Marriott Streamside Douglas Review

[claraj]

I recently spent a week in Vail (first time!) and stayed at Streamside in the Douglas building. Overall had a lovely stay. I submitted a review here and also on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g33676-d460086-r928946783-Marriott_s_StreamSide_Douglas_At_Vail-Vail_Colorado.html?m=19905

It was early season and Bluegreen (who bought the other 2 non-Marriott buildings) is still renovating and just opened one building for bookings, and so the resort felt empty which I prefer. Everyone I talked to in the hot tub was using their parent's time share ownership and made me think of the US News article!

Happy to answer any questions.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Wow, it looks very nice. We have friends who own at Streamside (Marriott not Bluegreen). It wasn't Bluegreen that took over Marriott years ago during the shakeup after Marriott decided to remodel the units. I think it was 12 years ago or more. It was VRI, maybe?

 

[claraj]

It wasn't Bluegreen that took over Marriott years ago during the shakeup after Marriott decided to remodel the units. I think it was 12 years ago or more. It was VRI, maybe?

Correct, I read that Bluegreen made the purchase last year.

 

[jwalk03]

Yes, they are Bluegreen now.

Bluegreen Vacations Embarks on New Expansion

BLUEGREEN VACATIONS EMBARKS ON NEW EXPANSION. Three New Resorts Added to Vacation Company Portfolio

www.businesswire.com

 

[rickandcindy23]

Correct, I read that Bluegreen made the purchase last year.

Poor owners are going to be paying big SA's. They should have stayed with Marriott.

We have paid over $1,700 in special assessments since Bluegreen took over Blue Ridge Village, and fees have increased 40% since the takeover. I am not impressed with Bluegreen and paid the SA's the last two years because I thought they probably needed updating and it was not a big price to pay (free week on ebay), but this additional SA for 2024 has me so angry, I haven't even told Rick about it. He is going to lose his mind. I don't want to see that.

 

[Dean]

Bluegreen has added the non MVC buildings there, the Wyndham hotel Panama City Beach at Baypoint (old Marriott Baypoint) and a historic hotel in downtown Nashville. The latter 2 are going to be converted but are currently being rented and available for points to BG members. They are also adding unit at Mountain Loft and a new resort attached to Laurel Crest.

 

[sudiski]

Poor owners are going to be paying big SA's. They should have stayed with Marriott.

We have paid over $1,700 in special assessments since Bluegreen took over Blue Ridge Village, and fees have increased 40% since the takeover. I am not impressed with Bluegreen and paid the SA's the last two years because I thought they probably needed updating and it was not a big price to pay (free week on ebay), but this additional SA for 2024 has me so angry, I haven't even told Rick about it. He is going to lose his mind. I don't want to see that.

There are 2 buildings at Streamside that were no longer managed by Marriott. Marriott decided they didn't meet their standards, so dropped the 2 buildings. VRI took over management of both buildings. Each of the Boards for both buildings (with the support of enough owners) decided to sell the building and the owners of the units in each building lost their week/s and were paid "their share" after legal fees, etc. The owners of the timeshares in the buildings that sold to Bluegreen are no longer owners at Streamside. Bluegreen is renting all of their units in the 2 buildings.

 

[WBP]

What an interesting saga of those two buildings (I believe Aspen and Cedar). Those building HOA’s were headstrong, and decided to bail from Marriott management.

StreamSide has long history of pre-Marriott, reticent owners, who were miserable, from the day that MVCI took over the resort.

 

[dioxide45]

I believe those two buildings were Aspen and Cedar. Birch, Douglass and Evergreen are still part of MVC. I had heard about Bluegreen being involved, but I didn't know that they bought the resort and owners there are out (after receiving residuals). While Bluegreen may be rending now, I suspect the plan was for them to add the properties to one of their trusts and sell the points. Not sure if or how that could change with the Hilton Grand Vacations acquisition.

 

[dioxide45]

I recently spent a week in Vail (first time!) and stayed at Streamside in the Douglas building. Overall had a lovely stay. I submitted a review here and also on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g33676-d460086-r928946783-Marriott_s_StreamSide_Douglas_At_Vail-Vail_Colorado.html?m=19905

It was early season and Bluegreen (who bought the other 2 buildings) is still renovating and just opened one building for bookings, and so the resort felt empty which I prefer. Everyone I talked to in the hot tub was using their parent's time share ownership and made me think of the US News article!

Happy to answer any questions.
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Perhaps you could post the review to the TUG reviews and also upload the photos. I believe a review still gives a two month TUG membership extension when you are up for renewal. I haven't paid for TUG membership for years, though that isn't just due to posting reviews.

 

[piper_chuck]

Thanks for the review. My wife and I will be in a 1BR for 10 nights the second half of January. This will be our first trip to Vail and the first time she has skied anywhere other than Park City.

We have a rental car, not an AWD SUV. I've seen some people say 4WD/AWD is a must, but others say it's not. I learned to drive in New England with RWD cars and somehow we managed.

We'll probably have a few non-ski days where we want to sightsee and we'll want to be able to drive to get groceries, go to a few restaurants, etc. Any thoughts on must see places?

On ski days, I assume we should take a shuttle rather than driving. Does the shuttle run often enough that there's not a long wait? How close to the ski lifts do they drop off?

 

[Daytripz]

We have a rental car, not an AWD SUV. I've seen some people say 4WD/AWD is a must, but others say it's not. I learned to drive in New England with RWD cars and somehow we managed

Are you flying in to Denver and driving? I70 and Vail pass get treacherous. It could be very exciting without AWD.

 

[piper_chuck]

Are you flying in to Denver and driving? I70 and Vail pass get treacherous. It could be very exciting without AWD.

Denver was the original plan, but after some research we decided to spend a little more and switched to EGE.

 

[Daytripz]

Denver was the original plan, but after some research we decided to spend a little more and switched to EGE.

I think you’ll be really happy with that decision!

 

[claraj]

Any thoughts on must see places?

I spent a day exploring Vail Village the second day I arrived (I was also dealing with altitude sickness). Some stores close shortly after the lifts close, so it was nice to be able to take my time exploring all the stores.

If you have never been to Breckenridge, I would also recommend visiting their town. It's a very different feel from Vail.

We have a rental car, not an AWD SUV.

I agree that if you were driving from Denver, I would highly recommend 4WD especially if it was snowing while you were driving. The night before my planned departure we expected 6" of snow and we decided to check out early that night (it already snowed an inch) and drive to Denver rather than deal with i70 traffic in the morning. We passed by at least one car in a ditch in Vail.

 

[Superchief]

Denver was the original plan, but after some research we decided to spend a little more and switched to EGE.

There is a Costco not too far from EGE. It is a good place to stock up on 'essentials'.

 

[piper_chuck]

I spent a day exploring Vail Village the second day I arrived (I was also dealing with altitude sickness). Some stores close shortly after the lifts close, so it was nice to be able to take my time exploring all the stores.

If you have never been to Breckenridge, I would also recommend visiting their town. It's a very different feel from Vail.


I agree that if you were driving from Denver, I would highly recommend 4WD especially if it was snowing while you were driving. The night before my planned departure we expected 6" of snow and we decided to check out early that night (it already snowed an inch) and drive to Denver rather than deal with i70 traffic in the morning. We passed by at least one car in a ditch in Vail.

We'll definitely explore Vail Village and I'll add Breckenridge to the list of places to go.

The thought of a long drive in the snow brought back memories of two years ago when we finished skiing at Park City and drove to Moab. It snowed the entire drive. Fortunately, we had a Bronco that year so other than taking significantly longer, the trip was uneventful. We didn't even get to see the scenery when we got to Moab, it was a whiteout. However, the snow and clouds cleared overnight and the views for the next few days were awesome.

 

[piper_chuck]

There is a Costco not too far from EGE. It is a good place to stock up on 'essentials'.

If only I had a Costco membership. The nearest one is over a half hour away if traffic conditions are perfect. We have a Sam's that's only 15 minutes from home so that's where we go when we want to stock up on things like a half a year supply of toilet paper.

 

[claraj]

On ski days, I assume we should take a shuttle rather than driving.

I found the shuttle convenient enough especially when you know approximately the time it will arrive in Lionshead or Vail Village. Lionshead is the first stop and it takes about 7 minutes to get there. Vail can be another 3-8 minutes depending on how many get on and off at Lionshead. There is an indoor area right by the pick up spot you can wait in (the bus station waiting area) at Vail Village if it's cold.

 

[claraj]

There's a Walmart that isn't too far away and it's closer to Beaver Creek.

 

[piper_chuck]

I found the shuttle convenient enough especially when you know approximately the time it will arrive in Lionshead or Vail Village.

Thanks. Any idea which of the two is a shorter walk to the lifts?

 

[claraj]

Thanks. Any idea which of the two is a shorter walk to the lifts?

I preferred Lionshead because it's the first drop off and first pick up (in theory the bus can fill up at Lionshead and will return to the resort instead of continuing on, which it did at least once- however the driver radio'ed ahead to alert the next driver). I am also almost sure it's a shorter walk because Lionshead Village is much smaller. Another reason is a lot more skiers will go to Vail Village and so the gondola/lift lines will probably be longer there.

 

[sponger76]

Thanks. Any idea which of the two is a shorter walk to the lifts?

Lionshead is definitely a shorter walk. But for dining or if you or anyone in your party wants to do some (expensive) shopping, Vail Village has a ton more options.

 

[craigc]

Thanks for the review. My wife and I will be in a 1BR for 10 nights the second half of January. This will be our first trip to Vail and the first time she has skied anywhere other than Park City.

We have a rental car, not an AWD SUV. I've seen some people say 4WD/AWD is a must, but others say it's not. I learned to drive in New England with RWD cars and somehow we managed.

We'll probably have a few non-ski days where we want to sightsee and we'll want to be able to drive to get groceries, go to a few restaurants, etc. Any thoughts on must see places?

On ski days, I assume we should take a shuttle rather than driving. Does the shuttle run often enough that there's not a long wait? How close to the ski lifts do they drop off?

Chances are the rental will be front wheel drive and with good tires and common sense, you should be fine. The cars that are on the side of the road on I70 are generally SUV's that think their 4 wheel drive can do no wrong in the snow.......till they slam on the brakes That said, if its not that much to upgrade, get a small SUV to give you piece of mind. I go up often from the Denver suburbs and have snow tires on my Cayenne.....again, piece of mind. Try not to drive up / down I70 on the weekend......super busy. If you are not on the road at 6 am on Saturday, its a shix show and coming back in the afternoon on Sundays is the same. I only ski mid week because of this. And if you are coming from sea level, a night in Denver before heading up is a great way to acclimate to altitude. Drink lots of water (not booze) your first few nights.

Parking is expensive in Vail, take the shuttle to Lionshead (5 minute walk to the lifts) and avoid that hassle and expense. On your non ski days I would spend a day in Vail walking around, its a great village. There are plenty of places to eat but I'd make sure you have dinner reservations, it gets busy. Trip advisor has some great recommendations. I believe you can take a bus (not the Marriott shuttle) to Beaver Creek.......if not, its worth the short drive over, its a fun mountain to ski. I'd also drive back over Vail pass to Breckenridge to either ski or walk around town, its my go to mountain as I usually stay at Mountain Valley Lodge as its ski in/out. The drive to Glenwood is beautiful through the canyon and can fill one of your non ski days......check out the hot springs ( https://www.hotspringspool.com/ ). Enjoy!

 

[piper_chuck]

Lionshead is definitely a shorter walk. But for dining or if you or anyone in your party wants to do some (expensive) shopping, Vail Village has a ton more options.

Understood. When we want to shop or eat, we'll head to Vail Village, but for skiing we'll get off at Lionshead.