traceynt

My husbund, myself and our 5 year old son are planning a trip to Aruba for spring break. We plan to use points for our trip. Our choices are the marriott or hyatt. Please give me any details that would help with my decision. Here is a little about us.

My husband and I are mid thirties, we enjoy great restaurants, snorkeling, boating, and just spending time with family and relaxing. Any help is appreciated.

Thank you.

Kristen1206

Hyatt hands down. The location is better..more central, and the beach is nicer. And the Hyatt grounds are gorgeous. Marriott will have bigger balconies but I would still choose the Hyatt.

whereto

Personally I think the beach is nicer at the Marriott - the Marriott is set further back then the Hyatt so the length of the beach from water to hotel is greater. Also the beach huts are set further apart than at the Hyatt. Marriott rooms are bigger than Hyatt rooms and have large balconies. The Hyatt balconies are only big enough to stand on.

Both have nice pools, but I think the Hyatt wins with the water slide. Hyatt is a better central location than the Marriott - easier for walking to restaurants. We did walk to the restaurants every night from the Marriott, by walking along the beach to the Holiday Inn and then going streetside, but my sons are teenagers. The walk might get a little long with a five year old.

If room size and beach space are important then go with the Marriott. If a great pool and central location are more important than choose the Hyatt. Either way they are both great hotels.

Jed

If you mean the Marriott Resorts, then you might be interested in my report:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34929104

TPAYT

IMO with a five year old, the Hyatt would be better. The pool area is great for kids, and the location is better.

Yes, the beach is narrower than the Mariott, but both beaches are crowded because of the number of guests.

Neither has good snorkelling because of the beautiful white sand.

I agree, the Hyatt is better for walking to restaurants, but cabs are plentiful and not too expensive.

johan555

on the scared monkeys forum you can see more about the hotels on aruba
i think the Hyatt is the best

sbgms

I've stayed at the Marriott Hotel as well as renting a time share and by all means, the time share rental in either the Ocean Club or the Surf Club are the most spacious. My daughter stayed at the Hyatt and while a beautiful hotel, found the room extremely small.
There is so much to do at the Marriott complex that it is easy to stay on the grounds if you are so inclined. Alsi, there is a short cut to walk thru to the strip or you can take a $5 taxi ride to get there.

denmal

If you can use your points at Marriott, I would vote for the Marriott Ocean Club - The timeshare units are big and the beach is large and very nice. We spend a week each year there and enjoy it. We take a taxi to the store pick up food for the week and never leave the resort

traceynt

Well we decided to stay at the Marriott as we needed two rooms (one for us and one for the in-laws) and we had more Marriott points. I called about an upgrade today, is it worth paying for?. Regarding the palapas, we really want a front row palapa as I will have nothing to block the view of my son playing near/in the water. Should we pay the $15 a day or stand in line...how long is line and what time to get in line? Thank you in advance.

sbgms

I think you would need to pay the $15 to get an up front palapas. We went down every day about 10 - 11 and got free ones but they were about 4 - 5 rows back but not having any little ones, it didn't matter to us. By the way, if you are given a spot that looks good on their paper and you get there and find it is not where you want to sit, you can go back and change to another existing open spot. They are very easy about that.

goldtwins

WHERETO - can you tell me more about your trip with teenage sons? I'm thinking of taking my 15 year old boys this summer and was wondering what they'd do - they're not into the beach/pool for a full day. Are there sports/lessons at the Marriott? teen activities? Any advice for off-resort? Much appreciated.

girlonthego

goldtwins, we were there a few years ago (Marriott) and they had numerous watersports available right on the beach. My kids bannana boated, tubed, parasailed (?Ithink), and we hired a snorkel cruise. Outside of the watersports, I don't remember other sports. They did have a bingo game It appealed to my kids at the time and they were around 10-12 years old when we went. They may be a lot more now that the surf club is there as well. I think they will have fun just wandering the large complex.

whereto

goldtwins, my boys were 15 & 16 when we went. There was a lot to do right on the beach. They took windsurfing lessons right next to the Marriott, went tubing, and jet skiing. I think you're supposed to be 16 to drive the jet ski, but they never asked my sons their ages. There's kite surfing lessons close to the marriott. You can book deep sea fishing excursions, or snorkeling. We did the ABC jeep tour to the natural pool, the boys really enjoyed that. There's not a lot to do at night, there is a game room. My sons felt to old for the game room, but my 15 year old nephew was there the week before and spent every night at the game room, so it depends on the kid. We entertained them at night by going out to dinner around 8. By the way the loved the food and atmosphere at smokey joe's and the pelican's nest. Like most teenage boys - give them an abundance of food and outdoor dining and they're in heaven! Hope you have a great trip!