Family-Friendly Marriott Santa Clara

Marriott Santa Clara on 2700 Mission College is right off the 101 Freeway, close to the California Great America theme park, the new 49ers Levi’s Stadium and the Santa Clara convention center. A favorite with business travelers and sports fans, the hotel, is 15 minutes from San Jose airport and 30 minutes away from any location in the valley. The hotel provides that quintessential solid Marriott experience one expects from the chain hotel; reliable service, comfortable amenities, and staff that cater to patrons’ needs.

Our Welcome

We stayed at the property twice within two months and both times our requests of feather-free bedding and quiet room were accommodated. Check-in was a quick process both times, and the front desk staff went out of their way to make us happy and ensure our comfort. The well-appointed lobby area decorated in tones of greens and earth browns is modern looking and with ample seating and elegant marble flooring. The hotel provides free Wi-Fi in the lobby for guests as well as refreshing cucumber and orange chilled waters (priceless on hot days).

Our Room

  Our room on the tenth floor of the south tower was spacious and boasted two comfortable queen beds, which was the perfect layout for our family of four. The room also had a well-lit desk, Flat screen TV (with multiple channels including nickelodeon and cartoon network), coffee maker, a small seating area and plenty of outlets to plug in our electronic devices. The nicely sized closet had plenty of hangers, and we appreciated the robes and slippers provided. We did not request a refrigerator, but the hotel staff mentioned they are available on demand. The room came with a mini balcony that faced the theme park turned out to be perfect for watching the park’s fireworks display. In the case you travel with younger kids bring a stick on a lock to make sure they don’t open the door unattended since the lock is placed pretty low. The bathroom (on the small side) had a tub shower combo with a curtain and safety bar and a moderately sized granite counter top to place our medicines and cosmetics. Since the weather was reasonably temperate when we were there, we didn’t need to turn on the A/C, which like all wall units was a bit noisy. Housekeeping at this property is excellent. We called them numerous times with requests for fresh towels, toiletries, and sheets that were brought to our room quite fast. The room Wi-Fi was reasonably quick with a reliable signal, free for  Marriott Gold members. Otherwise, you are offered two options to purchase it which can be pricey (12 $ a day.) The hotel executive lounge located on the top floor (has nice views on the surrounding area) offers a happy hour spread of munchies, cold cuts, soup, salads and hot appetizers along with soft drinks, coffees, and waters. The alcoholic beverages are supplied at a cost and are offered on an honor system. The breakfast at the hotel’s sports bar, Champions, offers scrambled eggs, potatoes, bacon, sausages, cut up fruit, yogurts, jams, juices and hot beverages. Worth mentioning are the hotel pool (a real lap pool with ‘adult only’ hours between 9-11pm), and the well-appointed gym with an impressive choice of weights. Per the concierge’s recommendation, we tried Parcel 104, their fine dining venue that featured Chef Bradley Ogden’s “Farm to Table” concept, and enjoyed the freshly prepared dishes; though the size of the portions was rather small by US standards. The property has a laundry room with coin-operated machines that comes in handy for traveling families and is close to a huge shopping mall with a Wal-Mart grocery and T J Maxx. as well as a revamped AMC movie theater with an IMAX screens to entertain the kids.

Autism Travel Tips

• Make sure you ask for a quiet room on a top floor of the South tower since the rooms next to the pool area and the ones overlooking the freeway can be noisy.
• Be sure to bring your anti-slip bath mat, a night-light, and if your child is young; a contact alarm for the balcony door so you can hear if it is opened.

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