My husband, 2 teenage daughters, and I spent three nights at the Vinoy at the end of December 2012. The hotel exceeded our expectations: it is beautiful, but not stuffy; elegant, but friendly. Our room was, I'm sure, one of the more basic available, yet it was roomy, very comfortable, and lovely. It was in the newer wing of the hotel, which means it has a small balcony (in our case, over-looking the tennis courts, which was fine). If you can, get a room overlooking the marina.The location is fantastic--overlooking the marina and just a block away from the main shopping/dining area. Easy to walk to great restaurants and shops, as well as the very impressive Dali museum and several other museums/sights. Still, one of the best things about the hotel is the roomy and welcoming verandah, as well as the outdoor bar/cafe. I easily could have spent hours sitting in one of the rocking chairs or comfy couches just watching the world go by! (My kids loved the swimming pool, too!) We were most impressed with the staff: the concierge was wonderful, getting us dinner reservations for New Year's Eve on Dec. 30th; and the women working in the coffee shop were warm and friendly; across the board, the staff were friendly and very helpful. Our only complaint is really geared toward the Marriott Corporation--$14.95 a day for in-room internet service? Come on, that's just tacky.

Just stayed at the Vinoy during a conference. Location is great, lobby and architecture are terrific. Rooms are okay but nothing special. Elevators are small and slow. Wi-fi is quirky ( only works in certain locations) and they charge $14.95/ day. Rather weak beer selection at the bars. Their banquet service was a joke. Food was very good, tables were not cleared, almost impossible to get a coffee served during breakfast, they even ran out of prime rib at our dinner before the last 2 tables were served.

This is a classic hotel that Marriott just has not done justice. Great parts: experienced bartender in lobby bar, good concierge, lovely outdoor bar and promenade. Breakfast was good and reasonably prices and great location. Why is this not my favorite hotel? The room was just average. Pillows uncomfortable, safe broken. Decor is blah. This hotel could be spectacular overall but them maybe they would have to cap hare a lot more. Don't agree with some of the decor complaints. I think the renovation did not go far enough.

The Vinoy is a historic waterfront property with great modern updates in the heart of St. Petersburg near cafes, museums and boating. The hotel offers a great mix of history with the Renaissance brand and services that we love. The Dali museum and cafes are within walking distance so you can spend a weekend without driving or traffic. Sailing Florida is a yacht charter service from the Vinoy Marina that is not connected to the Vinoy resort and that's a good thing for the Vinoy, since Sailing Florida was not very accomodating. I asked about several weekends near holiday time frame and each request was met with irritation and almost anger for even asking. It was clear that a potential new customer was the target and those with gift certificates were way down the priority list. I received a gift certficate for a four hour sailing trip and it was not easy to get it scheduled. It was clearly a case of having collected the money and not really caring if the customer ever scheduled the trip. The captain that was not the owner that we ended up with was very nice, but I would avoid using Sailing Florida service to avoid the drama. Life is too short to deal with that kind of annoyance. The Vinoy has other recommendations for good charter services that I learned about later. Next time I will get with concierge and find a more user friendly option. Stay and this wonderful hotel and enjoy all it has to offer but don't use Sailing Florida Charters if you get that urge to get out on the water.