Courtyard by Marriott Isla Verde

[abc31 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close abc31]

Just booked this for 3 nights in April. Anyone been here? What'd you think?

[Spence Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Spence]

Just booked this for 3 nights in April. Anyone been here? What'd you think?

I don't think the normal Courtyard breakfast is included, but let us know. I think the location is good.

[abc31 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close abc31]

The Royal Holiday website says that the breakfast is no longer included, but if that is incorrect, I'll let you know.

[PeelBoy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PeelBoy]

Please let us know your experience, e.g. local meal cost and car rental vs public transportation, and of course the resort conditions.

I plan to go there to get rid of my first 40,000 points but 10 days to 2 weeks probably will be too long.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

I think I stayed here for an overnight when I missed my connecting flight to St Croix. Is this resort in PR?

[abc31 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close abc31]

Yes. It is in Puerto Rico. I am going for a very short stay. I would have liked it to be 4 nights, but RHC only had 3 for the dates I needed. Everyone thinks I'm crazy to even bother for such a short stay. But I'm leaving the kids home with my hubby & going with a friend, so I couldn't go for a week. It's only 5 minutes from the airport, so it seems easy enough to get to for 2 1/2 days of sun. I'm used to traveling with my kids, so even a couple of days to do nothing but relax seems like a real luxury. I don't really plan on sight seeing. I just want to relax on the beach. I'm not planning on renting a car. If we venture away from the hotel at all, it will most likely be by taxi. I hear there's a bus that stops close to the hotel & it is just 75 cents to ride.

Big Frank, that talk about missing your connecting flight just made me nervous. I thought I'd be better off flying out of Islip Airport rather than driving from Eastern Long Island to Kennedy during rush hour, so I took a flight with one connection. If I miss my flight, it will be a really short trip. From what you can remember about the hotel, how was it?

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

Yes. It is in Puerto Rico. I am going for a very short stay. I would have liked it to be 4 nights, but RHC only had 3 for the dates I needed. Everyone thinks I'm crazy to even bother for such a short stay. But I'm leaving the kids home with my hubby & going with a friend, so I couldn't go for a week. It's only 5 minutes from the airport, so it seems easy enough to get to for 2 1/2 days of sun. I'm used to traveling with my kids, so even a couple of days to do nothing but relax seems like a real luxury. I don't really plan on sight seeing. I just want to relax on the beach. I'm not planning on renting a car. If we venture away from the hotel at all, it will most likely be by taxi. I hear there's a bus that stops close to the hotel & it is just 75 cents to ride.

Big Frank, that talk about missing your connecting flight just made me nervous. I thought I'd be better off flying out of Islip Airport rather than driving from Eastern Long Island to Kennedy during rush hour, so I took a flight with one connection. If I miss my flight, it will be a really short trip. From what you can remember about the hotel, how was it?

It is right on the beach and the hamocks are great. I might have a pic someplace of me on one. The food was very good, Wish I was there longer.

[jfitz Member Find all posts View Profile Close jfitz]

Isla Verde is a beautiful beach by any standard. Transportation is readily available if you wish to take in the sights in Old San Juan.

[abc31 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close abc31]

I'm Back!

I just returned last night from Courtyard by Marriott Isla Verde. I had a very nice stay. It isn't super fancy, but very nice for a 3-3 1/2 star hotel. The lobby and grounds are very nice. The pool area and beach are great. There is a poolside (swim-up) bar and snack stand with waiter service if you like.

The room was smaller than I expected. Royal Holiday has it listed as a studio, but it is really just a hotel room. I believe the pictures on Royal Holiday website showed a little sitting area with a small sofa. My room didn't have that. There really wasn't a lot of room to sit at all. There is just a small chair and side table and a desk. They asked if I wanted 2 queen beds or a King and I chose 2 queens. Perhaps a king room would have more room to sit and walk around. There was a very small balcony with a small table & 2 chairs. Royal Holiday doesn't have specific rooms there. I did not have a great view, but I would think you could request it. I would also request a higher floor because on Saturday night the band plays until 3:00 am and I could hear it in my 3rd floor room.

The room was nicely decorated and clean. There is a nice flat screen tv and a dvd player. There was no microwave in the room, just a very small mini refrigerator and a coffee maker. Coffee & bottled water were supplied each day. The Couryard breakfast buffet is not included. It is $13.95 pp. We didn't try the buffet. You can buy muffins in the hotel's ice cream parlor. At checkin we were given coupons for 2 free rum drinks.

We tried one of the hotel restaurants for dinner called Salsa. Everything was delicious. It is Puerto Rican cuisine. I thought it was pretty reasonable, I think the bill for the 2 of us was under $60.00 with one drink each. In general the area restaurants are quite inexpensive. The hotel is in more of a residential area, so we ate where the locals eat.

The hotel's proximity to the airport made it very easy to get to. It is less than a five minute drive. The cab fair was $11.00. The trade-off is that you can hear the planes take off even in the room with the double sliding doors shut. It really didn't bother us though.

We took a cab into Old San Juan one afternoon to do some souvenier shopping. I would say it was about a 20 minute ride. The cab fare was $19.00.

All in all the hotel was perfect for our purposes. I went for a quick getaway and the location was perfect for that. We just wanted to relax and this was a perfect place to do it. There is not a lot going on at the hotel as far as activities. The staff was great. The room was good enough for us, because I went with a friend and left the kids at home. I wouldn't bring my kids, here because the room would be small for more than 2 people.

I definitly would recommend this hotel for a 4 night stay. A week might be a little long. I didn't bring my camera, so I have no pictures to share.

P.S. The taxes & "resort fee" came to about $44.00 per night.

[PeelBoy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PeelBoy]

Thanks for the report. $44 per night is too steep for me. Thanks, anyway.