This 153-room property is located in northern Key Largo, a short drive from the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, and close to shops and restaurants. Not a lot stands out, but there are a few perks — like a diver’s center on-site, an adequate spa, and a nice private beach (albeit a tiny one, with little room for swimming). Big rooms have flat-screen TVs, free Wi-Fi, and nicer decor than other mid-range chains in the area — but many bathrooms could use a renovation. Upgrading to a suite will give you a full kitchen and a large sitting area, but smaller sleeping quarters. Book a room with an ocean view to enjoy the beautiful Key Largo sunsets (and avoid facing the nearby highway).
Grounds at the Marriott Key Largo Bay Beach Resort
The San Francisco Marriott Union Square is one of hundreds of hotels that will soon offer Wi-Fi free to loyal customers.
For years, Marriott Hotels and its sister brands JW Marriott and Renaissance have been charging for Wi-Fi in rooms, the sort of nickel-and-diming that we just can’t stand. (And we’re not the only ones sick of it.) But an email sent to the brands’ loyalty program members this morning announces some great news, at least for those with gold and platinum status:
Announcing a new Marriott Rewards benefit – starting May 7, free Internet access for all Gold and Platinum Elite members at nearly 450 hotels across the U.S. and Canada. Log on to the Internet free in guest rooms and public spaces; just check in and connect.
Looks like Marriott is taking its first, long-overdue step toward making wireless internet as free and as central to a hotel stay as hot water and cable TV.
A word of caution, though, for those hoping that Marriott may soon knock down the pay wall altogether: In April 2009, rival chain Hyatt started giving away wireless connections to its rewards-program guests — and the brand is still charging non-elite travelers for in-room Wi-Fi at hotels from Maui to Washington, D.C. Progress on the free internet front, it seems, is slow.
Want travel advice from the experts? Ask Oyster! Kate from Washington, D.C. wrote to our editors last night and we selected her question to be a part of our Ask Oyster feature. For help planning your next vacation, just shoot a question over to askoyster@oyster.com.
Question: Kate from Washington D.C.
My husband and I are looking to cash-in on some of our Marriott Rewards points this winter. We’ve collected A LOT over the years while traveling on business, but WE NEED A VACATION! We’re thinking a long weekend – maybe more, if we can afford it – but we’re not sure where we should splurge (somewhere warm, hopefully). Ideas? Thank you!!!
Answer: Will Begeny, Oyster’s Senior Editor
Thanks for asking, Kate. As with any of the hotel rewards programs, sifting through the website’s legal-qualifying jargon can be a nightmare. Your best bet is to take advantage of their travel-package deals, which typically toss in a generous helping of frequent-flyer miles (even if you don’t use the miles for the trip).
The adults-only pool at the Marriott Wailea Resort in Maui, Hawaii
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by admin on September 21, 2009
Renaissance Relaunch Party
Last week, we hit up Renaissance Hotels’ official brand “re-launch” at the Hotel 57 in Manhattan (which is now a Renaissance property). Across the pond, plenty of folks were partying in Paris at the Renaissance Arc de Triomphe several hours earlier to celebrate the new look of the Marriott-owned chain the same way.
So: when a not-too-trendy hotel chain like Renaissance gets the word out about a total image revamp by throwing much-hyped, almost-simultaneous parties on two different continents, what kind of vibe might we expect the newly-refreshed brand to deliver? From what we saw at the Hotel 57 party, Renaissance is going for trendy, chic, and modern — and according to David Marriott (Regional Vice President of hotel operations for NYC, Baltimore, and Philly), the brand is aiming to compete with W Hotels.
Renaissance, listen: we’ve gotta be honest. We never knew you had it in you to pull off a W-ish vibe, but we’d be inclined to believe you’ve got the goods to go head-to-head with Starwood’s trendiest brand after this party. At the soiree, we mingled with (er, “mingled with” is a little strong — let’s go with “followed around”) Gossip Girl’s Penn Badgley and the beautiful Brooke Shields while sipping on Absolut cocktails among the funky, fresh, inventive decor. There were sparkly dresses a-plenty, a few A and B-list celebs, DJ’s, drunk people, and contemporary light fixtures. If we squinted real hard, we would have thought we were hanging out at one of W’s Living Room bars.
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