We stayed at the Marriott Courtyard Isla Verde November 1, 2007 to November 3, 2007 and November 10, 2007 to November 13, 2007 as part of a pre and post cruise stay.
The hotel was right on the beach and very close to the airport. We did hear the airplanes, but we noticed that they were much louder when we had a higher floor room. The higher floor had a better ocean view, but the planes could shake the windows! I would advise you to book a lower floor room.
The hotel was very clean and the staff were friendly. We ate breakfast at the little café they have in the lobby. It was convenient and relatively inexpensive (5.00 for a continental type breakfast.
I loved the Salsa club at night with all the dancing! They have lessons one night a week. We had dinner twice a restaurant down the street called Metropol. It had great Cuban and Puerto Rican food. The flan was incredible.
The beach was nice, but we might have spent more time there if they had umbrellas for the beach. We were always off sightseeing, so we used the hotel as a convenient base for our travels. We rented a car and went down the coast to Fajardo and Humacao. If you can, you have to go to the Bioluminescent Bay on the island of Vieques! This was the most awesome thing we did! The water literally glows and sparkles with the microscopic creatures in the water. Tours leave from the town of Fajardo. We also snorkeled on the island of Culebra, which was beautiful!
Old town San Juan was great to visit, but I was glad our hotel was off the beaten path a little.

Remember this my story and my expreiences. Let me start by stating the positive. The staff was friendly, polite, and accomedating. Like the fact that the hotel is right on the beach. The Lobby was nice and inviting. However, I didn't sleep in the lobby. Loved the hammocks. The pool area was kept clean when guest would leave their trash, towels or chair lounged back, the staff was readily available to get the area clean and organized. My kids loved the swimming pool wanted to stay all day. The pool wasn't terribly dirty just not as clean as it could have been. Visited the pool everyday. Hotel kid friendly just not any planned activities for them just a small game room. And if there were any actitivies wasn't informed. The pool grill food was good. Also the hotel offered complimentary bug repellant for the outdoor activities. By the way which you will need (no see um bugs), I was so sure I had got biten by bed bugs not sure which one it was. I questioned wether it was Bed Bugs because I was really disappointed with house keeping. Be aware my room wasn't vaccumed, balthroom floor or mirror washed, nor did they change the sheets my entire stay of 5 days. The outside of the bathtub stayed dirty that enitre time as well. Had to keep requesting extra towels and wash clothes to accomedate the amount of people in the room. I felt once they knew how many were in the room we shouldn't have had to ask anymore. The word suite was used in describing the rooms however, my experiences of a suite were bedroom with a seperate sitting area or room. Not the case with my room. I found it to be extremely small. It was considered a full ocean view room although we could see the ocean it just wasn't as enchanting as the price should have make it . Honestly, for the price it was just and average room. Like another review read I would have expected more for the price. The room wasn't nasty but it just wasn't fresh if you know what I mean. On the first night/day the airplane noise is very annoying but after a while it's a non issue.
Was also disappointed when my husband told one of The Sierra Restaurant employees that it was my birthday, they didn't even send out a complimentary dessert or anything. Last but not least our last day we ate for the 3rd time at the breakfast buffet. To be fair the other 2 times were ok but this last time my husband poured out a fly with his coffee from the coffee pot, the french toast was cold and the sausage was not throughly cooked. The staff did compensate for the inconvenience. Not saying I would not stay at the Marriott again. It just won't be my first choice.

My boyfriend and I just returned from a five day stay at the Marriott and we cannot wait to go back. Our suite overlooked the ocean and it a magnificent view when you awaken in the morning--. (Highly recommend room 927!!) I had the pleasure of meeting one of the managers, Ålfredo Arroyo when we checked in, as I had been exchanging emails over the previous weeks prior to our arrival (Thank you so much Mr Arroyo!). We had a fruit platter waiting in our room with a card "welcoming us home!". He could not have been nicer. We received a follow up message on our phone from another front desk manager just "making sure" that things were the way we wanted. The bed was so comfortable. The temperature in the room was perfect. We received the absolute best service from everyone at the hotel, from Maribel and Moraima at the front desk, to Axel and Jennifer at the swim up pool bar. Rafael greeted us each morning when we went to the beach or pool and set up our chairs and towels. While the other major hotels on La Isla Verde may appear more glamorous --I think for a true Puerto Rico experience, a warm and welcoming atmosphere, and truly relaxing vacation--look no further than the Courtyard.

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.