Even though my fiancé and I live in Tucson, we decided to take a short break from our daily routine and stay the weekend at one of our local resorts. While there are many fantastic Tucson resorts to choose from, we finally decided on the Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa.

We arrived Saturday morning after requesting an early check-in, and were impressed by the atmosphere of the resort. Even though we are accustomed to Tucson's incredible scenery, it was obvious the Starr Pass Resort was designed to keep visitors entranced by the view. We immediately felt like we were truly on vacation! Our room was on the 4th floor and looked Northeast over the swimming pool, toward Tucson and the Catalina Mountains. For a while we just stood on our balcony and took in the view, but the day was gorgeous and the swimming pool beckoned.

Donning our bathing suits and towels, we meandered down to the huge pool and found a couple unoccupied lounge chairs to enjoy the day. We swam, basked in the sun, read our books and just enjoyed the day. As more guests appeared, we watched kids playing in the shallow upper pool as well as the "Dancing Springs" fountain. But from behind us, the laughter of children playing was even more intriguing and we followed the sound. What we found was the "Starr Pass River," a shallow, meandering, "river" of slowly moving water. Stacks of inflatable tubes were off to one side so we grabbed a two-person tube and joined in the fun.  The river pushed us along under jets of water, bridges, and even past a water slide. We spent the better part of the day just gazing at the mountains as we drifted lazily along.

But we couldn't stay too long, because I had booked us a couple's massage right at the Marriott's own Hashani Spa. We cleaned up and headed back downstairs to the quiet, relaxing ambiance of the spa. Before our massage, we were free to partake of the Spa pool (separate from the other swimming pool), but I just went into the men's area and enjoyed the hot tub, steam room and a huge, private shower. Bundled in a thick bathrobe and slippers, and relaxed from the steam room, I meandered into our designated massage room along with my fiancé. There, we both got incredible, hour-long massages. My fiancé opted for a lighter massage, while I chose (at times to my dismay) a deep-tissue massage. But even though the massage was a bit intense at times, I came away from it completely relaxed and rejuvenated.

After our spa and massage, we had to get ready for our dinner reservations at Primo. The Starr Pass Marriott actually has a few different restaurants from casual to fine dining, but we chose Primo because it specializes in using organic, locally grown ingredients. Well, that and we LOVE Italian food! Without a doubt, this was one of the best meals we've had in Tucson, and the service was unobtrusive, friendly, and prompt.  Our server was so aware of our needs we didn't have to ask for anything.

Full of wonderful food and good wine, we headed back upstairs to our room. We enjoyed the evening lights of Tucson and balmy night while enjoying some champagne. But the full day of relaxing and indulging had us wavering on the edge of sleep so we decided to call it a night.

Waking up late the next morning fully refreshed, we enjoyed a casual breakfast downstairs and lingered outside as much as we could. But soon enough we had to face reality, and headed back to our room to pack. We were checked out quickly by the friendly staff and soon enough, headed back across town to our own home, relishing the time well-spent in our weekend getaway.

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