Fireplace at pool in 2018
Mother-of-Pearl tiled pool
| Royal Palms Resort and Spa | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Coordinates | 33°30′17″N111°58′05″W / 33.50472°N 111.96813°W |
| Built | 1929 |
  Location of Royal Palms Resort and Spa in Arizona  Royal Palms Resort and Spa (the United States) | |
Royal Palms Resort and Spa is a historic hotel in Phoenix, Arizona. It was built in Spanish Colonial style in 1929 as a retirement home for New York businessman Delos Cooke, who died unexpectedly in 1931, [1] and his wife. [2] It opened as a hotel in 1948. [3] [4]
It is a member of the Historic Hotels of America program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. [3]
The hotel's mahogany front doors are original. [5] It has an almost-unique imported Spanish tile mural called the "Lady of Spain". [5] Its Mansion Courtyard has 24 tiles in its archways, each representing a Spanish province; these are also original to the estate. [5] The resort has almost 200 examples of palm trees, in 14 varieties. [5]
The 1992 TV movie Sunstroke, with Don Ameche (in his last TV role) and Jane Seymour, was filmed at Royal Palms. [5] Seymour's character, after a bitter divorce, sought to regain custody of her daughter in a film noir journey; Ameche played a Scottsdale motel manager. [6]
There are 24 fountains, and 73 fireplaces (some inside guest rooms), and 193 palm trees. [5]
The resort was sold for $88.25 million in 2016. [7]
The resort finished a $3.7 million renovation in 2017. The historically sensitive renovation addressed all 119 guest rooms, the resort's lounge area with its "Mother-of-Pearl"-tiled swimming pool, its event lawns, and landscaping which includes almost 200 palm trees across its nine acres. [8]
In 2018 the resort celebrated its 70th anniversary. [5] [2] [8] There was a "Royal Palms 70th Anniversary Party" on September 20, 2018. Tickets were $50 and guests were invited to wear 1940s resort wear. [5]
The resort was listed as one of the most romantic hotels in the world by Luxury Travel magazine in 2022. [9]
