Resorts

Summers are sizzlers in Scottsdale, Ariz., but here's a hotel deal that might take your mind off the heat. The deal: Spend $100 and receive a $100 dining credit at the Millennium Resort Scottsdale McCormick Ranch. The hotel's See, Sun and Save package offers guests room rates as low as $100 a night. Participants receive a food and beverage credit for $100 that can be used at the resort's Pinon Grill, Diamondbacks Lounge or Cabana Bar & Grill or for room service.

Fantasy Island, the 23-acre entertainment venue that has been the source of numerous legal battles over the last five years, will be offered for sale at a public auction July 9. The property is owned by members of the Datner family. In the past, homeowners on Triunfo Canyon Road had complained that the resort was too noisy and caused traffic congestion. Neighboring residents have filed hundreds of complaints concerning zoning permits and business licenses.

Hilton Hotels Corp. said it will invest as much as $400 million in Hilton Hawaiian Village and take a controlling interest in the resort, which it now owns equally with Prudential Insurance Co. of America. A $400-million investment would give Hilton Hotels, the owner of New York's Waldorf-Astoria, 100% ownership in the beachfront Honolulu resort, Merrill Lynch analyst Naomi Talish said.

After several years of wrangling among the property owner, the city and its residents, plans to redevelop the Treasure Island mobile home park into a luxury resort have hit another delay: Opponents have gathered enough signatures on a petition to force a public vote. The Laguna Beach City Council, which backs the high-priced hotel proposal, agreed Tuesday to set April 27 as the date for the referendum.

American Skiing Co. said it had agreed to sell Steamboat Ski & Resort Corp., one of the nation's largest ski areas, for $265 million in cash to Canadian resort operator Intrawest Corp. The move, which is subject to regulatory approval, would bolster Intrawest's resort holdings in Colorado to three while helping American Skiing's bottom line.

Developer Donald Trump and Los Angeles-based real estate investment company Irongate are expected to announce plans today to build a $200-million luxury resort in northern Baja California, Mexico. The partners plan to start construction by year-end on Trump Ocean Resort Baja, a hotel-condominium on Punta Bandera with 526 suites that may be offered for rent when they are not being used by their owners.

A state commission Tuesday renewed Resorts International Inc.'s gaming license for its Atlantic City casino, rejecting a recommendation by investigators that the permit be revoked because of the owners' business dealings in the Bahamas. Those dealings include a total of $421,000 in payments that indirectly reached the Bahamian prime minister when Resorts was negotiating to open a casino-hotel in Freeport.

Alpine Meadows joined the handful of Sierra ski resorts that have launched pre-Thanksgiving seasons when it opened one run this week and said two more runs may be opened this weekend in light of an approaching storm. Along with Alpine Meadows, only Boreal has opened in the Tahoe area. Mammoth is open in the central Sierra and Squaw Valley USA and Northstar at Tahoe plan Saturday openings.

There's no dry cleaner here, no carwash, nowhere to get a blow dry or a manicure. Looking for a sushi restaurant? You'll have to settle for a buffalo burger at the Corral Bar. The closest place to park your private plane is at the airport in Bozeman, an hour's drive down a two-lane road. Big Sky is no Aspen, Colo. But the super rich are flocking here anyway. The lure: the Yellowstone Club, a private, millionaires-only resort community whose amenities more than make up for Big Sky's lack of a traffic light or a designer boutique.

Choosing an environmentally friendly ski resort got more complicated last week after a coalition of environmental organizations released its annual Ski Area Environmental Scorecard. The Ski Area Citizens' Coalition, a collection of 24 groups, evaluated the environmental and development activities of 76 U.S. ski resorts since 2000. The average grade for Western ski resorts, a middling C+, is higher than in prior years.