Assessment: Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort (Arizona, USA)

April 10, 2024

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Wednesday newsletters at all times characteristic a resort or flight assessment.

Immediately: Assessment of Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort (Arizona, USA)

A primary of its sort in North America, Ambiente, a Panorama Resort is uniquely designed to mix in with the paranormal pink rocks of Sedona, Arizona, providing visitors the chance to expertise and embrace the pure magnificence that surrounds them in one of many world’s most beautiful places. Opened in spring 2023, the brand new Ambiente Resort is comprised of 40 cubed-shaped visitor rooms (referred to as atriums) which are elevated above the bottom by metal piers and constructed utilizing floor-to-ceiling, bronze-tinted glass and matte-charcoal and rusted metallic. At nightfall, the tinted glass mirror the character round it creating beautiful, mirrored silhouettes. The atriums’ modern and modern design embodies elegant minimalism and the utmost in luxurious lodging. Onsite amenities embody a pool, spa and advantageous eating restaurant. Ambiente is a member of the Main Inns of the World.

Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort, options in my high 10 listing of the finest luxurious accommodations within the American Southwest.

Have you ever ever stayed at Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort? If that’s the case, what was your expertise? Depart a remark.

On this assessment (extra data and pictures beneath my YouTube video):

PROS & THINGS I LIKE

Opened in spring 2023, Ambiente, a Panorama Resort has already earned a fame as among the best accommodations in Sedona. Positioned in Arizona’s excessive desert below the towering southwestern rim of the huge Colorado Plateau, the small metropolis of Sedona is a well-known throughout the globe for is spectacular pink sandstone formations, which kind a well-liked backdrop for a lot of actions, starting from non secular pursuits to dozens of climbing and mountain biking trails. Traditionally, Sedona was a rural ranching neighborhood situated far off the overwhelmed path, however its unsurpassed pure magnificence grew to become nationally recognized via the movement image trade. Immediately, commercials and tv reveals nonetheless are filmed within the unsettled areas surrounding this metropolis, which yearly attracts greater than three million vacationers from all over the world.

Overlooking the protected protect of Coconino Nationwide Forest, Ambiente Sedona sits on a 3 acres of plot, surrounded by town’s most iconic pink rock monoliths, together with the Steamboat, Chimney, Espresso Pot and Snoopy Rock formations. Upon arrival, visitors are ushered via a monolithic picket door right into a fashionable foyer the place a ground–to-ceiling glass wall and adjoining statement deck put the sweeping pink rock views on full show. The 2-story glass and metallic foyer constructing serves because the check-in space, full with a visitor lounge and statement deck, boutique reward store, assembly rooms and places of work, and a spa. As soon as check-in is full, an elevator delivers visitors to the bottom ground the place they tour the property by way of an electrical automobile earlier than arriving at their personal Atrium.

Ambiente Sedona is comprised of 40 cubed-shaped pavilions (referred to as ‘Atriums’), constructed utilizing matte-charcoal coloured metallic and floor-to-ceiling, bronze-tinted glass partitions. Uniquely designed to mix in with the encircling geography, the lodging provide modern, Earth-toned decor to help a disconnection from on a regular basis life and a reconnection with nature. Every Atrium options the identical key parts, together with a bed room with kingsize mattress, a comfy sitting space (proper subsequent to the mattress), a petite kitchen, and a toilet geared up with an outsized soaking tub, double vainness and a walk-in bathe with twin rain heads. Practically all Atriums have a personal rooftop deck, that includes lounge seating, a roaring firepit and a day-bed which is nice for sunbathing and stargazing (or sleeping open air).

On the middle of Ambiente Sedona is an out of doors lagoon-shaped pool (with a built-in Jacuzzi) which is situated proper subsequent to a pavilion housing the resort’s signature restaurant, Forty1. Forty1 incorporates a full-service kitchen serving à la carte breakfast and dinner day by day, in addition to an indoor/out of doors bar full with a number of TVs and ample seating. The restaurant gives a seasonal a la carte menu which is impressed by pure natural substances from the native Verde Valley. Instantly adjoining to the restaurant, an elevated deck options hearth pits, cozy lounge seating and programming like nightly stargazing. Additionally poolside, visitors will discover a customized Airstream that has been remodeled and reimagined into The Drifter, a separate culinary vacation spot serving lunch and poolside fare day by day.

Ambiente Sedona has a robust deal with wellbeing. Housed inside the primary foyer constructing is Velvet, an intimate, three-room spa providing therapies that solely combine locally-sourced substances embodying the therapeutic properties of Sedona. Genuine parts of conventional spa, earthy textures, clear substances, and fashionable improvements are artistically intertwined to create distinctive spa experiences. Every spa remedy begins with a choice of a novel ZENTS scent mix that shall be used for the therapeutic massage. All visitors additionally obtain a vial of the mix as a present on the finish of the remedy. The Velvet Spa additionally has two experiential areas that purpose to offer highly effective well-being for each physique and thoughts. One in every of them is the Darkish Sky Lounge, an interactive sound lounge surrounded by the celestial night time sky, and the opposite one the O2 Soaking Bathtub Lounge, which options lovely Japanese-style heat baths. There’s additionally a cute little sauna room, which is situated proper exterior the spa space.

Designed by a crew of award-winning architects together with Stephen Thompson of Architect Studio and ASUL Architects, Ambiente Sedona was constructed with a deep respect for the surroundings. Utilizing sustainable strategies and and an natural deisgn, the resort’s fashionable structure enhances the neighboring surroundings and minimizes the impression on the land because it was constructed across the pure vegetation and topography, requiring much less minimize and fill. At preliminary look, the entire particular person buildings, from the Atriums to the foyer and poolside lounge, look like floating amidst the panorama because the constructions mirror the environment with the usage of bronzed glass. Ambiente goals to be Sedona’s main instance of sustainable tourism and progressive resort design that promotes long-term vibrancy inside the neighborhood.

Ambiente Sedona is owned and operated by a native household, Michael Stevenson and his two daughters, Jennifer Might and Colleen TeBrake. After serving within the US Military, Mike, at age 26, and his spouse Kathleen moved to Sedona to work at his father’s restaurant. In 1973, Mike launched into his calling to fulfil his dream of operating his personal enterprise by investing in The Purple Rock Motel situated on the fringe of Oak Creek Canyon. Sadly, only one brief 12 months later, that dream ended as he was pressured to declare chapter. In 2016, in a rare flip of occasions, Michael was capable of buy a phenomenal piece of property. After strolling the pure panorama of pinion pines, pure washes, and pink rock formations together with his daughter Jennifer Might a number of occasions, they knew immediately that the surroundings inside deserved one thing very particular. That day, the imaginative and prescient for Ambiente was born, reigniting Mike’s dream from over 40 years in the past.

Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort is a member of the Main Inns of the World (LHW). The latter is an unique assortment of greater than 400 luxurious accommodations and resorts in over 80 nations. LHW doesn’t personal accommodations; it moderately gives a reservation service for impartial accommodations and helps gross sales and advertising, promoting and public relations, monetary companies, high quality management, and resort inspections for its member properties. LHW has many iconic properties in its portfolio, comparable to such because the 12 Apostles Resort in Cape City, The Datai Langkawi in Malaysia, Resort Adlon Kempinski in Berlin, Le Sirenuse in Positano (Italy), Il Sereno Lake Como (Italy), and the Gstaad Palace in Switzerland. LHW additionally has its personal loyalty program, which permits visitors to gather factors at LHW properties and spend them at no cost nights at LHW accommodations & resorts.

CONS & THINGS TO KNOW

Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort is situated proper subsequent to a main freeway, which tends to get very busy through the day (the site visitors slows down at night time). The resort’s designers have finished their utmost finest to distract the visitors from the presence of the close by freeway and to masks the noise with vegetation, operating water and background music. However regardless of all these efforts, you may nonetheless hear the street in some areas within the resort, even inside some atriums (particularly these atriums that again the freeway and people on the higher a part of the hilly panorama). The freeway noise could be particularly annoying if you find yourself seeking some tranquility and silence whereas attempting to calm down in your personal rooftop.

Ambiente Sedona incorporates a considerably unusual structure, because the atriums are constructed very shut along with their home windows going through both the walkways or the opposite atriums. As outcome, most atriums don’t take pleasure in nice views, aside from the few, so referred to as ‘panorama atriums’ on the property’s northern edge (which take pleasure in views of the forest and grandiose surroundings). For instance, I stayed in a ‘forest atrium’ throughout my vacation however as you may see on my pictures, it didn’t provide any forest view in any respect (moderately a view of the close by atriums and a few mountains within the distance). Additionally, whereas privateness is just not a difficulty through the day due to the atrium’s bronze-tinted one-way-vision glass, you’ll want to shut your curtains at night time as soon as you turn your lights on (to keep away from others having a direct view into your bed room).

Ambiente, a Panorama Resort doesn’t have its personal gymnasium. However with direct entry to greater than 300 km (200 miles) of climbing and biking trails in Sedona in addition to premier mountaineering, out of doors journey and leisure actions, there isn’t any want for an onsite health middle, and as an alternative Ambiente encourages visitors to discover the outside by providing mountain bike leases and climbing excursions. The resort additionally boasts unique entry to the Adobe Jack Path system, a average 2.7 km ( 1.7-mile) hike that connects to an extra seven miles of trails famend for the picturesque surroundings displayed alongside the best way. For individuals who want to discover inside resort grounds, extra wellness trails weave all through the positioning with designated spots to cease and comply with instructed workouts that promote total wellness.

Ambiente Sedona doesn’t come low cost and ranks among the many most costly accommodations within the Sedona space. The room price begins round $1100 USD per night time for a star atrium (lowest room class) and rises to greater than $2000 USD per night time for a panorama atrium (the most costly room class and the one room sorts coming with a view). It’s fairly insane once you assume that these charges come near what you’ll pay for a 5-star resort within the Maldives however I assume that’s the brand new normal within the Sedona space. On a constructive notice, room charges embody mini-bar snacks and non-alcoholic drinks), Sedona health middle entry (offsite), valet parking, Audi RS e-tron GT concierge automotive transfers (accessible for airport and native attraction pick-up & drop-off) and free WiFi.

MY VERDICT

Location: 6/10
Design: 8/10
Pool: 7/10
Rooms: 8/10
Meals: 8/10
Breakfast: 8/10
Spa: 7/10
Service: 9/10
Wow issue: 9/10
Worth for cash: 6/10
General expertise: good 7.6/10

TIPS FOR FUTURE GUESTS & SAVE MONEY

Lower your expenses: get complimentary VIP perks at Ambiente Sedona when reserving by way of Virtuoso (e.g. day by day breakfast, room improve, early check-in, late check-out and $100 USD resort credit score

Lower your expenses: Ambiente Sedona is a member of The Main Inns of the World (LHW) and participates in LHW’s loyalty program Leaders Membership, which permits visitors to gather factors at LHW properties and spend them at no cost nights at LHW accommodations & resorts (together with Ambiente).

Lower your expenses: learn right here my ideas for getting the perfect deal at a luxurious resort like Ambiente Sedona (and/or obtain many free perks).

Learn my ideas for making ready your journey in time.

BEST TIME TO VISIT

Sedona is a four-season out of doors playground. Many individuals plan on visiting within the spring (March & Might) and fall (September to November) to take pleasure in excellent climate for out of doors exploration; nevertheless, you may actually beat the crowds and actually expertise the serenity of Sedona within the winter. Sedona’s excessive elevation retains it principally insulated from the scorching warmth Arizona is known for in summer season.

HOW TO GET THERE

The closest airport to Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort is Sedona Airport (KSEZ) which is 2 miles (3 km) away. Flagstaff Airport is the closest small business airport to Sedona which is 25 miles (40 km) or a scenic 40 minute drive. Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport is the closest main worldwide airport (roughly 2 hours away by automotive).

PHOTOS

Right here’s a choice of my pictures of Ambiente Sedona, a Panorama Resort. To view extra resort pictures (together with breakfast, lunch and dinner), click on right here.