Marriott Frenchman's Reef & Morning Star Beach Resort - St. Thomas, USVI

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I will always return to the Marriott Frenchman's Cove. Visited: September 2009 Posted by devisunshine My husband and I recently stayed at Frenchman's Cove (September 13-20). It was wonderful. We stayed in the St. John building on the fifth floor. The view from that room was incredible! Every morning we got up around 6 am to see the cruise ships enter the harbor. I read on previous web sites that everyone complained about taking elevators to get to the restaurant. However, my husband and I didn't mind taking elevators. I just think people are lazy and don't want to exercise (no wonder why Americans are so obese). The only thing was that the elevators were hot and were not air conditioned (which was uncomfortable). Check- in was great! The front desk ladies were so nice. They had cookies and lemonade waiting for us (the lemonade was so tasty, I came up to refill my water bottle full of lemonade!). These ladies should be given a raise. The restaurant and market place prices are too expensive! We went to Pueblo, which was a waste of time. Pueblo was just as expensive as the Marriott. Diana recommended we go to the Food Center, and I'm glad we did. The Food Center had so much to offer - fresh fish, deli meat and breads! Eating out every day could be every expensive - especially in St. Thomas. My husband and I ate breakfast at home and ate out for dinner. Some restaurants you must try are Virgilos, Atlantic Seafood Restaurant, Delly Deck, Mims Seaside Bistro, and Mafolie's. One more thing, I suggest that you rent a car. It's kind of hard to adjust to driving on the left, but once you get the hang of you'll be fine. Taxis were too expensive ($6 to town per person). We got a great deal at a local rental agency "First Car Rental". I recommend getting a jeep from them. Their cars are not in the best condition, but their jeeps and mini vans are. 3 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Frenchman's Cove is a family-oriented resort. Visited: September 2009 Posted by kimgold09 We enjoyed our stay very much. Everyone was friendly; and the villas were attractive and comfortable. The only reason we would not go back is that we enjoy experiencing new places. Our vacation started off when we arranged a private limo service to pick us up from the airport (I think his name was Charley or Charles please forgive my spelling). I read on several web sites that taxis were rude, overcrowded and expensive. I just wanted to be alone with my wife and children, so my travel agent suggested that we use his service. I'm glad we did! He was so nice to us. He was on time, had ice cold water waiting for us in his vehicle and that day it felt like it was 90 degrees. It was private, and he took us directly to the resort. From what I read on other web sites, the taxis don't take you directly to your resort. They make many stops. You know how one can feel when you've been traveling all day and you just want to get to your hotel. We used his services a few times, and then we decided to rent a car (pick ups adds up). You have to go to Magen's Bay Beach. The view is spectacular. My wife put together a picnic basket, and we just hang out under a tree. Everyone was friendly. Shanda (in room assignments) was also tremendously helpful and friendly. She made sure we got the condo we wanted (which was the same we had used last year). Also, Diane was such a sweetheart. She made us feel so at home and was very helpful. We had a group hug with her when we left the Marriott's Frenchman's Cove. She was very accommodating on every level. In addition, Taraja (the bartender) and Francia (activities) were so helpful. My wife I enjoyed leaving the children with activities on Wednesday while we went to Banana Tree Restaurant. The food and view, by the way, were both excellent. I have three suggestions, though. The elevators need A/C. Could you imagine four of us in an elevator that is hot? I know Mr. Marriott is making millions, so please install air conditioning in the elevator. Secondly, at the pool and beach you should have a bartender walking around to serve drinks. Guests don't want to get up from the pool to get a drink all the time. Lastly, I had an issue regarding maintenance fees going up. I asked to be connected to the GM office and left a message. He never called me back. I was told the he was in a meeting. I felt like I was getting a run around. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This was the worst hotel experience! Visited: August 2009 Posted by ninamohl45 This was one of the worst hotels I've ever been to. We had an all-inclusive package, so everything was prepaid. When we got there we found out one major restaurant was closed for renovations, and most of the others were missing half their menu every day. The air conditioning in the hotel broke one night and wasn't fixed until late the next morning. But the worst part was one night when we had raw sewage coming out of our pipes! When we called the front desk to complain, they said they couldn't do anything because we were prepaid. A front desk manager finally agreed to give us some credit back to my card, but it never came. When I called the hotel to check on the status of the credit, they said only that manager could do anything and she was off for a month and to call back later. I've called back about 20 times over the past month to speak with two managers, and am told to either call back later or don't have my messages returned. This was one of the worst hotel experiences I have ever had, and I would definitely not recommend it to anyone. Stay somewhere else, unless you want a dirty hotel with incompetent service! 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? I give it two thumbs down. Visited: July 2009 Posted by paynez My husband and I stayed a week at the Marriott Frenchman's Reef & Morning Star Beach Resort in room 2118. It looked like a low budget motel. The hotel was dirty and disorganized. The pictures were set on the floor, and the linens were not changed for three days - including towels and wash cloths. Also, the trash stayed in the halls, and when they did clean the room, the bag of dirty linens stayed in the hall. I usually stay at the Bolongo Bay Beach Resort, but wanted to upgrade. However, the Marriott was two steps down. 4 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This was a great vacation spot. Visited: June 2009 Posted by juneaddai I enjoyed my stay at the Frenchman's Reef. The staff was friendly and helpful, the food was good, and our room was very nice. The beach was wonderful and views were breathtaking. I enjoyed every minute I was here. There was always something to do. I would gladly recommend this resort to anyone who asked. I would also return here for another vacation. It was great! 3 users found this review helpful. 3 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? My daughter and I came here for Spring Break. Visited: April 2009 Posted by gtaylor My daughter and I just got back from our Spring Break vacation. We had a great time. There was not one thing I could complain about. Checking in was a breeze, the employees at the hotel were friendly and very helpful. I hope my daughter always remembers her vacation at Frenchman's Reef and bonding with her mom! 7 users found this review helpful. 5 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This is a great hotel with amazing views! Visited: March 2009 Posted by cps We stayed at this hotel for Spring Break with my two-year-old and six-year-old, and we throughly enjoyed it! Yes, there are several steps to the beach - but it was worth it! If my six-year-old daughter can go up and down them with ease each time, then I see no need to complain! The rooms were very large and nice. The bathroom was a bit small, but we do not spend that much time in the bathroom! We had two very nice meals on the resort. Yes, it was pretty pricy even for a grilled cheese, but we expected that for the islands. While on the beach, we hit the market attached to the hotel for sandwiches and Pringles for a cheaper more relaxed option. The rooms were pretty pricy, but ask for some sort of a deal with your room. We got a free breakfast each day with a full buffet breakfast with an omelette station and everything you could imagine. We would stay here again with or without our kids, and I recommend it. 8 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? The views and beach were great. Visited: October 2008 Posted by mikeinboston We had two rooms for five of us. This was right above the tennis courts with an ocean view. It was an excellent value for the money. I'm not sure I'd pay the "higher" listed rates, though, given some other properties I've stayed locally. If you want views, comfort, etc. - it comes recommended. The restaurant we ate at was mediocre and way, way overpriced, though. Keep that in mind. 14 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? The Morning Star is a sure bet. Visited: October 2008 Posted by iguanaloverindiana We were here for seven nights. He had a great view from our room (5336). We also had privacy, and the room was clean. Most every staff member here was friendly. Karl, the manager, was great! Coco Joe's had good food, but I don't think they care if you starve to death before they serve you. Frenchman's Reef is in no way as nice as Morning Star. I went there for one night for hurricane evacuation. I encountered rude management. Also, the first floor smelled of mold. 15 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Don't stay here. Visited: July 2008 Posted by don___tgothere We stayed for a week with a family group of 26. The hotel was dirty, disorganized and boring. The food was ridiculously expensive, $11 for a plain waffle. The staff was rude and unfriendly to us. They seemed to pretend they could not hear us when we asked for something, like perhaps a refill on coffee (which was $3 a cup - and not even good!). The only positive thing was the beach, it was beautiful. Transportation into town was also very expensive, and everyone seemed to want only one thing - tips and your money. I don't think they would have blinked if we would have dropped dead. I'm sorry to be such a downer, but once you have been to Hawaii and know what quality is, St. Thomas and the Marriott stinks. 12 users found this review helpful. 4 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? We had a wedding disaster at the Marriott! Visited: May 2008 Posted by bugaboo198273 My husband and I got married at this resort in May - after two years of planning, and many, many, many payments (as anyone who has ever married - or experienced St. Thomas inflation - can imagine). Though the island of St. Thomas is breathtakingly beautiful, and we had a lovely time outside the hotel, the Marriott Frenchman's Reef made a disaster of our wedding. I highly advise you not to get married here under any circumstances. Our reception site wasn't ready when the wedding started, because of the Marriott's ineptitude. They made us hold the reception in a much smaller venue than we paid for (which was still filthy). In addition, they "lost" the video footage of our wedding ceremony; they dragged my entire wedding party and I through iguana-feces-laden grass and destroyed our clothes and shoes; and they charged us twice for the wedding, resulting in several thousand dollars of overcharges on our credit card. During all these disasters, our wedding coordinator was "at lunch" and could not be located. All in all, the Marriott staff's attitude, lack of professionalism, and nonchalance regarding the horrific state of the reception site and event itself are unforgivable. I would recommend that you get married elsewhere - unless you want to be severely overcharged and overstressed for a haphazard, sloppy wedding. 19 users found this review helpful. 4 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was extremely disappointing. Visited: April 2008 Posted by ccb I checked in late on Wednesday night, and was originally shown to a room that looked like it hadn't been renovated in 20+ years, and smelled like a wet dog. I called the front desk, and they offered to send housekeeping. I asked for another room, and was given a key to a room in the new addition, which seemd pretty nice. Unfortunately, the room I was given was already occupied. After apologizing to the screaming, scared occupant, I went back to the front desk and was given a key to a third room, that was supposedly renovated. The renovation appeared to have been a new area rug on the old tile floors and some new linens. Unfortunately, the room did not have a king sized bed, and was not nearly as nice as the rooms in the new section of the building. Strangely, the prices for the new rooms were the same as the prices for the older, mustier, not as nicely appointed rooms. I suggest you stay away - far away - unless you have a contact who can get you in a room in the nicer part of the hotel. 37 users found this review helpful. 5 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was a week in Paradise. Visited: February 2008 Posted by asandywah I could not wait to write this review, given all of the negative things I had read about this place before our trip. Let's get started! The property is so stunning! When we first arrived, the perfectly manicured landscape was breathtaking. The lobby was clean with a funky style.The views of the ocean and beach were beyond words. Our room was clean, and it looked exactly like the photo on their web site. There was a slight musty smell, but I assumed it would because it is a tropical place that does get some bad storms from time to time. I have nasty allergies and a sense of smell that would put a dog to shame! Believe me, I was secretly concerned. It was very mild, but worth mentioning. The hotel was quiet. It was fully booked, but the resort was so large that we didn't feel crowded. It was newly remodeled, and it was clean everywhere. Iguanas were present, but they minded their own business. We stayed in a harbor view room. It was beautiful. The beach had powder soft sand. Oh my gosh! The water was a beautiful shade of turquoise blue. There were no shells or rocks - or fish for that matter. It was clean and soft. It did get deep quickly. If you don't have a ridiculous fear of sharks, you'll be fine (ha ha). The water was rough, though. If I had to complain at all about this trip, that would be my main complaint. I thought Caribbean water was mostly calm. It was comparable to Florida type of waves. Oh well, maybe you won't mind it! There were two very friendly women who would come around and bring us drinks on the beach. They were fun. The weather was perfect for us. There were some clouds on and off, cutting out some of the sun from time to time. It was about 85 and mostly sunny. There were constant breezes, too! There were lots of pretty sailboats to watch. The pool was clean and casual with a very nice feel to it. There was a Jacuzzi on the Frenchmans Reef side. It was was too hot and musty smelling, though. The Morningstar Jacuzzi was perfect. The people who worked here were nice, but not gushing. We were fine with that, but I do understand what people were saying about them in other reviews. The food was good. We liked the breakfast buffet at Windows, and Captain's Cafe had great mussels and decent ribs. I was not too fond of their steaks at the Marriott, though. The seafood was real good. Overall, the food was good. Oh, sunset crab and artichoke dip on pita chips...you must try. Oh, I am so detailed! To wrap it up here, the trip was really super great. Unless you are extremely hard to please, you should totally love this place. 48 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This was a big resort, but we never felt crowded. Visited: July 2006 Posted by kinera My wife and I stayed in St. Thomas at the Morning Star portion of the Marriott Frenchman’s Reef/Morning Star complex. This was a large resort, but in spite of being fully booked, it never felt crowded. The restaurant waits were not very long, and the beach or pool chaises were always available. We enjoyed our stay, and liked the island of St. Thomas very much. The staff was friendly and accommodating. We even had an ice maker right in our room. There were areas within the resort where we had breathtaking views of the harbor and the island. The resort operated a shuttle service between the two resorts. We chose the Morning Star resort portion because we happen to prefer low rise buildings, and Morning Star was right on the beach. This way we could go to a variety of restaurants on site. Food was pricy on St. Thomas, and this is something you just have to plan for as part of your vacation package. We are Marriott Rewards members, so we were earning points as we were staying at this resort complex. There were several on-site restaurants ranging from the high end Havana Blue at Morning Star, to the beach and pool side bistros. There were also two on-site markets selling breakfast items, deli and packaged lunch items, snacks, beverages, rolls, cheeses and probably other things I forgot. The one at Morning Star was smaller and had posted hours; at Frenchman’s Reef the market was open 24 hours. We found it reasonable to buy the items for our breakfast, use the refrigerator, and eat in our room. We found that as part of our shopping trips into town, we could have lunch a bit cheaper. To go into town to eat meant either taking the ferry or a cab (unless you have a rental car). The fares in all cases were per person, so if you might have two couples going in one cab, it does not save any money. We happened to note that there were those who hired a cab to go into Red Hook for a special evening meal. This trip for two, round trip with tips, would be about $100.00. Having stayed near Red Hook, we know there are gourmet restaurants in and around the town. While the menus are in general limited, the most extensive was at Havana Blue. This, by the way, is a concession, but you can still charge the bill to your room. There were two buffets - a Caribbean night at Coco Joe’s (the beachfront restaurant at Morning Star), and an Italian night at Windows on the Harbor at Frenchman’s Reef. Both were $35.00/person not including beverages or drinks and tip. 77 users found this review helpful. 3 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This was a wonderful resort but there were too many iguanas! Visited: September 2005 Posted by jchadwick We stayed at the Morning Star Beach Resort and loved being close to the beach. Also, the staff here was great. The resort location on the island was great and easy to get transfers into Charlotte Amalie to shop or do sightseeing. The ferry ride from downtown back to the Marriott dock was a highlight, along with a safari- snorkeling day tour to St. John arranged by the hotel. The only negative aspect was the abundance of iguanas on the property. My husband and I were greeted the first afternoon as we walked up to the main lobby to eat. Not one, but seven critters were lined across the sidewalk. I understand there is an iguana feeding by the pool daily, but we were not amused and did not participate after counting 44 Iguanas on the cliff by the pool at 4:oo pm. There were also a half dozen iguanas at the dock along with their droppings the next morning before we departed for St. John. They were a big nuisance. I thought I was safe on the beach, but the last day one came down a tree limb over my beach chair and fell on my flipflops and I almost had a heart attack! These were not cute little geckos, but iguanas that were two to three feet long. I am a corporate travel agent, and until the iguanas are removed from the property we will wait before returning to this property. They could add another soup to the menu! 38 users found this review helpful. 22 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? We had a very enjoyable experience. Visited: December 2004 Posted by vijames999 My wife and I really enjoyed the resort. The best part of the experience was dining at Havana Blue. Apparently, the Marriott leased out space to private owners at Morningstar and wow! The cuisine was top notch. The decor was stunning. This was the complete dining experience. We ate there five straight nights as there was no reason to go elsewhere. Don't even bother with Windows. 31 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was nicer than I expected. Visited: December 2004 Posted by mvitali My family and I just returned from the Marriott over Christmas week and we all were pleasantly surprised by the resort. The location was beautiful, and our room - a two level Royal Harbor suite - was spacious, clean and cold. They had an excellent AC system. Service was good throughout the hotel with the exception of Coconut Joe's bartenders at the beach bar. They seemed to not care about the customer and tended to us only when they had nothing else to do. The new restaurant at Morningstar, Havana Blue, was excellent and the breakfast buffet at Windows on the Harbor was bountiful and made-to-order omelettes were the norm for us. St. Thomas had a lot to offer in terms of shopping, sightseeing, beachcombing and restaurants. A few of our favorites: Oceana in Frenchtown, Molly Molones in Red Hook, Havana Blue, and Iggie's at Bolongo Bay where they offer all you can eat Dungeness crab legs every Tuesday. We thought Herve was good, but overrated and small portions. 35 users found this review helpful. 2 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was very, very nice! Visited: August 2004 Posted by prance331 In my opinion, this was the most beautiful place in the world. We could see the ships pass every night. The Sunset Grill had great food. I recommend going there. The beach was very clean and well maintained. There were a lot of beautiful shells. The rooms were beautiful and I had no problems. 19 users found this review helpful. 5 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? This was a very nice resort. Visited: July 2004 Posted by m_voigts My wife and I just returned from the Frenchman's Reef, having stayed here with Marriott rewards points. The staff was wonderful, the resort grounds were beautiful, and the resort location on the island was great (easy access to downtown Charlotte Amalie and St. John). The rooms needed a little updating (our ice machine was broken, and a little mildew was in the shower) and part of the resort was showing its age, but overall we had a great time. The restaurants were a bit pricy, but the small cafe right on the beach had decent prices and a great atmosphere. We had one small incident with a restaurant, but the hotel staff refunded the meal to us. I'd recommend this hotel to anyone who wanted to get away from it all. The grounds were so spacious that walking from one end to the other was like going to a different resort entirely. They also had a nice beach, but small pools. And did I mention the wonderful staff? 16 users found this review helpful. 2 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? The Morning Star Beach Resort was great. Visited: May 2004 Posted by nickrefvem We stayed at the Morning Star portion, and it was awesome. The only negative aspect was the wedding department. They were very unorganized and were not receptive to our ideas of what we wanted. Everything else about the stay was wonderful (food, the rest of the help, accommodations). 10 users found this review helpful. 7 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful?