Irvine Marriott, CA [Master Thread]
 

Anyone with experience on its shuttle service to SNA? Google Maps shows that it's very close to the airport, so how long is the ride? How frequent are the shuttles? Lastly, does the shuttle really stop running at 11PM? What if my flight gets delayed? TIA.

LAX

The hotel is less than 2 miles from the airport, 5 minutes ride or less (every 30 min) and they do stop around 11:00 PM. SNA has curfew after 11:00 PM due to noise reg.

If your flight is delayed into SNA beyond 11 PM, you will be taking a shuttle from LAX or renting a car. All flights are diverted after that, so there is no need for hotels to keep their shuttle running.

I stayed there twice and I think it comes every 30min....However, if you can afford to stay there why wait for the shuttle? Just take a taxi for $10!

Really! How often does that happen? I supposed they would just end up canceling the flight rather than diverting, right? Unless something happens mid flight that causes the delay?

LAX

While I am sure it has happened, I haven't ever seen the flights cancelled. They divert to Los Angeles (twice for me). They don't cancel because the people still want to get *near* OC. And the airplane needs to be in OC in the morning.

Not very often. I lived in Irvine for 5 years, and flew at least 15 trips out of SNA every year, and it happened to me only once. Even then, the airline was very accommodating and got me on a Super Shuttle from LAX to my home without problems.

SNA is one of the best airports in the Country! Enjoy it!

^+1

I probably have flown the late flight into SNA 15 times and have had it happen 3 times, which is 20%. The other posters said it was rare, but it happened to them 5% of the time, which to me is more than rare. Obviously, the only flight this is really an issue on is the ones that get in late at night. I actually started flying out of LAX when it was going to be a late flight because of this.

It makes for a long night, but the airline will get you back to SNA if you want them to, or you can get your own transportation. They have a bus sitting outside baggage claim waiting. You will notice they are running close to curfew when the flight attendants start rushing everyone to their seat as you are boarding. I did get lucky one time when the weather was bad in Atlanta and the got a waiver to be 15 minutes late.

Different set of circumstances, but I was on a flight last January that was diverted to LAX due to weather at SNA. The storms cleared and the flight went on to SNA....arriving a little over an hour late.

All told, not that big of a deal. Pax were given the option of deplaning at LAX if they wanted, but were told all check bags would be going on to SNA. Also, there was an announcement that if the plane wasn't able to continue on to SNA in a timely fashion, bus transportation (presumably including the checked bags) would be provided.

The flight was full (MD-80, IIRC), and I'd say about 15-20 pax opted to deplane at LAX.

What was made more clear than anything else....via repeated announcements....was that absolutely no refunds or reimbursements of any type would be provided to anyone opting to get off at LAX.

Stayed here a few months ago. This hotel now has a very nice sleek lobby with on-site Starbucks. The outdoor ping pong tables by the pool area were a great touch! I wish more hotels had these.

Was your stay on a weekend? What's the latest re: exec lounge open/closed & what they do if it's closed?

Cheers.

Not a weekend stay, sadly. I stayed on a Wednesday night and we were given access to the lounge. Lounge yielded access at all hours even if no one was staffed, and water and soft drinks were available.

S
 

Sharon-

For your sticky update- I stayed there a couple times last year over the weekend and both times the lounge was open. In fact, they had two or three hot items- actually one of the better weekend offerings I have seen in a while (in a US lounge).

Greg

Thanks. I'll update the sticky.

Cheers.

I just stayed here on Sunday night. Lounge was closed on weekends but had room key access to get in. No food/drink other than water bottles during weekend. The signs did say that breakfast was served on the weekends though.

Thanks - will update the sticky.

Cheers.

Has anyone stayed here and experienced the M Club? I’m also curious about the self parking although I plan to drop my rental car off before checking in. One woman wrote a review on Marriott claiming that the self parking was in the back area where it was dark and large raccoons and rats were wandering around. That doesn’t sound like what the $24 for self parking should be for.

I stay here quite frequently. Its a really convenient option.
1) the M club is really nice: its on the lobby level kind of near the bar area and has an entrance that leads directly outside as well. Nice selection. Staff is really good.
2) Parking is easy. It can be really crowded if there is an event, but I have never had a problem finding a spot or ever seeing any animals, etc.
3) if it matters, it has a nice gym as well.

Do you have to pay the full $24 for the parking even as MR Plat Prem?

As a platinum, i have never had that fee waived. having said that: I have never asked since it is always on my corporate expenses.

I just had my first stay here and it was a very pleasant experience. They run the Airport shuttle bus from the hotel every 30 minutes starting at 5 AM and make pickups at the airport on the :15 and :45 of each hour. The drivers were very courteous and helpful each time. I had done OLCI and saw that I had been upgraded to a balcony room. Front Desk interactions were excellent.

My King bedroom was comfortable and quiet. There is a small closet, desk, sitting area, mini fridge, room safe. Bathroom was clean and nice-sized. There was no furniture for sitting on the balcony, but it was nice at the end of my work day to open the door and let some fresh air, sun into the room.

As noted on the Lounge Wiki, the lounge has been upgraded to an M Lounge, and is open 24 hours a day with a key. It offers breakfast 7 days a week, and evening offerings Sunday through Thursday.

I used it for both breakfast and dinner. Breakfast included oatmeal, scrambled eggs, bacon, French Toast, and a fried egg on hash in a single serve dish plus a large assortment of fruit, pastries, breads, cereals, etc. Food was replenished quickly, dirty dishes were whisked away immediately.

And when I say dinner, it really was a meal. There was a large choice of salad options: 2 kinds of lettuce, several types of veggie toppings, shaved parm cheese, olives, chickpeas, and 2 kinds of dressing. There was a vegetarian pasta dish plus single serve dishes of sliced chicken breast over roasted carrots and squash. And for apps there were two kinds of salsa (the verde salsa was particularly good!) with tortilla chips, plus 3 kinds of cheeses and lot of cracker choices. They had a small bar set up as well.

I didn't have a chance to use other amenities at the hotel, but I loved that the lobby bar basically opened up to the outside (weather permitting) with tables, umbrellas, etc. There was a nice looking pool area, plus firepit seating, etc. All in all, I really liked this hotel a lot. It was so close to the airport, but didn't have that airport hotel vibe.

If you like to get some outdoor time while away on business, check out the San Joaquin Wildlife Reserve about 4/10ths of a mile from the hotel. There are 20 miles of trails, I saw many kinds of birds and lots of rabbits! Right across the street was a shopping center with many restaurants. About 1/3 of a mile from the hotel, definitely walkable.

Thanks for the update. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

This Marriott's M Club lounge is backasswards as they have no happy hour on the weekends including Friday! So basically, for the leisure travelers arriving on Friday and departing on Sunday, there is no happy hour to enjoy here - very disappointing!

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...39452ba668.jpg
Nice, but empty pots and pans!

Don't most Marriott lounges in the US only have evening food on weekday nights? That's certainly the case for those extended-stay brands offering weeknight socials (Residence Inn with Marriott, Staybridge Inn with IHG, etc, typically have those only Mon-Wed or maybe Mon-Thu at some locations).

Yes, I know some Marriott lounges overseas (like Marriott Amesterdam) have breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day in the lounge it seems, but I don't think that's standard at most US Marriott's, is it?

Still disappointing for such a major property - Not sure about the US Marriotts but all international Marriott (and US Hyatts) we been to have happy hour if they have a lounge and most also have teatime or high tea time in the afternoon. BTW, the disappointment also extends to the $23 parking fee.

Forget about happy hour for a second, lots of Marriott brand hotels in the US don't even have breakfast in the lounge on weekends. That's why this thread has to exist:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marr...-weekends.html

And there's also a matching thread for non-US properties, which implies it's not as foolproof to find them open on weekends as you though:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marr...-weekends.html

Were you unaware of that?

Because if you were aware of that, I don't see why you'd expect a hotel that closes the lounge in the morning on weekends would keep it open in the evening on weekends? :confused:

Even though I have stayed there before, I was unaware of the lounge being dark at happy hour on weekends. Last time we stayed there we checked in late and departed the next day before happy hour. But we enjoyed the pool - the large chairs used to be at the pool but now they have them outside by the parking lot.

Slight sidetrack of thread. It's been a while since I've updated some of the properties. For those that don't know, in the US I contact every single property directly via telephone. It takes about 2 solid weeks of calls to get everything updated (doing Arkansas, which doesn't have that many properties, just took me 30 minutes, so on larger states such as FL, CA, TX, etc, it can take up to 8 hours to update each state). Int'l I check the property websites & that's a solid 8 hour process. Anyway, I'll be updating the US/int'l stickies quite a bit in the next couple of weeks, so past reports of what a property does might not be what they currently do.

I now return you to our regularly scheduled programming, which is the Irvine Marriott.

Cheers.

Any bets on the lounge having happy hour this Sunday since it is a Holiday weekend? I might be staying here this weekend. If so, I will update everyone.

Call them & ask. Easiest way to find out.

Cheers.

Which is better as a Plat? This hotel or the AC Irvine? They are both about the same price on the weekend I'm looking at.

Does parking cost the same at both?

I haven't done the Marriott but just finished up at the AC...really nice stay, I said elsewhere I think this is my favorite legacy Marriott brand.

Obviously no lounge at the AC, and the AC gym is pretty bare bones. And that Marriott does seem to be renovated with the newer room aesthetic.

I love the AC style though - I had a car ($20 to park in the garage next door, $30 to valet) but I ended up walking to my place of business a block away, and walking to Starbucks across the street, and walking to Houston's / North Italia for meals. The mini-complex across the street is pretty nice.

I expensed all my meals so just took the $10 daily credit to get other snacks, better deal intrinsically vs. a few points.

Recent Platinum Elite 1 night stay over a weekend. Overall, to me the hotel looks and feels nice in a business casual sense. No upgrade given when asked upon arrival - booked a King guest room. Was told only 9 suites in the hotel. Although it sufficed for the short stay, the room is relatively small. The website seems like there are somewhat larger rooms though.

The lounge has what I figure is a typical Marriott breakfast set up for the M Club Lounge - it reminded me of the LAX Marriott lounge with less blue lighting iirc. The lounge was not very big but not crowded either at about 10 am. Even so, it seems not attended to very well. The food was below average imho - decent scrambled eggs, sausage below average, a good variety of fruit and other basics (oatmeal, yogurt with granola, various cereal). There was a special french toast-like dish with strawberry jam inside(?), which was awful because it probably sat under the heat lamp for 2 hours.

Self-parking was $32, which I think is unreasonably high (but the norm for the area).

The pool is very nice and stood out for me. It is somewhat narrow but very long. A small portion of it is covered as well.

Overall, for some reason I had somewhat high expectations of this property but was somewhat disappointed due to the small room and below average lounge breakfast. Perhaps I should have known better as this hotel is probably geared toward the airport/business guest.

Stayed at the Irvine Marriott a couple of months ago. Amazingly low rate on a weekend. Appreciated the always-available M Club with snacks, beverages anytime. Beautiful hotel.

A bit late to add this report, but I stayed 1 night as a Platinum in late June. Was very impressed by my stay. This is one of the few Marriotts I found stateside still offering full breakfast benefits in a real restaurant in the COVID era. Free entree and drink per person. I got the huevos rancheros, which was beautifully presented (like a fancy restaurant dish) and actually tasted delicious too. No room upgrade but I was happy with what I had booked.

Irvine Marriott. Titanium elite with no recognition. No upgrade on a one night stay and got the lowly 3rd floor(guest rooms are 3rd to the 17th floor). Glad I booked a breakfast rate(it was $7 more and included free parking, otherwise $37)since the spread at the M Lounge looks pretty sad. Let's see if I get the elite bonus or I have to get it out of them! lol

Good luck.

David

bad experience there too?

received all my points and left the property a proper review.