Pointe South Mountain Resort
now called Arizona Grand Resort

Then you may want to make the Arizona Grand Resort your vacation home away from home.

As of November 1, 2007, the Pointe South Mountain Resort was renamed the Arizona Grand Resort by its new owners, Grossman Co. Properties.

The company is spending $52 million to revamp every aspect of this Phoenix Arizona resort, including the rooms, restaurants and even the landscaping.

With its 640 spacious, all-suite rooms on 200-acres, this is one of the largest Arizona resorts.

The Arizona Grand Resort is a sprawling property with its own water park

The original designers of this family-friendly resort definitely had children in mind when they created this property.

There are six pools, seven kid friendly restaurants, tons of outdoor recreation and even kid spa services.

This Arizona family resort’s centerpiece is the 6-acre Oasis Water Park with its eight-story waterslide.

The Arizona Grand Resort is also just a stone’s throw away from Phoenix’s largest desert preserve, South Mountain Park - a perfect spot for hiking, biking and horseback riding.

Pointe South Mountain Resort Arizona is self-contained with enough activities to keep the whole family entertained.

Yet, it’s not too far from some of Phoenix Arizona’s popular kid friendly attractions like Rawhide Wild West Town, the Arizona Science Center and the Phoenix Zoo.

Even though the Arizona Grand Resort is getting an extreme makeover, it will continue to be a good choice for family resorts in Arizona.

Pointe South Mountain Resort’s buildings have interior courtyards filled with flowers and fountains

We hadn’t realized that the property sits very close to busy Interstate 10, one of the main north-south freeways through the Phoenix area.

From the description on the resort’s web site, we were expecting the place to be tucked away into the South Mountains.

After exploring further, we were relieved to discover that the resort is quite large and spread out.

It actually stretches from the freeway all the way back to the South Mountain Park boundary.

Pointe South Mountain Resort’s large, multi-storied buildings have a Spanish Colonial style with terracotta roofs and stucco walls.

Colorful flowers and burbling fountains fill the interior courtyards between the hotel wings.

Wide breezeways lined with tall palms link the buildings, making for pleasant evening strolls.

If you’ve stayed here before, the newly rechristened Arizona Grand Resort is going to start looking a whole lot different.

As part of the Pointe South Mountain Resort’s renovation, the resort is getting a new entrance, a new lobby, new restaurants, new landscaping and golf course upgrades. The new lobby are is due to open in mid-2009.

The Pointe South Mountain Resort lobby and entrance

Already, the resort has been repainted white.

Pointe South Mountain Resort has definitely been a laid back kind of place, with a very casual ambience.

The emphasis has been on keeping the entire family entertained.

The former Pointe South Mountain Resort rooms had a dated look with Spanish Colonial style dark wood furniture and accents.

The new room décor has a contemporary style with white bedding, bamboo and rattan furniture and basket weave shutters.

From our previous stays, we can say that the all-suite rooms are very spacious with separate living areas with desks and queen-sized sofa beds.

All rooms have private patios or balconies.

The 8-story high Slide Canyon Tower at Oasis Water Park

There are enough of them to keep even the most hyperactive kid happy.

The main attraction is the 6-acre Oasis Water Park.

This is one of the country’s largest resort water parks – a cool, refreshing playland of waterfalls, pools and lush trees and palms in the middle of the desert.

Oasis Water Park’s central feature is the 8-story Slide Canyon Tower.

Here you can test your courage on its three water slides:

• Sidewinder Slide: an easy going, 300-foot long ride that gradually drops 31-feet, ending in a 3½-foot deep splash pool
• Roadrunner Slide: begins with a level start that suddenly drops you down 67-feet
• Free Fall Slide: be prepared for a heart-stopping, 67-foot drop extending over 225 feet, whisking you through a run-out water spout at the bottom.

The lagoon-like Oasis Wave Pool has 2-foot action waves

If you’re looking for something a little less thrilling, there’s the Oasis Wave Pool.

This 10,000-square foot pool has 2-foot action waves that made us feel like we were swimming through open ocean swells.

We also enjoyed the flowing, 950-foot long Zuni Active River.

Catch an inflatable water tube as it whisks by and float along, passing under water jets and gentle mists.

A rolling river action kept us moving along at a brisk pace as we traveled around the park.

The Zuni Active River circles around Oasis Water Park

Oasis Water Park also has a large, 3-foot deep hot tub overlooking the wave pool and a fun splash pad area and wading pool for the tots.

All the water features have heated water, so you could spend all day here, kicking back on one of the plentiful lounge chairs or sprawled out on a towel on the lawn.

It’s a fun atmosphere with up-tempo rock music blaring over the loudspeakers.

Luckily there is the Oasis Bar and Grill inside the park, offering sandwiches, burgers, salads.

Specialty drinks include their signature Shark Attack, a blend of light rum, blue Curacao, blueberry Schnapps, pineapple juice, Sierra Mist and a garnish of gummy sharks served in an Oasis souvenir fish bowl.

As part of Arizona Grand Resort’s upgrades, the water park will be expanded by another 5 acres.

Other Pools

If you want to pass on the excitement of the Oasis, Pointe South Mountain Resort has six regular pools located in garden courtyards spread throughout the property.

Three are family pools and two are adults-only pools. However, we found that the pool designations were generally ignored.

One of the adult pools and Jacuzzi at Pointe South Mountain Resort

There is also a lap pool at the 20,000 square foot Arizona Grand Athletic Club.

Other resort amenities include:

• horseback riding
• tennis courts
• basketball courts
• sand volleyball and water volleyball
• racquetball
• shuffleboard
• ping pong
• pool tables
• horseshoes
• croquet
• shuttle to nearby Arizona Mills Mall.

The lap pool and sand volleyball court at Pointe South Mountain Resort

Next door to the resort is the 16,000-acre South Mountain Park.

This beautiful Sonoran Desert preserve - reputed as the largest municipal park in the world - has over 58 miles of trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding.

Drive to the top of the South Mountains and you’ll have panoramic views of the Phoenix area and the mountain ranges beyond the Valley of the Sun.

Spend time in the park and you might catch glimpses of common desert animals such as roadrunners, javelinas, horned lizards and coyotes.

Although local Native American tribes never inhabited these mountains, they frequently traveled through them.

The Buckaroo Roundup (ages 5 and under) has supervised activities such as storytime, toys, stuffed animals and coloring books.

For ages 5 - 12, there’s the Cactus Kids Club. Their fun and energetic activities include swimming, crafts, games and guided explorations into the desert.

Pointe South Mountain Resort’s Phantom Horse Spa is in the Phantom Horse Tower

The Southwestern-styled spa offers many treatments that use native desert botanicals and minerals.

You’ll have great views of South Mountain Park while using the Athletic Club’s fitness center with its state-of-the-art cardio and strength training equipment.

Afterwards, take a swim in the heated lap pool.

Phantom Horse Spa has been voted one of the top ten kid-friendly spas in the United States by Child Magazine (2002).

Pointe South Mountain Resort is one of the few to offer spa services designed specifically for kids, so the entire family can enjoy the spa.

The golf clubhouse

This 6,336-yard course is a championship, 18-hole, par 71, combining two styles of golf.

The front nine has a traditional links layout with large swathes of emerald green fairways, ponds and sand traps.

The back nine are desert target style golf with part of the course built into the rocky slopes of South Mountain.

This area is mostly desert interspersed with short strips of green fairway.

Keep an eye out for desert wildlife – quail, roadrunners and even the occasional coyote or rattlesnake.

Though the course is short – only 6,211 yards from the back tees– it is not easy.

The fairways are tight and there are drastic changes in elevation, forcing blind shots.

The front nine holes have several water features and desert washes run throughout the back nine.

Latitude 30° restaurant has closed as of May 2008. In the future, it will become a private dining facility available for catered events.

Aunt Chilada’s colorful patio at Pointe South Mountain Resort

The Phantom Horse Grill and Sports Bar will eventually close. The space it currently occupies by will become an Italian restaurant with a focus on handmade pastas and breads.

A new restaurant, the Lobby Grill, will be located in the new lobby upon its completion in mid-2009. The Lobby Grill will offer American grill cuisine.

Arizona Grand Resort will also add the new Lobby Bar and a barista-style coffee bar serving pastries, to-go deli sandwiches and gelato.

The resort’s two other existing restaurants - Aunt Chilada’s and Rustler’s Rooste - will remain as they are.

Aunt Chilada’s features standard Mexican fare in a colorful, family friendly atmosphere. It will remain as is.

Menu items range from huge platters of tacos and enchiladas to carne asada and chile rellenos. They also offer more than 100 varieties of tequila and an extensive margarita list.

We ate dinner here and the place was packed. The wait for a table was over 1½ hours, so we opted to sit in the bar area.

Even though the staff was obviously overwhelmed, they were friendly, helpful and extremely efficient. We appreciated their cheery, upbeat attitudes in spite of the rushed chaos.

The portions were very large but, perhaps due to the busy conditions, the food was somewhat lacking. It was surprising bland for a Mexican restaurant in Arizona.

Rustler’s Rooste sits up on a hill above the resort, overlooking the Valley. This restaurant will also remain as it is.

The Rooste is an old fashioned Western steakhouse complete with a live bull outside the restaurant’s old mineshaft and a tin slide for entering the dining room -completely optional, of course!

Entertainment here includes Old Charlie, the cowboy poet, and live country and Western music and dancing.

Great views, a fun atmosphere and a menu of mesquite-grilled steaks, barbecued ribs and award-winning chili make it a good choice for those looking for an entertaining Old West venue.

Pointe South Mountain also has two poolside eateries:

• The Oasis Bar and Grill is inside the Oasis Water Park. They offer burgers, salads, appetizers and a variety of specialty drinks.
• La Cabana, at the adult pool in the East Pointe area of the resort, has sandwiches, burgers, salads and a swim-up bar.

Favorite Features:   Oasis Water Park and their river ride and wave pool. Spacious room floor plan. Great spa with variety of treatments including some for kids and teens. Easy access to desert hiking trails.

What We Didn’t Like:   Some rooms have views of the freeway.

Good for Kids:   Very. They’ll love the Oasis Water Park and kids are welcome in all the restaurants. All restaurants have children’s menus. Even the spa has a "kid’s menu."

Pet Friendly:   Pets not allowed

Location:   southern Phoenix, 10 minute drive (6 miles) south of Phoenix’s Sky Harbor International Airport.

Address:   7777 South Pointe Parkway, Phoenix, AZ 85044

Google Map Directions: Click on "+" and "-" signs on Map Controls in upper left hand corner to zoom in and out on the location.

Management:   Grossman Co. Properties. The resort is a member of Preferred Hotels and Resorts Ultimate Luxury Collection.

Style:   Contemporary with Spanish Colonial accents

Room Types:   640 total all-suite rooms, deluxe suites, executive boardroom suites and presidential suites. All rooms are non-smoking.

Click here to book a room at the Arizona Grand Resort

Cost:   In Season: $$$$ - $$$$$
Summer Season: $$ - $$$
Go to Cost Key

Extra Fees:

Waterfall on the golf course

• entrance to the Oasis Water Park, up to 4 people/suite
• Athletic Club admittance
• tennis, volleyball and croquet court time
• one daily in-suite pot of coffee
• unlimited local phone calls
• unlimited access for toll-free, credit card and collect phone calls
• high-speed internet access in every suite
• delivery of USA Today newspaper to your suite (Monday – Friday)
• shuttle to nearby Arizona Mills Mall
• incoming/outgoing faxes

Views/Setting:   Mountains, desert, golf course and city views. Garden-like setting.

Pools:   six resort pools around the property including a lap pool at the spa.

The 6-acre Oasis Water Park has a wave pool, waterslide and an active river that flows around the park. Also has a splash pad and hot tub. Live entertainment and dive-in movies in summer.

Water Park Notes:

• Guests must be at least 48 inches in height to use waterslide
• Children 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult
• Maximum of 4 people per suite
• Hours of operation are seasonal
• Water is heated year round.

Restaurants:
Aunt Chilada’s: Mexican food such as enchiladas, fajitas and tamales served in a colorful, casual atmosphere. Cantina style outdoor patio and casita style indoor dining and bar. Large selection of specialty margaritas and over 100 types of premium tequila. Open for lunch and dinner daily.

The Sports Bar: serves breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as drinks and bar food. Located next to The Phantom Horse Grill. Also has satellite television and dancing.

Rustlers Rooste: an old fashioned steakhouse menu in a fun, Old West setting. Views of the Valley from the dining room, cowboy poetry, live country and Western music and dancing and a real bull outside. Dinner served nightly.

La Cabana: poolside dining at the East Pointe area pool. Serves hamburgers, salads and sandwiches. Swim-up bar.

Oasis Bar and Grill: located inside the Oasis Water Park. Menu includes sandwiches, salads, burgers, appetizers and the signature Typhoon – soft-serve ice cream blended with your favorite flavors. Open-air bar has large selection of tropical blended drinks.

Spa:   The 65,000-square foot Arizona Grand Athletic Club and Spa, formerly known as the Phantom Horse Athletic Club and Spa has 15 spa treatment rooms, a heated outdoor lap pool, 70 state-of-the-art fitness machines and over 40 fitness classes per week.

Golf:   The Arizona Grand Golf Club, formerly called the Phantom Horse Golf Club is a championship, 18-hole, par 71, 6,336-yard course, combining two styles of golf. Front nine has a traditional links layout with large swathes of emerald green fairways, ponds and sand traps. Back nine are desert target style golf.

7,000-square foot practice green, golf clubhouse with bar and pro shop. Experienced golf pros offer on-course and computerized instruction with Skill Tec 3D Golf Trainer.

Activities:   swimming, tennis, basketball, croquet, racquetball, pool tables, ping-pong, sand volleyball, water volleyball and basketball, horseback riding, hiking and mountain biking in South Mountain Park.

Parking:   Complimentary self parking

Accommodations Cost Key (based on a standard guest room, double occupancy):
$: $50 - $100
$$: $100 - $150
$$$: $150- $200
$$$$: $200 - $300
$$$$$: Above $300
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The information in this review was accurate at the time of our visit. All contact information, availability, access, directions and prices should be confirmed directly with the resort, golf course, restaurant or spa before making reservations and/or travel plans.

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