Hotel Review: Partying at the Mondrian Scottsdale

Do you know that I had never been to Arizona before I went to Scottsdale a few weeks ago for a bachelorette party!?! With all of my years as a travel writer, I just never had the opportunity to explore it for myself. I remember a layover in Pheonix for a few hours before a flight to Telluride... but all I was able to see was a few margaritas before I boarded that tiny toy airplane up to Colorado.

So, this was my chance to experience Scottsdale. One of my dearest friends was getting married and she picked Scottsdale for our girls weekened because she spent 4 years living in the area when she was a student at ASU. Now, being a graduate of SUNY Buffalo, I just could not understand why anyone would want to go back to their college town for a girls weekend. Well, now I know why.

The air was a balmy 97 degrees when I stepped off the flight from Baltimore. Did I mention it was 9pm? She told me that it was going to be hot... but, this was a real hot.

She picked me up from Sky Harbor Airport and we made our way to our home for the next few days... the Mondrian Scottsdale. Yes, the Mondrian... my home away from home in Los Angeles has another location in Scottsdale and from what I hear... it is supposed to be just as fun.



I shared a room with my friend and another girl this trip and they arrived earlier in the day and was already checked in. I walked into the room and was waiting for the crisp whites of the Mondrian in LA. I was actually shocked at what I walked into. The room was a typical room size for a motel (notice I used an "m" and not an "H"). It had two full sized beds that were nicely dressed with fluffy pillows and cotton duvets. The furniture was very modern and all black with a subtle sense of funkiness that you could mistake for bad taste. The desk and table that lined one of the walls was trimmed in black tassles... like the little thingies that drop off of a 20's style flappers dress? That was not the best part... it also had a box shelf that was lit from the inside with a single red apple sitting in the box. Ummm, note to self... don't eat that.



Our couple of days in Scottsdale were made up of lazy days by what we called their disco pool. The pool was quite the scene and we enjoyed the people watching as we sipped champagne toasting our friend's last few days of singlehood. Hey, I'm not saying that we did not have fun...



My rating of this hotel overall was piss-poor for service and cleanliness. I think we would have had a better room and service at the local Homewood Suites. However, there were a few people on the staff that made up for their overall lack of good guest judegment. The rates were decent... but, you really do get what you pay for. I say stay away. When I go back to Scottsdale, I'm going to try the Phoenician or the new W Scottsdale.

Travel On...
Lori