Feb 9, 2018, 7:18 pm
Last edit by: hhoope01
This thread refers to the various Marriott brands within a specific geographic area. Marriott Bonvoy hotels in XX usually have posts asking which property is better, etc. Trip reports are usually better suited in the property specific threads.
Marriott Bonvoy hotels in South Florida [Merged threads]
Dec 8, 2013, 11:45 am
#497
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Waxahachie, TX
Programs: WN 3 Million Miler, MR Lifetime Titanium, HH Diamond, IHG Plat, AA Silver, United never again
Posts: 509
Being from landlocked Texas, our favorite place to stay on the Atlantic is the Marriott beach resort:
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...esort-and-spa/
It has its own beach and you can walk to multiple restaurants within a mile.
Alternatively, try running down to the Keys. Many hotels and resorts, island life. Don't expect spectacular service, but it is very different for my family. We usually stay in Key Largo rather than Key West.
We also drive the two - three hours to Naples, and will stay at the Sanibel Harbour Resort:
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/trav...esort-and-spa/
There are also several Ritz's there and the Marco Island Resort.
Or try any of the islands, a short flight from FLL or MIA.
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...esort-and-spa/
It has its own beach and you can walk to multiple restaurants within a mile.
Alternatively, try running down to the Keys. Many hotels and resorts, island life. Don't expect spectacular service, but it is very different for my family. We usually stay in Key Largo rather than Key West.
We also drive the two - three hours to Naples, and will stay at the Sanibel Harbour Resort:
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/trav...esort-and-spa/
There are also several Ritz's there and the Marco Island Resort.
Or try any of the islands, a short flight from FLL or MIA.
Jan 2, 2014, 10:14 am
#498
Join Date: Nov 2007
Programs: Marriott Plat, AA Gold
Posts: 15
Ritz Key Biscayne
Just sent this summary to my Virtuoso agent regarding my recent stay at the Ritz Key Biscayne. We were there for four nights from 12/15 - 12/19. As indicated, we were not very impressed.
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We had a nice couple of days spending time with the kids and being away from work, but I’m not sure if I would ever go back to that property or recommend it to other people unless I was staying on a severely discounted rate.
I’ll start with the good first:
- We got upgraded to an ocean view room, which was nice.
- We received a welcome amenity from you that consisted of a bottle of wine, a big bowl of fruit, and cookies for the kids. Thank you very much. That was great!
- The zero entry pool was great for the kids. The kids only wanted to be in the pool, and were not interested in the beach this trip, so the zero entry was key.
- I liked that there is a great public park down the street from the hotel and that it’s also a short walk to the supermarket. We brought the double stroller with us, so we made at least one trip out each day.
The bad:
- Although I only have two main complaints, Jaime’s overall sense was that we were treated like second class citizens being there the week before Christmas. Put differently, she didn’t think the hotel was very interested in the relatively small number of non-conference guests that were there that week. She did not have this feeling at all when we were at the Rosewood Mayakoba the week before Christmas two years ago, even though the Rosewood was pretty empty. She also did not have this feeling when we stayed at the Ritz in South Beach over Labor Day three years ago. In fact, she commented several times that our experience at the Ritz makes you realize how incredible the Rosewood is. I would have to agree. We were both left thinking that for basically the same price (or perhaps a small amount more), we should have just gone to the Rosewood.
- The biggest issue we had was with respect to the casual restaurant by the pool. We got room service our first night there, but we had planned to eat at the casual restaurant at least 2 of the next 3 nights. On Monday afternoon (our second day), however, we learned through other guests that the causal restaurant would be shutting down at 6pm and remaining closed for dinner for the rest of the week. This was not mentioned to us by the front desk clerk when we checked in, and it also wasn’t mentioned by the concierge when I asked if it was necessary to make reservations for dinner (this was before I realized that the hotel was not crowded). Had we known that the one casual restaurant would be closed for 3 of our 4 nights there, we 100% would not have come to this hotel. I was pretty pissed, so I spoke to a manager. The guy was very nice and ended up sending us room service from the casual restaurant for no charge, which I appreciated. The next night Jaime and I brought sushi back to the room and we made nuggets and fries for the kids in our kitchen. We all ate out the last night. During our second to last day, the manager from the fancy restaurant called to see if there was anything else he could do for us. He offered to have the menu from the causal place made available to us in the fancy restaurant, but the issue was not the menu as much as the fact that it’s not at all relaxing for us to eat at a fancy place with the kids. We never do that at home, and I certainly don’t want to do it on vacation. He also offered to have a table set up in the courtyard, but we really didn’t want to deal with that. Overall, I think it was really ...... for the hotel to shut down the restaurant, and I’m not sure if I would ever come back because of that. It simply is not acceptable for a hotel that holds itself out as being family friendly to shut down the one casual restaurant (unless for renovations or some unique extenuating circumstances). A family that we befriended told us that one of the hotel workers told them that the reason they closed the hotel is because they needed the extra staff to assist with a banquet the hotel was hosting. If lack of staffing indeed was the issue, that is horrendous service and does not speak well of the hotel. Also, while it ended up working out ok since we had a suite with a kitchen, it would have been a disaster if we didn’t have a suite.
- The other big issue I had is that the pool service was for the most part pretty bad. This included both the towels and the waiters. I’m not sure if this was due to understaffing or if it’s just a bad system, but the same people acted as both waiters and towel guys. One of the problems with the towels was that they very rarely came around to pick up the wet towels. It was pretty cold when we were there, so we went through a lot of towels each day. Basically, we needed two dry towels per person each time we came out of the pool. I would put the wet towels in a pile on the ground, but they would sit there for hours before someone picked them up. I generally ended up moving the towels out of the way myself. The towels also weren’t well stocked, especially considering that people needed more towels because of the cold. They have two towel stands apart from the main towel hut, but the stands were usually empty so I would have to take towels off of other chairs when we needed them. The staff would get extra towels if we asked, but no one ever thought to ask us if we needed additional dry towels, let alone simply bring new towels over after removing the piles of wet towels. Our last day there there wasn’t even anyone manning the towel hut. This certainly was not a huge issue, but it’s not something that I would expect to deal with at a Ritz.
Overall, we just weren’t very impressed by the hotel. Each employee that we dealt with was very nice, but it just didn’t seem like a smoothly run operation. I know that you had a great experience there though, and so did my brother, so it sounds like our experience was not typical. Also, the family that I previously mentioned said that they’ve been going to the Ritz every year for the past four of five years and this was the first time that they’ve had any issues. They also were not pleased with the restaurant closure and thought the service overall was subpar.
The bottom line is that I don’t think the hotel was worth the $579 a night that we paid. Based on our experience, I can’t imagine ever coming back to the hotel unless I got a suite for under $400 a night.
-------
We had a nice couple of days spending time with the kids and being away from work, but I’m not sure if I would ever go back to that property or recommend it to other people unless I was staying on a severely discounted rate.
I’ll start with the good first:
- We got upgraded to an ocean view room, which was nice.
- We received a welcome amenity from you that consisted of a bottle of wine, a big bowl of fruit, and cookies for the kids. Thank you very much. That was great!
- The zero entry pool was great for the kids. The kids only wanted to be in the pool, and were not interested in the beach this trip, so the zero entry was key.
- I liked that there is a great public park down the street from the hotel and that it’s also a short walk to the supermarket. We brought the double stroller with us, so we made at least one trip out each day.
The bad:
- Although I only have two main complaints, Jaime’s overall sense was that we were treated like second class citizens being there the week before Christmas. Put differently, she didn’t think the hotel was very interested in the relatively small number of non-conference guests that were there that week. She did not have this feeling at all when we were at the Rosewood Mayakoba the week before Christmas two years ago, even though the Rosewood was pretty empty. She also did not have this feeling when we stayed at the Ritz in South Beach over Labor Day three years ago. In fact, she commented several times that our experience at the Ritz makes you realize how incredible the Rosewood is. I would have to agree. We were both left thinking that for basically the same price (or perhaps a small amount more), we should have just gone to the Rosewood.
- The biggest issue we had was with respect to the casual restaurant by the pool. We got room service our first night there, but we had planned to eat at the casual restaurant at least 2 of the next 3 nights. On Monday afternoon (our second day), however, we learned through other guests that the causal restaurant would be shutting down at 6pm and remaining closed for dinner for the rest of the week. This was not mentioned to us by the front desk clerk when we checked in, and it also wasn’t mentioned by the concierge when I asked if it was necessary to make reservations for dinner (this was before I realized that the hotel was not crowded). Had we known that the one casual restaurant would be closed for 3 of our 4 nights there, we 100% would not have come to this hotel. I was pretty pissed, so I spoke to a manager. The guy was very nice and ended up sending us room service from the casual restaurant for no charge, which I appreciated. The next night Jaime and I brought sushi back to the room and we made nuggets and fries for the kids in our kitchen. We all ate out the last night. During our second to last day, the manager from the fancy restaurant called to see if there was anything else he could do for us. He offered to have the menu from the causal place made available to us in the fancy restaurant, but the issue was not the menu as much as the fact that it’s not at all relaxing for us to eat at a fancy place with the kids. We never do that at home, and I certainly don’t want to do it on vacation. He also offered to have a table set up in the courtyard, but we really didn’t want to deal with that. Overall, I think it was really ...... for the hotel to shut down the restaurant, and I’m not sure if I would ever come back because of that. It simply is not acceptable for a hotel that holds itself out as being family friendly to shut down the one casual restaurant (unless for renovations or some unique extenuating circumstances). A family that we befriended told us that one of the hotel workers told them that the reason they closed the hotel is because they needed the extra staff to assist with a banquet the hotel was hosting. If lack of staffing indeed was the issue, that is horrendous service and does not speak well of the hotel. Also, while it ended up working out ok since we had a suite with a kitchen, it would have been a disaster if we didn’t have a suite.
- The other big issue I had is that the pool service was for the most part pretty bad. This included both the towels and the waiters. I’m not sure if this was due to understaffing or if it’s just a bad system, but the same people acted as both waiters and towel guys. One of the problems with the towels was that they very rarely came around to pick up the wet towels. It was pretty cold when we were there, so we went through a lot of towels each day. Basically, we needed two dry towels per person each time we came out of the pool. I would put the wet towels in a pile on the ground, but they would sit there for hours before someone picked them up. I generally ended up moving the towels out of the way myself. The towels also weren’t well stocked, especially considering that people needed more towels because of the cold. They have two towel stands apart from the main towel hut, but the stands were usually empty so I would have to take towels off of other chairs when we needed them. The staff would get extra towels if we asked, but no one ever thought to ask us if we needed additional dry towels, let alone simply bring new towels over after removing the piles of wet towels. Our last day there there wasn’t even anyone manning the towel hut. This certainly was not a huge issue, but it’s not something that I would expect to deal with at a Ritz.
Overall, we just weren’t very impressed by the hotel. Each employee that we dealt with was very nice, but it just didn’t seem like a smoothly run operation. I know that you had a great experience there though, and so did my brother, so it sounds like our experience was not typical. Also, the family that I previously mentioned said that they’ve been going to the Ritz every year for the past four of five years and this was the first time that they’ve had any issues. They also were not pleased with the restaurant closure and thought the service overall was subpar.
The bottom line is that I don’t think the hotel was worth the $579 a night that we paid. Based on our experience, I can’t imagine ever coming back to the hotel unless I got a suite for under $400 a night.
Jan 6, 2014, 5:33 pm
#501
Used to be bulldoggolfer05
Join Date: May 2007
Location: São Paulo, BR/Miami Beach, FL/NYC/DXB
Programs: HGP DMD, HHonors DMD, SPG PLT, MR PLT
Posts: 2,295
While the Palm Beaches are considered part of the same megalopolis as Miami (MIA-FLL-Palm Beaches), as noted by Bruce, it is about 75 miles away, or an hour to two hour drive depending on traffic (which can be brutal in SoFL).
As for whether it is destination worthy, it depends on what you are looking for.
West Palm Beach itself isn't so great (though the Downtown area has some quaint shops and restaurants), but the surrounding beaches are generally quieter than what you will find in Broward or Miami-Dade counties. Note that West Palm Beach is really West - Palm Beach, so it does not actually have a beach of its own.
Nearby Palm Beach Gardens is great for golfers and Lake Worth has some artsy and eclectic shops and restaurants.
If you're looking more for a vibrant and thriving nightlife or an ostentatious restaurant scene, I would stick to Miami-Dade and Southern Broward Counties.
As for whether it is destination worthy, it depends on what you are looking for.
West Palm Beach itself isn't so great (though the Downtown area has some quaint shops and restaurants), but the surrounding beaches are generally quieter than what you will find in Broward or Miami-Dade counties. Note that West Palm Beach is really West - Palm Beach, so it does not actually have a beach of its own.
Nearby Palm Beach Gardens is great for golfers and Lake Worth has some artsy and eclectic shops and restaurants.
If you're looking more for a vibrant and thriving nightlife or an ostentatious restaurant scene, I would stick to Miami-Dade and Southern Broward Counties.
Mar 6, 2014, 4:44 pm
#502
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 574
Can anyone speak recently to the Miami Airport Marriott? I'm thinking of a one night stay there over a Friday night at the end of March, which unfortunately coincides with that Electronic Music Festival thing. Ideally I'd go into SoBe the evening of Friday and Saturday morning/afternoon, but I'm not sure how (a) crazy it would be with the festival and (b) the transport options now that 150 no longer stops at MIA proper.
Mar 18, 2014, 3:57 pm
#503
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 574
Any thoughts between Courtyard South Beach and Blue Moon? Those are my options for a late March stay? Have booked Blue Moon, which as an Autograph would also include more benefits for a Gold member, but I'm not sure if it's worth the extra 5000 points. Have ruled out the airport ...
Mar 25, 2014, 8:37 am
#504
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: CT/ Germany - Ich spreche deutsch
Programs: UA 1K, Bonvoy LTTE, HH Dia, HY Expl
Posts: 4,657
Not sure why I can't find a thread on the Courtyard Cadillac Miami Beach/Oceanfront but I just wanted to post that overall I was very happy with a recent 2 night stay there. Hotel has a great location, very nice rooms and overall very friendly staff. My only complaint would be that the front desk is understaffed and this causes delays for virtually everything you need to address with the front desk. The property is hands down much better than other lower priced chain options in the immediate area (Holiday Inn and the dump they call a Four Points Sheraton...and that's coming from a Starwood Platinum Member!) I used the hotel as a lower priced alternative to the function I was attending at the Fountainbleu. Used to do the same thing with the Eden Roc when I had an event at the FB but sadly that option is no longer available.
Last edited by christianj; Mar 25, 2014 at 8:47 am
Mar 25, 2014, 10:44 am
#505
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2002
Programs: UALifetimePremierGold, Marriott LifetimeTitanium
Posts: 71,113
Not sure why I can't find a thread on the Courtyard Cadillac Miami Beach/Oceanfront but I just wanted to post that overall I was very happy with a recent 2 night stay there. Hotel has a great location, very nice rooms and overall very friendly staff. My only complaint would be that the front desk is understaffed and this causes delays for virtually everything you need to address with the front desk. The property is hands down much better than other lower priced chain options in the immediate area (Holiday Inn and the dump they call a Four Points Sheraton...and that's coming from a Starwood Platinum Member!) I used the hotel as a lower priced alternative to the function I was attending at the Fountainbleu. Used to do the same thing with the Eden Roc when I had an event at the FB but sadly that option is no longer available.
Cheers.
Mar 25, 2014, 3:59 pm
#506
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Lima, Peru
Programs: LAN Commodore
Posts: 733
I have recently stayed at the Airport Marriott, Courtyard and Residence Inn, which all share a nice gym and pool. The service at all three was excellent. I felt the Residence Inn room was the nicest and the fact that they serve a free breakfast and a kind of dinner Mon. - Wed, makes up somewhat for the lack of C.L. There is an airport shuttle running to and from the "Marriott Campus" every 8 minutes.
Mar 28, 2014, 8:38 am
#507
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: LAX/TXL
Programs: LH HON,AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Diamond, and a few more
Posts: 355
Hotel Beaux Arts
I just tried to book a Rewards Reservation at the Hotel Beaux Arts atop the JW Marriott Marquis, but no rooms available using points for the whole year.
Called the hotel and told we don't accept point bookings anymore, but they couldn't tell me why. Then I called the reservations line and was told I should be able to book since they are not sold out. Finally after talking to 3 agents one called the hotel and was told the hotel isn't participating in Marriott Rewards anymore, but they couldn't tell me when this became effective.
As of this morning there was no indication of this on the website or did the central reservations line have any info on this. They sugggested I make a reservation at the JW.
What a shame since this was one of the best domestic properties Marriott had.
Called the hotel and told we don't accept point bookings anymore, but they couldn't tell me why. Then I called the reservations line and was told I should be able to book since they are not sold out. Finally after talking to 3 agents one called the hotel and was told the hotel isn't participating in Marriott Rewards anymore, but they couldn't tell me when this became effective.
As of this morning there was no indication of this on the website or did the central reservations line have any info on this. They sugggested I make a reservation at the JW.
What a shame since this was one of the best domestic properties Marriott had.
Mar 30, 2014, 9:16 pm
#509
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Treasure Coast, FL
Programs: DL Diamond, Marriott LT Plat, HH Diamond, Avis Preferred Plus, National Executive
Posts: 4,578
I just tried to book a Rewards Reservation at the Hotel Beaux Arts atop the JW Marriott Marquis, but no rooms available using points for the whole year.
Called the hotel and told we don't accept point bookings anymore, but they couldn't tell me why. Then I called the reservations line and was told I should be able to book since they are not sold out. Finally after talking to 3 agents one called the hotel and was told the hotel isn't participating in Marriott Rewards anymore, but they couldn't tell me when this became effective.
As of this morning there was no indication of this on the website or did the central reservations line have any info on this. They sugggested I make a reservation at the JW.
What a shame since this was one of the best domestic properties Marriott had.
Called the hotel and told we don't accept point bookings anymore, but they couldn't tell me why. Then I called the reservations line and was told I should be able to book since they are not sold out. Finally after talking to 3 agents one called the hotel and was told the hotel isn't participating in Marriott Rewards anymore, but they couldn't tell me when this became effective.
As of this morning there was no indication of this on the website or did the central reservations line have any info on this. They sugggested I make a reservation at the JW.
What a shame since this was one of the best domestic properties Marriott had.
Was upgraded to a one bedroom suite and one of the nicest domestic properties I have ever stayed in.
Have stayed at the JW as well and it is a great property. Upgraded both times I was there on points. Would not hesitate to book on points again.
Mar 30, 2014, 9:23 pm
#510
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 574
Just wanted to write to say that my stay at Blue Moon was great. Definitely a small, boutique place, but my room felt large enough and was well-appointed. Great staff, and a great location a little away from Ocean and Washington. Took the points (still haven't seen them yet!) over breakfast, so I can't comment on that.