The Arizona Biltmore has long been a destination of choice for discriminating travelers, couples seeking a pampering getaway in an historic setting, families looking for amenities and services for all ages, or would be homebuyers who are looking to purchase a Scottsdale or Phoenix home for sale.

Opening to great fanfare in 1929, the legendary Arizona Biltmore was the original Arizona resort, helping to set the stage for the development of the state into a major tourist destination. With its luxurious facilities and distinctive Frank Lloyd Wright-influenced design, the Biltmore has long been a playground for the rich and famous and has wined and dined literally multiple generations of celebrities.

Frank Lloyd Wright was actually the consulting architect on the Biltmore; he collaborated with a former student, Albert Chase McArthur, who was the elder brother of the resort’s original owners. (The McArthurs were wealthy Chicagoans who owned the local Dodge franchise). It was Wright’s first hotel project and remains the only existing hotel in the world with a Frank Lloyd Wright design.

The Arizona Biltmore was constructed entirely of “Biltmore Block,” a variation on a textile block first used by Wright to build private homes. The pre-cast blocks were made from desert sand on-site and created in 34 different geometric patterns inspired by the trunk of a palm tree. As a reminder that Arizona was known as the Copper State, the hotel was adorned with a glittering copper roof and the lobby boasts a gold-leaf ceiling that was, and still is, the second largest in the world after the Taj Mahal.

With the construction estimate of $1 million doubling, the McArthur brothers lost the hotel to one of the original investors in the project, chewing-gum magnate William Wrigley, Jr., who became the sole owner in 1930. Over the course of the next 43 years, the Wrigley family owned and operated the Biltmore and, under their aegis, it became world-renowned as a preferred luxury oasis for celebrities, heads of state, captains of industry and politicians and presidents. In 1973, the Wrigley family sold the resort to Talley Industries, and since that time, the resort has seen a wealth of stunning expansions and enhancements, achieving the highest luxury standards while faithfully preserving the Biltmore’s historic design and atmosphere.

Over the past eight decades, countless notables have enjoyed the Biltmore’s famed ambience and luxurious setting. The guest list includes ‘back in the day’ Hollywood stars such as Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, Gracie Allen and George Burns, Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra and Bob Hope. Meanwhile, a list of more recent well-known guests includes George Clooney, Tom Cruise, Michael Douglas, Whoopi Goldberg, Steven Spielberg and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Source: www.ArizonaBiltmore.com; information used with permission

Article Source: Russ Lyon blog