Whenever I read a negative review about this hotel so stated by another reviewer are they talking about the Helmsley. We've stayed here several times over the years the place is spot on. We could stay at any high end hotel in the area with my Starwood Amex card but that will never happen. Keep in mind this hotel is... more

We stayed from Oct. 10 to Oct 16, 2009. We had a wonderful time and the hotel was clean and the breakfast was wonderful with a good variety of food to choose from. We are looking forward to returning next year. We are from Wichita, Ks more

I look at some of the other reviews on this site, and I wonder if people stayed at the same relaxing, beautifully maintained hotel as I did with my husband and daughter?? We had a poolside room, which was large enough. It was thoroughly cleaned everyday by our maid, and there were plentiful clean towels both in our bathroom, and... more

We travelled down to the Helmsley Sandcastle for the last 2 days of our Florida holiday. We had spent a wonderful time in Kissimmee but were ready for a relaxing end to our stay. I used mapquest.com to find directions from Terra Verde to Sarasota, and it was a simple and straight forward drive. (Approx 2 hrs) On arrival we... more

The Hemsley Sandcastle was a great place to stay! The pool area was so inviting. We enjoyed eating at the restaurant that had outdoor seating by the pool. The beach area was fantastic too. So close to the hotel. more

For our 28th wedding anniversary we wanted to relax on the beach. The Helmsley Sandcastle on Lido beach was the perfect place. We requested a king room with a view of the ocean. We loved it . The sand is white and the water temp. even in Oct. felt like bath water. We did share the balcony , but no... more

We were in town for a sailing regatta and a lot of the folks were staying at this hotel. I had always avoided these old Florida right on the beach hotels - but what a pleasant surprise. For the price, this was a great value. We had a room overlooking the ocean. Rooms were good size, but your standard older... more

Property consists of several buildings of different ages located on the same property. Property is older but attractive and in pretty good shape-in fact our pool view room (which had no real pool view because of plants) had just had new carpeting installed. Two pools, shuffleboard area, ping-pong table, exercise room, pool-side tiki bar, two restaurants (one for breakfast and... more

You really never know what to expect when you read these reviews and we are all wired differently when it comes to expectations and likes and dislikes. I don't travel for a living so I'm a no fuss, no frill kind of person. When I leave for vacation all I want to do is relax. The Helmsley met all of... more