Phenols and phenol derivatives serve as synthetic building blocks for the construction of compounds ranging from polymers to pharmaceuticals. Despite numerous methods for phenol synthesis, the catalytic dehydrogenation of carbocyclic compounds such as cyclohexanones and cyclohexenones to generate substituted phenol derivatives has received much attention. This review describes recent research progress concerning catalytic dehydrogenative aromatization and I2 promoted oxidative aromatization reactions in view of the types of cyclohexanone and cyclohexenone substrates and reactions, including the associated mechanisms and developments.