The Tubac Golf Resort and Spa is the ideal destination if you want a relaxing getaway to a warm and sunny destination that’s not overcrowded. Tubac, Arizona averages 284 days of sunshine each year making it an ideal location for a vacation destination. The sky was a brilliant shade of blue for our entire visit. The town of Tubac sits at an elevation of 3,209 feet. The weather here is more refreshing than in Phoenix, a significant benefit in the warm summer months. Late autumn high temperatures average in the high 70’s and winter temperatures still reach the mid to upper 60’s most days. The town is located in southern Arizona, 20 miles north of the Mexican border and only 30 minutes south of Tucson, Arizona.

Miles or Kilometers?

Fun fact: Driving south from Tucson on US Interstate 19 in Arizona you’ll notice that the highway signs list distance in kilometers instead of miles. You’re still in the United States, yet I-19 is the country’s only continuous highway that uses kilometers instead of miles.

Tubac Golf Resort and Spa

This week we set off to enjoy this part of Arizona that we’d never visited. Our home away from home while we were exploring the area would be The Tubac Golf Resort and Spa. The resort is listed in the Historic Hotels of America registry. Also, the resort was recently awarded the prestigious AAA Four Diamond designation! We’d heard great things about the resort, and we were excited to visit and check it out for ourselves.

Room Types

Hacienda Suite

We stayed in a King Hacienda Suite. The spacious 650-square foot room was larger than most hotel rooms and very comfortable for our visit. From the Saltillo tiles on the floor and the exposed beams on the ceiling to the beehive fireplace in the corner of the room, the feel was rustic yet sophisticated.

The bed was a spacious king-sized bed with a carved wood headboard.

In the bathroom, there was a double vanity, jetted soaking tub, and walk-in shower.  

Down two small steps, there was a sunken living room sitting area with leather furniture, a loveseat, and two comfortable chairs.

Casita Suite

The resort also has one and two-bedroom casita suites.  These have separate bedrooms and are perfect for larger families.

Posada Room

If you’re traveling alone or don’t require as much space the resort also has traditional guest rooms with one king or two queen beds.

Conveniences

The resort is recognized as a historic hotel, yet our guest room wasn’t without modern amenities.  The suite was equipped with wi-fi, and there was a beautiful, rich mesquite-wood counter with a desk area for working. The desk had ample outlets and two USB charging ports within easy reach. A large flat-screen television was located in the living room.

Room Amenities

A standard mini-fridge and copper bar sink allowed us to keep cold drinks ready for sipping on our lovely private patio. The Keurig coffee maker brewed coffee for a morning cup of Joe. The rooms are all ground floor units, and each hacienda had a private patio. Ours overlooked the lush green grass. 

A table and two chairs made this the perfect location for enjoying morning coffee and an afternoon glass of wine. Across the grassy courtyard, there was an excellent view of the picturesque wedding chapel.

Comfort

The comfortable king-sized bed had abundant pillows and crisp white linens and a soft down comforter. Two plush white robes were provided for our use.  A hairdryer, magnifying make-up mirror, room safe, ironing board, and iron were also provided.

The softly-scented signature toiletries provided in-room were replenished daily and included shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, body wash, soap, shower cap, and a makeup remover cloth.

Decor

The decor is best described as traditional Southwestern, and the architecture is reminiscent of Spanish colonial times. Heavy carved wooden furniture, leather sofas and chairs, mesquite wood surfaces, traditional Spanish tile work, and different woven textiles gave the room character and a classic yet cozy feeling.

Watch an evening tour of our room here:

Golf

Golf is a featured activity offered by the resort.  The mature 27-hole championship golf course is challenging for all levels. 

There’s a full-service golf shop and excellent practice facilities with one of the best driving ranges in the state. Guests of the resort enjoy preferred tee times. The course offers three distinct nines.

The spacious golf locker rooms are a beautiful display of polished mesquite wood.

Hollywood Tie-in: Tin Cup

On the topic of golf, it’s interesting to note that several scenes from the movie Tin Cup starring Kevin Costner and Rene Russo were filmed here. Holes three and four of the Rancho course both feature prominently in the film. Read about the details of the movie scenes in my Tubac Golf Resort activities post.

Spa

When I’m planning a relaxing vacation getaway, I always look for a resort with quality spa services.  The spa services offered at Tubac Golf Resort and Spa were a big draw for me. Read about our spa day experiences in this post here.

Dining

If you’re relaxed and enjoying your room too much to leave, room service dining is offered.  The in-room dining menu closely resembles the offerings at the Stables Ranch Grille.

Stables Ranch Grille

This hacienda-style historic restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

After a full day of sightseeing in and around Tubac, we were happy to have reservations in place for dinner at Stables Ranch Grille. Stables is conveniently located on the resort grounds. The restaurant is housed in the building that was formerly the horse stables when the ranch was operational back in 1789. The historic restaurant has served many celebrities over the years.  In the book A Pictorial History of Tubac, I found a photo of John Wayne enjoying a meal at Stables circa 1960. A copy of the book was located on the coffee table in our guest room.

Dinner

Our meal started with a breadboard of both sourdough and olive bread served with soft butter.

For our salad course, we ordered the iceberg wedge salad. The large wedge was topped with tomatoes, bacon, green onion, blue cheese, and a creamy buttermilk ranch dressing.  

If you’re a beef lover like me, I recommend you choose the local beef rib-eye. The steak was served with broccolini, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, and a port wine demi sauce. The steak was cooked perfectly to a nice medium-rare.

We enjoyed our dinner at Stables so much we returned for a second dinner later in our stay. We’d noticed that the menu featured a pork schnitzel dinner.  It seemed out of character for the area. I asked our server about this, and he explained that the resort formerly had a German chef and that this was a featured recipe of his.  Following his recommendation, we ordered the schnitzel, and we were delighted.

The schnitzel was every bit as delicious as the schnitzel I enjoyed in beer gardens in Germany this past summer!  This classic pork schnitzel was served atop warm German potato salad and alongside sautéed fresh Haricort Verts. The portions were very generous here. We knew this from our previous dinner, so we both ordered a cobb salad and split the schnitzel entrée.  Even with sharing the main course, my portion was more than I could finish!

Drinks

The pub at Stables is a fun location for cocktails and a quick snack or light lunch.  Several of the bar stools are real saddles! You can’t beat the novelty of sitting on a saddle-stool at the bar while enjoying a beer.

Traditional bar stools, as well as tables and chairs, are also available for anyone not interested in sitting on a saddle or wearing a dress. The bar is made of mesquite wood.

Breakfast

When enjoying breakfast at Stables, I recommend dining on the large covered patio.  The view across the lake and over the deep green hills of the golf course is a perfectly relaxing way to start the morning.

Staff

One highlight of our stay was the staff. Every staff member we encountered seemed to genuinely enjoy his or her job.  Their enthusiasm for the resort and the surrounding town was evident and contagious. Although this was our first visit to Tubac Golf Resort and Spa, it’ll definitely not be our last.

Resort Tour

To give you a feel for the layout of the resort, I took a walk around and made a video of some of the buildings. I’m still new at making videos, please forgive the bloopers!

Area Activities

To read about activities at the resort and fun things to do in the area, check out my other blog posts.

You can learn more about the Tubac Golf Resort and Spa, the perfect place for a weekend getaway or a week-long escape, and book a room of your own here.

 

Thank you to Tubac Golf Resort and Spa for hosting our stay in the Tubac area. All opinions are my own.

 

What features do you look for in a resort hotel? Let me know in the comments.

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