Tucson Inter­national Airport, about eight miles south of downtown. Transfer cost by taxi, $20-$22

Convention Center
Tucson Convention Center; exhibit space, approximately 148,000 square feet; number of meeting rooms, eight; (520) 791-4101

Taxes
 Hotels within Tucson city limits: Room tax, 13.05%; sales tax, 9.1%; total tax on hotel rooms, 13.05% plus a $2 per-night surcharge. Hotels outside Tucson city limits but within Pima County: total tax on hotel rooms, 13.05%

Contact
Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau, (800) 638-8350