Q: negative

A: My mom took me here so I can try this place out. She said they have more dim sum selections and what not. I did not like the place at all. Seating sucked (if you're right at the entrance) Not a lot of dim sum selection at all either. All the carts that came around were the same thing that passed us earlier. So a lot of the food I normally eat, they don't have. Their portion is smaller as well. As in, most places give you 3 egg tarts and this place gives you 2. Same for other dishes like the rice wrapped with leaves. Compared to DJ Dim Sum in Rio, this place has a major thumbs down in food and in service for sure. Don't think I'll ever come back.

Q: positive

A: We took a short mid summer vacation here with our teen son and nephew. We've stayed at many Scottsdale and Phoenix resorts over the years. This is definitely one of the nicer ones. It's located right across from the Desert Ridge Marketplace which is a terrific outdoor shopping area with loads of restaurants and a wide assortment of shops and stores as well as an outdoor water feature for young children. We stayed in the Canyon Villas which is the vacation club aka timeshare side of things. We had a very spacious and well appointed one bedroom unit on the top (third) floor overlooking the golf course. The unit was well stocked with useful utensils and cookware. The kitchen has granite counters and a water feature in the a wall alcove. The resort is quite large and expansive. The grounds are simply beautiful with lots of surrounding native plants and wildlife. The main hotel and spa is a short distance from the villas and there are shuttles that run between both locations every half hour. If you prefer to walk, it's not that far, probably about 10 minutes on foot. The facilities are top drawer all the way. Guests staying at the Villas can also access the main pool and spa at the hotel. It has a decent lazy river, a couple of long pools and a main pool. There's even a small water slide and a pool and water features for little tikes. There is poolside beverage and food service. During our stay, the water was a little murky probably from all the suntan/screen fro swimmers. We actually preferred the main pool at the Villas which is a bit larger with outdoor table games, a water fall and lap pool. Our only real disappointment was the construction going on outside the main lobby leading to the hotel pool. Lots of jack hammer noise but not enough to ruin things. There must have been a plumbing issue because many of the surrounding water ways and falls were not operating which detracted a bit from the overall ambiance of things. Poolside drinks are expensive so go lightly unless your uber wealthy. I probably would have given this resort 5 stars but for the construction noise and inoperable water features. The staff is very helpful and gracious. We had a problem with a slow flushing toilet which was promptly repaired. We received a call a couple of hours later to check on its status and our satisfaction. Unlike most timeshare properties, The Villas does NOT offer mid week housekeeping unless you want to pay an extra $30 to $90 depending on the unit size and services desired. Housekeeping is very responsive when additional pillows and blankets were needed. The only resort that we like better is Kierland Resort & Spa located in north Scottsdale. It's just a bit nicer with better water features and pools and more shade from mature landscaping. We couldn't get a villa there so we opted to stay here instead and we were NOT disappointed and you won't be either.

Q: positive

A: The best drink menu I experienced in Vegas. I was with a group of four, and everyone ordered a different drink. Each was amazing.

Q: negative

A:
British Airways is the most direct route from Phoenix to Heathrow London so it is the flight I have used several times. I also had enough credit for two flights in first class round trip yet how does one get this? I took a morning and started from Jan 1st through Dec 31st trying to get a flight using my points. Why did I do this, well the dates I wanted were never available so I thought I would see what dates were available. Oh and I tried coach through first class on each attempt and in all of that time frame only could I find four dates available and only in coach so I booked it and got back yesterday. I still have points but have a feeling I will never use them since this trip made me realize travel is no longer fun. You get trapped in a cabin so tightly fit with seats one can not even breathe, not to mention the air quality sucks and much too warm. Hell the food looked like cat food and tasted just about as good. Now I will say the folks working the flights were very nice, but nice does not make up for the actual physical layout of the jet. Each trip was delayed for some reason sometimes we waited to board and other times we waited while on the jet just sitting there. It states on their web site that there are no black out dates for travel, but check back often as seat open up. So right there it is stating there are indeed black out dates if no seats are available. Nope no more stinky depressing flights with British Airways for me.