Situated halfway between Phoenix and Tucson, Casa Grande, Arizona, offers desert dwellers and visitors alike opportunities to enjoy luxury accommodations. Only a 45-minute drive from Phoenix International Airport, the city is easily accessible and provides casinos like Harrahs and Gila River to hot air ballooning over desert skies and shopping at both outlets and the Promenade at Casa Grande Mall. Nearby Indian ruins at America’s first archaeological reserve give curious visitors a glimpse into the Hohokam culture. There’s plenty to enjoy during a trip to Casa Grande.
The Francisco Grande Hotel and Golf Resort features luxury accommodations amid a 7,400-yard historic golf course with more than 1,500 mature trees and three lakes. As of January 2011, the hotel recently underwent an $8 million renovation of its 101 guest rooms, golf course, dining facilities and meeting areas. Every guest room features a large balcony with wide-open views of the golf course. For more than 45 years, the Francisco Grande has been receiving celebrities and sports stars like John Wayne and Willie Mays into its resort and spa which offers hot stone massages, herbal body wraps and mud masks among its other spa treatments.
Two on-site restaurants -- Duke’s and Legend’s -- offer cocktails, appetizers, Southwestern cuisine and an extensive wine list as well as late-night and early morning snacks. In addition to golf, guests can play bocce ball, horseshoes, volleyball or schedule private golf lessons with an on-site instructor. A rooftop pool shaped like a baseball bat with accompanying baseball-shaped Jacuzzi offers a spot to relax.
While Holiday Inn might not strike you as a luxury hotel, the Holiday Inn in Casa Grande has all the amenities of a four-star hotel. From a large, heated outdoor pool to spacious guest rooms to an on-site spa and health and fitness center to live entertainment, the Holiday Inn offers visitors to Casa Grande an a relaxing, upscale experience. Cabo’s Bar and Grill is an on-site restaurant and lounge that is open 24 hours and offers cocktails as well as breakfast, lunch and dinner. If your trip is a family one, you’ll appreciate that kids eat free all the time at Cabo’s.
Located only 30 miles from Casa Grande, in Florence, the Rancho Sonora offers guests accommodations in the scenic Sonora Desert amid views of the South and North Butte as well as Gray Back mountain ranges. Nestled among the quiet desert landscape, Rancho Sonora offers suites and casitas that provide a secluded and intimate getaway in units like Isla Casita, which offers a full kitchen, bedroom, living room and bathroom with shower and separate tiled, whirlpool Jacuzzi tub. Courtyard hotel rooms come with a continental breakfast served in the property’s inviting dining room or outside courtyard dining area. A heated pool and spa offers guests a quiet place to sunbathe by day and relax by an outdoor fireplace at night.
