Ok, this hotel is what it is, an older hotel with furnishings that need to be updated. When you walk into your room, it's 1992 all over again. But the room was mostly clean and everything worked. I was disappointed with the ancient stove and fridge in our kitchen; they worked, but they were ugly. A little dust, a little rust, a little mildew in the shower, nothing that turned my stomach, just enough to not make you say WOW THIS IS GREAT. It's more like, wow, hm, ok, this will have to do..
Until you get to the balcony. You go outside (to smoke) and the view takes your breath away. On the cove side, facing the marina, the view is spectacular, especially at night. There are just enough "lazy things" to look at while you're out there having your coffee or a smoke. A boat will occasionally putter by, sea birds make just enough squawk to remind you they're there, the water gently laps into the cove, the palm trees sway, and the tiki bar across the cove makes just enough noise to sound like a good time. The music and laughter wafts across the cove and makes you feel like you're having fun, even if you're just sitting there. And at night, the lights across the way, and the soft sounds around the cove, are just heavenly. I can't say enough good things about the balcony/view. I spent a great deal of time out there, just sitting and watching what-not go on. Like, a manatee and her baby swam by one morning, it was just sublime to see them mozy through the water.
Is it a resort? No. It's really not. It's a hotel. There is a bar in back near the pool, and they have a little grill that's only open like 3 hours a day, which I TOTALLY do not understand. There's a beautiful deck with chairs to sit and eat, yet they don't serve much food! It confounds me.
Unless you get a room with a kitchen and plan to make food in your room, where you do eat breakfast? Or even lunch? We had been here before and this time, we got a room with a kitchen, and make breakfast and bought supplies for lunch and snacks, and ate dinner out.
My point about the food is, if they served food throughout the day, we may not have left the hotel. If money is no problem and you have the energy to go out and find meals 2-3 times a day, disregard what I'm saying. But for my boyfriend and I, we come here to relax and, essentially, be lazy. So we got a kitchen this time. We stayed for five days and it worked out very well.
I saw reviews that mentioned roaches. We were here for five days and saw one tiny roach in the kitchen sink, and I killed it and that was that. There were also "sugar ants", the tiniest ants I ever saw. They were a nuisance but we just wiped them away with a sponge and moved on. It's Florida. On a good note, we saw several of those cute little lizards outside, on the walls and on the grounds. They're doing their job, eating the bugs. I have no problem with that. They're so cute. We also saw two ..lizards? outside, big ones, I guess they live there, they didn't bother me, it was like a Florida thing.
Resort? No. The boat rental and jet ski rental were closed. You have to go nextdoor and pay full pop for a boat or waverunner. No big deal, just bring money. A resort, to me at least, means "it's all here, you don't have to leave." But, there's no food, the bar was open limited hours, no boats, or other water toys, just basically a hotel and a pool. Oh, and a tennis court. Tennis to me is not a vacation. I'm on vacation. That means rest and play.
Oh, one last complaint; when we were here last year the hotel offered these really nice shampoo, conditioner, and shower gel bottles that smelled really nice and worked well. This year, that's gone. They offer this really low-grade shampoo, no conditioner, no shower gel, and they give you an equally crappy lotion. I didn't pack shampoo, conditioner, or shower gel, and had to go buy them. I was actually disappointed in that. Are they down-grading in these hard economic times? Maybe. But come on. Ok, I've had my say.
Overall, if you're going to relax, chill out, enjoy the smell of the air, the sun, the palm trees, and watch a boat go by, this place is great. The view from the balcony on the cove side can't be beat. The cove itself is just outstanding. I loved to watch little fishes come and go. And the manatees are just a sight to see.
But, if you're looking for an all-inclusive, don't need to go anywhere else resort, this isn't the place. Pelican Cover offers decent room prices and sizes, and spectacular views. But, sadly, that's about it. I would go back again for a third time, but maybe for a short stay, not the whole week. Maybe.
Room Tip: Cove view rooms offer the very best view you can imagine, I highly recommend facing the cove.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
