i have just recently begun to use tripadvisor before i went to key west for the forth of july weekend. I found it very helpfull so i wanted to return the favor. My fiance and I were just engaged so I wanted the weekend to be special, which it was. I reserved a junior sweet on the pool approximately 3 months before hand. Because it was a holiday weekend there was a three night minimum about four hundred dollars a night. I have no problem spending that much money at all....but I do expect a little more for it. I found the hotel to have a beautiful decor. Classic elegance mixed with a tropical feel. The room was spacious with a great porch that we spent all of our time on watching the other guests at the pool. Pretty much everybody partakes in this guilty pleasure at the hotel.
I informed the hotel that we were recently engaged. I don't expect anything complimentary but a glass of celebratory champagne would have been nice. I found the concierge to be very helpfull in making reservations but when we had a guest arive for the day, they were treated very rudely. I would not have expected this but I guess everybody can get testy once in a while. I was not offened but my guest was and let them know immediately. The concierge never appoligized to her.

We ate at the restaurant and just was not impressed at all. My fiance hade the tile fish which was good and I had the fillet wrapped in bacon and blue chese which was just ok. After wine and an appitizer we spent $400 and left unsatisfied. The restaurant service was spectacular though. They even brough dessert to our room. The only problem was that the maid service had left by that time and no one came back to take away the dirty dishes. They were left on the porch all night and morning. A little gross.

The room was very spacious. I would recomend a poolside room. But not the junior sweeet. A regular poolside room has the same furniture, bathroom, and ambiance. The only difference is that it does not have a living room. Which is not needed when you have the porch outside.

We ate at blueheaven every morning. I have only had one better brunch before in my life. It's setting is unlike anything else. Rosters walk right by your table. Get there early because the wait can get unbairibly long once the hot summer sun gets going.

We made annual trips to Irish Kevins for college-like entertaainment.

My overall feel of the hotel is tough to desrcibe but once you have expierienced the feeling you will agree. The hotel is very nice.....I would stay there again but not on a holiday weekend when it is the most expensive. Again very nice but not as amazing as I was expecting. I fully encourage you to stay there but try not to get too excited like I did because the last thing you want to be on your vacation is disapointed.


P.S. I have never been a good speller....sorry

Everything said positive in other reviews is absolutely correct. But not enough attention is given to the great Marquesa Restaurant on the premises. I will go back just to eat there, and I will not have any dinners any place else during my stay. Nothing I have tried in Key West even comes close to the greatness, especially the lousy Kelly's (stay away!).

We stayed at the Marquesa for three nights on our first trip to Key West. It is a gem, and worth every penny (cent!) The attention to detail on every aspect of guest service was superb. BA had lost our luggage in transit and the staff were extremely helpful in contacting Miami and assisting with the essentials. Excellent beds, great cottons, big bathrooms, lovely pool area, with comp iced drinks. Very clean, and well maintained. Location is only one block from Duval, if you are looking for, and appreciate, discreet, couteous, but personal service, then this is a must.

My husband and I went to the Marquesa for a tenth anniversary trip in July. We had a jr. suite that was very spacious and beautiful. They give you a complimentary glass of wine at check in which is a nice touch. The grounds are very tropical and they have a heated pool and a non-heated pool with complimentary ice tea and lemon ice water available at the pool. They also have comfortable loung chairs and towels available at the pool.

The beds in the room are very comfortable. We had a seating area with a couch,chair and a desk area. There are 2 tv's in the room. The patio had a table with 2 chairs and 2 wicker chairs. The bathroom is spacious with plenty of counter space, hairdryer, and tub-shower combo.

We ate dinner at the Cafe' Marquesa on our first night. They had remembered we were celebrating a special occasion even though I had made the reservations months ealier. Our table was decorated and they brought our desert out to us with a sparkler in it. It was very nice that they remembered. I didn't ask for anything special because we really don't like to be in the spot light but what they did was tasteful and not over the top. The food was very good, also.

While in Key West we ate at Blue Heaven for breakfast (excellent), B.O.'s Fish Wagon for lunch. We had fish sandwiches that were so fresh I think they caught the fish after we ordered. The atmosphere at B.O.'s is very casual and interesting.

Over all our first trip to Key West was great. The only problem was hurricane Dennis cut our trip short. After spending 24 wonderful hours at the Marquesa we were told there was a mandatory evacuation of non- Florida residents. The marquesa told us we could stay as long as we had to since we didnt have any means of transportation. They kept us updated with weather reports. We eventually got a limo service from Miami to come get us and we flew home from the Miami airport since the Key West airport was closed.

We enjoyed our trip so much ,even though it was under stressful conditions, that we have already booked another trip to the Marquesa, this time in Feb. 2006. (no hurricanes)