Marriott's Aruba Ocean Club

Marriott’s Aruba Ocean Club

Not as expected…Make another choice

When I travel with my family of 5, I always try to stay in accommodations where we can cook and have space. I was excited about this property of 2 bedrooms and 2 baths, until we stayed here. Upon arrival at 1 PM, we were given a pager and told we would be notified when the units are ready. Three hours later we received the page that one of the units was ready and we were tired and returned to the unit that was ready. After another 2 hours I called the front desk to ask the status of the other side of the unit and I was told that it was ready……as if I was supposed to know that.

The person on the phone said that they would send someone up to unlock the other side of the unit and that they would bring keys that would work on all of the doors. Of course only one key worked appropriately and it took three tries to get all of them to work.

We also called and asked for another remote for the TV in the living room, as it was not working. It took 3 days and FIVE phone calls before it was addressed.

One evening we decided to dine on the property and upon arrival there was a line and a lot of empty tables. There was not enough staff to run the restaurant effectively, so we ended making other plans.

The hallways of this property smelled of mildew.

On the third day, I asked at the front desk when we would get housekeeping. I was told it would not occur until we had stayed for 4 nights, but I could pay for it if I wanted it before then. When I stated that the website said daily housekeeping and did not mention anything about paying for daily housekeeping, she had nothing to say. I then asked if I could have some fresh towels and I was then told that I would have to pay for them. I did eventually get some fresh towels without payment, but I had to really pushback to make that happen.

When we did finally get housekeeping, I had to call at the end of the day to ask when they would clean the room. This was so frustrating, as I had requested an earlier service because we were going on an excursion and I knew that we would be tired when we returned by 4 PM that day.

This property will nickel and dime you for everything….even the beach towels. Each person was allotted one towel per day. So if you needed a towel to put on the beach chair and one to dry off with, you had to pay for the extra one. I have never been so disappointed with a Marriott property. I would not recommend this property, as it is run by the Motley Cruë. Upon checking out of this property, I felt as if I needed a vacation to recover from this place.