Marriott's Aruba Ocean Club

It was our 22 or 23 stay at the Ocean Club;I lost count. Anyway we moved from a short stay at the hotel next door for a two week stay. At the front desk Shulaika, I think that is how she spells her name, made the move smooth and quickly. She also facilitated the move from the lockout to the main portion of the 2 bedroom unit seamless. We ate breakfast at the Malmok Pool bar and Grill numerous times during our stay. I want to thank both Leidy and Maria for making sure the bacon was cooked to our liking; crispy, crispy, crispy, .......crispy where it breaks not bends! Both are delightful people and we enjoyed seeing them when we ate there. We'd be remiss if we didn't mention Geoffrey and Erica who had many chats with duringour stay.

Ocean Club situated next to Surf Club is quieter and a better hotel for families with preteen or teenage kids. Surf Club was more crowded and much louder than Ocean Club. Hotel was extremely clean and staff went out of the way to assist us. Palapa reservation system is easy to use. Recommendation is if you don’t mind getting up early, use there online system to reserve the palapa day off as it costs $10 compared to $30. To get the palapas closest to the beach you have to sign on when reservations open at 7am. Also bring your own float(s) and anchors for the beach as the cost in Aruba is $28 compared to $13 at home.

Being a 3 week timeshare owner at this location using our platinum 1 week usage has been a disaster. As every year “”the Jewish entitled group” take over the resort. Trying to have lunch at Malmok with this group of teenagers standing around tables being loud and obnoxious was a disaster. We witnessed a table of 4 order a drink in order to occupy the table and proceeded to leave shortly thereafter and not paying for the delivered item. Small children climbing the pool bar and the bartenders being oblivious to their actions. They feel free to sit anywhere using Ocean club chairs, playing loud music. There is no control by the elders and no interference by security guards who are probably paid by our costly dues to control this bedlam. Our total fees we pay are $5100.00 and we have no rights as owners to enjoy our booked week. This is all based on Marriotts greed and importance of allowing this unnecessary behavior of these individuals both young and old. Maybe your Board of Directors that have allowed this invasion should come to this area and witness the bedlam they have initiated. Again SHAME ON YOU MARRIOTT!!! A disgrace that the first buyers into this TS are not able to enjoy it as we have before.We have tried to contact Pedro Vargas, Hotel Manager, with these issues with no response. Hoping this review will get a response immediately

Our week-long trip at this property just concluded, and sadly, it was one of the most frustrating travel experiences we’ve ever had. This was our third year staying here (alongside ~15 family members spread across multiple 2 and 3 bedroom suites), and after two wonderful visits in the past, we were looking forward to another great vacation. We chose a lock-off room as my Wife and I felt it would best suit our needs. Instead, the trip was marred by relentless noise, rude and bizarre staff interactions, and a complete lack of accountability or basic hospitality. What’s most frustrating is that not a single person offered an apology or made any real effort to address the issues. Here are the major problems we encountered: 1) Nonstop Noise from the Connecting Room: From the moment we entered our room, it was clear we wouldn’t have a moment of peace. The connecting room housed at least six people—two adults and four children, with two grandparents joining midweek. Every day, from morning until late at night (as late as midnight), we endured kids screaming, parents shouting at full volume, loud music, and constant banging on the walls. The kids also ran unsupervised through the hallways, screaming while their father yelled at them from the doorway. Even worse, their fire alarm went off at 11 p.m. one night, waking us and many others. Adding insult to injury, there was a device in their room that beeped loudly every 30 seconds all night long. Security claimed to have spoken with them multiple times, but nothing changed. We have multiple videos from throughout the week highlighting how bad it was in our unit. These were showed to both the front desk and security. On our first night, we asked to be moved to a quieter room. We were initially told a room would be available the next day, but it would be on the first floor next to another loud family and directly facing the parking lot. The front desk suggested that if we wait another day the would be a better option. That evening, I checked again to confirm the better option, only to be told the earlier information was incorrect, and there were no available rooms after all. This lack of consistency and communication was infuriating especially given that we only didn't take the new room because of their own convincing. 2) Laundry Room: Midway through the trip, we used the hotel’s laundry machines. When we returned to transfer our clothes to the dryer, the room was a disaster. Another guest’s machine had backed up, flooding the room and her clothes with water and paper towels. When we opened our washer, it hadn’t drained, forcing us to reach shoulder-deep into soapy water to retrieve our clothes. Staff arrived, took our room number, and eventually called the engineering supervisor. He ignored us completely and instead got into a shouting match with the other guest, blaming her for the issue. Not once did he acknowledge, speak, or apologize to us for the inconvenience, let alone offer us a solution. 3)

We stayed at this resort during the holiday season and we're very pleased with our experience at the ocean club. We had an ocean front view that is amazing. The accommodations and eateries are great, and you are in the middle of many of the best things aruba has to offer.

First time at the Ocen Club. Of course the room isn’t ready by the time they tell you check to check in at 4:00. Currently 6:00 and full unit still not ready-if you are travelling and exhausted, the last thing you want is to be stuck without a room at 6:00pm on the day you check in! WiFi-won’t work unless you have a room number and the guest WiFi cuts out all the time. And you can’t reserve chairs on the beach without a room number either. Line at the front desk…terribly understaffed. - took almost 30 minutes to check in, then another 30 minutes when I returned to get a key, only to find out the key only works for the lock out side of the unit.(small side) Saw the cleaning people finish up the main room at 5:00-key still doesn’t work an hour later. Back in line at the front desk for another 30 minutes as nobody else can help Expected so much more from a Marriott property and everything from the first 4 hours at the resort have been a major fail. Save your money if you’re thinking of buying one there. First impressions say a LOT about the resorts commitment to excellence.