Another Great Stay! We've been here many times (over 20) before. So for our first trip after the covid shutdown, we came back because we always have a great stay and the weather is guaranteed good in Indian Wells. The rooms have been remodeled and the common areas as well. Cava Restaurant is still great for breakfast... right by the pool. The pool area is great. If you have any issues you can ask for the the attendants (Cuco and Eladio) and they will fix you right up with chairs or umbrellas. The bellman out front our great to talk to. They've given us many leads on restaurants and attractions that we would've never found on our own. Charlie the bellman is always upbeat and help to remind you that your on vacation!

Disappointing staycation at this hotel We stayed at the hotel over the weekend of May 14 – May 16 for my husband’s birthday weekend. We are Platinum Elite (and MVC Chairmen level) and used our Suite awards to upgrade the room. First, the room they gave us was terrible, with a view of the check in area, no balcony to sit on, and the farthest away from the elevator you could possibly get. They were not nearly at 100% capacity (the parking lot was empty) so that was disappointing. Note, even though all room had balconies, not all had enough of a balcony to have a table and chairs. Second, the “free” streaming HBO and Showtime didn’t work the entire time we were there. We like to sit on the patio in the morning with coffee and watch movies late in the evening so that was disappointing. Also, there was no green tea in the room and when I called down they said I could buy some at the café, but they didn’t have any. Another strike. However, I got my green tea fix at breakfast at Cava, and both the tea and breakfast were very good by the way. Getting a pool chair was a joke if you got there later in the day. Lots of “reserved” empty chairs in the morning but they all filled up too. Totally understandable though, people are there for the pool and to have fun with friends and kids, so I cannot fault Marriott on this. Just get your chair before 9 am if you want to sit in the shade or sit in a prime spot. No happy hour at the pool or bar, and generally, as we have seen at other Marriott’s, they have reduced services and blame it on Covid. Here’s hoping these reductions are not permanent or we may consider upping our status at the Hyatt in the future. The room also had a bidet that had water, but no air dry. Huh?? I thought that was funny actually. Also, check your bill when you leave, they didn’t give us the $20 food and beverage credit so I had to go the front desk to have them adjust it. While checking out I did let them know I was disappointed with this stay and they looked at me like they couldn't care less. Overall, we live about 45 minutes away and like to come to Palm Desert for a staycation. I think next time we would consider the JW or the vacation club villas as we were disappointed in this hotel. I have been to many conferences at this hotel, and for that I think the hotel is just fine. But for a staycation, we like to have a nice room with a view, functioning TV, and have a variety of services, happy hours, etc… and we just didn’t find that here. Judging by the other bad Yelp reviews about a month ago, that is not surprising. And now, cue the form letter from the Marriott....

Enjoyed our stay Overall we had a great stay at the hotel. The room was very clean and overall appealing. Comfy bed and really nice bathroom. It was a bit crowded at the hotel because we stayed during spring break. So it was nice to have reserved seating at the pool during one day. It was very difficult to find seating by the pool without reserved seating because it was so crowded. And the hotel employees do remove your items from your chairs if they don’t see you within 45 minutes. That was very annoying. The pool bar served great drinks and their lunch menu is great. The quesadillas and Buffalo wings were very tasty. The breakfast sandwich at Cafe Biscotti is really good as well. Breakfast at Cava was ok and their dishes were dirty. My husband and I had to exchange out cutlery. My kids really enjoyed the pool and the faux beach. Also the spring break kids activities were lots of fun.

Lovely Oasis in Indian Wells I just arrived home after our 5 night stay at the Renaissance Esmeralda and sat right down to write this review. EVERY single hotel in THE WORLD is taking strain from COVID 19. EVERY ONE. So, if you're arriving expecting the property to be run exactly as it was in 2019 or before, please stay home. Nobody needs your nonsense. But, I have to say, all things considered, I saw nothing but extra effort and care everywhere I looked. The hotel would likely not have had this many guests in a long time, but, I never waited very long or at all for anything and even though all the staff wore masks, everyone we met from our servers at breakfast to the coffee shop staff to the pool servers were jolly and funny and warm and we felt absolutely looked after and cared for. Full disclosure: I am a platinum elite with Marriott, so, yes, I get extras like a potential room upgrade and breakfast included, but, while those loyalty bennies are great, the people serving us didn't know that. We were really happy with the breakfast and pool menus. We thought maybe the dinner menu could have had more, but, we were, nonetheless happy with what we had. Our room was beautiful and while we didn't have room service every day unless we asked for it. I am confined to a leg surgery scooter because of a recent surgery, which was acknowledged and handled very well by the front desk staff. It was a warm and welcome oasis and we may just go back next week. Thank you to the staff and management for making us feel so welcome.

Only if you don't mind cockroach After entering the room I went to check out the view and opened the balcony door. And what do I see? Made call to front desk to change room while watching the TV keep looping a video on how they focus on sanitation and how serious they are on cleaning and the irony is there. After switching the room was fine. It was just normal and nothing really exceptional. The cockroach really was the main event for the whole trip.