The Courtyard by Marriott was a great place to stay in Puerto Rico. I stayed with my parents and my three brothers. The first day we went to the beach, which was very nice. The waves were pretty rough but the sand was nicer by the hotel than other parts of the beach. We went to Old San Juan for dinner outside, which was very enjoyable.

The second day we went on a tour of the El Yunque Rainforest. The tour was pretty short- only three stops and I was expecting to see a lot of animals and I didn't see any. I suggest taking a tour walking through the forest and not on a bus.

The third day was another beach day at the hotel. We sat in the sun played in the pool and the ocean. By the way, there were 3 pools. One was a kiddy pool. Another was a pool intended for younger children with a small slide. Both were very dirty and grouse. The last pool was the largest and was pretty well kept. The swim up bar was really neat.

The forth day we went on a scuba diving excursion, which was the highlight, in my opinion, of the vacation. We went out on a cool boat to 2 amazing islands to see the fish in the coral reefs. Although I was disappointed that there wasn't as many fish as I expected, I was amazed at how clear and extremely blue the water was.

As for the hotel, well there were 3 nice restaurants, a casino, a pool, and the beach. There wasn't much to do at the hotel so we were kept occupied by the above things. The hotel wasn't crowded at all! The staff was nice especially at the travel desk. My mom wasn't happy with the room keeping because they didn't vacuum or clean up the room or bathroom well. I thought the beds were soooooooo comfy and the balcony was nice too. However, we not only overlooked the beach we also could see run-down apartments in the next building which ruined the whole beach thing. The airport noise you got used to but it was so annoying. In general, I was pleased the hotel but there were some flaws.

Before we even arrived, this hotel was awesome.

For the past 20 years, 8-12 friends from all over the US, gather together once a year, at different locations. (Most of us are regular road warriors). This year the location was in San Juan.

Before arriving, people told us to stay in Isla Verde. They were right. After an extensive search, the Marriott seemed like the right place for us.

Ahead of time we were contacted by Alfredo, Manager at the hotel and he asked what we were interested in doing on our 5 day trip. We gave him some topics and then his staff took over.

Check in was friendly and I must have been asked at least five times if everything was okay. Which it was. From the moment we arrived in our awesome rooms, (views that go on for miles), we were well looked after. The rooms were normal size, however, you don't come to Puerto Rico to sit in your room.

I had read that the service at the pool was terrible. Nothing could be further from the truth. From the first moment we met Jennifer and Miguel (pool servers), there were drinks and food in a flash. We are not gourmet diners (cheeseburgers, hot dogs, chicken wings, etc) but the beer and margaritas were cold and the food was hot.

A couple of comments, about the airplane noise, yes it is there, but the view, the hammocks and the hotel more than make up for it. I thought one review said it best that, "the airport noise is a non-issue".

At night time, there was Salsa dancing and in the casino Paul (pit boss) and (dealers) Annette, Anita, and Jasmine, were keeping us entertained. The free food while gambling was an unexpected treat.

Late at night and early in the morning you are alone on the beach, make sure you take a stroll. Just be careful of the machinery, as this is when the beach is being cleaned.

Puerto RIco is not inexpensive, but this hotels' location, service and quality, made it all the better. If you don't relax and have a good time at this hotel, it is your own fault.

Bring your flip flops and bathing suit for the day and flip flops and Tommy Bahama shirts for the night,

Finally, don't get too frustrated with the waiting when you visit downtown San Juan for dinner, drinks and street life. Remember you are on "Island Time" and you are a guest, so relax and have fun on this awesome island.

My room was spacious, comfortable, and clean. Although I could hear it intermittently in my room, I soon got used to the airplane noise, and the noise stopped in late evening. More annoying was the noise from the ice machine directly across from my room (Room 815, to be exact). The breakfast buffet at Salsa was good for the price ($13.95, plus tax and tip), with eggs and omelets cooked to order. Skip the Puerto Rican buffet. It was bland and not worth the price ($23.95, plus tax and tip). I enjoyed Old San Juan tremendously even though I endured the A5 bus. Each one-way trip took 40 minutes to an hour, depending on traffic. Condado is closer to Old San Juan, but it doesn't have as nice a beach as Isla Verde.

My girlfriend and i stayed at the Marriott Isla Verde in Puerto Rico for a week April 1th-7th. We needed peace and quiet near the beach and close to local shops/restaurants. We got two out of three. I wished I knew that the Marriott hotel was next to the airport. We could hear planes all day long. We had a beach view with a small balcony, but keep the door closed to cut down on the noise. We went to the beach daily, but it was a distracting to hear the bigger planes take off constantly.
The room was nice and so was the hotel and restaurant, we will definately return to PR, but we won't stay there again.