Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Spring 2013 - (Page 64)
FA M I LY T R AV E L
DESERT
HEARTS
JUST OUTSIDE OF TUCSON
LIES A FAMILY-FRIENDLY
OASIS. SHOSHANA BERGER
BRINGS THE BROOD
PH OTOGRAPHS BY TONY SAXE
T
AH, WILDERNESS
Clockwise from top left:
Cleo and Judah in their
bedroom tent; the family
says “hi” just outside
their casita; Cleo
lassoing the bull head.
64
W W W. R I T Z C A R LT O N . C O M
The stewardess winces a little, saying we may
have chosen the coldest weekend of the year
to visit Tucson. I turn to my husband and say,
“Isn’t Arizona supposed to be the Florida of
the West?” He shakes his head, worried it will
be too chilly for any of the adventures we’ve
planned. We’re wimpy Californians. Forty
degrees in our foggy, single-paned hometown
can feel like Siberia. But when we touch down,
the desert air is sunny and inviting.
We hop in a cab and head northwest
through Tucson. As we climb into the foothills, Cleo, our 6-year-old daughter, and Judah,
our 5-year-old son, watch the city give way
to a stark lunar landscape. Noses pressed to
the windows, they point to the prickly pear
and towering saguaro cactuses that dot this
scrubby frontier. Mesquite and ironwood trees
offer the only shade under a sky so blue, it
looks electric. There’s a hyperreal quality to
this place, as if we’ve just landed on the dusty
set of a Peckinpah movie.
Forty minutes later, we pass the first sign for
Dove Mountain, a Ritz-Carlton resort with a
main hotel, a casita village, five restaurants and
lounges, a spa, tennis courts and a golf course.
“Here we are!” I say, expecting to see the hotel
rise up like a monolith. But it’s another mile
before it comes into view. The complex is
designed to blend organically into 850 acres of
Sonoran Desert — and it does.
After we check in, just past noon, we’d
happily walk the short distance to our suite,
but succumb instead to Gustavo, our golf-cart
driver, who takes us up the hill to the casita
village. Passing one of three outdoor swimming
pools, he points out a 235-foot water slide built
into a rocky slope. Cleo squeals with delight,
imagining the thrill ride in her future.
The first thing Tony and I notice when we
enter our casita: the airy, dramatic views of the
Tortolita Mountains and the Wild Burro Canyon.
The first thing the kids notice: the in-room
camping service. “Dad, you’re not going to
http://WWW.RITZCARLTON.COM
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Spring 2013
Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Spring 2013
Contents
Contributors
Editor’s Letter
President’s Letter
Falling in Love With ... Los Angeles
Design
Technology
On the Boulevards
Shopping
Jewelry
Watches
Family
Local Knowledge
Sports
Abu Dhabi
Seoul
Fashion
Culinary
Let Us Stay With You
Heritage
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