San Juan Marriott Resort
 

I was thinking of booking this hotel in May. I have two college boys who enjoy the beach and the nightlife. Is this the best hotel for those activities....

Oops! I was referring to the San Juan Marriott resort

I'm not sure if you'll get what you want here. Certainly, the hotel is centrally located, has a casino and a very lively Cuban (or other, depending on booking) band in the lobby some nights Th-Sat.

We've stayed here twice using our Marriott points and for that, we found it a good value. If I were spending my $$, though, I'd probably consider other options.

Now, there is nothing wrong with this hotel. We found it to be a bit restrictive in some ways, however. If memory serves, the beach is gated off at around 6:00pm. The pool is closed around 5:00 or 6:00. They told us that the beach was not monitored (secured) after dark, so their guests were not permitted to access the beach from the hotel.

We've been to Puerto Rico MANY times and never had a security issue here, so we were not sure whether the hotel's caution was more related to guest safety or their staffing budget.

Other than that, I'd say that it was difficult to get a beverage on the beach or at the pool. You had to self serve by going to the lobby bar. Breakfast was okay, but to get a good cup of coffee, you had to warm up your waitress until she'd bring you a "cafe convento" which is the local or island coffee. Otherwise, it was typical Marriott bland coffee.

At one time or another, some floors were renovated and some were not. Take care on making your reservation to request an oceanfront room on a renovated floor. Ask to view your room before taking it, as one side is a "city view."

On busy nights, you will need to plan ahead if you'd like to get into Old San Juan, which is where your college guys will likely want to hang out. There's just a great deal of traffic going into OSJ. If you could, I'd say to try the Hotel Caribe, which is closer and a less expensive taxi ride.

Again, though, if you're getting a great deal, this is a great choice. If you're paying top dollar, you have other choices. Right next door on this street is the Intercontinental and the Ritz Carlton. (Caution on the RC is that the "city view" here is a view of the airport runways!)

If money is not a concern for this trip, try the El Convento right in Old San Juan. The do have a minimum stay of two nights still, I think.

Let me know if you need more info!

Just wanted to correct some information from the last post so the OP won't be confused. The San Juan Marriott is NOT next to the Intercontinental or the Ritz Carlton. Those hotels are in Isla Verde. The San Juan Marriott is in Condado. I think the last poster was confusing the Courtyard Marriott with the San Juan Marriott. The Courtyard Marriott is in Isla Verde near the RC and Intercontinental.

Tom,

I am so glad you wrote to make that correction. You are right in that I was confused about the location, as we have stayed in both the Courtyard and the Marriott Resort and Stellaris Casino at one time or another and I flip-flopped the two.

The comments I made above are related to the Marriott Resort and Stellaris Casino seen here:

http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...llaris-casino/

The website is boasting upgrades and a newly renovated lobby. We would stay here again as our "arrival/departure" hotel, as we enjoy other parts of the island so much.

We have also stayed at the Courtyard Isla Verde, which is the one close to the Ritz Carlton. As it was a Courtyard, and not necessarily the "full service" Marriott, our expectations were a little lower.

Thanks again for pointing that out, Tom!