Sorry I have to say it is not too far to walk to the main drag from the Marriott... Its about a 15 min walk on the flat, I consider that a fine walk...

I would say hiring a car would be the easiest way for getting to there from BNE but as you don't want to I cant offer any guidance on doing it another way, perhaps on the Aus forum one of the QLD crew could. All I can say is once you are there you will be fine if you just want to potter around the resort and Surfers Town... To go to any of the malls you could grab a cab or a bus.

Also I would consider it a resort, a resort does not need to be on the beach, it has lots of pools, multiple restaurants, tennis etc.. It also give elites a great buffet 7 days a week, continental but just few bucks to upgrade to the full one. Also gave us a nice upgrade to an ocean view.