This is one of the nicer hotels in the area. The rooms arent excellent, but decent. The restarurant in the hotel is wonderful. The beach is decent but not great. It is located across the street. Overall, Clearwater is not an excited place.

My family of 6 checked in on December 30 to stay for a few days prior to our cruise out of Tampa. As a caveat to this review, I am Platinum with Marriott and very loyal to the brand. When looking for a place prior to our cruise, I was pleased to find this near-beach property to use some of my points.

We arrived in Clearwater in the morning, so I called the property to inquire about an early check-in. After about 12 rings, a gruff man finally answered. He seemed to be reading from a script when explaining that he could not accommodate an early check-in. I asked if it was possible to be transferred to the front desk, he reluctantly did so. I knew they had clean rooms available because we almost drove all the way the previous night. I had checked late the previous day and they had open rooms. After another long number of rings, I asked about the possibility of getting a room early. Once the clerk knew I was Platinum, he said he would check. After 7 minutes on hold, I just hung up and we proceeded to Clearwater Beach at the pier.

At check-in that afternooon, I was greeted warmly by a bellman. I had a large number of bags due to large family and also had packed for cruise. Bellman was friendly and was extremely helpful getting us settled.

Our room was on the 9th floor. I had read on TripAdvisor to get as high as possible, and the 10th(top) floor was not ready at time of my check-in. The room had 2 beds advertised as queens but they are actually full size. The bathroom is a bit out-dated and very small. I don't think I have ever seen such a small bathroom at a Marriott property. The view was terrific toward the intracoastal waterway though the balcony was also small. The mattress in the pull-out sofa was too thin. (Perhaps they could contact the SpringHill Suites in Macon, Georgia, to find where they get theirs.) The room had two nice LCD TVs, good size fridge, and a microwave. We loved the fact that doors separated the beds from the living area.

The mixed review comes from the staff's attitude. Some staff were extremely nice and helpful, like our bellman. Others were not, like the people on the phone when I was trying to get an early check-in. Chris, whose name tag said Guest Services Supervisor, was especially rude in any interaction. On our first trip to the pool, we couldn't find anyone to see about getting towels. After taking a few laps, I stopped at the bar to ask where to get towels. They were out of clean towels though the pool deck was not full. The bartender sent me to the front desk where I met Chris. He seemed incredulous that no one was at the pool to help me and sent me back to the pool. After returning to Chris from pool because I still could not find anyone, he reluctantly went behind the desk to get me some towels. I am not sure why this was so difficult.

The pool itself was very large and the kids enjoyed the waterfalls. On the third day of our visit, we spent the entire day at the pool, and this time there was a pool attendant with plenty of towels. He was also helpful in finding me chairs as lots were sitting with only towels so it was hard to tell which ones were a available.

We decided to order food for lunch from the pool bar. The selections were standard pool fare and fairly priced. There were only 2 waiters though, so it took a bit of time to get menus and orders taken. I ended up ordering at the bar. During lunch, one of my kids was stung by a bee. I ran up to the front desk to get first aid kit, and the supervisor on duty (not Chris) was very helpful. Later, my daughter was surprised by cookies sent to our room to help ease the bee sting pain.

Overall, the room was very adequate for a few days near a beach. The property could use some updates but nothing absurdly so. The staff service was mixed. It totally depended on each personality, so was inconsistant. I see this as a management problem. If you have points to use, I recommend staying. I would not pay the $200+ a night.

We arrived in Clearwater Beach expecting to stay at a condo only to discover the water had to be shut off in the unit and could not be turned on. At 8pm we arrived at the Marriott Sand Key and asked if they could accommodate us. They went out of their way to give us a room (they are actually all suites) at a reasonable price. This was the Outback Bowl weekend so we considered ourselves lucky!

The rooms are clean, well furnished and comfortable. The hotel has been at this location for decades so some parts of the hotel show a bit of wear and tear. Our sliding glass door was hard to open for example.

But we would always consider staying at the Marriott if we need rooms on the Beach.

We stayed at the hotel over Christmas break. The rooms do need a face lift (as mentioned in the previous comments)..the rooms plaster walls, blinds and old sliding doors do outdate the rooms a bit. But the location of the hotel, the talking parrot in the lobby, the food, hotel desk personal, staff at the pool, and the amazing pool make up for all that! Did I mention they have a buggy that picks you up in front and takes you to the beach across the street? I loved this hotel and cannot wait to come back.