The Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage

We stayed one night using my Ritz-Carlton credit card free night certificate to celebrate my daughter’s upcoming 10th birthday—and it was lovely. The hotel upgraded us to a spacious deluxe 2-bed room (worth $1,600!) and spoiled my daughter with special treats. Front desk staff were warm, offered early check-in (11 a.m.) and late check-out (1 p.m.), and made us feel incredibly welcome. The grounds are stunning with panoramic views of Coachella Valley and easy access to three scenic trails. The Edge steakhouse was phenomenal—the Wagyu filet was perfection, and the staff handled my husband’s picky steak requests with grace. Downsides: Poolside service was very slow, Chase flagged our charges as fraud (and the front desk called us at 11 p.m. about it), and valet-only parking made quick car access a hassle. Still, a fantastic, family-friendly Ritz experience. Not quite Grand Cayman-level, but close.

Extremely rude front desk staff. Asked for a different room (that I would happily pay for) and was told the hotel was fully committed.. yet, every single room category is available online. The staff act as if this hotel is an Aman property… where in fact it’s a basic Ritz Carlton… basic at best. Rooms are not clean, hotel is understaffed. Certainly not worth the money.

My husband and I spent a long weekend at the Ritz Rancho Mirage. It was our first trip to Palm Desert and we were eager to check into our hotel room. Avery greeted me at the front desk and acknowledged my Bonvoy status. I had booked through a preferred partner, and Avery was able to upgrade my room (thank you, Avery!). My husband and I had breakfast at the hotel each day which was delicious. Ruben at the front desk made some fantastic recommendations for trails to walk by the property, speakeasies to check out in the evening, etc. Dennis at the concierge recommended a great restaurant, Mitch’s. He also told us about Pioneertown which was fun to check out for a morning. Overall, the staff at this Ritz were upbeat and approachable. They were always saying hello, holding doors open, offering you water- these are the small touches you expect from a five star hotel. I would absolutely book here again!

I want to try and be balanced in my review. I’ll start by saying there is nothing wrong with the Ritz in Rancho Mirage. Having said that, it seems that all of the amazing things, like first rate service, and attention to detail, that the Ritz brand used to represent have now been “Marriott-itized” and unfortunately the hotel is more like a 4.5 star that has lost its way. Don’t get me wrong. Marriotts are perfectly serviceable and reliable. But I wish, instead of dumbing down the Ritz Carlton brand, Marriott decisions makers had made space to allow the elegance, service, traditions of the Ritz brand to lead the group.

I expected much more from The Ritz-Carlton Rancho Mirage, especially for nearly $1,000 a night. The room was disappointing—poor quality overall, with a leaking shower head and a drain that wasn’t working properly. It definitely didn’t feel like a luxury experience. The only reason I’m giving more than 1 star is because the pool area was nice and somewhat made up for the stay.