The Ritz-Carlton, Aruba

I am staying here now and checked in around Noon. At check in I was offered a free upgrade to an ocean front room based on my Marriott rewards status. I was told that I would have to wait a while until the upgraded room was ready and of course that was fine with me and my husband. We ended up waiting about 4 hours. I checked back at the front desk and they said my room was finally ready. When we got the keys, the room was an extremely long walk from the elevators which was hard for me since I had back surgery last year. In their defense, they did not know about my mobility issues. However, when we entered the room, it was not an upgrade. We waited 4 hours just to be given the exact same room I originally booked. I said something to the gentleman who brought our luggage up and he just shrugged it off. We have stayed at quite a few Ritz Carlton Hotels in the past but this was the first time we felt this disappointed in the experience and service. And this was our first time in Aruba.

Our 10th time back on the concierge floor was as exceptional as the first 9. The team is a well oiled machine. Every need is catered to by a kind, warm and lovely team. Rose, Agnes, Celia, and the 3 newbie fellas made our week another home away from home. Thank you for having us again! Hope to see you soon!

I’ll be honest, some of the mixed reviews on here made me nervous to book this hotel. I just spent 5 days there and I can honestly tell you, you can ignore any negative reviews. The Ritz was terrific! I was incredibly impressed by the staff. Everyone, and I mean everyone was attentive, helpful, and kind. My girlfriend and I spent most of our time at the relaxation (adult) pool. In the hot sun, they gave out ice pops, watermelon slices, and ice cold spray bottles. They remembered our names and favorite drinks right away. We checked in early and our room was ready right away AND we got offered a free upgrade to an ocean view. There was a business conference half way through the week, but you never noticed it. The team did a great job separating it from other guests. Even people who weren’t helping us wished us a good morning with a smile. It sounds simple, I know. But it went a long way. I know management reads these, can’t thank you enough for your tremendous staff, they all deserve raises! Also want to shoutout the staff at Casa Nonna! I will say that my only gripe with the hotel was actually the other guests, which i know the staff has no control over. Some of the guests were rude or incredibly selfish. Theres specifically a pool meant for children, but parents would bring their loud and whiny kids to the area. Other adults would be incredibly loud in a quiet area. One guy was doing the laps in the pool even when other people wanted to go in. One lady had her book stolen. People would leave their trash all over the place, which attracted birds and iguanas. Again, not the staff’s fault. I know as soon as someone on the staff saw something they fixed the issue right away. And I realize this could (αnd probably would) be at most places. But for a team that works so hard in the hot sun, it would be nice if guests had basic manners.

Buzz at the front door was the best!!!

Something has changed since our first visit three years ago. The service is less than 5 star. The beers are half the size. The Ritz custom soaps and shampoos are gone. The same with the hand towels. Sent back sashimi at the restaurant. Smelled funny. Server argued. Overall the clientele changed also. Lower cost, cheaper stays, etc. The glitz of the Ritz is gone. It used to be a superior experience.

So so unimpressed. This property should not be a ritz Carlton. Needs an update. No one is here either which says a lot. Actual on the ground workers are wonderful. Have not seen any management. Guess they are in their air conditioned offices. This is not the experience I anticipated to celebrate with my family. Do better research than we did. Aruba has better options

We had an oceanfront room. It was more than we expected and we will visit again. Paradise on earth!!

Great place

Excellent in every respect. Thoroughly enjoyed our stay