With a 50,000 point Marriott Award night certificate to burn, I began looking to see what kind of properties were available for my road-trip out to Zion National Park.
I found two Marriott Category 6 properties (with standard redemption rates of 50,000 points per night), the Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park and the SpringHill Suites Springdale Zion National Park.
I chose the Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park, but was it a good choice?
Review: Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park
Full Disclosure: We visited this hotel during the pandemic (when resort services were limited).Â
The view from above. Image: marriott.com
Marriott Bonvoy Rewards Booking
First things first, I decided against using my 50,000 point Marriott Bonvoy award night on Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park.
Why? Because that would have been a huge waste, especially considering that it’s possible to use these 50,000 award nights on places like The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay, which can go for over $1,100 a night.
At the time of my booking, the Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park went for $165.01. This would have been the perfect time to use a bank currency like Chase’s Ultimate Rewards (which would have cost just 11,000 UR points) or Citi’s Thank You points (which would have went for 13,200 points), but I instead opted to just pay cash because I was just two nights away from Bonvoy Platinum status and I needed the night’s credit.
Location
The most important thing to note is the Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park is about a 20-minute car ride from the town of Springdale and the gates of Zion National Park (although it feels further).
Arrival
Arriving at the hotel, it became apparent that the Fairfield Inn was an isolated property.
This meant nearby outside dining and shopping options were limited at best (non-existent).
Image: marriott.com
Image: marriott.com
Image: marriott.com
The Front Desk, Check-In, And Lobby
The front desk staff were friendly and helpful and quickly checked us in.
I was recognized for my Bonvoy status (Gold at the time), although I was not given an upgrade.
We asked about close-by dining options and were told, “there really weren’t any”.
Due to the pandemic, most of the dinner options were closed – and the drive back to Springdale was too far – so we decided on buying a frozen Lean Cuisine spaghetti from the convenience store and hunkering down for the night.
Image: marriott.com
Image: marriott.com
The Room Key
The Bedroom
The bedroom came with two king beds and was clean and comfortable with a decor I’d call “1990’s generic”.
There was a microwave oven so we could properly enjoy our Lean Cuisines from the comfort of our room.
The Bathroom
The bathroom was large, clean, well-lit and “generic” as well.
The Paul Mitchell Teatree brand was the hotel’s toiletry of choice.
The Swimming Pool
One of the best features of this hotel was its huge swimming pool area.
The pool itself was massive, with a kiddie pool and jacuzzi both steps away.
With the “raining mushrooms”, it was a perfect place for the kids and families to hang out as long as they were liberally lathered up with sunscreen (we saw some people with some really nasty sunburns).
There was also an outdoor shower area stocked with shampoo, conditioner, and body-wash.
Image: marriott.com
Image: marriott.com
Breakfast (Grab And Go)
One of the best things about the Fairfield Inn and Suites was that they provided free breakfast even during the pandemic.
The breakfast offerings consisted of “grab and go” breakfast bags and a “touch-less” coffee bar (where the drinks were made to order).
Image: marriott.com
Image: marriott.com
Dinner At The Convenience Store
This is it, the spot where we ordered our Lean Cuisine dinner (the frozen items were kept behind the front desk).
Image: marriott.com
The Fitness Center
Image: marriott.com
The Laundry Room
Image: marriott.com
The Bottom-Line Review: Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park
Overall, our Fairfield Inn & Suites Virgin Zion National Park was an OK stay.
The property is large, clean, and had some amazing views of the surrounding area.
Breakfast was free, the coffee was good, and the cash price was reasonable (just don’t waste 50,000 points or your award nights here. A Category 6 hotel? Really Marriott???).
I don’t really have any major gripes, although I would have wished the hotel was a little closer to Zion National Park and that it had it’s own [real] dinner option being that it was so isolated (nothing against Lean Cuisine).
With that said, it was a pleasant stay at a basic hotel.
Final Rating: 6.75 out of 10.
