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I stayed at Marriott Aruba Surf Club for 1 week with my family and had a fabulous time. It might be the most fun resort I’ve been to with Marriott Vacation Club. The resort is located right on Palm Beach in Aruba. Which is the main tourist hub on the island.
The beach is beautifully sandy and the waters are warm and calm. The resort has multiple swimming pools. A lazy river, adult pool, main pool, water slide and some smaller kids pools. There are also activities like ping pong, shuffle board, tennis, pool table and more.
I enjoyed the resort as it had all the activities that the best Marriott Vacation Clubs have. It also had a fantastic lazy river and a stunningly calm beach. For me, everything was just about perfect.
Marriott Vacation Club is Marriott's Timeshare Brand. Their resorts have apartments rather than hotel rooms, with full kitchen and washing facilities. I stayed in a one bed apartment with ocean view. I’m an owner with Marriott Timeshare. So I used my annual allocation of point to stay here. It’s one of the most popular resorts to get into. In the article, I describe how to stay here for $1,895 for 4 nights, and get 90,000 free Bonvoy Points. This is an in-depth article with loads of photos. So you’ll know exactly what to expect when you visit.
I stayed at the Marriott Aruba Surf Club and set an alarm for 6 a.m. Not for the sunrise — for a pool chair. That's the real story behind most Marriott Aruba reviews you'll read: guests genuinely wake at dawn, reserve a lounger, then go straight back to bed.
I booked an ocean view apartment on the 9th floor. About 950 square feet, which felt properly spacious for a week with the family. My wife and kids took the bedroom, I made up the sofa-bed in the living room — and honestly, it was more comfortable than I expected.
A few things surprised me. The fitness centre was better equipped than my actual gym back home in London. There's a tennis coach on court most mornings at 9am, if you can stomach the heat. And the on-site restaurant kept things reasonable — under $20 for a pizza, coffee from $4 at the marketplace.
If you're an owner (or thinking about becoming one), it's worth a look at my Recommended Resources page — I've got a Marriott Vacation Club deal on there getting you into a resort for a fraction of the usual cost, alongside the rest of the deals I actually use.
I'm an owner with Marriott Vacation Club, which is exactly why I can point you toward Marriott Aruba Surf Club for a fraction of the going rate. Rooms here run to $900 a night in peak season — book through a preview package instead, and that rate drops a long way.
Here's the actual offer: five nights for $1,895, plus 90,000 bonus Marriott Bonvoy points thrown in. 90,000 points is the best offer I've ever seen! Stack that against the $900-a-night peak rate, and you're saving over $2,600 for the same five nights — a proper discount, not a marketing one.
The catch, and I'll be upfront about it: you sit through a one-hour timeshare presentation. Marriott will hard-sell you on buying in — that's the whole point of the package from their side. But you don't have to buy anything. I've sat through plenty of these over the years, and saying no has never been a problem.
If you want to book this up, email me with your name, phone number, email address and the city you live in, and I'll sort the rest.
I've used my ownership to get into places like Ritz Carlton Vail and Westin Princeville on Kauai this way too — and preview packages usually skip resort fees and parking charges as well, which is a nice bit extra on top of the points.
Marriott's Aruba Surf Club sits right on Palm Beach — the busiest, most famous strip on the island. The drive in from the airport took me around 15 minutes. It's a proper resort strip too, packed with hotels, beach bars and water sports either side of us. The Marriott Aruba Ocean Club sits right next door — so close it's practically the same resort, with shared facilities and its own Marriott Timeshare status. There's genuinely no reason to bother visiting if you're staying at the Surf Club. The Radisson Blu Aruba sits on the other side.
Aruba isn't the kind of island where you want to be standing around after a long flight, so I always pre-book. I use Welcome Pickups for exactly that — a driver waiting at arrivals, a fixed price agreed before you land, no haggling in a car park in 30°C heat. It costs a touch more than flagging down a local taxi, but for a 15-minute run straight to Palm Beach, that's a trade I'll happily make every time.
If you'd rather shop around before committing, GetTransfer.com lets you compare private drivers and vehicle sizes for the same airport run — handy if you're travelling as a family and need something bigger than a standard car. It takes a bit longer to book than a one-click app, since you're picking between quotes rather than a fixed price, but it can work out cheaper if you're flexible on the vehicle. Either way, you land, you're met, and you're on Palm Beach in 15 minutes.
Use an eSIM in Palm Beach
I always check data prices before I land — roaming charges are a pet hate of mine — so when I travelled to Palm Beach in Aruba, I used an eSIM instead. I paid $6.90 for 5GB over 15 days — miles cheaper than roaming charges. Other packages are available. The eSIM provider is rated 4.7-star from over 17,000 reviews.
This deal is a no brainer. I'm annoyed I didn't start doing this years ago!
Eagle Beach
Eagle Beach is Aruba's other headline stretch of sand, a short way along the coast from Palm Beach. It's free, wide and famous for the leaning Fofoti trees you'll have seen on half of Aruba's postcards. Go at sunset if you can — it's quieter than the resort strip and a proper contrast to a day spent by the pool.
Arusun Catamaran Sail with Snorkeling in Aruba
Book your ticket here for $63. It's rated 4.84* from 2,628 reviews. You're out on the water and into a couple of snorkel stops along the way — good value for a half day, and a proper break from resort life.
Aruba North Coast ATV Desert Adventure
Book your spot here for $95. It's rated 4.90* from 2,722 reviews. You'll ride through Aruba's desert side — cactus, dirt tracks, the works — which is a world away from the beach. Expect to get dusty; wear something you don't mind ruining.
Aruba UTV Tour with Natural Cave Pool and Cliff Jumping
Buy tickets here for $122. It's rated 4.87* from 5,288 reviews. It's the priciest of the bunch, but you're driving yourself, swimming in a natural cave pool, and — if you're brave enough — cliff jumping into the sea. A proper full day out rather than a quick add-on.
The Marriott Aruba Surf Club is a fantastic beachfront resort in Palm Beach, Aruba. It has the following facilities:
Accomodation is made up of studios, 1-bed, 2-bed and 3 -bed apartments.
I loved my stay at the resort. The resort backs right on to the beach. The waters were very warm and calm.
The best feature has to be the wide variety of swimming pools and activities. With an excellent lazy river, water slide, kids pools, adult pool and main pool with swim up bar.
One thing to note is that pool chairs are very difficult to get. At the weekends, there were barely any free. Many guests wake up at 6am and then reserve their chair, before going back to their room.
At the front of the resort are the tennis courts and the basketball court. They have a tennis coach each morning at 9am to play with guests. I enjoy tennis and did visit on one day. But it was so hot, that I couldn’t stomach the thought of going back at that time. That being said, the coach was pretty good. I need to get more topspin on my ground strokes!
There are some lawn games to play. Shuffle board, table tennis, pool table and foosball. I saw very few people play these games. Simply because it was too hot and humid. It was best to be in the pool, or under an umbrella with a cold drink. It was a similar story when I stayed at Marriott Frenchman’s Cove in the US Virgin Islands – also in the Caribbean.
There was one sit-down restaurant on site, next to the main pool. Serving the usual fare of comfort food. Pizzas, burgers, wraps etc. I ate here a few times during the day. I thought the pricing wasn’t too bad. Less than $20 for a pizza. The quality was middling, as I have come to expect.
As we had a kitchen in our room, we cooked our own breakfast and dinners.
Marriott's Aruba Surf Club is a multi-storey timeshare resort on Palm Beach — my apartment was on the 9th floor, so the building runs to at least nine storeys. Accommodation is split across studios, one-bed, two-bed and three-bed apartments, all self-catering with a full kitchen and a washer-dryer rather than standard hotel rooms.
On-site dining includes a single sit-down restaurant next to the main pool, plus a couple of poolside bars and grills, and the Market Place for coffee, breakfast items and snacks — this Marriott Aruba Surf Club is built around apartment living, not restaurant variety. It sits directly alongside the Marriott Aruba Ocean Club, and guests from either resort can use both sets of facilities.
If the water slide and family-friendly setup here appeal to you, my review of JW Marriott Orlando Grande Lakes covers another Marriott resort with even more water slides and activities for the kids.
There's one sit-down restaurant on site at the Marriott Aruba Surf Club, next to the main pool, plus a couple of poolside bars and grills. It serves the usual comfort food — pizzas, burgers, wraps — and I ate here a few times during the day. Pricing wasn't bad, under $20 for a pizza, though the quality was middling, as I've come to expect at this type of resort restaurant.
Beyond that, the Market Place near the pools covers coffee, breakfast items and café-style snacks rather than sit-down dining. With a full kitchen in our apartment, we ended up cooking our own breakfasts and dinners instead of relying on the on-site options.
I stayed in a one-bed Marriott Aruba Surf Club apartment with ocean view. It was located on the 9th floor and was pretty fantastic. It had the following facilities:
There are 3 types of apartment at the resort. Island view, ocean view and ocean front. Island view apartments look away from the sea.
Ocean front apartments are right in front of the ocean and have uninterrupted ocean view. These are the most expensive and difficult rooms to book.
Ocean view was what I booked. You can see the ocean, but from far back. I actually prefer these apartments to ocean front. This is because I was able to view the entire resort and the ocean beyond, which made for a spectacular view, especially as I was on the 9th floor and could see everything.
The apartment was pretty spacious, at about 950 square feet.
My wife and kids stayed in the main bedroom. I slept in the living room, and made the sofa-bed. The sofa-bed was pretty good. The proper bed was very nice.
The kitchen was fantastic. It had everything that I have at home, and more. Large stove, fridge, coffee machine, toaster, blender, utensils etc.
The design of the room was functional, but not luxurious. This is what I have come to expect at timeshare resorts. Ultimately, timeshare owners don’t want to pay for expensive furnishings in their yearly maintenance fees.
The Marriott Aruba Surf Club is a beach front resort and the beach itself was fantastic. The resort sits right on the sand, backing straight onto the beach. It’s a 60-second walk from the back of the resort until your feet touch the ocean, which is perfect in my view.
The Caribbean waters were lovely, warm and calm. Like many guests, we had our own water floats. We stayed in the sea for hours, just chilling. It was so comfortable and relaxing.
The beach was sandy and yellow.
The beach was very popular, and most of the seats were taken. You have to pre-book the night before. That didn’t really bother me. We used one of the chairs by the pool and then walked to the beach.
This was one of the most calm and fun beaches that I’ve been to. Normally the waters are rougher, and less inviting.
If calm Caribbean beaches like this one are your thing, my review of Marriott Frenchman's Cove covers another beachfront Marriott stay in the US Virgin Islands with a similarly relaxing shoreline.
The highlight of the pool has to be the lazy river. Like any lazy river, you sit on the float and the current takes you round. I do like a lazy river. Read my review of the Lakeshore Reserve in Orlando.
The lazy river at the Aruba Surf Club was the best I have ever used. The current was pretty strong, so I could lay down without having to kick myself round. Also, it was so hot, that it felt amazing to be in the water.
The resort has a water slide. This is very similar to water slides that I have seen at other timeshare resorts. It’s a decent size slide – not a baby one. But it’s not a water park slide by any stretch.
Both my kids enjoyed going down it. The speed was pretty good. But not earth shattering!
The resort had 3 (at my count) kids pools.
There was a kids pool outside the kids activity centre. This was pretty nice with some water cannons to play with. That being said, hardly anybody was using this pool. Because it was a little detached from the other pools and the restaurant/bar.
There was a shallow kids pool next to the water slide.
There was also another kids pool close to the bar. This pool was very busy. Surely because of its convenient location.
The main pool was a decent size. It had a swim up bar and dj playing music. The pool was perfectly ordinary, but it was lots of fun to be here.
The bar and the DJ created a cool fun vibe.
There was a small adult pool (photo above). I didn’t visit here, except when I woke up at 6 a.m. to get some photos.
The pool was relatively small and pretty busy.
If I wasn’t with my kids, I would probably stay here to avoid the kids.
There were two hot tubs. One was adult only.
The hot tubs were nice.
There weren’t too busy though. After all, it was so hot, that it felt uncomfortable to spend too long in one.
I used the fitness centre a few times during my stay, and it was really good. Better than my gym at home.
Back in London, I switched from my luxury Virgin Active gym to a far more basic Pure Gym. The fitness centre here was much better.
The fitness centre had three rooms. A studio, a room with cardio machines and a room with resistance machines and free weights.
The fitness centre also had a sauna that you could use.
There’s a kids activity centre. They had activities such as jewelry making and cupcake decorating. I visited here a couple of times, so my kids could take part in the activities.
They also have some other board games and indoor activities.
The resort has a market place selling souvenirs, holiday essentials, coffee, breakfast, café, alcohol etc.
I didn’t visit here too often, but the prices didn’t look too bad. Coffee started at $4. You could get breakfast rolls for $10.
I didn’t have breakfast here, as I had it in my room. But I thought the pricing wasn’t bad.
If you're searching for a Marriott Aruba Surf Club all inclusive package, I'll save you the trouble — there isn't one. This is a self-catering timeshare resort: the Market Place and the on-site restaurant are both pay as you go, same as everywhere else on the strip.
Most Marriott Aruba reviews will tell you the pools and the beach are the story here, and they're right. The lazy river was the best I've used, and the beach was calm and sandy right behind the resort. The kids had a water slide, three separate kids pools and a proper activity centre to keep them busy — for me, everything was just about perfect.
It's not without its niggles. Getting a pool chair meant setting an alarm for 6 a.m., and the on-site restaurant is decent rather than special — under $20 for a pizza, but the quality was middling. With a full kitchen in the apartment, we ended up cooking most meals ourselves anyway.
Would I go back? Without hesitation. The apartment itself made this feel like a proper home away from home rather than just another hotel room. Ocean view, 9th floor, 950 square feet, its own kitchen, and a sofa-bed that held up fine for a week. If you're weighing up Marriott Aruba Surf Club, this is one to book.