Marriott’s Luminary Hotel, Fort Myers Florida: Bottom Line Review

I don’t usually write hotel reviews before leaving a hotel, but I’m making an exception this time because the point price for this one will soon go up.  Currently the Luminary Hotel is priced at 30K Marriott points per night while cash rates often top $800 per night.  That makes this hotel an amazing use of Marriott points or free night certificates.  Starting around March 29th 2022, the award price is expected to increase by 10,000 points per night.  It will still be a good value then, but it’s better to book now if interested.

My wife and I were in Florida visiting relatives and needed a place to stay for two nights in the Fort Myers area.  While many competing hotels were unavailable to book with points, this new hotel (it opened September 2020) had standard rooms available and many excellent reviews.  We booked it and we were glad we did.

Luminary Hotel Bottom Line Review

We had a terrific stay and will happily return.  This is a beautifully designed top-notch hotel that is cursed by the fact that a notoriously loud bar sits adjacent.  Online reviews tend to be split between those who had wonderful stays vs. those enraged by loud music.  In our case, we declined an upgrade to a Night Owl suite when the desk agent explained that those are considered “party” suites due to the music that typically blares until 2am.  Instead, we were given a 7th floor river view King which was nice and quiet (note: we stayed Monday & Tuesday nights which may have been quiet even on the party side of the hotel, but we didn’t want to risk it).

• Points Price: Category 4, 25K points per night standard, 20K off-peak, or 30K peak (expect to pay 30K per night most of the time).  We paid for our stay with 35K free night certificates.  Note that Marriott’s award charts are scheduled to disappear starting March 29th 2022.  At that point, the Luminary hotel is listed as increasing in price by up to 10,000 points in 2022.  Expect the Luminary to be priced at 40,000 points per night on most nights.  Note that 40K points can still be a great deal since this hotel is often priced above $400 per night.
• Cash Price: Varies. While we were here they were charging over $800 per night after taxes!  We were very glad to be using free night certificates instead!
• Points Value: Excellent.  As long as the top points price remains at 40K per night and as long as the hotel frequently charges over $400 per night, this will remain a good deal.
• Resort or Destination Fee: None.  This is a very welcome exception to the awful practice that has become more and more common.
• Parking: The hotel’s self parking (in their attached parking deck) is only $5 per day if you simply park your car and leave it.  If you plan to go in and out often, you may be better off charging to your room for $15 per day.
• Room: Excellent. The room has a great edgy/modern design.  My wife and I thought it seemed more like a Hyatt Andaz than a Marriott.  We had a beautiful view of the river.  The bed was comfortable, but my wife hurt her leg by repeatedly walking into the corner of the bed frame.  Somehow I escaped that fate.  The shower offered plenty of hot water and good pressure.  The best feature is that the shower’s controls are near the door to the shower so that you can adjust the temperature before getting in.  The only downside to the bathroom is that there is no door to separate the toilet area even though there is room for one.
• Turndown service: None.
• Housekeeping: Daily service.
• Internet: Very good.
• Dining
  • Ella Mae’s Diner: This is their breakfast spot (and it’s open for lunch too).  For the most part the breakfast seems to be standard diner fare, but that works for me.  We were happy with our breakfast and enjoyed eating outside.
  • Silver King Ocean Brasserie: The hotel’s “signature” restaurant.  We didn’t try it.
  • Beacon Social Drinkery: This is the hotel’s rooftop bar.  They have wonderful views, great drinks and delicious small plates.  We enjoyed it!
  • Dean Street Coffee Roastery & Retail: This is the hotel’s coffee shop. It looks nice, but we didn’t try it.
  • Lobby Bar: We didn’t try it.
• Spa: None that I saw.
• Fitness Room: They have one. We didn’t see it or use it.
• Pool: They have a small outdoor pool on the fourth floor.  We didn’t use it.
• Marriott Elite Benefits: I was near top-tier elite (Titanium) during our stay, but there is no discernable difference between staying with Titanium or Platinum elite status.  Here are the elite benefits available for those with Platinum status or higher:
  • Room Upgrade at Check-In, Including to a Suite: We were given a nice river view but it was otherwise their standard King room.  This was after we turned down our Suite Night Award upgrade.
  • Suite Night Awards: These are accepted at this hotel.  I applied my Suite Night Awards to this stay at the time of booking.  Four nights before our stay, I received an email saying “Your Upgrade is Confirmed.”  The details listed “Night Owl King Suite, 1 Bedroom Junior Suite, 1 King, Sofa bed, City view, Corner room, Balcony”.  At check-in, the desk agent explained that the “Night Owl” suites are considered party suites due to the noise from a nearby bar.  She said that the hotel provides earplugs and a sound machine in these rooms.  That sounded awful to me so I asked about alternatives.  She said that no other upgrades were available that night so instead I accepted a downgrade to a standard room but with a river view (and she redeposited my Suite Night Awards).  I was happy with that choice.  We enjoyed the room and the view.
  • Welcome Gift: Your choice of free breakfast for 2 daily or 1,000 Marriott points.  Breakfast is the far more valuable choice, especially on multi-day stays, and that’s what we picked.  We were told that each breakfast voucher was good for up to $15 per person at Ella Mae’s Diner.  That turned out to be plenty since prices were reasonable.  The waitress never even brought a check.  She just took the voucher and said that we were all set.  We left a  tip since the voucher stated that gratuities were not included.
  • 4PM Late Checkout:  We didn’t ask for this since we had a plane to catch.
• Would I stay again? Yes. We really enjoyed this hotel.  Plus, it offers a great use for Marriott’s 35K free night certificates.
• Pros:
  • Great views from river-view rooms.
  • Rooms are beautifully appointed and comfortable.
  • Relatively cheap parking.
  • No resort or destination fee.
  • Close to Fort Myers’ River District (lots of options for dining, bars, etc.)
  • Walking distance to Edison & Ford Winter Estates museum.
  • Rental bikes are available with the first hour free, according to the hotel’s website (we didn’t try the bikes).
• Cons:
  • No beach.  This is a city hotel.  If you’re looking for beach time, look elsewhere.
  • Noise. Many reviews complain about very loud noise from a next-door bar.
  • While there is a playground nearby, the hotel doesn’t seem great for young kids as far as I could tell.

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