Key West lodgeing
 

Going to Key West mid september. Have been looking at the Hyatt and Hilton. The Hyatt seems nicer but the ocean view rooms are very expensive. The Hilton's ocean view rooms are not much higher than the non-ocean view rooms but the Hilton has gotten some bad reviews here on this board. I have never been much on B&B's, not into the small talk w/ other guests, owners etc. Any input would be appreciated.

Jim: There's a whole bunch of nice places to stay in Key West--all kinds and price ranges. <BR><BR>There are a couple of things that are often overlooked. First, an oceanfront room is not like an oceanfront room on, say, the Atlantic coast--from Miami north. Take a look at Key West on a map--you'll see what I mean.<BR><BR>The second thing is that Key West is not the kind of place where you hang out in your room a lot. The room is for sleeping, showering and changing clothes. As long as it's clean and the bed is comfortable...<BR><BR>Do a search in this forum on Key West Old Town (that's where you want to be,) and see what's available. And don't stay directly on Duval St.

Don't stay at the Hilton. Although it is a good location, the staff is unfriendly and they mixed up our reservation. We ended up switching to the Ocean Key Resort and LOVED it! I also hear great things about the Hyatt. Good luck!

Casa marina is the place to stay. It is away from the crowds, has a beach (kind of) and nice pool area

We will be there in early October, or we could meet you, too. <BR>We will be at the Southernmost Point Guesthouse, a B&B. Anyone stayed there and have any comments they can share?

We stayed at the Hyatt last year and thought it was overpriced at $350 per night-went in Jan) Ive stayed at quite a few Hyatts, but was dissapointed w this one. I agree w George, oceanfront is not what you would expect. Nice views but no sandy beach to walk out to.<BR><BR>My husband and I have been back to Key West twice since and stayed at two different Inn's and really enjoyed it.<BR>He prefers hotels/resorts for the same reason, but you can get a great place for less $$. We stayed at The Key West Harbor Inn and The Paradise Inn. I found these are actually more private than the hotels.<BR><BR>Have Fun!

We stayed at the Hyatt last year and thought it was overpriced at $350 per night-went in Jan) Ive stayed at quite a few Hyatts, but was dissapointed w this one. I agree w George, oceanfront is not what you would expect. Nice views but no sandy beach to walk out to.<BR><BR>My husband and I have been back to Key West twice since and stayed at two different Inn's and really enjoyed it.<BR>He prefers hotels/resorts for the same reason, but you can get a great place for less $$. We stayed at The Key West Harbor Inn and The Paradise Inn. I found these are actually more private than the hotels.<BR><BR>Have Fun!

I've stayed at several Hyatts lately that haven't been worth the money. Evidently they only lease the buildings because I know of two Hyatts that have been taken over by other hotel chains recently. The Hyatt in Hilton Head is now a Marriott and the Hyatt St. Lucia is now a Sandals.

Bing,<BR><BR>You've got it reversed: someone builds the hotel then hires the hotel company, whether it be Hyatt, Marriott, Westin, you name it, to manage it, while they retain ownership, and this goes for most hotel companies, not just Hyatt. Hyatt owns a small percentage of theirs, including the one we are in, Marriott and the others own a small percentage of theirs as well, but in most chains, if not all, the hotels are only under a management contract to the chain, but owned by another company. As a matter of fact, Host Marriott, the realestate division of Marriott has built some hotels and hired Hyatt to run them. <BR><BR>Hotels change flags for various reasons. One in Tampa has been a Marriott, Westin, and now someone else--3 flags in 6 years--enough that I've forgotten who they are now! I know the story behind both St Lucia and HH, but that's beyond anything I could write here, obviously. Lets just say that either the hotel company can decide to leave a hotel for whatever reason, or the ownership group can terminate a relationship at the end of the management contract. <BR><BR>Also, it is the ownership group that supplies all money for renovations in a property, not the hotel managmement company (Hyatt, Westin etc). Hotel managmement may recommend something be done and be done in a certain way, but whether or not this happens, and happens as recommended and in the recommended time frame, is entirely up to the ownership group.<BR><BR>Interesting business...to me anyway! LOL