The JW Marriott Austin is a great location for exploring healthy activities, scenery, people, and the culture of the unique city of Austin Texas.
Located only 15 minutes from Austin International Airport, in the heart of the downtown area, The JW Marriott Austin is a perfect example of luxury in a city that is very casual.
1. Check in
The JW has the most courteous employees around. From the minute you step foot in the lobby (see below for Valet commentary - who are not employees of the hotel), your every need is catered to expediently and with a smile. At the front desk, despite the afternoon rush of arrivals and departures, a staff member was there to greet us and check us in efficiently without any wait. Water was offered, and luggage was arranged to be delivered to our room.
2. Rooms
This is where the JW shines. Our room was located on the 17th floor with a view of the city and Lady Bird Lake. The pool with a large outline of the State of Texas (are you surprised?) was visible from our room. We booked a double bed room and was offered the choice of walk in shower or tub at check in. Each bed notably has 4 king sized pillows, a special touch in our opinion. Turn down service is provided nightly with Valerian and orange infused chocolates provided as well as the usual bathroom refreshing. A safe large enough for two laptops is located in the closet. Robes and in room coffee, tea and Biscoff cookies are provided. The bellman arranged to have a refrigerator sent to our room, needed for our pre-half-marathon nutrition. Bathroom amenities are the typical Aromatherapy brand. If you have read our posts you know that we prefer a walk in shower.
3. Fitness
A large fitness center is located on the 5th floor with a great view of the city and lake. There are many aerobic and weight machines available along with headphones, water, fruit and towels. Unfortunately there is not a steam room, sauna or jacuzzi available.
4. Spa
The Spa by JW is located across from the fitness center with full scale services available. Skinceuticals products are used. The express chair massage suites are an interesting touch but we did not observe any of them being used.
5. Pool
The pool is located outside on the 5th floor terrace overlooking the city. Adequate lounges and cushioned seating are available with seasonal bar service or fire pits throughout the pool and terrace locations. Cabanas with televisions are available for a fee. We enjoyed reading on the terrace in the sunlight but under a large umbrella which an attendant raised for us. This was truly a relaxing area to enjoy the city vibe.
6. Executive Lounge
Located on the 5th floor, the large executive lounge is well stocked and attended. Coffee, tea, soft drinks, water, wine and beer are available all day with healthy and indulgent snack available throughout the day as well. Bar service is available later in the evening as well as meals spaced throughout certain times of the day. This is one of the nicest executives lounges we have experienced at Marriotts.
7. Dining
Several dining options are available with most opting to enjoy the large bar and fireplace in the lobby. We enjoyed breakfast at the Corner Flavors of Texas, a restaurant and bar located of course, on the corner of the hotel. This is a vibrant bar scene in the evening, but you will enjoy you meal there as well. We have been pleased with dinner there in the past, even when not patronizing the hotel, but breakfast was just as delightful. Our party enjoyed eggs Benedict over biscuits with spicy bacon, a ham and cheese omelet, and a granola yogurt parfait with local honey. All portion sizes were excellent with more than enough food at prices which are reasonable for a very expensive city to visit.
8. Valet
This was the only negative about the JW Marriott. Upon arrival the only rude member of the staff (later we found out that the Valets are a separate company), was the valet who upon realizing that we were not leaving our one-way rental car, stormed off and didn't help us to secure a bellman. Then at check out we found we were charged for $49 + tax per day of valet. This was obviously and error and had to be corrected by the Valet located outside, not the front desk. If we were on a tight schedule, this would have been a definite inconvenience.
9. Location
Great restaurants and activities abound in Austin near the JW Marriott. The Ann and Roy Butler hike-and-bike trail is a 10 mile trail near the hotel and easily accessible. Visit the LBJ memorial library for a day inside learning about a turbulent time in American Politics. Visit the Congress Avenue bridge to see the Bats. Of course many restaurants are nearby. On this trip we enjoyed dining at the hotel and a few staples, including Huts Hamburgers, Matt's El Rancho restaurant, Moonshine Grill and a new restaurant with great reviews, Fixe. We would recommend any of these for your next trip to Austin! Fixe is the most expensive of these four locations.
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