The Sheraton Phoenix Airport in Tempe, Arizona: A Review

The Sheraton Phoenix Airport Hotel, located just minutes from the airport on 52^nd St. in Tempe, Arizona, provides plush accommodations for the weary traveler. The hotel offers complimentary shuttle service to and from the airport, and is near a major highway junction for easy access to tourist hotspots both in an out of Phoenix. The Phoenix Zoo, Botanical Gardens, and shopping mecca that is Tempe are just minutes away from the hotel's palm tree-dotted, curvilinear drive.

Hot and tired, I stayed at the Sheraton courtesy of a Priceline crapshoot. It was either gamble on a nicer hotel (around $75), or, for about ten to fifteen dollars less, stay at a budget-tier hotel in one of Tempe's slightly less desirable neighborhoods. Location won, and William Shatner guided me to the Sheraton. The Sheraton is situated among other comparable hotels in a nicely landscaped enclave removed from the bustle of suburban Tempe. Customer service was top rate, as the staff was very amiable during check-in and check-out. The grand lobby flows into a dining area with bar, and I observed a mix of business travelers and families enjoying the amenities.

My room was spacious, and, thankfully, home to a quiet, functioning air conditioning unit. Seeing as to how a functioning air conditioning unit was the impetus for reserving a room at the Sheraton in the first place, I was ecstatic. My king bed was firm, just as I prefer, with good lighting and a flat screen television There was ample room to spread out for the single traveler, and the room could easily accommodate a pair. The bathroom, though small, was clean. Beware of the shower knob, however; strange shower fixtures are synonymous with hotel rooms, from my experience, and this one required a higher learning curve in order to produce that essential stream of water.

From my glance through the window, the pool area looked as most pool areas do - children splashing, parents decompressing on a lounge chair, steam clouding the windows. The exercise room is located a floor up, inconspicuously tucked between other guest rooms. It felt as if said exercise room might have been a guest room in a previous life. There were two treadmills, an entry-level elliptical, a bike, and some weight equipment - all of this crowded into a windowless room about the size of a walk-in closet. While the equipment was in good repair (as of mid-2009), the room was not on par with the other amenities housed within the Sheraton.

One final note: this hotel is on the Phoenix/Tempe line, and Phoenix has a bit of a reputation for car theft. I would advise not parking on the perimeter of the lot, as there is a gravel ravine between it and the highway - a perfect lurking place for would-be criminals eager to do some prying and jimmying. Those cautionary words aside, the hotel itself is a good option for the traveler staying in Phoenix.