Retreat Like a Rockefeller at This Historic Arizona Hot Springs Resort

A landmark hot springs resort, reborn

Photo: Castle Hot Springs

Opened in 1896, Castle Hot Springs holds a storied past. The land was sacred to the Yavapai Tribe, used for naming ceremonies and harvesting saguaro fruit. It later became a retreat for wealthy families like the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers, and even served as a recovery site for WWII soldiers, including John F. Kennedy. After a catastrophic fire in 1976, the resort reopened in 2019, reborn as one of the country’s premier organic farm-to-table hot spring retreats, long sustained by word of mouth.

When they say farm-to-table, they mean it. My welcome drink was a vibrant hibiscus and blue spice basil tea harvested and prepared by the on-site herbalist. Shortly after check-in, I joined a farm tour where David, standing in rich soil, offered us a taste of glacier lettuce so crisp and flavorful it felt like my first true taste of produce. The secret? Regenerative farming practices nourished by mineral-rich spring water and daily serenades of Beethoven played to the crops across the farm. Whatever you don’t finish during meals is composted, and surplus produce goes to the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). It’s a lot of work, but the employees here — some who live on site — live and breathe sustainability.

Mineral-rich waters and all-around wellness

Photos: Christina Berke

Enthusiasm is contagious at Castle Hot Springs. From bell staff to yoga instructors, everyone radiates genuine passion for the land, the water, and the experience they help create. You begin to wonder: is something in the water?

Yes, actually.

The springs are rich in minerals and often dubbed a “fountain of youth” elixir: lithium (linked to mood balance), magnesium (muscle recovery), bicarbonates (alkalizing), sodium (joint relief), potassium (hydration), iron (energy), and calcium (bone strength). My hot springs guide, Amanda, giggled that the trace lithium explains why everyone seems so blissed out. Add the glittering mica (a group of silicate minerals) in the water, and the effect feels almost otherworldly.

There are three soaking pools, each naturally heated from deep within the earth. The highest pool — my favorite — rests at 106°F. The lowest, at 86°F, is used for water Qigong, watsu (or water shiatsu), and paddle yoga. Unlike many hot springs, there’s no sulfuric rotten-egg-like smell; these waters are geothermally heated rather than volcanic because they’re so much closer to the earth’s crust — only 25 miles below, compared to 45 miles elsewhere in the US. If you want to level up the healing properties, try contrast therapy by alternating between the hot springs and the cold plunge before drifting back to the resort for a drink.

Accommodations and amenities that enhance the experience

Photos: Castle Hot Springs

Disconnection is part of the resort’s design. The WiFi password cheekily asks, “Are you sure you want to?” It’s a rare invitation to unplug, to trade notifications for nature. You won’t find guests yapping into cell phones or remote workers monopolizing the best patio tables.

Still, this is far from roughing it. Each room features a private outdoor soaking tub beneath a star-filled sky, Bose speakers, local wine, and secluded patios. The hot springs are accessible 24 hours a day. (Though I admit my nervous system wasn’t quite ready for a midnight soak in pitch darkness; I lasted mere minutes before calling for a golf cart ride from Daniel, who assured me plenty of other guests prefer it in the daytime.) Turn-down service encourages screen-free evenings with bookmarks and desert-themed crossword puzzles.

With just 31 rooms, the property feels intimate rather than crowded. During the day, guests can lounge by the spring-fed pool, sip cocktails at the lobby bar, or sprawl across the lawn with life-size Jenga, chess, bocce ball, or golf. The daily activity schedule offers up to 21 experiences, from sound baths with rose quartz and tourmaline singing bowls, tai chi, Qigong (which Gen Z seems to be appreciating for its mindful movement), yoga, and meditation to guided hikes, horseback riding, e-biking, and archery. Creative souls can try painting classes, craft suncatchers from cholla cactus wood, or mix cocktails in the farm-to-bar workshop. History lovers can explore the on-site museum — home to one of Arizona’s earliest telephones, installed in 1900 — or watch the resort’s Emmy Award-winning documentary.

In-room amenities elevate the experience: Nespresso machines, local wines, Ollipop sodas, Saratoga sparkling water, organic teas, YETI ramblers for reverse osmosis refill stations, walk-up bidet toilets (a fun luxury I haven’t experienced since I lived in Korea), Dyson hair dryers, herbal bath salts, and lavender-eucalyptus toiletries.

A true farm-to-table dining program

Photos: Christina Berke

Meals are included at Castle Hot Springs, reinforcing the sense that this is a place to fully inhabit rather than dip in and out of. Executive Chef Chris Knouse and Chef de Cuisine Melqui Corleto work with just-picked produce from three acres and more than 150 crops. Each evening starts with a daily bread and butter compound and a spontaneous creation crafted about 30 minutes before service for an amuse-bouche. One was an overnight marinated turnip infused with Cara Cara salt in a verdure squash cream.

The five-course dinner menu changes daily, shaped by what the land offers, like the greenhouse tomato caprese salad with micro sunflower, house stracciatella, sunflower seeds, pickled eggplant, nasturtium pistou, and black Mexican lime salt, or the zucchini vichyssoise soup with allium and dried glacier lettuce (which was like seeing an old friend after sneaking a taste earlier on the farm). Main dish options include a choice of imperial American wagyu striploin, wild tai snapper, New Zealand venison, or the vegetarian calabacitas al pastor (pastor-style summer squash or zucchini).

Pair it with sommelier Sarah’s selection of wines or a desert-themed cocktail. Pastry Chef Lua Ragatz creates fruit-forward desserts like butterscotch banana cake with a hazelnut crunch and banana gelato. Don’t miss the lemon ricotta waffle during breakfast — a real treat complete with huckleberry compote, vanilla fluff, lemon zest, crispy basil, and poppy seeds.

Getting to Castle Hot Springs

Photo: Castle Hot Springs

Located a little more than an hour north of Phoenix, most guests drive to the resort, though helicopter transfers are available. An SUV is recommended for the final seven miles of unpaved road. Once you arrive, the slow journey is an initiation into a place where water heals, time stretches, and the desert quietly works its magic.