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Following my post “Best Hyatt resorts for winter and spring break in the continental United States” I intended to do the same for Marriott. But then I started looking through their resort list and I was quickly overwhelmed. Marriott offers more resort properties in Florida than Hyatt does in all of the continental United States (59 vs. 56). So, rather than tackling all of the United States, I’ll break this down and start with Florida. What are the best Marriott Resorts in Florida?
I used Marriott’s website to identify properties classified as resorts in Florida. I added all 59 to a spreadsheet and recorded the hotel’s category (which determines how many points are required to book a free night), Marriott customer average rating, and TripAdvisor rating.
Highest Rated Marriott Resorts in Florida
I thought I’d be able to sort by TripAdvisor rating in order to pick the 10 best Marriott resorts in Florida. Then I’d use the Marriott customer rating as a tie-breaker. That would be easy, right? Unfortunately, out of 59 resorts, 42 of them have TripAdvisor ratings of exactly 4.5. Luckily, Marriott’s own customer ratings are more granular. So, I filtered to hotels with a TripAdvisor rating of 4.5 and then sorted by Marriott’s customer ratings in order to identify the 13 highest rated Marriott resorts in Florida.
Note that this list is missing all vacation ownership resorts because Marriott doesn’t publish customer ratings for those. You’ll find a list of the best vacation ownership properties later in this post.
The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.8 426 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $651 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.2 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A golfer’s paradise featuring two PGA-level courses surrounded by Florida wetlands
Waterline Marina Resort & Beach Club, Autograph Collection
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.8 140 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $388 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.7 cents per point (poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Holmes Beach boutique hotel with sophisticated suites, dining, 50-slip marina and beach club.
The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.7 777 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $526 per night
- Points: 250K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A luxury barrier-island resort situated on 13 miles of pristine beaches in North Florida
The Ritz-Carlton, Naples
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.7 687 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $1083 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.4 cents per point (very good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A Florida beach resort inspired by the power and beauty of the Gulf of Mexico
The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.6 418 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $930 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.7 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A tranquil beach resort that captures both the glamour and the essence of Fort Lauderdale
JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.6 2795 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $924 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.7 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Beachfront resort with 12 restaurants, spa, golf, event spaces and Paradise by Sirene experience.
The Ritz-Carlton Bal Harbour, Miami
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.6 190 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $1469 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.8 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A coastal sanctuary on the northernmost tip of Miami Beach.
The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.5 829 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $2646 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 3.3 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Luxurious five-star resort in Miami’s Most exclusive area, all rooms feature direct ocean views.
The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.5 663 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $491 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Luxury Golf resort: golf course, spa, fly fishing, eco tours & club lounge
The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.5 560 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $754 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.3 cents per point (very good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A luxury resort in downtown Sarasota that captures the culture and beauty of Florida’s gulf coast
Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld®
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.5 3140 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $221 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.7 cents per point (poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Orlando hotel next to SeaWorld® with expansive rooms, a water park, spa, dining and event space.
JW Marriott Orlando, Grande Lakes
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.5 2755 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $277 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.6 cents per point (very poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Scenic Orlando resort with outdoor pool and lazy river, spa, golf and shuttle to nearby theme parks.
Key West Marriott Beachside Hotel
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.5 1180 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $659 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.2 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Your stay is about convenience, from free airport and Duval St shuttle to free Wi-Fi, No Resort fees
Best Point Value Marriott Resorts in Florida
The following resorts offer the best value for your points compared to cash prices for winter break. Data was collected May 28th 2020 for a December 26-31, 2020 stay. Please note that many of these appear to be great values only because the cash rates are extraordinarily high compared to point rates for those dates. Resorts with TripAdvisor ratings below 4.0 were removed.
W South Beach
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.3 1163 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $2754 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 3.4 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): We let guests be themselves at W South Beach, a luxury hotel with a taste for fashion and design.
The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.5 829 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $2646 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 3.3 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Luxurious five-star resort in Miami’s Most exclusive area, all rooms feature direct ocean views.
The Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne, Miami
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.4 531 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $1135 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 2 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A secluded South Florida retreat nestled onto a five-mile-long barrier island
The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4
- Marriott Customer Rating: 3.5 15 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $1528 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.9 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach pays tribute to the vibrant culture and colorful history of Miami.
The Miami Beach EDITION
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.3 429 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $1528 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.9 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Luxury oceanfront Miami Beach hotel with exceptional dining, pools, a spa, entertainment and venues.
The Ritz-Carlton Bal Harbour, Miami
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.6 190 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 8 (85K points standard, 70K off-peak, 100K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $1469 per night
- Points: 400K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.8 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A coastal sanctuary on the northernmost tip of Miami Beach.
The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.6 418 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $930 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.7 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): A tranquil beach resort that captures both the glamour and the essence of Fort Lauderdale
JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.6 2795 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $924 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.7 cents per point (great value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Beachfront resort with 12 restaurants, spa, golf, event spaces and Paradise by Sirene experience.
Best Marriott Resorts in Florida for Free Night Certs
The following resorts offer the best value for 50K Free Night certificates based on cash rates for the dates examined. Unfortunately, almost all Marriott hotels in Florida are peak-priced in the winter, so the best you can do then with a 50K certificate is book a category 5 resort (35K standard, 40K peak).
The following list may also be helpful to find the best uses for 35K free night certificates during standard and off-peak dates.
Marriott’s Ocean Pointe
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $487 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.5 cents per point (very good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Family-friendly vacation ownership resort located in Palm Beach Shores offering spacious villas.
Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.1 5490 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $461 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.4 cents per point (very good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Upscale resort with nine restaurants, a water park and spa near popular theme parks in Florida.
The Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.1 1490 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $379 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.2 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Beachfront hotel in Fort Lauderdale, with restaurants, an outdoor pool, a spa and event venues.
Marriott’s Harbour Lake
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $368 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.2 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Family-friendly vacation ownership resort with villas and guest rooms near the Orlando attractions.
Fort Lauderdale Marriott Pompano Beach Resort & Spa
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4
- Marriott Customer Rating: 4.2 1107 Reviews
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $358 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Pompano Beach resort with oceanfront accommodations, dining, spa, water sports and event space.
Marriott’s Lakeshore Reserve
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $340 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Spacious villas and townhouses await you at our premium Orlando vacation ownership resort.
Marriott’s Villas at Doral
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $332 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Spacious two-bedroom villas with full kitchens at this premium Miami vacation ownership resort
Best Marriott Vacation Ownership Resorts in Florida
Marriott offers many vacation ownership (timeshare) resorts in Florida. Each of these are available to book like regular hotels with cash or points. Shown below are all of the vacation ownership resorts in Florida with a TripAdvisor score of 4.5. Marriott’s website doesn’t show customer ratings for vacation ownership properties, so I wasn’t able to sort these by Marriott customer ratings. Instead, I sorted by point value from best to worst.
Marriott’s Oceana Palms
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $597 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.2 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Beachfront vacation ownership resort offering spacious two-bedroom villas, a pool and activities.
Marriott’s Harbour Lake
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $368 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.2 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Family-friendly vacation ownership resort with villas and guest rooms near the Orlando attractions.
Marriott’s Crystal Shores
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 7 (70K points standard, 50K off-peak, 70K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $640 per night
- Points: 280K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Beachfront vacation ownership resort with spacious villas, pools and dining in Marco Island.
Marriott’s Imperial Palms Villas
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $537 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Premium vacation ownership resort featuring spacious 3-bedroom villas near Orlando’s theme parks.
Marriott’s Legends Edge at Bay Point
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $258 per night
- Points: 120K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Enjoy spacious two-bedroom villas at our vacation ownership resort in Panama City, FL.
Marriott’s Lakeshore Reserve
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $340 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1.1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Spacious villas and townhouses await you at our premium Orlando vacation ownership resort.
Marriott’s Villas at Doral
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $332 per night
- Points: 160K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 1 cents per point (good value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Spacious two-bedroom villas with full kitchens at this premium Miami vacation ownership resort
Marriott’s Sabal Palms
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $379 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.8 cents per point (poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Find spacious 2-bedroom villas at this premium vacation ownership resort near Orlando’s attractions
Marriott’s Royal Palms
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $363 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.8 cents per point (poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Family-friendly vacation ownership resort with spacious 2-bedroom villas near Orlando’s attractions
Vistana Beach Club
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $341 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.7 cents per point (poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Jensen Beach vacation ownership resort with ocean view accommodations, kitchens and a pool
Sheraton PGA Vacation Resort, Port St. Lucie
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $192 per night
- Points: 150K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.6 cents per point (poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Port St. Lucie vacation ownership resort with spacious villas near first-class golf and beaches.
Marriott’s Cypress Harbour Villas
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $287 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.6 cents per point (very poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Premium Orlando vacation ownership resort with two-bedroom villas, dining, pools and mini golf
Marriott’s Grande Vista
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 5 (35K points standard, 30K off-peak, 40K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $173 per night
- Points: 150K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.6 cents per point (very poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Family-friendly vacation ownership resort with spacious villa rentals, golf club, four pools and spa
Sheraton Vistana Villages Resort Villas, I-Drive/Orlando
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $197 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.4 cents per point (very poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Family vacation ownership resort in Orlando with spacious villas near top attractions.
Sheraton Vistana Resort Villas, Lake Buena Vista/Orlando
- TripAdvisor Rating: 4.5
- Marriott Customer Rating: N/A
- Hotel Category: 6 (50K points standard, 40K off-peak, 60K peak)
- Winter Break Analysis (Dec 26-31):
- Price: $189 per night
- Points: 240K for 5 nights
- Point Value: 0.4 cents per point (very poor value)
- Property Description (from Marriott’s Website): Vacation ownership resort near Orlando attractions, with pools, dining and kids activities.
Methodology
Using Marriott’s website, I filtered to Marriott properties in Florida which were identified as resorts. For each of these 59 resorts, I then recorded the following information:
- Resort Name
- Hotel Category
- Marriott Customer Average Rating (1-5)
- TripAdvisor Rating (1-5)
- Average price per night for a stay from December 26 to December 31.
- Point price for the 5 nights from December 26 to December 31. In the rare cases where point awards weren’t available, I recorded peak award pricing based on the resort’s category.
I then calculated the following:
- Point value: (Nightly rate x 5) / (5-Night Award Price)
- Point value description:
- Point value <0.6: very poor value
- Point value 0.6 to 0.8: poor value
- Point value 0.8 to 0.9: fair value
- Point value 1.0 to 1.2: good value
- Point value 1.3 to 1.5: very good value
- Point value > 1.5: great value
I sorted and filtered this data in various ways to generate the lists of best Marriott resorts in Florida which are shown above.
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lol. You’ve never been to the Waterline.
It’s more like an Airbnb and a wonderful 2-bedroom condo. On the interior. It’s site and location is awful. It’s four blocks from the beach with a view from the outside rooms of a rundown strip of 7-11-type stores, gas station, etc. The inside view is worse. A gravel parking lot full of oversize pickup trucks. What “resort” turns their courtyard into a gravel parking lot for trucks?? Maybe they let people bring their boats and launch in the inlet? IDK.
Holmes Beach is a quaint red-necky type place and the beach is very nice but surrounded by cheap rentals. Further north on Santa Maria Island is very nice with expensive homes and private beaches.
I have stayed there actually, and despite a bumpy start I liked it a lot. You can read my review here: https://frequentmiler.com/waterline-marina-resort-beach-club-autograph-collection-review/
That said, none of the resorts listed here are included or excluded due to my personal experience. I ran this entirely by the numbers as described in each section.
[…] Best Marriott Resorts in Florida […]
thanks Greg – great work. Deep dives such as this are a reason to come back to this site.
Thanks, Greg for doing this, it’s very useful and time-consuming. So it’s greatly appreciated from a guy who happens to live in FL 🙂
I would love to see the same analysis done for Florida hotels taking Chase Marriott anniversary night certs.
Do you mean hotels as opposed to resorts? I imagine there must be hundreds and hundreds – that would be a lot of data to comb through. Maybe Greg will tackle it though!
But if you just meant which of these properties Greg covered could be booked with an anniversary night cert, this section of this post has the best that can be booked with one of the various types of free night certs:
https://frequentmiler.com/best-marriott-resorts-in-florida/#Best_Marriott_Resorts_in_Florida_for_Free_Night_Certs
You left out https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/fllbp-marriotts-beachplace-towers/?scid=bb1a189a-fec3-4d19-a255-54ba596febe2
Great location right on the beach
Thanks. That one was in my spreadsheet, but wasn’t reported here because it only has a TripAdvisor rating of 4.0 whereas 15 vacation ownership properties have a rating of 4.5. I had to trim somewhere!
Do not read into the point values, they are all way worse than this guy is posting unless you go during that specific week. Marriott points have no cash value and will easily get $50 of hotel spend for 10,000 points but remember NEVER to buy hotel points unless you are topping off for an expensive stay.
That’s true. That’s why “this guy” wrote “ Please note that many of these appear to be great values only because the cash rates are extraordinarily high compared to point rates for those dates. ”
Good Job ” this guy ” ..
#stayincave
Can you please research US Holiday Inn resorts? Thank you