Marco Beach Ocean Resort
Feb 20th, 2002, 10:05 AM
#2
Guest
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Jeff,
This resort is a product of Gulf Bay Development. They have built several luxury condo buildings in the Naples and Marco area. The Marco Beach Ocean Resort is actually a hotel/condo building; people purchased the condos but they are rented out as hotel rooms when the owners are not there.
The hotel is being run by a team that includes some of the people who were on the original management staff at the Ritz (on the beach) in Naples. This would seem to ensure that the hotel will be a grand experience. It is probably the most luxurious resort you will find on Marco.
I seriously considered booking the hotel for a vacation in March. In fact, part of the reason we were going to stay there was to view the rooms with the expectation of buying one of the suites. However, we decided against staying there because in my communications with the staff (both hotel reservations and real estate staff) I am under the impression that they are quite unprofessional and experiencing some serious opening problems with regard to service. I did not feel like paying their rates (which seem pretty normal for a luxury suite hotel) if the service was not going to be up to par...I'd give it a few more months (at least) to let them figure out how to run a decent hotel.
By the way, if you want to check out the floorplans of the rooms, go to www.gulfbay.com and click on Marco Beach Ocean Resort.
This resort is a product of Gulf Bay Development. They have built several luxury condo buildings in the Naples and Marco area. The Marco Beach Ocean Resort is actually a hotel/condo building; people purchased the condos but they are rented out as hotel rooms when the owners are not there.
The hotel is being run by a team that includes some of the people who were on the original management staff at the Ritz (on the beach) in Naples. This would seem to ensure that the hotel will be a grand experience. It is probably the most luxurious resort you will find on Marco.
I seriously considered booking the hotel for a vacation in March. In fact, part of the reason we were going to stay there was to view the rooms with the expectation of buying one of the suites. However, we decided against staying there because in my communications with the staff (both hotel reservations and real estate staff) I am under the impression that they are quite unprofessional and experiencing some serious opening problems with regard to service. I did not feel like paying their rates (which seem pretty normal for a luxury suite hotel) if the service was not going to be up to par...I'd give it a few more months (at least) to let them figure out how to run a decent hotel.
By the way, if you want to check out the floorplans of the rooms, go to www.gulfbay.com and click on Marco Beach Ocean Resort.
Feb 21st, 2002, 07:16 AM
#3
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Thanks John. We went ahead and booked a room for late March since it was the only beachfront hotel in the area which still had room for a family of four. I had some reservations for the same reasons you indicated. I will let you know how it works out. If you have any suggestions on other properties to try please let me know.
Feb 21st, 2002, 09:13 AM
#4
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Jeff,
I am going about the same time (late March). Two alternatives we looked at were the Olde Marco Inn and the Hilton.
The Olde Marco is on the bay side (looking toward the mainland) and doesn't have any beach frontage. They do have a pool. Their rate was something less than $300 for a two-bedroom suite and included breakfast every day. The suites are brand new, but we decided not to stay there because it isn't on the beach.
We finally settled on the Hilton. It does not seem to be on the level of the Marco Beach Resort (and according to some, the Marriott), but it is a smaller resort on the beach. I was able to book two junior suites (I believe all their rooms are junior or one-bedroom suites) for $100 less per night than a two-bedroom at the Marco Beach Resort.
Considering that the Marriott, Marco Beach, and Hilton are all next to each other on the beach, I figured the only difference was the level of luxury. For us, that wasn't such a big factor since we're checking into the Ritz Naples afterward. Not sure exactly what you are looking for.
I am going about the same time (late March). Two alternatives we looked at were the Olde Marco Inn and the Hilton.
The Olde Marco is on the bay side (looking toward the mainland) and doesn't have any beach frontage. They do have a pool. Their rate was something less than $300 for a two-bedroom suite and included breakfast every day. The suites are brand new, but we decided not to stay there because it isn't on the beach.
We finally settled on the Hilton. It does not seem to be on the level of the Marco Beach Resort (and according to some, the Marriott), but it is a smaller resort on the beach. I was able to book two junior suites (I believe all their rooms are junior or one-bedroom suites) for $100 less per night than a two-bedroom at the Marco Beach Resort.
Considering that the Marriott, Marco Beach, and Hilton are all next to each other on the beach, I figured the only difference was the level of luxury. For us, that wasn't such a big factor since we're checking into the Ritz Naples afterward. Not sure exactly what you are looking for.
Feb 21st, 2002, 09:15 AM
#5
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By the way, did you book directly through the hotel? I found that the Preferred Hotels and Resorts (www.preferredhotels.com) website offered better rates than the Marco Bay's own website.
