Hotel review: Best Western Port Aransas, Texas

Best Western is a long-respected motel chain. It used to have a great red and yellow logo with a distinctive crown. I miss that retro crown. In its place now is a clean blue-and-white “BW”. I wasn’t sure about the new-look branding but I felt comfortable booking into a brand I knew and (at least in the past) had loved.

It’s been ages since I’ve stayed at one but we opted for the Port Aransas outpost on this year’s annual visit to the Texas Gulf. We usually stay in condos or private home rentals, so this was a departure.

I was there with my mother and my teen daughter so we opted for the 1 king bed suite, which included a kitchen, dining table and fold-out sofabed. My sister-in-law stayed with her son & assorted kids in a regular room with 2 queen beds.

Overall, we came away impressed with the quality, cleanliness and facilities. Here’s a breakdown of what we liked.

Perfect for:

Beach lovers looking for something clean, modern and a gonzo pre-beach breakfast, dude

The look:

Blue, beige and corporate in a reassuring way.

 

Child-friendly?

Absolutely.

Check-in:

4pm although we were allowed to check-in early because our rooms were available.

Our room:

We stayed in the King Bed Suite with Kitchenette. The kitchenette was really well kitted out. It had a full-sized refrigerator, dishwasher, stainless steel sink, microwave, toaster, 2-ring electric hob and utensils – cutlery, pizza cutter, spoons, a colander and more. There was even a roll of paper towels and dishwashing liquid. (Bring your own knife – they don’t provide a kitchen knife, probably for obvious reasons).

 

Breakfast:

Included and excellent. The website promised “continental” breakfast so we were expecting cold cereal and toast. What we got was a full buffet that included waffle-making machines, fresh fruit, scrambled eggs (I saw these come out in their big metal tray; they were the kind that the server then had to break up with a spoon to get that distinctive scrambled egg look, but they were hot and freshly made). There were juices and coffee and even a little station to make breakfast burritos, with warm flour tortillas, sausages, shredded cheese, pico de gallo and hot sauce. I had burritos 2 of the 3 days we were there and they were quite more-ish.

The breakfast room was right off the pool and very clean and bright. The staff was repeatedly out refreshing supplies and cleaning. Even the butter and ketchup was name brand (Land o Lakes and Heinz) instead of the no-name catering kind.

Amenities I loved:

Location – The hotel is right on Avenue G, which leads straight to the beach at one end and to the main intersection into downtown Port Aransas. Renting a golf cart to drive on the beach and around town is a BIG thing in Port Aransas and great fun with the kids, but you can’t drive them south of Avenue G on S. Alister Street (aka Highway 361). The Best Western is right on the border of this zone so you’re safe to drive them to and from this hotel and they have a special parking area where you can leave them after 8pm. There’s a Stripes convenience store on the opposite corner, as well as an affordable pizza buffet across the street with a little game room and soft-serve ice cream included (!).

The kitchen – It’s definitely worth booking a suite here if you’re on the beach all day. The full-size fridge was fabulous: We bought ice at the convenience store to stock our cooler and in the fridge we kept ingredients to make sandwiches 2 days running. We could have even cooked a simple meal of pasta if we hadn’t ventured out for seafood.

The pool – It’s a small pool just off reception but is a welcome counterpart to the sand and surf. Whenever we visited, there were families hanging with kids and pool toys (water squirters, lilos). It’s a friendly vibe and small pool towels are stowed in a plastic box next to the gate.

The outdoor sand shower – Because no one wants to walk into their hotel room full of grit. It stands just next to the parking lot as you drive in.

The ice machine – I love that this place has that old-school touch. It’s also completely useful — you can refill your takeout cup from the Stripes with more ice, refresh your cooler for the beach, mix up cocktails in the room. I’m now hoping every four-star hotel I visit has one down the hall too.

Things to do better:

Upon first arrival, the wifi was sporadic. By the second day, it had settled down and was reliable. Also, at a beach hotel I would have expected a pull-out washing line or more racks in the bathroom for drying our beach towels and suits. Please add this upgrade, guys!

Price:

The standard rooms start from $80US, although high season goes higher.

The woman-friendly touches:

It’s so important to me that hotels think of the needs of female visitors. Here are the bits I really liked:

• A fully-lit large bathroom mirror for putting on makeup. The bathroom didn’t have a window for natural light, which makes this aspect that much more important.
• A large walk-in shower with a handle and plenty of places to put toiletries/prop up your leg for shaving
• A large closet where you can hang-up full-length items — hello, beach maxi-dresses!
• Outlets on the bedside table and desk that didn’t require crawling underneath to plug in

 

The Jenography verdict:

We loved our stay. The staff was super-friendly, the hotel itself was very clean and the beds were comfortable (although the fold-out less so than the king). The air-conditioning kept us cool and ceiling fans were a great additional touch. There was always hot weather for post-beach showers and popping to the beach or downtown Port A couldn’t have been easier.

Best Western Port Aransas

400 E Avenue G

Port Aransas, Texas 78373

USA

https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotels-in-port-aransas/best-western-port-aransas/propertyCode.44443.html

 

What are your top must-haves in a beachside hotel? Tell me in the comments below!