Marriotts Aruba Ocean Club, Palm Beach

We had a beautiful 1 bedroom. Staff was very nice and helpful except when we requested above 3rd floor. The woman did check but said 3rd floor outside was all that was available. The view of ocean was very limited from our villa. The pool was gorgeous. The beach was nice. Hotel was close to shopping and restaurants. The palapa saving wasn't an issue for us. We would go to the pool for a few hours and then to the beach in the late afternoon in beach chairs. If we needed a break from the sun, we went to a beach bar for lunch or a drink. Drinks and food were expensive at Marriott. We bought beer and rum at the grocery store and took drinks to the beach. We ate at some other places like Moomba for lunch and pizza at Holiday Inn.

I have owned at the Ocean Club for seven years and have used my timeshare yearly. This year I needed to join my family...10 people with three owners scheduling the same time,two at Surf and mine at Ocean. I could not book the week of July 4th with them because of no availability but I was able to book a rental for that time at Ocean for $600. plus a night for a 2 bedroom. Our hopes was to provide a wonderful 89th birthday for my father and celebrate two graduations. I requested three months before arrival that we be located in the wing closest to Surf on the first floor to make it easier for my elderly parents to get to pool and to Surf with walkers. I called from Phila four times,the night before to reinforce the need and was told things looked good for my request. Well,we were scheduled in the wing fartherest from the request in a room that required two sets of steps without full rails and was next to the pool construction.We were told by the front desk that that was the only room unless we wanted a downgrade to a side/parking view room. On day number three the air conditioner broke and flooded the two room tile floors and the cooling was off for 2 nights...we were told to be patient but nothing could be done.After many complaints we were given a credit of $150 for the inconvenience. We were told that this outage has occurred frequently in that wing and work was underway.When complaining to the higher authorities at the Managers reception, I was told that the schedulers must have lost sight that I was an owner and gave us whatever was left. My frustration worsened when I heard two men talking on the beach as to how nice it is to own in some unknown place and be able to trade each year for Aruba Ocean Club...and he pointed to the beach front room that he requests and gets. I left the resort very frustrated that my celebration for my elderly father had so many obstacle,especailly as an owner who really loves Aruba but concerned about the current situation.

We have been going to this location for 10 years. We love the new improved furnishings and attention to cleanliness. I have never encountered anything but friendly people. While the staff may not be able to solve every issue, they try hard to please their guests. I think this is one of the best locations on the island.

While Palm Beach is beautiful, I'd definitely choose a different hotel. I have never experienced worse concierge service anywhere! Out of 4 nights when we asked the concierge to make a dinner reservation for us, each time they screwed things up. Twice they never made the reservation. Once they made it for the wrong time. And once they recommended a restaurant for us to go to and sent us there, only to find it was closed on that day of the week! This is no 4 star resort service!

Probably one of the best hotels in the high rise area in Aruba. Beautiful rooms, excellent service and good food. One problem was the noise caused by the lobby/bar area during evening hours. Ask for a room in the wing area if you plan to spend time in your room after 10 pm. The loud noise of talking people and a piano resonated through the door of our room. The next day we requested (and got) another room in the wing. But overall the hotel was great and the nuisance was quickly forgotten. Great for kids.

I go to Aruba every September and stay at the Ocean Club. The hotel is spacious, clean and the people are very friendly and helpful. I just read a review where someone witnessed a fist fight on the beach over a hut. I've been there 5 times and I've never had a problem getting a hut and certainly never witness people fight over them. There are plenty of huts and plenty of chairs for everyone. It's a very peaceful environment, not a not of kids and a place to go and relax. I will continue to go back and continue to stay at the Ocean Club.

My husband and I are back in the states less than 12 hours after spending 14 nights and 15 days at the Ocean Club. We have owned at this resort since pre-construction. We did not go last year but has been going to Aruba for over 14 years, owning at the Ocean 9 of those years. As we have not been at the Ocean Club for 2 years, we were quite surprised to encounter some of the employess were not as verse in their jobs as in the past. For example, conceirge desk, we had them make dinner reservations for us several times; gave us confirmation sheet; went to restuarant had no reservation only to find out conceirge never called. Front desk people - noticing more employees are not native to Aruba.....those that are not natives are very rude. We were told that since there is so much construction on island they do not have the people to fill all the jobs....therefore people are being brought in from other islands. Surf Club people are a major major issue at the Ocean Club as the Surf Club amenities cannot handle their own guests...resort was not as clean as in the past and pool was very dirty. Husband and I complained to the management and one of them basically laughed in our face...told us that all the owners whose home is Aruba love the resort....well he is very misinformed as we own in Aruba at the Ocean Club....our friends who also own and have not been there in 4 years were quite disappointed with the rudeness and lack of cleanliness of the resort. We spoke with several people at the pool who are considering selling their own there or trade elsewhere. I can understand if you have never been there you would view this property as beautiful as it is compared to the many other resorts on the island, but owning there since the beginning is very disheartening to see the changes for the negative and not for the positive. One major issue that management does not know how to handle is the huts on the beach....people are actually fist fighting over them and the police were called three times to break up the fights while we were there and resulted in people being taken out in handcuffs..

My family and I spent 6 wonderful days there. My only regret is that we did not stay 6 more days. The hotel is well maintained. The cleaning staff did not just surface clean your rooms. The cleaning was detailed. Every time we went to the beach and came back our room smelled wonderful the beds were re-made, fresh towels were there. The entire staff from the concierge(s), guest relations, to the cleaning staff were all consistently friendly and helpful. This along with beautiful weather made this the best vacation we have ever had.

We just returned from the Ocean Club after spending 10 days on the Island. The Ocean Club is by far the best place to stay. While the Surf Club is nice, the Ocean club offers more privacy, less children and a relaxed atmoshphere. We would recommend this Hotel to anyone who likes to relax during a vacation.

We just returned from 1 week at this property. We didn't want to leave this hotel or the island. The property was well kept. The rooms were very clean. We had a 1 bedroom and found it to be great. The food at the resturants was very good. The service was excellent. We will go back every chance we get and for us that will be a flight since we are from Calif.Hawaii is closer but not as nice. The Aruba people were very frendly and helpful. Can't wait.