Best Resort Hotels in USA

Stay among the gated communities of Rancho Mirage, in this Ritz-Carlton property overlooking Coachella Valley — the hotel’s Edge Steakhouse offers some of the best vistas. The hotel opened in 1988 but has been modernised many times since. It has two restaurants serving seasonal dishes, two pools surrounded by plush exclusive cabanas and a high tech fitness centre. Its spa treatments take their inspiration from the surrounding land, using indigenous botanicals within the treatments. And guests can join yoga classes or request personal training sessions. Bedrooms exude a typical Palm Springs feel, with polished dark wood, offset by light-coloured soft furnishings.

Set on a sweeping stretch of white-sand shoreline within a 125 acre coastal estate, Naples Beach Club, A Four Seasons Resort in Southwest Florida introduces a new standard of beachfront luxury with 220 rooms, 57 suites, and a collection of Four Seasons managed residences for those seeking long term coastal living. The décor blends soft coastal tones with refined natural materials, creating a calm, elegant ambience throughout the resort. Rooms offer terraces with ocean views, generous wardrobes, carved timber details, painted panelling and bespoke cabinetry, capturing a sense of contemporary coastal living.

Dining options range from laid-back beachfront dishes to polished brasserie-style cooking at The Merchant Room led by Chef Gavin Kaysen. Wellness is a central focus, with the two-level Sanctuary Spa, a thermal circuit, treatment suites, and a rooftop lap pool. The resort also features a 24 hour fitness centre, two outdoor pools, racquet courts, easy access to water sports and the estate’s golf experience includes a Tom Fazio designed course which will open in 2026.

Within close proximity to the Everglades guests can embark upon ecological adventures, take a private excursion on a 34 foot Hinckley Picnic Boat or wander into Old Naples Historic Third Street and 5th Avenue to explore the city’s boutiques, galleries, and waterfront lifestyle.

Occupying 16 acres, this 2009 build (renovated in 2020), has a more resort feel, with sprawling grounds incorporating courtyard gardens, a chic pool terrace and low-rise accommodation. It has 121 bedrooms and a Forbes Five Star rating. Guest amenities include a Sense Spa, an Alex Chases Salon and meeting rooms including a glittering 2,800-square-foot ballroom. Madera is the hotel’s signature restaurant, with a wood-burning kitchen cooking up Bay Area favourites and private dining areas. Additionally, there’s The Library & Bar for cocktails and light bites and The Pool Bar & Grill for snacks, sandwiches and smoothies.

Spa lovers will find they’re never far from a quality wellness resort in Phoenix. And one such, is the JW Marriott Desert Ridge, Arizona’s largest hotel. It has 950 guestrooms, including 81 suites, and occupies 316 acres of the Sonoran Desert, on the perimeter with Scottsdale. The AAA Four-Diamond and Forbes Recommended award-winning property has superb views of the McDowell Mountains. Its many amenities include five restaurants and a lounge, large meeting spaces, a spa, tennis courts, a lake with inbuilt fountains and bridges over, a golf course and five freeform, lap and river-style outdoor pools.

A brand renowned for its culinary offer, this Four Seasons holds up its reputation. Ravello serves fine Mediterranean cuisine alongside fine vintages – as well as hosting a bi-weekly Disney character breakfast. Stay here and you can enjoy the early entry theme park privilege otherwise reserved for Disney’s own on-site hotels. You’ll be transferred via private coach service from this gated community to the four parks. The architecture is reminiscent of Spain, while interior decor echoes contemporary Italian style. Two infinity pools enable families and adults to enjoy some sun-time separately – the child-friendly one has waterslides and a lazy river.

Formerly the Cottonwood Suites, this property has been operating as the Andaz Resort (part of the Hyatt Group) since 2014. Its 185 bungalows and suites sit within 23 acres of land in the shadow of Camelback Mountain. The design here blends a midcentury vibe, with a modern arty feel. Onsite are three pools, one of which is within the Palo Verde Spa & Apothecary, where guests can also indulge in treatments — indoors or out. Areas of the grounds are strung with twinkling lights, planted with giant cacti and punctuated with glowing uber-modern outdoor fires. Guests at the Andaz dine beside the open kitchen in a funky restaurant.

Found in the Montecito area of the city, this is a five-star hotel situated right on the beach — a rarity in Santa Barbara. Guests can arrive in the Rosewood’s chauffeur-driven open-top Rolls Royce — it has a personal touch, as indeed does the entire experience of staying here. The hotel looks more like a lavish New England home than a hotel and the service adds to this vibe. Both adults-only groups and families are catered for, with pools for each. There are outdoor hot tubs, a kids club, beach butlers, ball courts, shuffleboard games, two boutiques (including Gwyneth Paltrow’s goop) and a Sense Spa using local ingredients. Dining options include the popular Malibu Farm.

Surrounded by hundreds of acres of vineyards and a backdrop of forests and mountains, the Four Seasons Resort and Residences offers a supreme location. It’s set on a highly esteemed vineyard in Calistoga and is brand new for November 2021. The resort has 85 bedrooms and suites and a stone spa sanctuary with the option of alfresco treatments using local mud. The dining offer includes Truss, with its signature farm-to-table dishes, a Californian-Mexican open-air eatery and a wine tasting room. There are two outdoor pools one of which is adults only and a programme of activities for younger guests, making it ideal for families wishing to relax together.

Offering a contemporary take on the classic yacht club lifestyle, this oceanfront property by Four Seasons opened its doors in 2022. The 22-storey building on Fort Lauderdale beach is the work of Miami-based architect Kobi Karp, with interior touches by the London-based Tara Bernerd and Partners and Martin Brudnizki Design Studio. It features 189 guest rooms and suites, a spa, multiple pool terrace, The Honey Fitz cafe and lounge (named after John F. Kennedy’s presidential yacht) and Evelyn’s restaurant (in homage to local luminary Evelyn Fortune Lilly Bartlett), serving eastern Mediterranean discovery menus and Levant-inspired cocktails.

First imagined by the French restauranteur Claude Claude Rouas in the 1980s, this was the valley’s original fine-dining destination. Here hotel guests get a taste of Provence, surrounded by US wine country. There are 50 bedrooms at the property ranging from private Maisons to classic rooms. But of course, it’s the culinary offer that is the highlight at Auberge du Soleil. Three and four-course set menus are offered alongside five and six-course tasting menus – these are sensory experiences that excite the pallet. Meals are accompanied by French-inspired cocktails, bubbles from the tableside champagne cart and of course the extensive wine list. There’s also a bistro and bar for a more relaxed approach to mealtime, with stunning sunset views at the end of the day. Auberge du Soleil has been in receipt of a Michelin star for 14 consecutive years.

This Forbes Five-Star and AAA Five-Diamond luxury resort has an enviable coastal location in a quiet neighbourhood, along with excellent amenities. There’s an 18-hole Arnold Palmer designed golf course, first-rate tennis courts, a spa with 20 treatment rooms, an adult-only pool and cabanas, waterslides for the kids, and a sociable programme of varied activities ideal for those travelling solo. The Park Hyatt Aviara is sizable – it has 327 spacious rooms and lots going on throughout the day and night. This makes it perfect for families – or single travellers – wanting plenty to do, both in and around the hotel’s perimeter.

Having opened in 1991, the island’s Ritz-Carlton became an AAA Five-Diamond resort, with its Sandcastle Concierge and direct beach access, an 18-hole championship golf course and an ocean-inspired spa offering a signature “Heaven in a Hammock” massage. Salt is the seafood signature dining venue (so named as it incorporates 40 different salts in the dishes); Coast is a casual alfresco eatery; Coquina is a poolside/oceanfront restaurant; and there’s Tidewater Grill for Lowcountry fare. First Call in The Lobby Bar provides a daily bourbon-based libation and First Drop serves coffee. The hotel has its own signature scent; Votivo 52, which you can buy and take home to recall the feeling of staying on Amelia Island.