Recently, my family and I were guests of the resort and had the opportunity to kick off the Christmas season in Scottsdale. We managed to visit during one of the rainiest weekends of the year, but we still managed to have a blast. Although I had envisioned spending the day by the pool, we spent it splashing in puddles, which actually was more fun and more memorable for a couple of kids from Southern California!
Fortunately, even though it rained off and on, we were able to experience most of the awesome holiday features at the resort. They did a great job of resuming the activities as soon as they could each time the rain let up (while making sure guests would be safe too!)
Here are some of the highlights of the resort’s festive happenings:
- Stop by the Enchanted Plaza to check out the 4-story Christmas tree that does its own light show to all of your favorite holiday songs throughout the evening. Plus, twice each night, enjoy the new animated light show.
- A personal favorite of ours, the Desert Ice Skating Rink, located on the property in the Cactus Garden (giving it that desert feel) lets you skate as the snow falls above you! This year you can spend the evening by the rink at one of the rink-side cabanas. When you reserve one, enjoy s’mores and warm drinks fireside while you watch the skaters on the ice. Be sure to check out Kringle’s Korner, the holiday shop located next to the rink to get some holiday shopping done.
- Also at the Desert Ice Skating Rink, throughout the season you can enjoy a beautiful seasonal skating show featuring local youth skaters who are not only adorable, but also very talented!
- Throughout the lagoon on the property, check out the 1.6 MILLION lights creating beautiful light displays including Santa fishing in the lagoon, a giant teddy bear, a pirate ship, a swan and more!
- Get a great view of these Lagoon Lights riding on the Princess Express Train, which travels along the lagoon to give you the best view of the lights! Plus there’s snow when you board the train.
- Also new this year is a giant narrated Nativity light show that tells the audience the story of Christmas. It was one of my favorite features by far.
- Last but not least, visit and take a picture with Santa to let him know what’s on your list this year!
We also had some great experiences at the resort’s restaurants. At La Hacienda, the butternut squash soup is an absolute must and my kids will tell you that the signature churro dessert is not to be missed – in fact, they are still talking about it! And the Ironwood American Kitchen is a parent’s dream. When you are seated at your table, each kid is given a kid-friendly tablet to play with while they wait for their meal. My kids were so excited and impressed by that – a definite treat for them!
So although the rain led to a completely different adventure than planned, we had a blast celebrating the start of the holiday season. Now, we will just have to visit the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess again soon to experience the warm desert sun too!
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Fairmont Scottsdale Princess
7575 East Princess Drive, Scottsdale, AZ
*My family and I were invited as guests the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess for review purposes.
All photos courtesy of the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess.
