Ginger Songbird Martin, Cultural Concierge at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa, explains that the Pima and Maricopa people have no words for “hello” and “goodbye.” Rather the greeting is, “Welcome to my home. Good to see you. May the Creator be with you,” and the salutation, “Hope to see you soon.” A long tradition of hospitality pervades the Gila River Indian Community outside Phoenix, AZ, “We just charge $100 a night now,” says Ginger, with a wink.
For over 2,300 years the Pima culture has called this land home deftly developing a series of canals to irrigate the desert with water from the Gila River. Developers of famous Pima cotton, they are an agricultural society and farming is still the third largest economic engine. Yet the tradition of hospitality drives the community today. Having developed an early resort and casino, the tribal elders went a step further contracting the Starwood Group, parent of Sheraton hotels, to work with them developing a resort that would reflect both their culture and hard won water rights.
Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa
Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa is a luxurious adobe-like structure set amidst a lush desert landscape of wet lands, small lakes, soaring soroyo cactus and mountains on the banks of the Gila River. It’s as perfect a classic southwest setting as it gets. The celebration of water is not wasteful exuberance. The Gila River was the tribe’s life blood guaranteed even by federal law after both the Mexican and Civil Wars. Yet diversion of the river by white settlers resulted in mass starvation and finally, in 2004, the successful settlement of a 118 year old law suit granting the community 52% ownership of all water rights in the State of Arizona.
Upon entering the lobby one knows you're not in a chain resort. The soaring bi-level lobby’s dome is painted with an immense circular mural depicting the Pima’s creation story. An expansive two story tall floor to ceiling glass wall provides a panorama of the desert landscape. The staircase descending to the lower lobby curves around a huge rock waterfall cascading into a landscaped pond below and flowing out to the pools beyond the glass wall. To the right is an architectural, and scientifically accurate, recreation of the famous solstice windows of the ruins of Casa Grande, an Arizona national monument. All the furniture was custom designed to follow traditional styles and the art on display throughout the resort is by native artists.
The circular design of the lobby and creation mural mimics the Pima’s traditional round home design and speaks of the Man in the Maze story that life’s journey starts before birth, continues through this world and then into the afterlife. The elders, Ginger tells us, plan for seven generations inclusive of ancestors, the living and the future unborn.
Try a Blue Coyote Wrap at the Aji Spa
Aji Spa at Wild Horse Pass offers a unique experience which, once more, complements Gila River Community ethos and provides luxurious treatment for your skin. The Blue Coyote Wrap is based on the Pima legend of the Bluebird and the Coyote and, although the moral of the story is not to be ashamed of the natural color of one’s skin, the spa deftly adapts this tale to create a treatment that leaves your skin refreshed but natural.
A very mild abrasive blue paste mixture of natural minerals is applied to your entire body. Lying in a wonderfully relaxing aromatherapy steam capsule for 15 minutes your skin’s toxins and tensions are gently released. After a shower and an hour long fragrant oil massage, your spirit is carefree and your skin as smooth as silk. I’ve had a number of spa treatments and this, by far, ranked as the very best.
Kai Restaurant
Kai is the Wild Horse Pass Resort’s award winning premiere restaurant and an innovator of Native American cuisine. Food writer Marian Betancourt and Kai’s brilliant team of chefs have recently published a cookbook, The New Native American Cuisine. Recipes for Rack of Lamb with Recado Rub and Gluten-Free Multigrain Bread demonstrate both the origins of southwestern cuisine and the timeless nature of traditional native grains. The menu is a fusion of traditional native foods, locally sourced, time honored classic preparations and stunningly imaginative reductions, pairings of grains, vegetables and use of herbs.
As part of an International Food, Wine and Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA) food and wine media tour sponsored by Trish Hendrickson of the Phoenix CVB and Stephanie Heckathorne, PR Director of Wild Horse Pass Resort, we were feted with a sumptuous tasting menu highlighting the genius of this kitchen and their fine selection of local Arizona wines with some vintages grown on Native American vineyards. Under the direction of manager Frank Giannotti, was an impressive display of Russian Service. Rarely executed within the United States, and quite a surprise given the overall setting, Russian Service is the synchronized swimming of table service pairing one server with one guest and every motion performed by all servers on cue. Befitting its awards and Five Diamond designation, plates and silverware were either chilled or heated depending on the nature of each course.
In this day of homogenized resort hotels, Sheraton’s Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa, and Kai Restaurant, will inspire the adventurous visitor with excursions covering Gila River Community activities, foods of the desert and the culture involving tribal elders, artists and storytellers. Naturally, it provides all the luxury and amenities any one desires with the stunning backgdrop of southern Arizona to complete the tableau.
Marc d'Entremont - Years of experience as a chef, historian and teacher guides my travel and food writing. I explore all things that shape a culture.
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