I've stayed here before. I really like the welcome goodie bags they leave for you. They have multiple beds for children and guests in the rooms. It's right on the water with a pool and dock. The owners are really nice and very friendly. What I love the most is you can bring your pets. No need to leave them behind here. It is the ONLY place on Marco Island that lets you bring your pets. I'd stay here again.

The Boat House is a nice retro experience. We stayed 5 nights in July - during the South Florida 'dead' season. We originally planned to stay only 2 nights, but I came down with the flu and we ended up extending our stay (no problem, the motel was largely empty). The motel is old-fashioned with a laid-back and - it must be said - slightly seedy charm. It could do with some re-decorating. Our room was a very large family room with a small mini-bar type fridge and a small microwave. The shower was superbly powerful, the beds very comfortable and the walled patio - despite having no view - was a nice spot to dry out beach clothes and have a cigarette.

The pool was small but as the motel was largely empty, we had it to ourselves. The dock is a great place to sit outside and look at the river - though the mosquitos were a problem.

Otherwise, the hotel doesn't have a restaurant, the tiny mini-fridge and microwave aren't really appropriate for eating occasional meals in the room. Reception closed at 4 p.m. and no services (except for the very competent cleaning lady) are provided for the price. As another poster mentioned, you get free samples of not particularly useful merchandise, but no shampoo, no shower gel and the world's tiniest bars of soap.

I'll mention two negative points that take points off my appreciation of our stay: the room was costing us more a night than we were paying at the Doral Golf Resort in Miami. Obviously, Marriotts can afford to lower rates during the dead season, but the rates at the Boat House still seemed a bit high for pretty rudimentary accommodations and no service when compared to the luxurious Doral.

In addition, when we arrived we were given one key to the room (and we are three people) - which complicated matters. To my surprise, one afternoon while I was alone in the room taking a nap, trying to sleep off my flu, the door was opened, a man with a loud voice comes storming into the room and then shouts out: "oh, I didn't know anybody was in here", walked out, slamming the door. I got up, pulled some clothes on and went to the door to see what was going on. The man was outside in his car and said he had stayed in the room the week before and forgotten to give a key back. He said reception had told him just to use the room again and to use his key to gain entry.

Though my husband told reception when we left (and we returned BOTH keys) what had happened, they shrugged it off with a "oh, he's a regular client".

Classic old Florida 2-story, outside door motel. Neat, clean, comfortable, well decorated rooms with easy accomodation for extra guests. Nice pool and really nice docks for fishing or lounging. Quiet and peaceful, well away from the busy, expensive hotel strip on main beach. 1/3 cost of beach hotels. Close to downtown and many amenities. Little surprise guest gift bag that included candy bars, samples, and even a paperback novel. Only complaint was that there was no shampoo in room and we had forgot ours.

Our family stayed at the Boathouse motel during our Spring break trip through the
Everglades and Keys. We were very happy with our choice and would recommend
the motel to friends and family who share an appreciation for simple pleasures and family adventure. The reviews here on Trip Advisor sealed the selecton for us. We
liked the Old Florida atmosphere, the slower pace of life on this waterfront location and family-like friendliness displayed by the staff and other guests.

My teens loved taking just a few steps to reach the dock each morning and evening to
watch an amazing variety of sealife swimming right at our feet! We enjoyed evening
strolls to dinner just a few blocks away and I appreciated the kitchen setup in our room
that allowed us to make breakfast to carry our to the dock and picnic lunches to pack for
Everglades kayaking. The location was quiet and relaxing but convenient for our
excursions to the 10,000 Islands and Everglades National Park trips.

The Boathouse Motel is an excellent choice and an excellent value. The only hesitation I have about giving it top marks for cleanliness and rooms is that the cot bedding (for kids), towels, drapes and carpeting are dated. Since it is an older motel, the closet and bathroom were oddly laid out. As I told my teens, the pros vastly outweigh the slight hesitation about older furnishing. In the end I would not trade the quirks for a highrise
cookie cutter chain....it's so much more memorable to have a wonderful choice like this. We will value the memories our family made when we discovered the charms of the Boathouse Motel.