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Marriott - Hilton Head (Best Recommended)

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lejo2008

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IF you had a choice of staying at one of the Hilton Head Marriotts for a week which would you choose ?

Details
---------
Family of 3 (w/20 year old)
Activities (Rental biking ? / Hiking / ??)
Beach
Nice Pool
Convenient location

Would it be this order:

1) Surf Watch
2) Grand Ocean
3) Barony Beach
4) Monarch
 
lejo2008 said:
IF you had a choice of staying at one of the Hilton Head Marriotts for a week which would you choose ?

Details
---------
Family of 3 (w/20 year old)
Activities (Rental biking ? / Hiking / ??)
Beach
Nice Pool
Convenient location

Would it be this order:

1) Surf Watch
2) Grand Ocean
3) Barony Beach
4) Monarch
Click to expand...
Monarch for all of the above because it's in Sea Pines.
 
lejo2008 said:
IF you had a choice of staying at one of the Hilton Head Marriotts for a week which would you choose ?

Details
---------
Family of 3 (w/20 year old)
Activities (Rental biking ? / Hiking / ??)
Beach
Nice Pool
Convenient location

Would it be this order:

1) Surf Watch
2) Grand Ocean
3) Barony Beach
4) Monarch
Click to expand...
Grande Ocean would be first for us due to it's location close to Coligny, restaurants and groceries. Barony would likely be second but isn't as convenient, SW would be third then Monarch. GO also gets a Sea Pines pass even though it's not actually in sea pines.
 
They are all nice. How are you looking to book? With cash or destination points you are going to have the most flexibility to choose. If you are going interval not so much, especially if you are looking for platinum season and even gold season. Lots of people have their favorites among those 4. Barony might be lower on the list if you aren't guaranteed to get in the ocean front buildings. Monarch doesn't have the RESORT type pool area.
 
Grand Ocean ... location, the beach, bikes, hiking trails, & Sea Pines
Monarch... location, the beach , bikes, hiking trails & Sea Pines
SurfWatch & Barony Beach both have great pools & the beach
All are excellent choices
 
We have been to all four and I have also done quite a few videos on each of the properties with more to come. Here is my assessment of each one;

Grande Ocean - Great location with easy access to and Sea Pines with a pass. Great resort, fantastic grounds and lots of pools.
Surfwatch - Location is fine, grounds are okay and pools are fine (not near what Grande Ocean is IMO). It lacks the charm that the other three have. The distance to the beach is also not ideal.
Barony - This is a great resort, the only drawback is their garden view villas being in the back of the resort separated from the main section. So if you book through II, you could end up there.
Monarch - Definitely an underrated property. It doesn't have as much of the resort feel that the other three have, but is has its charm. It is smaller, and older and the units are pretty small. So you may want one of the other three with an adult traveling with you. If you want to be in Sea Pines, this is the property for you.
 
Thank you everyone !!

I am booking through an ENCORE PACKAGE - so availability works a little different :)

I was able to grab the first week in June 2021 - 5 Days/4 Nights -

I was able to grab the GRAND OCEAN !!
(Although I was looking for a booking at the end of May ...but I'll take it !!)
 
dioxide45 said:
We have been to all four and I have also done quite a few videos on each of the properties with more to come. Here is my assessment of each one;

Grande Ocean - Great location with easy access to and Sea Pines with a pass. Great resort, fantastic grounds and lots of pools.
Surfwatch - Location is fine, grounds are okay and pools are fine (not near what Grande Ocean is IMO). It lacks the charm that the other three have. The distance to the beach is also not ideal.
Barony - This is a great resort, the only drawback is their garden view villas being in the back of the resort separated from the main section. So if you book through II, you could end up there.
Monarch - Definitely an underrated property. It doesn't have as much of the resort feel that the other three have, but is has its charm. It is smaller, and older and the units are pretty small. So you may want one of the other three with an adult traveling with you. If you want to be in Sea Pines, this is the property for you.
Click to expand...


Very nice review as always, dioxide45, and all great assessments....

I might add, for what it's worth....... (not taken in any particular order)......
Barony Garden Villas are slightly larger in square footage than the other Barony villas, and they are appointed just as luxuriously as the others.
That section also has a pool slide, with kids' water features at one end that are enjoyable. Barony as a whole is wonderful.
Surfwatch has a very loyal following, and my take is that Marriott air-lifted each building down into a specific well-conceived spot in the landscape, such that they are gently settled into the very natural, picturesque setting "as is", which is not only unique to Marriotts at Hilton Head,
but adds a bit of a secluded and tranquil feel.....and perhaps that is THE big positive for those who love the marsh & forest setting.
The marsh is quite amazing in its own right.
Monarch has a small oceanside resort footprint, therefore a very homey feel, and is a quiet garden-like oasis in Sea Pines.
The new Sea Pines Beach Club next door is often teeming with people, as is the beach in front of it, so during spring/summer holidays
it might be a bit much, but otherwise it's fine.
Grande Ocean remains Grande Ocean, the cream of the crop---it deserves the "e" on the end of Grande, as it stands alone from
all other East coast timeshare resorts.
Kudos to the HH Marriott resorts....The refurbishments and renovations, whatever and whenever they happen to be at each resort,
are always great and well-executed. Grande Ocean has just completed the North side and is well into the South side, and they're great.
 
Last edited:
Fasttr said:
About a tenth of a mile outside the gate to Sea Pines.
Click to expand...
When we drove from Grande Ocean for our next stay at Monarch, we passed through those gates. It was actually handy to have the Sea Pines pass from Grande Ocean as it saved us from having to drive up to the main entrance up on Greenwood Drive to go through the drive up window to pick up our pass for Monarch. When we got to Monarch, they asked if we got our pass from the drive up window. I told them we just used the one from Grande Ocean and they gave us a new one there at the desk at Monarch. No need to go out of our way to get the one from the main entrance.

This is a mistake many people make when going to Monarch (I know someone who did), they just try to drive to Monarch and get hung up at the gate and having to pay the daily entrance fee. A pass is instead waiting for you at the drive up window on Greenwood. No need to pay anything or argue with the gate attendant.
 
Maybe, the OP, will let us know their final resort choice.
 
lejo2008 said:
IF you had a choice of staying at one of the Hilton Head Marriotts for a week which would you choose ?

Details
---------
Family of 3 (w/20 year old)
Activities (Rental biking ? / Hiking / ??)
Beach
Nice Pool
Convenient location

Would it be this order:

1) Surf Watch
2) Grand Ocean
3) Barony Beach
4) Monarch
Click to expand...

=======================
Thank you - Everyone -
I was able to grab the GrandeOcean under the Encore Package for June !
 
Can anyone describe current state of affairs on HHI ?
We're booked for mid April at Barony (driving) and are wondering what will be open both there and the Island in general.
Feb 18 is drop dead date for cancellation without penalties.
We will both be fully vaccinated by then.
CDC is saying don't travel at all . . . .
Thanks
 
pspercy said:
Can anyone describe current state of affairs on HHI ?
We're booked for mid April at Barony (driving) and are wondering what will be open both there and the Island in general.
Feb 18 is drop dead date for cancellation without penalties.
We will both be fully vaccinated by then.
CDC is saying don't travel at all . . . .
Thanks
Click to expand...
Everything is pretty much open, dine in, carry out. I don't think there are any capacity restrictions in SC. Masks are required on HHI in indoor commercial spaces and masking is pretty consistent in stores and around the resort by guests and staff. You may see people around the pool or outside at the resort without a mask though.
 
dioxide45 said:
Everything is pretty much open, dine in, carry out. I don't think there are any capacity restrictions in SC. Masks are required on HHI in indoor commercial spaces and masking is pretty consistent in stores and around the resort by guests and staff. You may see people around the pool or outside at the resort without a mask though.
Click to expand...
This was my experience back in November, though capacity at Barony was pretty low. HHI has stronger COVID restrictions than SC in general (which isn't saying much, but HHI was pretty good).

I think once we get into the spring on HHI there will be issues with seating / lounge chairs at the pools, assuming social distance restrictions remain and reduced number of chairs available.
 
We spent the month of January at Grande Ocean on Hilton Head and masks were required if you couldn't socially distance. Most people walking the beach were not wearing masks but some were. We got together with groups of people outside a few times and everyone was wearing masks. We did the water aerobics at the outdoor pool the first couple of weeks and at the indoor pool the last two weeks but the number of people allowed in the pools was 15 people
 
dioxide45 said:
When we drove from Grande Ocean for our next stay at Monarch, we passed through those gates. It was actually handy to have the Sea Pines pass from Grande Ocean as it saved us from having to drive up to the main entrance up on Greenwood Drive to go through the drive up window to pick up our pass for Monarch. When we got to Monarch, they asked if we got our pass from the drive up window. I told them we just used the one from Grande Ocean and they gave us a new one there at the desk at Monarch. No need to go out of our way to get the one from the main entrance.

This is a mistake many people make when going to Monarch (I know someone who did), they just try to drive to Monarch and get hung up at the gate and having to pay the daily entrance fee. A pass is instead waiting for you at the drive up window on Greenwood. No need to pay anything or argue with the gate attendant.
Click to expand...

Wait a minute. Let me get this straight. I'm going to Monarch and there is already a pass at the Greenwood gate for me? Greenwood is the street beside the Harris Teeter, right?

We have a multi-stay coming up soon (can you say "remote" work?). Will be in HH for almost three weeks. Monarch, Surfwatch, Harbour Club. Can I avoid the $9 entrance fee twice?
 
Swice said:
Wait a minute. Let me get this straight. I'm going to Monarch and there is already a pass at the Greenwood gate for me? Greenwood is the street beside the Harris Teeter, right?

We have a multi-stay coming up soon (can you say "remote" work?). Will be in HH for almost three weeks. Monarch, Surfwatch, Harbour Club. Can I avoid the $9 entrance fee twice?
Click to expand...
Yes. Greenwood is the gate by Harris Teeter. There should be a pass waiting for you at the Greenwood gate for both stays. I know that Monarch told us in a pre arrival voicemail before our stay to stop there to pick up our pass. You shouldn't have to pay the $9 for entry to get to the resort. I also *tried* to stay at Harbour Town Yacht Club, and they too had a pass for us at the main gate. You don't get it at the gate, but rather in the Sea Pines Resort building beside it. I try to show where below. FOllow the red line around and behind the building and you will come to a drive up window where that star is. Give them your name and they will print your pass for however long the property said you would need it through.

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dioxide45 said:
Yes. Greenwood is the gate by Harris Teeter. There should be a pass waiting for you at the Greenwood gate for both stays. I know that Monarch told us in a pre arrival voicemail before our stay to stop there to pick up our pass. You shouldn't have to pay the $9 for entry to get to the resort. I also *tried* to stay at Harbour Town Yacht Club, and they too had a pass for us at the main gate. You don't get it at the gate, but rather in the Sea Pines Resort building beside it. I try to show where below. FOllow the red line around and behind the building and you will come to a drive up window where that star is. Give them your name and they will print your pass for however long the property said you would need it through.

View attachment 31994
Click to expand...
I’ll bite, what does it mean that you “tried” to stay at the Harbour Town Yacht Club? Sounds like there is a story there....
 
There is one update about Monarch that nobody mentioned. Now that the new beach club is there, it is a little bit busier on the beach in the summer. You do have a good bar at the beach club and live music. There are lots of people coming and going all the time. That isn't the case at Grande Ocean because the footprint is huge and the other two have more residential up and down the beach (Barony is next to a Westin hotel to the North).
 
Big Matt said:
There is one update about Monarch that nobody mentioned. Now that the new beach club is there, it is a little bit busier on the beach in the summer. You do have a good bar at the beach club and live music. There are lots of people coming and going all the time. That isn't the case at Grande Ocean because the footprint is huge and the other two have more residential up and down the beach (Barony is next to a Westin hotel to the North).
Click to expand...

I mentioned it in post #8 above......and it's true.....the beach in front of the Sea Pines Beach Club is often crowded with bodies,
loud music, and "flying soccer balls and frisbees that cannot see", especially on holidays and on weekends on both sides of holidays.
After all, it's the official beach access point for all Sea Pines guests who do not stay on or near the beachfront, and that covers a lot of guests.
And Monarch's guests are so close that the two beach crowds can't help but co-mingle.
It works out OK during low tide, but during high tide you get to meet a host of new friends from far, far away. ;)
 
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