Galla47

What islands in the Carribbean are worth visiting? Which ones have good Marriott resorts? They are almost all category 6's, and airfare is a non-issue, so I want to find the best one to go to.

uschpr

Recently got back from an award stay at the Aruba Marriott Resort. Funny thing that I noticed... everyone checking-in was using Marriott Rewards certificates!!! The Marriott is definitely one of the nicest properties on Aruba. The guest rooms have huge balconies, and we got a spectacular ocean view.... we had room service breakfast on our balcony one morning overlooking the Caribbean.. very nice. There is also a restaurant at the Marriott called Simply Fish, which only serves dinner... and it is right on the beach...very relaxing. And happy hour deals at the Marriott's beach bar can't be beat... $5 for two blended frozen drinks. The beach is nice too... there are thatched huts that you can sit under if you need some shade.

I've been to the Marriott on Grand Cayman. The Marriott on Cayman is a nice property, but not quite as nice as the Aruba Marriott. And everything on Aruba is not as ridiculously expensive as Grand Cayman.

Also check out this thread on the Aruba Marriott
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum63/HTML/001008.html


[This message has been edited by uschpr (edited 02-20-2002).]

BERGDAVID

i have been at the aruba marriott, although time share section, (have bought two separate weeks there as a previous owner elsewhere). I loved the place, the beaches, the sun, the atmosphere. they have a great italian restaurant right in the hotel, the staff are very friendly. have brought friends and clients down there, most enjoyed it so much that they also bought timeshare weeks there.

the drink specials (happy hour) are great; watching the sun set on the beach every day is romantic, peaceful and cheap. the restaurants are quite expensive though, but really really great. If you want some specific referrals, let me know.

I would recommend it any time. They go out of their way to accomodate you. It is first class all the way. Enjoy. Enjoy.

KathyP

Stayed in the time share portion in June of last year but ate in the Hotel restaurants, gambled in the casino etc. The hotel is very very nice and the staff is very friendly but I cannot stress enought that if you are thinking of Aruba in terms of your standard Carribean island with lots of beautiful tropical flowers and lush vegetation you are in for a real shock. Aruba is a desert island. There are no tropical flowers and lush vegetation. The overwhelming color is brown and of course no grass. I prefer my islands green so I would not return there. Think about the Marriott's on St. Thomas.

DFW DL

KathyP has it right - when I explain Aruba to people who haven't been there, I compare it to Southern California. It gets much less rainfall than the other islands, and is therefore not as green. The benefit to this is that it has always seemed to me to be far less humid and much more comfortable for outdoor activities (pool/beach/ocean). There is always a nice trade wind and the temps don't often get out of the 65-85 degree range.

I'll ditto everyone's previous comments on this resort. We got a day-room at the hotel portion last December during a cruise and had a wonderful time. Great rooms, great facilities, great service. We will go back any time.

markschn

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Galla47:
[B]Has anyone stayed at the Marriott in Aruba (not the Vacation Club)? I am thinking aboout cashing in some points to go down there for a week. How does it compare to other Carribean resorts?

Galla47

Hope 47 is your birthday. I just hit the double nickle last week. Anyway, spent a week at the Marriott Aruba last summer. It is very nice, right next to the timeshare resort. I thought the hotel had better amenities/restaurants/shops etc, but they were adjoining so no big deal. They are on the populated leeward side of the island, so very comfortable. There is a great golf course on the island, can't remember the name, but everyone knows which one is best. Be sure to do the timeshare pitch, as it is not high pressure and you get 15,000 marriott points just for sitting through it! We always do the pitch for the points whenever we can. Also, eat at the Flying Fishbone once also.

pitflyer

I'd like some advice from someone who's made an award reservation here. I tried to make one for May. I noticed online it mentioned 'service charge not included'. I asked the agent what that would be. Took a while and they said it's 10% of the regular room rate during my stay, or $25. OK, I can handle that.

Then I asked for deposit amount. They said the required deposit is *three days* on all stays, even award stays, at the regular rate of $250 a night. If I don't 'use' it then it gets refunded at the end of the stay. That sounded ridiculous but she said that's what a supervisor told her. That's a total of $750 the hotel wants to hold onto even for an award stay!

And here I was complaining about the Hawaii Marriott's requiring a $50 deposit..

Has anyone made an award reservation recently for the Aruba Marriott? Did you have to put down three nights stay even on an award reservation?

EDIT: I followed up with Marriott and they said their agent made a mistake.. but the award deposit is $250. Still kinda high but not ridiculous like before.

[This message has been edited by pitflyer (edited 03-22-2002).]

jamflyer

Anyone ever stayed at this property? I am planning a trip and was pleasantly suprised to find a Category 5 hotel here. How does this compare to the other Marriott properties on Aruba? Is it worth it to use the additional points (I am using the award number 08).

Flyaway

Is this property new? I didn't notice that there was a Ren. in Aruba.

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AAdvantage Platinum
AMEX Platinum (Canada)

BillMorrow

This is the former Sonesta Hotel Beach Club & Casino. The change took effect at the beginning of this month.

It does have a lot of suites, but note that it only has only a AAA 3* rating.

I'm unsure of what the connection is/was with Sonesta's time share property there.

doc

$99 -- Renaissance Aruba Beach Resort & Casino
http://www.travelzoo.com/Top20.asp?id=10284122
Source: Expedia.com

frielca

I was just on the Marriott web site, and noticed that they now have a Renaissance in Aruba. I called Marriott, and apparently, they took over another hotel, and renamed as a Renaissance.

I stayed at the Aruba Marriott last September. I thought that the resort was nice. But, I have stayed in nicer.

Just curious to see if anyone has stayed in the "new" Renaissance, and how it compares to the Marriott?

uschpr

Never stayed there, but I can tell you it used to be the Aruba Sonesta Beach Resort... perhaps someone knows something about that resort

frielca

Thanks uschp.

I do not remember that hotel. I also noticed on the website that the Marriott has a 4 start rating from AAA and the Renaissance is only 3. Interesting as I typically think that Renaissances are nicer than Marriotts.

foodguy

Not in Orlando (except the SeaWorld location)

Kissimmee= Dump
Airport= not so good