What is Sheraton Desert Oasis?
Sheraton Desert Oasis Villas is a timeshare resort on Hayden Road in north Scottsdale, part of the Marriott Vacation Clubs family, and it’s best understood as a neighborhood of vacation apartments built around a big family pool. Some villas belong to owners who return every year. The rest are rented by the night to people who want more space than a hotel room offers.
The villas are generous. A standard one-bedroom is about 500 square feet, a premium one-bedroom about 790, and the two-bedroom lock-off about 1,290 square feet, sleeping eight and splitting into two units with their own doors. Each has a kitchen or kitchenette, a washer and dryer, separate living and dining areas and a furnished balcony looking out over the desert landscaping.
The center of the resort is a 4,500-square-foot pool with a cascading waterfall and sun deck. Around it are a quieter relaxation pool strung with hammocks, a splash pad, two playground areas, a spa grotto and barbecue grills. The Splash Bar & Grille handles smoothies and casual poolside food. That’s the full restaurant program, so the kitchen gets used.
Two details set it apart from much of north Scottsdale. Marriott lists no resort fee, which is rare here. And the location, a few minutes from TPC Scottsdale, the Fairmont Princess and WestWorld, suits golf trips and event weeks. It’s for families, multigenerational groups and anyone staying long enough to want a washing machine. People who want nightlife, a spa or a walk to dinner should look at Old Town or the Kierland and Quarter district.
How to do Sheraton Desert Oasis right
Book the lock-off. The two-bedroom lock-off villa is the best value on the property: two connected units that lock off from each other, each with its own entrance. Two couples, a family with teenagers, or grandparents with the grandkids next door all fit without stepping on each other.
Use the pool’s schedule. Families take over the main pool and splash pad by late morning in season. Swim early, retreat to the hammocks at the relaxation pool when the main deck gets loud, and use the barbecue grills for an easy dinner instead of driving out every night.
Ask about the night sky. The resort has run dark-sky viewing evenings with a telescope on its patio. Ask whether they’re on the current activity calendar. North Scottsdale’s skies are darker than visitors from big cities expect.
Eat out nearby. The Princess’s restaurants are a short drive and open to everyone, including Bourbon Steak, La Hacienda and Ironwood American Kitchen. Toro at the TPC clubhouse is close too. For a walkable night out, Scottsdale Quarter is about ten minutes south.
Plan around event weeks and 2027. The WM Phoenix Open, Barrett-Jackson and the Arabian Horse Show jam the roads nearby in January and February. Separately, the resort has scheduled a villa refurbishment from April to October 2027, with daytime construction noise. Ask about it if your dates fall then.
Know the policies. No pets except service animals. Parking information varies between listings, so confirm with the resort.
A Sheraton timeshare and the corporate deals behind it
Sheraton Desert Oasis opened in 1999, at the end of a decade that reshaped north Scottsdale. The Scottsdale Princess had opened beside TPC Scottsdale in 1987, the Phoenix Open had moved to the stadium course, and the Airpark’s offices and hangars sat just to the south. Hayden Road north of Bell became a natural place for the second wave of lodging: villas and suites that borrowed the Princess district’s golf and sunshine at a fraction of its cost.
The resort’s corporate history explains its name. It was developed as a Sheraton-branded timeshare and sold through Starwood Vacation Ownership, the time-share arm of the company that owned the Sheraton and Westin flags. Starwood’s timeshare business, by then called Vistana Signature Experiences, was spun off in 2016 and bought by Interval Leisure Group. In 2018 Marriott Vacations Worldwide announced a $4.7 billion deal for ILG, and with it came long-term rights to the Sheraton and Westin names for vacation ownership. In April 2023, Marriott Vacation Club, Sheraton Vacation Club and Westin Vacation Club were brought together as the Marriott Vacation Clubs. Desert Oasis kept its Sheraton name through all of it.
The layout is typical of timeshare design in the late 1990s. Big villas are built to be split, so a two-bedroom can be sold or rented as two units. Kitchens and laundry let owners stay for a week or a month. The pool is designed for families, and the restaurant is a poolside grill instead of a fine-dining room. That formula was aimed at families and snowbirds from colder states looking for a reliable winter base, and it still works.
The honest assessment: it’s a pleasant, practical resort with very large rooms, not a destination in itself, and ownership is marketed on site. But the villa sizes, the waterfall pool and the absence of a resort fee add up to one of the better-value large-group stays in this part of Scottsdale, with TPC and the Princess district just up the road.