We just returned from a one week stay (8/13 – 8/20) at the Pelican Beach Resort – Two adults and 11 y.o. twins. It was as near perfect a week as one can get. Everything was wonderful – Room, property, beach and the weather. As far as the Pelican is concerned, it was outstanding. I base this opinion upon what we paid and what we got for the money. I’ll explain that in a bit.

The Room

We had room 924 which has two queen size beds on the ocean. It was an end unit whose balcony allowed you to look north as well as directly out to the ocean – absolutely beautiful views. The unit also has a separate living room with a pull out love seat, small refrigerator, microwave, TV and ceiling fan

The bedroom as stated had two queen sized beds, TV, Desk with free Ethernet connection to the Web, free in-room safe and ceiling fan. The entrance is tiled up to the beds, and then is carpeted. As the outer hallways are open to the air, be careful after opening the door as the tile in the air conditioned room can get slippery. The beds were pillow tops and for us were fantastic. If you do not like pillow top mattresses, well… The pillows, in all four of our opinions, let much to be desired – kind of lumpy.

The bathroom was very clean and well kept (as was the rest of the room) with a tub/shower and toilet in their own room w/door and sink just outside. The exhaust fan in the shower are actually does a good job of getting the steam out. Incidentally, our room’s A/C was great – no damp issues whatsoever.

Overall the room far exceeded my expectations. Housekeeping kept the room up very well. I find it helpful to tip every day so when you need the little extras (towels, pillows, etc.) they don’t get forgotten about. That’s what we did and it paid off.

The grounds

The facilities overall are well kept – clean, pretty, nicely taken care of. The pool area was fine. The pool itself, while some think it small, was fine. Given this was off season there were no crowds so the pool size was no problem. The lazy river was great – very relaxing and was enjoyed by both kids and adults. Bottom line is the place is very pretty and new (under 2 years old). Be sure to spend some time on the porch at night in one of the rockers…

I highly recommend going up to the 11th floor and take pictures of your spouse, family, etc. from there. The views are beautiful from both the north and south side of the building.

The Beach

Typical South Florida in the summer – Warm (surf temp ~85F) and clean. Those who don’t know, Florida Beaches get seaweed on them when the wind comes off the ocean. This does not bother me – especially when the breeze keeps the strong thunderstorms over the ‘glades away. I’d rather have sunny skies and deal with a little seaweed than rain. Besides, the city does a good job of raking it up. Beach was nearly deserted most of the time with plenty of chaise lounges available to sit on. Umbrellas are available for $15 a day if you need one.

Food

We typically don’t eat in hotels unless necessary as we like to explore. There are many good restaurants a short drive away from the hotel. In particular, if you like Sushi and/or Cuban food, I recommend Kyojin on Federal Highway (Rt.1) for Sushi (amazing buffet) and Las Vegas on Oakland Park Blvd for Cuban. Both had great food and service. We actually went to Kyojin twice. Just north of the Pelican is a Winn-Dixie supermarket. So if you want to buy water, snacks, etc. – that’s the ticket. All of the offsite picks we chose were great and a better value than the hotel food. And for the occasional rainy day, there is a movie theater at the intersection of Oakland Park and Federal Highway.

Staff

Overall, great. Attentive and courteous. Check in was a snap – the team at the desk was great.

At the pool, Joe is outstanding. He recommended the two restaurants above (Thanks, Joe!). He’ll take good care of you.

Housekeeping did a fine job (with one exception).

Summary

Would I come back here again? ABSOLUTELY, but…

Like I said before, for what we paid and what we got was outstanding – a great balance however the following were negatives:

•Noise from the construction next door
•As the Pelican is right on A1A, there was street noise with a lot of Harleys going by.
•The Exception - One day a housekeeper came into the room even though there was a Do Not Disturb sign on the door. She scared my 11yo daughter who was still sleeping, said she did not see her there and asked if there were any dirty towels. My daughter told her in the bathroom. She proceeded to take the tip money left there but not the towels. Interesting… I complained but nothing came of it. They stated that my key was the only one recorded at the door – no record of anyone else entering.
•No robes in the room (It’s billed a resort)
•No on-site masseuse, etc (It’s billed as a resort)
•No daily paper
•$12 per day to valet park your rental car (only option) was too much if you ask me. $8/day would have been fair. Then you have to add in the tips every time you get your car.

Now for the cost/benefit balance.

Our room for ’06 was priced from $239/night in the ’06 off season. For ’07 the prices are going up significantly - the same room starts at $319 for the same time period!
While we loved our stay here and, if all things remained the same, I would return in a heartbeat. But, based upon the bullet items above, and the fact that this IS Florida in the off season, I have to think twice. I don’t think I could justify the $80/night increase. You can certainly find an ocean front resort in Cancun, Aruba, or some other island for the same money. And not have to listen to the Harleys… Anyway, since they are selling the units as privately owned hotel condos with Best Western as the Management Company, perhaps the only way both parties can make a profit and/or cover their costs is with this price increase. Just a thought.

If you go to the Pelican you absolutely will NOT be disappointed. It’s in a good location (for access to restaurants, and other attractions) and the place is beautiful. However, I may not return in ’07 (although I’d LOVE to) as I don’t think the value is there for the money. There are too many amenities missing to justify the $300+/night off-season price. If this is not a problem for you then you will enjoy the Pelican.