Arizona's desert resorts sell the casita, not the pool. Most come with a patio, a fireplace and a mountain view, and the pool is shared. A handful of named categories break that rule. Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North is the best bet for most couples, with heated plunge pools on its suite patios. Sedona's best-known private-pool suites, at Enchantment Resort, can only be booked by phone.
Booking for live prices · Review for our take
| Hotel | Rating | From/night | Area | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North | Excellent | ~$900 | North Scottsdale, Pinnacle Peak | Best overall · Plunge Pool Suites · heated pool on the patio | Review ↓ |
| JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn | Very good | ~$900 | Paradise Valley | Best for families · private swimming pool · 1 or 2 bedrooms | Review ↓ |
| Sanctuary Camelback Mountain | Exceptional | ~$2,000 | Paradise Valley, Camelback Mountain | For groups · Villa del Sol · 4 bedrooms, private pool + hot tub | Review ↓ |
Which Scottsdale or Sedona private pool suite should you book?
Pick the pool size first. A plunge pool is for cooling off. A swimming pool is for swimming.
For most couples, book a Plunge Pool Suite at Four Seasons Troon North. The pool is heated, so it works in January as well as May. Check Four Seasons availability.
For a family or two couples, book a Pool Suite at Camelback Inn. You get a private swimming pool and up to two bedrooms, closer to Old Town.
| Your trip | Book | Where | The trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| A couple, desert quiet | Four Seasons – Plunge Pool Suite | North Scottsdale | A plunge pool, and 30+ minutes to Old Town |
| A family, a real pool | Camelback Inn – Deluxe Parlor Pool Suite | Paradise Valley | A classic resort, not a boutique one |
| Four couples, one house | Sanctuary – Villa del Sol | Camelback Mountain | Priced for a group, booked direct |
| Red rocks, not golf | Enchantment – Pool Suite | Boynton Canyon, Sedona | Phone booking only, and some are spa pools |
Book the pool category by its full name. At every resort here, most casitas and suites have no pool. "Suite" alone won't get you one.
Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North
The couples' booking.
Four Seasons sits on 40 acres of high Sonoran Desert in north Scottsdale, below Pinnacle Peak and next to the Troon North golf courses. It's a long way from the city lights of central Scottsdale.
That matters for the suites. The Kiva Plunge Pool Suite and Oasis Plunge Pool Suite each have a private patio with a heated plunge pool. There's a kiva fireplace, a deep soaking tub and an outdoor garden shower.
For more space, the Two Bedroom Plunge Pool Suite adds a second bedroom and an outdoor living area with a TV and fire feature.
The rest of the resort's rooms and casitas don't have a pool. Book by suite name.
Evenings are the reason to pick it. Fire on, pool warm, stars out.
Book this one if you're a couple who wants a heated private pool and real desert quiet. Check Four Seasons suite rates.
JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn
The family booking – and the one most guides miss.
Camelback Inn has been in Paradise Valley since 1936. Its pueblo-style casitas face Camelback and Mummy mountains, and it's a Marriott Bonvoy resort.
A small group of its suites come with a private swimming pool, not a plunge pool. Marriott lists three:
- Deluxe Parlor One Bedroom Pool Suite King – about 1,295 sq ft
- Deluxe Parlor Two Bedroom Pool Suite – about 1,705 sq ft
- Two Bedroom Pool Suite
It sits roughly 15 minutes from Old Town Scottsdale.
The resort itself is a big, traditional golf-and-spa property. Don't expect boutique.
Book this one if you're bringing kids or a second couple and want a pool you can actually swim in. Check Camelback Inn pool suite rates.
Sanctuary Camelback Mountain
The group booking.
Sanctuary is built into the north slope of Camelback Mountain, now under the Gurney's Resorts banner. Its standard casitas and suites don't have private pools. Its villas are a different product.
Villa del Sol is a 3,500 sq ft house with four bedrooms, sleeping up to eight. It has a private pool, a hot tub, a wraparound patio and a full kitchen. Four Terrace Casitas can be added for a larger party.
Villa Luna goes bigger. It's a 5,500 sq ft multi-level home with four bedrooms, an infinity-edge pool and a whirlpool.
Split four ways, a villa here stops looking extravagant.
Sanctuary sells its villas on its own site, which is where the link above goes.
Book this one if you're four couples or a family reunion and want one house with its own pool. Check Villa del Sol availability.
Enchantment Resort, Sedona – by phone only
The red-rock booking, with a catch.
Enchantment sits inside Boynton Canyon, walled in by red sandstone. Its Pool Suites sleep up to four, with a king bedroom, a living room with a gas fireplace, a viewing deck and a patio.
Two details matter before you call:
- Phone only. The resort says that, because availability is limited, Pool Suites "can only be reserved by phone." They aren't sold through booking sites.
- Pool or spa pool. The resort describes each suite as having a "private pool or spa pool." Ask which one you're getting.
That's why Enchantment isn't in the table above. It's still the Sedona name that comes up most when people look for a private pool.
If Sedona is the point, go to Enchantment's Pool Suites page and call the number listed there.
What doesn't qualify
These names come up constantly in searches. None gives you a pool of your own.
- The Villas at Canyon Suites at The Phoenician. Eight standalone villas of two to four bedrooms, sharing a "private swimming pool complex with Cabanas." It's private to villa guests, not to your villa.
- Andaz Scottsdale's villas. Girard House and Albers House share the resort's pool and spa rather than having their own.
Scottsdale or Sedona
Scottsdale has the bookable inventory, the restaurants and Phoenix Sky Harbor 30 to 40 minutes away. Sedona has the scenery and one phone-only option.
If you can book only one, book Four Seasons Troon North and drive up to Sedona for a day.
For another desert private pool, see private pool villas in Las Vegas. For the same idea by the ocean, try Los Cabos. Every destination is on the private pool villas hub.
When to go
March to May and October to November are the best months. Days are warm and dry, and the pool is usable without the summer blast.
June to September is brutal. Phoenix-area afternoons regularly pass 40°C (104°F). Rates drop, and a private pool becomes the whole point of the stay.
December to February is peak season for snowbirds. Days are mild and desert nights get cold, which is when the heated plunge pools at Four Seasons earn their keep.
Sedona runs cooler than Scottsdale. It's about two hours north of Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX) by car.
Images: Kirt Edblom from Albany, Oregon, United States / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0
