Review: JW Marriott St. Maarten Beach Resort & Spa | Marriott Bonvoy

Booking

The cost to stay at the JW Marriott St. Maarten Beach Resort & Spa was $1,652 USD ($2,260 CAD) or 167,000 points for 2 nights.

I opted for the points rate which was a better deal compared with the cash price. However, we had two 85,000-point free night awards from Marriott received from the US-issued American Express Brilliant card. We used these for payment, saving the points for another use.

I earned 50% bonus points on incidentals Platinum Elite Bonvoy member and 5X the points per dollar spent by using my Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card 

Get Marriott Bonvoy Points

The best way to earn Marriott Bonvoy points for free stays at more than 7,000 hotels around the world is with the Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card (and/or the Marriott Bonvoy^® Business American Express^®* Card).

In addition to the great welcome bonus on both cards, you’ll earn 2 points per dollar on all purchases and 5 points per dollar at Marriott locations. And each year, you’ll earn a certificate for one free hotel stay (35,000 point value) and 15 Elite nights toward your Marriott Bonvoy status.

Location

The JW Marriott is located right on Dawn Beach on the east coast of the Dutch side of the island. The northern half is French (Saint-Martin) while the southern half is Dutch (Sint Maarten). It is about a 40-minute trip from the airport, longer if that is at rush hour. It feels like it’s in a fairly secluded area. The livelier spot on the island is on the west side closer to the airport. So if you’re looking to get away from the party/cruise ship crowd, then this is a good spot to do it.

Reception & Property Grounds

The property itself is very nice. There’s a tastefully decorated reception area, and the grounds are well taken care of with lots of palm trees everywhere, and is right on the beach.

There were no suite upgrades available, and in any event from what I saw of their inventory online, the majority of their suites cannot fit 4 people. However, our points booking put us right in an ocean view room which was a step up from the base resort view room. The hotel was then able to upgrade it to oceanfront which made for a nice view. It’s great to be able to watch the sunset on the ocean from your own balcony.

Deluxe Oceanfront Room

The hotel‘s rooms are what I’d consider to be a fairly standard JW Marriott product. It’s set in warm, neutral tones, or what I call « the JW beige ». 😉 There isn’t a lot of individual charm, but is still overall really high quality. From the 2 queen beds, to the fixtures, to the amenities, everything very comfortable. There was a great mini-bar area, lots of storage, a huge bathroom, and at 45 square meters it was a very good size for a standard room. I also loved the feature of the mini-side table on the outer side of each queen bed so that you could conveniently store some personal items there despite a lack of space for an actual table. This is the first time I had seen this but I wish more hotels would follow suit! Overall we were all very happy with the room.

The beachfront balcony and ocean view were terrific. My only complaint was the balcony furniture. It seemed old, was stained, and just a bit on the low-end side for a property at this price point.

Pool Area

A real high point of the property is the pool area. It has a beautiful, very clean, sparkling pool on two levels, with a pool bar at one end. There was no trouble getting any seating, and umbrellas were readily available. There unfortunately wasn’t a jacuzzi, an amenity that seems harder and harder to find these days, even among luxury properties. But at least the pool was nice and warm.

Dining

The main restaurant is called Carambola, a seafood restaurant which has indoor and outdoor seating overlooking the pools and ocean. It is where breakfast is served. We had a full complimentary breakfast for the whole family due to my Marriott Platinum status. It was quite good, if not really excellent. We also had supper here one night and the seafood was absolutely delicious.

Also on site is Liguria, a higher-end venue featuring Mediterranean food. It is only open for supper. Since we had our young children we skipped this one.

Breeze is the restaurant/bar down by the beach serving cocktails and lighter-fare food during the daytime. You can also order right at your lounger for pool-side service. The pool bar is called Liquid at which my kids adored drinking Shirley Temples, and there is a stylish lobby lounge called Opal. Room service is also available 24/7.

Facilities & Service

There is a spa with various treatments but we didn’t visit during our short stay. There’s a huge, very high-quality gym, small market, kids club with paid activities for children, and a JW cooking school where people can sign up for both food & cocktail classes.

The service overall was good, but sometimes hit-and-miss, and not really up to JW Marriott standards. For example, it was difficult to get anyone around the pool to put in a food or drink order, and you’d end up having to go to the beach restaurant yourself to order. It took quite a while to get anyone’s attention to get a drink at the pool bar. They keep all towels in a specific hut staffed by a person, but that person is often not there so you have to go around the back and kind of sneak in and get some yourself. It seems it would be easier to just leave some at a towel station around the pool. There is no cart with any sunblock/aloe vera/water etc which are popular in the Caribbean. At a price of $1,000+ per night, you’d expect a bit better. But having said this, everyone was very friendly. And the service we got in the main restaurant and at reception was all very good.

Overall Impression

Overall the JW Marriott St. Maarten Beach Resort & Spa is a very nice property. The rooms, while lacking any local charm, are modern, well-appointed, spacious, and very comfortable. The oceanfront upgrade we got with a balcony overlooking the water was a nice treat. The food is very good, if not mind-blowing, but rather pricey as you’d expect. While the service isn’t terrific, especially around the pool areas, the staff are very friendly. If you’re looking for a nice property in a quieter area of St. Maarten, then this is a good choice. But I wouldn’t go out of my way to come here. It’s a good deal using Marriott Bonvoy points, especially if you can use free night award certificates as we did. And a great stopping point for a night or two if on the way to Anguilla.

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