The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes — Hotel in Oak Ridge

There is customer service, and then there is Ritz Carlton customer service. In August and September 2024 I had the good fortune to visit twice, each time for about a week. ||||FIRST IMPRESSIONS- The entry drive is beautifully landscaped, fountains, flowering plant and trees draped with Spanish moss. Cobblestones as you approach the grand entrance, where you are greeted by staff who will begin what I found to very thorough attention to detail. ||||CHECK IN was a breeze. Very smooth, personal, welcoming. ||Here are some pro tips. ||• If you would like to use an electronic key to your room, download the Marriot Bonvoy app. Let the front desk staff know you’d like to use the e-key, as it seems that helps. Note: the “e-key” only works for your room, access to pools requires the “hard” key. ||—the Bonvoy membership is free and offers good free WiFi-internet (be advised so does the resort fee, and many conferences have free wifi). ||• Grab a piece of fruit or two—it is complementary, fresh and tasty. ||||The lobby is very beautifully appointed with fresh flowers, marble and high cowlings. Lots of seating, access to outdoor seating on spacious You might see some staff with a falcon or parrot, inviting you to observe and ask questions. ||||WATER||A cold bottle of water will be offered, or simply given r at the entry, front desk, in your room, at the pool, tennis and golf course. As a traveler from elsewhere I did not care for the taste of the tap water—so the bottles of purified water were appreciated, but I’m not a fan of the single use plastic and environmental impact. ||||Elevators are also marble-floored and brightly polished, the cars arrive promptly and move quickly.. I never had to wait, and never saw one out of service. The door keys (both “e” and “hard” )always worked reliably. The two queen bed sand one king bed rooms are spacious and well appointed. You will be welcomed with your room prepped for the time of day of your arrival. Lights dimmed in the evening, chocolates at your bedside, TV on —with a personalized (your name) message. ||||TECH||You can stream at least Amazon Prime, Netflix and YouTube—probably more. And a really nice feature is an easy to use interface to set up the TV as a Bluetooth speaker for your devices. Also options to connect Bluetooth headphones and HDMI cables to the TV. USB jacks by bed and desk. I found using my AC adapter provided faster charging. ||||I used the desk/internet for 3-4 days of work and it functioned well. The pen note pad was handy —one by bed one by desk. Phoned by bed and desk—I used mostly to call the guest services with questions—almost always answered on first or second ring.||||In room Internet WiFi connectivity was flawless. Any bough the speeds were variable. One can upgrade to higher speed Internet for $15-20/day. There was an Ethernet jack by the desk. No idea if that worked. ||||There is a Nespeesso coffee maker in the room with three decaf and three caffeinated pods—replenished daily, along with two coffee kits with four or five sweetener choices two “creamers” and a couple of wooden stirrers, porcelain espresso cups and saucers, and togo coffee cups with lids—all replenished or replaced. ||Pro Tip:||The surface on which the coffee service sits slides out, and the water reservoir on the Nesspresso machine is removable. Knowing these tings makes it much easier ||||There are lots of drinks and snacks in the room. There were priced as we have become accustomed to. So I did not partake.||||There is a WaWa and Walgreens a within walking distance. I picked up some beer (WaWa) and yoghurt and snacks. ||||The “refrigerator” apparently is not. At least not consistently. The first week it kept my beer and yoghurt cool, the si d week it did not. I was told it was not meant to refrigerate, but they offered and delivered a complimentary min fridge upon request. Similarly, the coffee maker wasn’t working during y second stay (just kept producing increasing fly weaker coffee until the water reservoir was exhausted. A person was sent who “reprogrammed” the coffee maker. The also provided me some vouchers for complementary coffee and pastries in the lobby coffee shop for the “inconvenience”. Thanks Ann—you are the best!!the bathroom was huge, tub, shower to sinks. High end soaps—no mini bottles which I appreciated. They also provided a wooden toothbrush, British high end toothpaste, and the first visit a wooden handle razor and tube of European shave cream. Second visit—plastic razor and generic shave cream—had I been downgraded for past behavior. I wondered.||||Bath robes, slippers, plentiful soft and luxurious towels. Linens and bed so comfortable. Balcony with comfy chairs and a small table usually to hot to sit out there—but enjoyed coffe or a beer a couple times drink a cool morning or evening or rainstorm.||||RESORT FEATURES||At the pool you will be greeted by staff who will ask you to select a lounge chair, and then set it up with a terry cloth cover, a rolled up tkw for a plow, and a towel to dry off after you swim (and a bottle of water). Here you can choose a plastic glass of fruit water instead or to completely eliminate the plastic, use a refillable water bottle with fruit water. There is complementary sunscreen (15,30 and 50 SPF) and fruit. You can order a drink or lunch or dine poolside. I had a delicious cocktail one day and lunch at Bleu another. Both great—but resort prices—so for me just once. The pool is shallow salt water (no chlorine smell) with fountains that provide white noise and piped in music. There is a hot tub, a lap pool at the nearby spa/workout building. The adjacent Marriott hotel has another pool with three water park quality slides and a lazy river—included in the resort fee. Pool open until 10–and frequent closures for weather ( if lightening is observed).||||The resort fee includes the use of Mtn bikes and canoes or kayaks in the lake. The sports center office has very un predictable hours. Check ahead. The mountain bikes are high Mish end. The Mtn bike trail is flat but the boardwalk sections are a bit treacherous when wet and because of missing planks or planks of caring length. Worth it—but be careful/go slow on the boardwalks unless you are skilled. Although not allowed, I walked the Mtn bike course (I had dropped my hydro flask water bottle and went looking for it). Lots of flowers, lizards, some deer, birds and other wildlife is more visible when walking. ||||The kayaks were not available at all the first week because of “ wildlife” which meant there was an alligator over 4’ long that needed to be removed. Did go out second trip. I’d recommend going early —before it gets too hot., It is a 30 min paddle with two staff watching from the shore. but a decent thing to do if you enjoy seeing wading birds and the lakeside marshy vegetation. ||||I made reservations for an Eco Tour River kayak trip with my son ($100/person) but it was cancelled last minute because of the “heat index” and because a tree had fallen over the trail. I’d just set expectations low for your ability to take advantage of these kinds of resort services. There seem to be lots of reasons they might be cancelled or unavailable. They should probably make that clearer up front. Did not play tennis, pickle ball or golf. But the tennis/pickle ball courts were typically empty (it was hot and humid).||||RESTAURANTS||Waitstaff consistently top drawer knowledgeable, friendly and attentiveI||I ate breakfast once at the ground look level restaurant beneath the lobby. Delicious and huge omelette (could easily be split) and a nice burger for lunch poolside at Bleu. Dinner three times at the Kitchen (JW Marriott) -a farm to table restaurant. As far I I could tell—everything I had or my party had was very good . ||||PRO TIP Visit the kitchen gardens at the Marriott and hope the gardener is there. A brilliant horticulturalist, working to create a source of ingredients for two restaurants and a model of sustainable practices. I wish I could remember her name. Spent a visit learning about the many plantings, including mango and avocado trees. Although not a member of staff per se, she was perhaps a welcoming and interesting person—a real highlight.||||OTHER STUFF||My first check in (there was a world class fireworks display— as there is every Saturday between memorial day and labor days. My balcony provided a great view and the show started soon after I settled into my room. What a way to start off my visit. ||Labor Day weekend included skydivers and motor boat trips around the lake., there were some tasting of Vodkas by the pool—and an ice sculpturegraced the courtyard in front of the gas fireplace. Gorgeous (if not environmentally wasteful).||||A couple notes to management. ||The draft beer lines at Bleuvalmost certainly need to be cleaned. The “banana” flavor of the beer is due a chemical produced in unclean lines. I made mention of this to a server, but I don’t think I communicated effectively.||||One of the palm trees on the courtyard between the pool and the hotel is infected with Ganoderma zonatum (butt rot). It will kill the infected tree and will or perhaps already has spread to the others. I know these tres are significant investments and thought you might...

We recently stayed at the Ritz for a conference, which also happened around our wedding anniversary. Overall, our experience was full of kind gestures and attentive service that we’re truly grateful for.

Upon arrival, a gentleman helped us with our luggage out of the car and offered to bring them up, which we appreciated (though we decided to carry it ourselves). As a Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite member, we hoped for an upgrade but they were at full capacity. A few minutes after arriving to our room, a staff surprised us with decadent chocolate-covered strawberries, a sweet candy display, sparkling apple cider (since we don’t drink), and a handwritten card. It was such a lovely and thoughtful touch.

The room itself was clean and well-maintained, with a hidden coffee cabinet we loved. The Nespresso machine wasn’t working, so Amy kindly gave us a $40 credit to buy lattes and pastries at First Drop before the machine was replaced!

Housekeeping came twice daily. When we noticed there were no slippers in the room, a quick call to concierge fixed that - they were plush and comfortable.

Turn-down service was a highlight. A kind staff generously offered us more coffee, chocolate, and water.

On our 2nd day, my husband wasn’t feeling well, and I really appreciated the staff’s support. A staff kindly walked me to the gift shop for medicine (prices were $4+ for two Tylenol pills and $9+ for a small bottle of Pepto Bismol). I used Instacart to buy more medicine from Target later, and the front desk sent someone to deliver it to our room without issue. When I needed to reheat food later for my husband who didn’t have appetite all day, I asked about a microwave and was told it would be $20–25 to rent per day. Since we only needed it once, it was very thoughtful of them to offer to have In-Room Dining heat the food for us instead, free of charge. A staff came quickly, had us sign a waiver, and returned with the warmed dish presented neatly on a platter. We don’t usually use this kind of service at hotels, but it meant a lot during a tough moment.

One of my favorite parts of the stay was taking walks around the lake trail. A kind staff member at the front desk gave great directions and tips for photo spots, even handing me a bottle of water to take with me. I spent over an hour enjoying the peaceful views, hammocks, and bench swings.

On our 3rd day, I had a pilates lesson with Indiana at 7:30am, and she was so sweet! The canoes were not available due to an alligator in the lake, unfortunately. Found my fave spot at the cabana by the bocce courts and Richie kindly brought iced water to me! We enjoyed the lazy river and Ritz pool in the evening when there were fewer people.

I biked on the 4th and 5th mornings along the lake trail. We also reserved the pickleball court for 7am, and due to the golf pro shop being closed for renovations, Anthony at the bell desk drove us to the JW Marriot lobby to pick up balls and even dropped us off at the courts. He went above and beyond and gave us a true 5-star experience.

We did face one issue that affected the overall experience.

Throughout our 5-day stay, we heard a loud horn-like noise outside our window daily. We called the front desk to ask about it. We were told it would be looked into, but no one followed up. Not until the third call, a staff finally came up to investigate the source of the sound and listen to a recording we had taken. They still couldn’t identify the source and nothing was done about it for the rest of our stay. While we understand not every issue can be solved quickly, not getting back to us with a solution felt inconsistent with what we expected from the Ritz standard.

Aside from the unresolved noise issue and the minor hiccup with my husband’s illness, this has been a memorable and wonderful stay. The staff’s kindness, the thoughtful touches, and the beautiful property made it special. With just a bit more attention to follow-through regarding the horn-sound, it could have easily been a full...

We had a fantastic family stay at The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes. It was an extension of our trip to the theme parks, and the location was perfect — close to Universal, SeaWorld, International Drive, and the airport. Disney was about 20 minutes away, slightly further but still convenient. The service is where this Ritz truly shines. Ana at check-in was warm, helpful, and made sure to take note of key details for our stay. Before she helped us, the front desk felt a bit rushed and didn’t offer any kids' info, coloring materials, or arrival tips — unlike other Ritz properties — but Ana quickly turned that around. Rebecca at the Lobby Bar was a standout — she remembered our names and preferences, and always made us feel welcome. Ray was also excellent, providing consistently great service. Donne at breakfast was cheerful and helpful, while Jose and Martin assisted with our bags and were genuinely kind. Across the board, the staff was warm, professional, and attentive. Complimentary water was offered often — a small but thoughtful touch in the Florida heat. The amenities were excellent. The gym was large, well-equipped, and included a functional/yoga room — it never felt crowded. The spa was spacious, clean, and well-organized. While the massage was average, the facilities (sauna, steam room, outdoor spa pool) were top-notch, and the spa staff was very professional. Our room was spacious, well-appointed, and in line with Ritz-Carlton standards. We loved the reading sofa in our king room and the large bathroom. However, closet and drawer space were limited, making it hard to fully unpack for a family. The biggest issue was the A/C — the room never cooled properly, and we often found ourselves sweating at night. Unfortunately, it wasn’t resolved during the stay. The shared spaces were beautifully designed — the lobby, foyer, Harvest & Grain area, courtyard, and kids’ areas were luxurious yet inviting. The balance of elegance without pretension made it comfortable for families and adults alike. Dining was a mixed experience. The "Pod" market was useful for basics, but it closed early — inconvenient when looking for a quick snack or drink later in the afternoon or evening. We had high hopes for Knife & Spoon, but it fell short. We were told a New York strip would take 1 hour and 20 minutes, which didn’t work for us with a 5-year-old, so we had to change our order. The chimichurri picanha was good but arrived cold, likely sitting for a while. The carbonara was mediocre — the pasta stuck together and the sauce was just okay. For the price and setting, we expected more. Breakfast was a highlight. The buffet was well-stocked, and Donna, the egg chef, was truly amazing — she offered to make fresh eggs and even reheat food, all while being incredibly sweet to our son. Her warmth and service stood out — she honestly made our mornings special. The pools were incredible. The Ritz pool was calm and relaxing, while the JW Marriott pool was the star attraction for families. With multiple coves, slides, and a lazy river, it was beautifully designed and never felt overly crowded (except a bit on Sunday). It was a 10/10 for both adults and kids. Weekend entertainment was a major bonus — from live music to fire dancers and surprise fireworks, there was always something fun happening. It created a resort atmosphere that made us feel like we didn’t need to leave the property. In summary, this is one of our favorite family-friendly luxury resorts. The service, shared amenities with the JW Marriott, entertainment, and family-focused environment made it a memorable stay. Despite a few minor hiccups with the A/C and dining, we would absolutely return and recommend this property to anyone — especially families looking for a refined but welcoming...