Tropical Cottages, Marathon

I have stayed at this resort over a dozen times in the last 20 years. Travelling from Canada to Marathon every 1-2 years for vacation we have always had good service, never expected or needed 5 star accommodations but focused on clean rooms, good service from establishment owner, and something close to attractions that included a kitchenette. We arrived on Sunday Dec 19 in the afternoon, checked in, went to the Hurricane(great food) for dinner and went to bed early ...after alot of driving. We had no hot water, and thought maybe we didn't let it run long enough etc, tried again in the am and still no hot water. We had very loud partying guests (approx 3 cars full) in the cabin next to us(that sleeps 4). We notified the owner first thing in the morning and complained about the noise throughout the night. She felt the hot water issue was because of a breaker and would come fix it. A few hours later I went back and asked again, she then finally came and flipped the breaker, and said to try again later. We then had a nap (since we had no sleep that night before due to other loud guests) and when waking at 2pm we checked again and still no hot water. So I complained for the 3rd time and she had someone come to look at it, but complained the florida power company better reimburse her because the power had gone off the day before. It requied a new element and about 5pm (28 hours after we checked in) we finally had hot water. No offer to credit the night stay or a portion of the night stay. The other cottages in this resort are quaint and functional, she placed us in a mobile home???which after all the years staying there we did not realize this was one of their units. The shower taps, barely turned on, the shower head is shoulder height and does not adjust, and if you try to adjust it, the spray turns into a stream/dribble so not very effective. The toilet seat is circa 1960, and is the old style foam/soft seat, but is cracked in the underseams and oozes a wonderful unknown liquid when you sit on it. The windows are old shutter style, but are missing all the cranks and cannot be opened or closed, and are not tightly sealed so offer no protection as sound barrier In addition, the window sills are filled with dead bug carcasses. The pull-out couch my teenage dtr slept on was foul smelling and has not been cleaned and the mattress was in very poor shape. We had a slightly better second night until 5:30 in the AM when the garbage truck arrived, and all the garbage for the resort is under our sitting area window. The 3rd night we were kept awake all night from a creature that had come into the attic space of the trailer (the other cottages do not have this space and would not likely experience this) either a possum,or large iguana, we don't know...it tried coming in through most parts of the ceiling, scratching and running all night. We gave up and left at 6am, knocked on the door at the office but no one was up, so got no response, and were thankful to leave without being bit by something had it made its way into our trailer. I sent the owner an email after we left (within an hour) authorizing a charge for 1 night vs. 3, since we had no hot water the first night and creature troubles the 3rd. night. We had reserved 6 nights but upon check-in the computor was conveniently down, and the new owner did not provide us with a registration receipt or outline any cancellation policy to us (no signs were posted in the office and there is nothing on the website). So after we left and despite my email indicating my authorization of charges the new owner charged my credit card for the full amount all 6 nights....and said she had a 14 day cancellation policy. We went down the road for our remaining 3 nights and stayed at another resort recommended by the Chamber of Commerce office. STAY AWAY------------------------Do not entrust your hard earned money with this new owner.

I booked this palce online after reading some reviews and looking at their website. It is such a major disappointment . It is a few feet from the noisy US1 highway , backs on to a drive-in bank car park . The Bank's Dumpster is just feet from the door of the ' superior cottage ' . It is a collection of wooden shacks laid out on dusty gravel. The worst thing of all was that when I arrived and said I was disppointed and did not wish to stay they still insisted on charging my card . So my advice is stay elsewhere , I got a fantastic hotel with pool , beach and full facilites just down the road . If you do feel that the other reviews are genuine ( which I really cannot believe ) then go there and look around before giving your card details . I am sure they will allways have vacancies.

We spent two nights in a recently renovated cottage at Tropical Cottages. The sun coming into the high windows was a delight in the morning. The floors were recently tiled and very clean. There was a grocery store near by where we bought our breakfasts...we ate them in our fenced porch. The hosts were delightful and very attentive. The gulf was windy, so we did not get to use the kayaks or canoe. Sombrero beach was relaxing and we saw a pod of dolphins! We would recommend Tropical Cottages to anyone traveling the Keys.

A perfect little paradise to call home for a wisit to the Keys. The location in Marathon is convenient to everything and the rates a remarkable value. Sombrero Beach, a beautiful public Ocean beach five minutes away was a real surprise. We loved the tropical decor- from the sea blue towels to the Palm Tree light switches. The room was recently renovated and included a great tile bath and new kitchenette with microwave and fridge. We liked the private screened wood patio and the gurgling fountain. After a one-night stay, we moved on to a big Islamorada resort but soon missed having our own complete cozy little world in Marathon. We decided to return to Tropical Cottages for our last two days in the Keys.

Tropical Cottages is a great little place to stay had a great time there they even have free for guest use Bicycles and Kayaks and it was great kayaking in the Gulf of Mexico