Marriott's Aruba Surf Club

The lighthouse tower is finished and looks amazing, and the resort remains one of my favorite Marriott properties. I just finished my fifth Surf Club trip, and I wasn’t disappointed. The resort is beautiful, with a lazy river, swim-up bar pools, and a great beach. The gym is also five-star, with lots of treadmills, bikes, weights, and more. Josetta, who works there, deserves a special mention. She’s constantly working and very friendly. The staff are always nice, and everything is super clean. The rooms are being updated now.

We loved the amenities for families, especially the pools, kids’ pools, and the lazy river, which was my favorite. There were pool and beach chairs, shaded beach huts, restaurants, a mini mart, daily kids’ activities, and a park our toddlers loved. It was shaded during the day, too. The beaches were clean and well staffed, and the pools were clean and attended. Service could have been a little better, though we were there during a busy time in mid-January. The restaurants were just okay, but the location was great and we could walk to many other places to eat, so we didn’t need a rental car. It was a very family-friendly week and one of our favorite trips. We’ll definitely be back!

Getting a pool chair meant waking at 6 am, and seeing how many people were already sitting there in the pitch dark was one of the funniest things I’ve witnessed. The beach here also kind of pales beside the rest of the island, and a beach chair is even harder to get than one by the pool. Still, this Marriott and the properties next door are generally great. The rooms are comfortable and clean, service was good, and shop and restaurant prices were surprisingly reasonable. Seems like a really good choice if you have kids.

The swim-up bartender, Vener, aka Woody, gave the kind of service you hope for on vacation. We’d recommend the crepes for breakfast at the pool bar, and there were a couple of really fun restaurants and bars on the beach next door. Surf Club was a great choice for our first island visit. It’s on the beach and within walking distance of restaurants, nightlife, and recreation. Our room had enough space for us, though the sink drained slowly and room service only came every four days. There were lovely pools, a lazy river, lots of loungers at the beach, and a beautiful open, two-story lobby. Enjoy!