Hotel Valley Ho - Scottsdale

Last week I had the privilege of attending the USA Apple Distinguished Educator Summer Institute. We held most of our meetings at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism in downtown Phoenix, but our homebase was the very hip Hotel Valley Ho in Scottsdale.

The Valley Ho was built in 1956 and is thought to be one of the best examples of a historic hotel from the mid fifties. It was extensively renovated in 2005 to add modern comforts and green features, but it maintains that retro feel in decor. The main tower is new construction with the original rooms surrounding the pool in an oval shaped courtyard. (I didn't like having to walk to my room outside in the heat, but I guess that is the cost for keeping the vintage atmosphere.)

I didn't take a dip in the pool, but it looked like a great place to hang out in the hot Arizona weather. The grounds around the pool are beautifully landscaped with plants and flowers that could handle the 100 degree + heat.

Our rooms were very comfortable. The beds were cushy and had soft bedding. They had a comforter but no top sheet which seemed a bit warm for sleeping, but housekeeping supplied another sheet on request.

There was a very modern work area and a flat screen TV (not that we had time to watch TV with our 6 am to 10 pm full schedule).


The view out our window overlooked a fountain courtyard and there was a nice little lounging area (too hot to sit outside and enjoy it).


The bathroom was probably the most unique feature of the room. It had frosted glass walls, sliding doors, mood lighting, a huge soaking tub, and a walk in shower. Loved the Red Flower toiletries!

We had breakfasts and dinners at the hotel. I didn't take any pictures of food as I normally do because the buffet line was outside in a courtyard area. Rather a hot place and food was kept covered up so I couldn't get any nice shots. Great pastries in the morning and loved the mac n cheese and the huge piece of carrot cake. We also had a wonderful ending meal at Trader Vics!

We didn't have much down time during the conference, but after our projects were finished and presented, we did have a few hours in the afternoon to enjoy the hotel. They opened the spa for us for complementary treatments - I enjoyed a lovely neck massage which was wonderful after a week of lugging all my tech equipment around!

Hotel Valley Ho is located in downtown Scottsdale, Arizona and is within walking distance of the downtown area.