THE GEN X WANDERER / Courtyard by Marriott Miami Downtown Brickell: A Pre Cruise Stay Guide
Featured Image Courtesy of Courtyard by Marriott

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Book Courtyard by Marriott Miami Downtown Brickell

If you are planning to stay at the Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Brickell, check out this map for it’s location where my logo “X” marks the spot! If you want to add things to do and places to see on your trip, check out my curated experiences for Miami in my Viator Shop. If you zoom out, you will see all of the tagged places in this post as well as where Port Miami is in relation to the hotel.

Courtyard by Marriott Miami Downtown Brickell: Our Family Review Before a Cruise

We have stayed in Miami dozens of times pre-cruise so I would call myself a veteran. If you haven’t done so, check out my other posts when we stayed earlier this year and last year where I chat about Bayside Marketplace, Aston Martin Residences and dining at Hell’s Kitchen.

For this vacation, we traveled with another family, making it a group of 8 total. And if there is one lesson I have learned after years of cruising out of Florida specifically out of Port Miami, it is this: fly in the day before your cruise. I know it adds an extra hotel night to the budget, but it also adds a massive amount of peace of mind.

If you are flying south during the winter season, you know that de icing will happen on the tarmac, and yes we have been stuck there for about 2 hours. Winter flights out of Canada are unpredictable. Snowstorms, ice, mechanical delays, and full airports can turn a simple travel day into a stressful mess. If you fly in the same day your ship departs and something goes wrong, you could miss the boat completely, and travel insurance or not, that is not how you want to start a vacation. Flying in a day early and settling into a comfortable hotel gives you a buffer, a chance to relax, and time to pick up any last minute cruise essentials before you set sail.

That is why, for two of our cruises out of the Port of Miami, we chose to stay at the Courtyard by Marriott Miami Downtown Brickell. This time, we booked the one bedroom suite for our family of 4, and I want to give you the full rundown of what to expect, the good and the not so good, so you can decide if it is the right fit for your family too.

Why We Chose the Courtyard Miami Downtown Brickell

Location was everything for us. This hotel sits in the Brickell neighbourhood, which is Miami’s financial district but also walkable, lively area right along the water. From the hotel it is about a nine minute drive to the Port of Miami, which made embarkation morning so much easier than staying further out. No worrying about traffic on the highway or budgeting an extra hour just in case.

Brickell also puts you close to a lot of the touristy things you might want to squeeze in before your cruise. We were an easy walk to Bayside Marketplace, the Big Bus Hop on Hop Off (which we also did), which is a great way to see a good chunk of Miami in a short amount of time if you only have a day or two before boarding. I will be writing a full post dedicated to that experience soon and will link it here once it is live.

If you are trying to plan out where to stay for your own Miami cruise trip, I have a full roundup of the best Marriott properties in the city for a pre cruise stay, which you can check out here: 12 Best Marriott Hotels in Miami to Stay Pre Cruise.

The One Bedroom Suite: What It Is Actually Like

For my family of four, the one bedroom suite gave us the separation we needed. There is a proper bedroom with a door that closes, a separate living area with a pull out sofa that sleeps only one person, a TV, large desk for work area, and a small kitchenette style setup with lots of cupboards and a microwave and small fridge. The bedroom has a king size bed and another pull out sofa that can sleep only one. Having that extra bit of privacy after a long travel day, especially with kids, makes a real difference.

Now, I want to be honest here because I always tell you the full story, not just the highlight reel. The pull out sofa beds were incredibly narrow. 2 kids definitely cannot share it as the front desk says. The sofa bed in the living room is a little wider, but the sofa bed in the bedroom can probably only fit a small child.

The other quirky thing, and this held true on both of our stays, is the bathroom layout. The toilet is positioned at an angle in the room, and it is a design choice that left us scratching our heads both times. It is not a dealbreaker by any means, just an odd bit of design that caught us off guard especially me, a self proclaimed OCD’er. If you have stayed at this property before, you will know exactly what I mean.

Aside from those two things, the room itself was clean, comfortable, and had everything we needed to get organized before boarding our ship.

Hotel Amenities That Made Our Stay Easier

This Courtyard has a solid lineup of amenities that make it genuinely convenient for a pre cruise stop.

• “The Bistro” Restaurant on site: The hotel has its own restaurant that we used for dinner and breakfast. Great burgers, solid nachos, a proper breakfast spread, and Starbucks coffee available right there, which was a nice touch for early mornings before we headed to the port.
• Laundry facility: Our room was on level 5 and coincidently, the laundry room was also on that level so I was able to do some laundry before heading to port. Our Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Membership perks also allows us to have a 2pm late checkout, so I did laundry the morning before our embarkation. This came in handy for freshening up clothes before a cruise, especially useful if you are doing a longer trip afterward or just want clean clothes for embarkation day.
• Pool: A nice spot to relax with the kids after a day of exploring the city, and a good way to burn off some energy before a busy cruise schedule.
• Gym: For anyone who likes to keep up a routine even while travelling, the fitness centre is available and functional with a private shower and washroom.
• City Views but Close to the Water: The hotel sits close to the water, and we had some great views.
• The Neighbourhood: Has many local stores like CVS and Whole Foods to pick up last minute stuff like sunscreen and travel size toiletries.

For my fellow Canadians, I have to mention Ross Dress for Less. If you do not have this store at home, think of it as the American equivalent of Winners or Marshalls. Honestly, Ross is always my first stop whenever I land in the United States. The shoe selection alone is worth the visit, and I always seem to find a nice pair of sandals. If you have some extra time before your cruise, it is a fun stop to make.

You have to try this Greek/Mediterranean Restaurant

Meraki Greek Bistro is a must if you are in the area. It happened to be raining that night and trying to Uber a group of 8 famished ppl didn’t seem like something we wanted to try. It was a 2 min walk from the Courtyard Miami Downtown Brickell. Our party loved everything on the menu and I especially loved the Spanakopita rice.

After Dinner

Since this was the first time our friends had every been to Miami, we took them on a little tour around the downtown area, the bridge right before you hit W Hotel, then back and down towards Aston Martin Residences and the surrounding Bay Area.

Getting There: Why We Flew Into Fort Lauderdale Instead of Miami

Here is a money saving tip that a lot of people do not think about especially if you are flying out of Toronto (YYZ). Instead of flying directly into Miami (MIA), we flew from Toronto Pearson into Fort Lauderdale (FLL). Flight prices from Toronto to Fort Lauderdale were significantly cheaper (around $500 CDN Less for a family of 4) than flying straight into Miami, and we are talking a real difference.

From Fort Lauderdale, we booked an Uber straight to the hotel in Brickell. The ride took about 40 minutes and cost around $123 CDN. Even accounting for the Uber cost, flying into Fort Lauderdale and taking a rideshare saved us a substantial amount of money. If you have some flexibility on your flight routing, this is worth looking into for your own trip.

Earning Free Stays With Marriott Bonvoy Points

The Courtyard by Marriott Miami Downtown Brickell is part of the Marriott Bonvoy loyalty program, which means every stay here earns you points that can be redeemed toward future hotel nights. If you travel often or take multiple cruises a year, this adds up quickly and can lead to entire stays booked using points instead of cash. If you have racked up enough points, you can use your points to stay in places like these for free!

For Canadians specifically, there are credit card options that make earning and using these points even easier, including some solid welcome bonuses that can fast track you toward a free night. I put together a full breakdown of how this works for Canadian travellers, which you can read here: How to Travel Free with Points. If you are already planning multiple Miami trips or cruises down the line, it is worth understanding how to make the most of this program.

Final Thoughts

For a family of four heading out on a cruise from the Port of Miami, the Courtyard by Marriott Miami Downtown Brickell checked most of the boxes we were looking for. The location is close to the port, close to shopping, close to the water, and close to some of Miami’s best tourist attractions. The one bedroom suite gave us enough space and privacy, even if the pull out sofa was on the narrow side and the angled toilet design left us a bit puzzled both times we stayed.

Between the on site restaurant, the laundry facility, the pool, and the gym, this hotel covers the basics well for a short pre cruise stay. Add in the ability to earn Marriott Bonvoy points toward future free nights, and it becomes an even smarter choice for repeat cruisers.

If you are booking your own pre cruise stay in Miami, do yourself a favour and arrive a day early. It is a small buffer that can save your entire vacation if winter weather or flight delays get in the way. And if you want more options beyond this one, be sure to check out my full list of the 12 Best Marriott Hotels in Miami to Stay Pre Cruise for more ideas before you book.

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