Just returned from a week stay at the Marriott Ocean Club in Aruba. I am an owner and very proud to be one. I noticed some nice enhancements from my last stay 18 months ago:

1. No more lugging towels back to the room at night. Now I was able to get my towels in the morning at the towel hut and return them that night. It was open past 6pm which was great.
2. Guests now have a place to leave their tubes, noodles, and kid beach toys for new guests arriving. This is very convenient.
3. More smiles on the towel hut workers. Friendly security guards. Though the workers in the tropical market store can use a smile. At times, they appear bothered to assist customers.
4. 10% discount on food at the pavillion for owners is nice since it is pricey to eat there.

The pool was very warm and clean. It seemed like the filter system had been upgraded so the water was very enjoyable.

I do wish they had more staff at the pool bar. 1-2 people making drinks there is not enough. I noticed others wrote the same comment in their review so I hope Corey is reading this and will do something about that. I could wait a while for someone to make my drinks at the pool bar. And I missed the bell they used to ring when Happy Hour started. But on a good note, it starts at 2pm! $5 bloody marys and screwdrivers till noon is a nice touch too!

The workers there are genuinely helpful and welcoming. The property was immaculate. I always feel safe everywhere on the property and on the beach.

I do wish they would remove some of the sharp shells upon entering the ocean. Some areas are worse than others. The water is gorgeous but it's not as clear as it used to be. I don't know if the Marriott can do anything about that, but maybe at least remove the shells?

I stay in hotels over 100 nights per yr. My overall rating is good. Somewhere between 4-5 stars but not a five. Clean rooms, friendly staff, pools and beach access is excellent, location to other activities is just ok. The dining choices were decent with exception to the sports bar called Champions. The rooms are competitively priced with other brand name hotels in Aruba. Would not hesitate to stay here again.

My husband and I just returned from 9 days at the Ocean Club (an exchange through Interval International). Our 1 bedroom unit was on the second floor facing the Marriott Hotel adult pool and the walkway to the hotel. It was very quiet and relaxing while in the unit. The unit was clean and spacious. The 1 bedroom unit does not have a washer/dryer, so I made use of the laundry room on our floor. Very convenient! The pool area was always crowded, so we went to the beach every day. The water was wonderful and we floated for hours in our tubes we brought from home. We had no problem securing a palapa near the water. There is a seaweed odor problem at times, but we made sure not to swim in that area. The Marriott properties do have the best beach (very deep). The Ritz Carlton is being built next door to the Marriott Hotel, so there will be 4 properties adjacent to each other. The Ocean Club is the smallest and seems to be the better choice for couples/adults, while the Surf Club seems to be geared towards families with children.

We used the convenience store on the property (we did not rent a car) and bought eggs, cereal, snacks, etc. We ate lunch and dinner out.

The grounds and beach are very well maintained and all who work there are extremely friendly and helpful.

We visited the hotel next door which has a casino and Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. The first night we ate on the beach at Simply Fish and enjoyed our dinner.

We played golf at Tierra del Sol twice, the only 18 hole golf course on the island. Very windy and challenging!

Free WIFI was a great plus, since my husband brought his laptop.

We are already planning our next trip to Aruba!

We just returned from a week at the Ocean Club celebrating our 20th Wedding Anniversary. We own two weeks at the neighboring Surf Club. This was our first time staying at the Ocean Club. The Ocean Club is smaller and quieter. We were on the 1st floor, Ocean Front which at first we were disappointed with the low floor but we liked be able to walk out of our room and almost instantly be on the beach. Make sure you check in with the Concierge as they will give you a discount card for 10% at the Marriott Restaurants and some additional retailers/restaurants. This card got us a free desert at the Aqua Grill (off site) which was our favorite restaurant. We also had a great meal at Ruth Chris next door in the Marriott Hotel. We reserved a hut the first 3 days but just did the last 3 days in the morning which is free. We didn't use the pool (which is very nice) but preferred the beach, the ocean water is warm and their are no waves. We bought two inexpensive floats and spent a lot of time in the ocean just lounging.

The rooms are typical Marriott Vacation Club suites. Since it was just the two of us for this trip we had a 1 Bedroom suite. The full kitchen is well stocked. The units are clean and large. The Wednesday light cleaning (new towels etc...) was more than adequate for us.

The only complaint would be the WiFi was a little spotty the last few days. I do not believe this was limited to the Marriott properties. The airport lost internet on the Saturday we departed causing major delays at US Customs. The customs guys say internet on the island is a constant problem. When the WiFi was up it worked great and was fast. We even had a good signal on the beach most days.