Review: Marriott Beach Resort Grand Cayman King Room Garden View

There is nothing like landing in Grand Cayman. That feel when you walk off the jet into the warmth and sun is spectacular. You know a great vacation has just begun.

I have been holding off on publishing this review for a while but wanted to finish off the adventure that began with a rather unpleasant check-in.

When you do check-in be ready for a super nasty $60 USD (50CI) per day resort fee on top of whatever you pay for the room (#ProTip: Don’t want to pay these junk fees? Try these tips). I used points for my stay that ended up refunded after what happened to me (Learn more about hotel points here). As I posted then, I would not let the refund impact my review of the property.

With that said I will move on to the review of the hotel / resort itself because it really is quite lovely on it’s own and most of the staff were fantastic.

Across from check-in is the bar as well as dining room. Breakfast is a hefty $29 per person (#ProTip: There is a nice breakfast / lunch place across and down the street called Cimboco that has $5 breakfasts specials).

The hotel is a box with an open center courtyard and walk through to get to the beach. I am not sure exactly what rates this as a “resort” as it really is just a hotel to me.

In addition to an outdoor bar there is also a nice sized pool if you would rather stay off the sand.

The real star however is (was) the amazing beach. Chairs and umbrellas are setup for you each day.

Oh my what a beach this is (well, was – see below). I have been on beaches all across the planet but this is (was) one of the most beautiful anywhere. A stay at this hotel just for this beach would be worth it – but there is a tiny problem since my visit last year – it seems the beach is now GONE due to storms!

Also, notice those floating rings? Those are part of your $60 resort fee so don’t use them if you are able to opt-out of the junk fee. Also avoid the daily fruit spear they bring around. Bar service is extra so that you may enjoy if you would like.

You get morning sun so late in the day you can have the beach mostly to yourself as you can see.

Red Sail Sports has a small shop attached to the hotel so that can be convenient if you are booking with them for whatever (diving etc.). Now on to our king room.

Our room was clean. Everything worked i.e. lights and plugs and the TV.

The king bed was reasonably soft. There is really only so much to say about a box room.

I am also no fan of round tables as it makes it hard to work on your laptop. But a larger one would have blocked access to the porch.

The porch is hot. Really hot. And the view is simply of the rest of the hotel and green. On to the bathroom.

Again, unless you get an upgrade (I did not as a top elite at the time with Marriott) don’t expect much.

It was clean. It was functional. Plenty of hot and cold water.

I guess for the price of the room in dollars or points it is at least nice they did not have pump soap and more.

I was asked to come back by the then manager. I have not been back. I doubt I will go back and not just because of what happened during my stay last time but now the main star of this hotel, the beach, seems to be gone.

If I go back to Grand Cayman again for a visit I will return to the east end of the island. Yes, away from 7 mile beach and downtown but that is OK for me. – René