crazypalooza,

my family of 4 stayed at Key West Marriott Beachside Hotel for 5 nights beginning Aug 4. My wife is a platinum member and we used her points to book a 2 Bedroom Presidential Suite. We were in Room #623.

Yes, they waived the $17.50/day parking fee. Parking was simple. It was in a garage underneath the hotel. When we were there, we did not have any problems finding parking spaces conveniently located near the elevators.

The suite was terrific. Obviously we had plenty of space for 4 people. The suite was in very good shape and well appointed. We made heavy use of the well applianced kitchen (Subzero fridge/freezer, electric cooktop + oven, microwave, toaster, coffee maker) as we prepared and ate many of our meals there including fish that we caught on our fishing trip. Kitchen was well stocked with pans, plates, glasses, coffee cups, silverware, paper towel, even detergent for the Kitchen Aid dishwasher.

The suite had two bathrooms which made things convenient for the 4 of us. Showers were strong and we never ran out of hot water (our unit had its own hot water tank). We did not try out the jetted hot tub.

There was a washing machine and dryer in the closet which we made use of.

There were 3 flatscreen TVs--one in the master bedroom, one in the other bedroom and one in the living room. They came in handy for us to watch the Summer Olympics in the evening. Cable TV signal was OK but there were little if any digital channels to see to get the full high definition effect.

The suite had a nice balcony complete with a ceiling fan. We did not have a good view from the balcony--saw other balconies from the wing across the courtyard, but that was not big deal for us.

Climate control in the suite was excellent. We had no problems in keeping the rooms cool. There were ceiling fans mounted in the living room and each bedroom.

Service was excellent. Front desk personnel were terrific. Check-in was quick, efficient and came with a glass of wine. The Platinum arrival gift was some kind of large plate of cheese & crackers along with drinks for the 4 of us if I remember correctly. A couple of days later, we went down to the small gift shop to purchase toothpaste; when we went to pay for it, the Front Desk substituted a complimentary tube of toothpaste instead which was a nice touch. The housekeeping staff did a great job and were generally unobtrusive. Any dishes that we did not have washed was put into the dishwasher and washed for us.

We did have a difficult time getting our checkout extended past their standard time of 11 am. I suppose I can understand this as the suites take a long time to properly clean. In the end we were given only an extra 30 minutes. As soon as we vacated, the housekeeping staff immediately went in.

At check-in, we were given coupons for free continental buffet breakfast everyday in the "Tavern N Town" main dining room (danishes, croissants, fruit, cereal, bagels, toast, etc). There was an extra charge if we wanted the full buffet breakfast--which we were charged for sometimes, and other times not. The main dining room is expensive so we pretty much limited our visits there to the free breakfasts. We did have dinner there one evening. In general the dining room food and service were very good.

Internet connection was free for us. We had no problems with speed or with the connection itself.

The only complaint that I had was the shuttle buses were too small for the crowds of guests that wanted to go to Duval Street (and back to the hotel) during peak demand times which occurred mainly in the evening. Marriott ran up to two shuttle buses that had seating capacity for approximately 25 people each and there were times that they could not take everyone. The shuttle ride is about 20 minutes long depending on traffic. The property is definitely not within walking distance of Duval Street.

We used the hotel primarily as a base camp as we went out each day to SCUBA dive, snorkel, fish, and we also went to Dry Tortugas National Park. Therefore I cannot give you any first hand observations concerning the pool, cabanas, grounds, bar,

As you can tell, we thought highly of this location and would not hesitate to stay there again. If you have any questions, let me know.

We also stayed in a two bedroom suite at Key Largo Bay Marriott Beach Resort for 5 nights before we arrived at Key Largo. This is another nice property (although not quite as luxurious as Key West).....