Crystal Lake Holidays from £888

Good location. Currently there is active construction and no water on weekdays from noon-2pm.

This hotel could be great if it were properly staffed with a high end hospitality background and about 10-20 more staff overall (servers, valet, bellmen, front desk, maintenance, pool, etc). The food is good, especially the fish tacos and Lobster roll, but the amount of time it took the kitchen to prepare meals at both the Sandpiper and for in-room dining was astonishing. My kids were falling asleep by the time room service would arrive at our room and with incorrect orders. The beds/pillows/bedding are nice but the layout of the staircases to/from each floor is utterly bizarre and because we had an Ocean cows room, the cars, sirens, and honking on Ocean Ave did not make for an ideal way to wake up.

Front desk staff were very friendly and helpful. The breakfast buffet was the best I've ever had at a hotel. Hotel was very clean and I didn't notice a single bug anywhere (I've stayed at some bad hotels in the past and this is important) Location was excellent. It was a great stay overall. Now for the negatives,... Air conditioner was very noisy and didn't seem to get cold enough, toilet seat seems to be coming off hinge, the outside pool was not heated and the worst thing for me is they charge an extra $165.00 at check-in. It's more than a little annoying when you think you've paid in full and arrive to find out you still have to pay for some hidden fees.