Scottsdale

With over 200 courses and 12 million rounds of golf played each year, Scottsdale is a real hot spot for golf. Here are four of the best resorts to stay and play.

The Fairmont Scottsdale Princess
The Golf: Fairmont guests have playing privileges at the TPC Stadium Course (home to the wildly popular FBR Open) and the TPC Desert Course. Added bonus: One of the few resorts in the country that has a golf concierge.
The Rooms: More than 650 guestrooms including 125 casitas with optional butler service, villa suites with golf course views and private courtyards, Center Master suites each featuring separate parlor areas for entertaining, and 22 Choya suites perfect for honeymooners.
Best Suite: Described as "southwestern luxury," the Presidential Suites have wood burning fireplaces, large parlors, staffed kitchens, oversized bedrooms, separate dressing areas and golf course views.
Extra Touches: Escape to the Rooftop Mesa swimming pool and kick back in one of the private cabanas (adults only, please), take an evening stroll through the atrium or get doused at the Waterfall Treatment area. Added Bonus: Live like a king and hire your own personal resort butler.
Resort Style: Spanish Colonial Hacienda style (terracotta, open plazas, courtyards and water fountains). Five pools dot the massive, 450-acre property that always remains peaceful and quiet even at maximum capacity.
The Buzz: Classic Scottsdale with a modern twist—a perfect Sonoran oasis with a quiet elegance. If that doesn’t sell you, perhaps this will—past guests include Arnold Palmer, Tiger Woods, Peter Fonda, Andy Roddick, Andre Agassi, Gene Hackman, and Jerry Seinfeld. www.fairmont.com

JW Marriott Desert Ridge
The Golf: Old meets new at the Desert Ridge. The Wildfire Golf Club features an Arnold Palmer Signature Course and the new Nick Faldo Championship Course.
The Rooms: The 950 guestrooms (including 81 suites) have won the AAA Four Diamond Award. Each quarters has a balcony or patio overlooking wildflower gardens, swimming pools, lakes and golf course or mountain views. In addition, there are four hospitality suites, 37 luxury suites and 37 executive suites.
Best Suite: The four Presidential Suites feature impressive art collections, plasma televisions, Bose Sound systems, balconies and domed foyers with Italian marble highlights.
Extra Touches: While the spa facilities are first-rate, budding naturalists and desert dwellers can also enjoy the several trails located on the resort property, including the Desert Botanical Garden featuring 20,000 plants and cacti. Added Bonus: The resort offers desert Hummer tours.
Resort Style: Opened in 2002, the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa is one of the largest resorts in Scottsdale. The main building and the 28,000-square-foot European-style spa were built by Hornberger and Wortsell and interior design by The Barry Design Group.
The Buzz: Acres of turquoise swimming pools, shimmering waterways and gorgeous views of fiery Arizona sunsets promise to relax and rejuvenate even the most tense and tired. www.marriott.com.

The Phoenician
The Golf: Combining playability with aesthetic beauty, the golf facility consists of three 9-hole courses, each named for its surrounding landscape—Canyon, Desert and Oasis.
The Rooms: The main resort building offers 468 guestrooms. A short stroll from the lobby are 119 luxury casitas overlooking Necklace Lake. The Canyon Building—a boutique resort within a resort—features 60 guestrooms and suites and serves as an elegant retreat for special gatherings.
Best Suite: Four Presidential Suites feature panoramic views of the mountains and desert, outdoor patios, Steinway baby grands, fitness workout rooms, fresh flowers daily, four Plasma televisions, two fireplaces and steam rooms. Added Bonus: An extra $1000 gets you a personal butler.
Extra Touches: The resort flies in Belgian chocolates three times a week. All rooms feature imported Irish linen, rich Berber carpeting and oversized bathrooms with Italian marble. Six restaurants and one of the country’s larger wine cellars. Added Bonus: Mother-of-pearl swimming pool, multi-million dollar art collection.
Resort Style: A masterpiece of nature, architecture and art. Hotel architects Killingsworth, Stricker, Lindgren & Wilson and interior designer Paula Fox have created an environment of timeless elegance and European flair.
The Buzz: People marvel at the integration of the elements—art, food and design. Bottom line: The resort, a Starwood Luxury Collection property, is in a class by itself. www.thephoenician.com.

The Four Seasons Resort
The Golf: The two 18-hole championship courses—The Monument and The Pinnacle —are considered among the finest desert courses ever built. Course attractions include breathtaking views of balancing rocks, cinder cones, towering saguaros, abundant wildlife and distant mountain peaks. Added bonus: Fitness and sport trainers are on hand to help improve your swing, endurance, flexibility and strength.
The Rooms: There are 188 luxuriously appointed guestrooms, 25 casitas and 22 suites (most have private plunge pools, outdoor gardens and kiva fireplaces)
Best Suite: A private, 3000-square foot Presidential Suite has four fireplaces and backs up to a desert preserve on the north edge of the property with spectacular views of Pinnacle Peak.
Extra Touches: A separate spa cuisine menu for the health conscious, chilled towels and cold bottled water at the ready for hikers and runners returning from desert outings, and exclusive spa body treatments based on Native American influences.
Resort Style: Blends flawlessly into the surrounding desert flora with a Pueblo-style motif and warm wood trim. The exterior was designed by Hill Glazier Architects, with the interior created by Wilson & Associates.
The Buzz: High-end New Age vibe with five-star service in a mellow, relaxed setting. Want to enjoy the finest service in Scottsdale? This is your place. www.fourseasons.com