We were married on the island June 7, 2008. We had 50 guests attend the wedding and most all of them stayed on the island. Everyone loved the place, food and wedding. We stayed in a Ocean Breeze Deluxe Cottage and it was great. We also had family stay at the Ocean Front Deluxe Cottages, the Easter Beach cottages and at the inn. They all said the rooms and cottages were very nice. The food was great and everyone was stuffed. We had a Lobster and Oyster Boil on the beach the night of the wedding. Everyone loved the boil and we had a steel drum band. Food is more expensive here than if you got them at Wal-mart. I suggest bringing food for breakfast and lunch with you and eat out for dinner. We ate at the beach club and Jack's Place with our guests. My now husband and his buddies played the Bloody Point course 3 times (Melrose was closed) and enjoyed it. I went to the spa and had a wrap which was wonderful. Some guests also rented fishing poles and went fishing. My girlfriends went to the pool daily. Our coordinator, Heather, was fantastic! All the hotel staff was friendly and helpful. All of our guests said what a beautiful wedding we had and what a great place Daufuskie is. We wish we could relive our wedding everyday it was that terrific and special. We now want to move to the island full time!!! Please contact me if you have questions about wedding at Daufuskie.

This review is almost a year overdue, but needs to be said anyway--I apologize for the length in advance as this is for 2 different stays. We found Daufuskie Island from the TLC show Great Hotels. We stayed there our first time last Spring Break in April, had to be one of the coldest April's ever there. Although we didn't get to explore any of the water activities then, we had a great time exploring the island by golf cart. You immediately feel like you are on a tropical island as most staff peak with a Jamaican or Haitian accent, are so very helpful and happy! We booked the resort for an oceanfront cottage, just like we had seen on Great Hotels. When we arrived, they advised us we had been upgraded to a condo. When they showed us where we would be, the condos were across another plantation away from the main inn and hub of the resort. We would be provided a golf cart for transportation complimentary. We really wanted the oceanfront cottage and ended up getting just that. When we arrived in our OF cottage, we were less than pleased. Several lights were out, there was mold on one bathroom ceiling, paint chipping off the front door, and one light on the nightstand had a bulb broken with the electrical wires exposed. We stayed that night, only to wake with a roach problem. We went to the front desk stating our displeasure and diminished expectations. We were told they had overbooked and the OF cottage that was given to us was to be renovated and never should've been rented. Lucky for us the Sandy Lane Condo was still available (the upgrade we turned down!) OK, Wow....what a difference. yes, you are farther away from the main inn and are isolated, but these condos are superb. No roach problem, upscale and large enough for my family of 6 to spread out (3BDR). We had so much fun exploring the island in the golf cart, we actually spotted a Bald Eagle's nest with the male Bald Eagle flying in to feed his babies. Amazing. Again, it was cold the entire time we were there, but knew we wanted to go back again during the summer to enjoy the water activities.

Our 2nd trip in July we also got an OF cottage b/c of the location and b/c we thought the cottage we received with the issues was the exception, not the rule. We actually took my daughter's boyfriend along with us and my kids the entire trip had built this amazing island trip up to him. When we arrived into our OF cottage, again there were problems. The coffee table had a broken shelf, the walls were scratched with paint chippings. Troopers that we were (excluding my husband as he thought to pay what Daufuskie costs this should NEVER happen) we stayed there that night. Again, the next morning we had a serious roach problem, for which I saved for the desk staff. Not the cleanest of feelings. Again to the front desk. Spoke with the Manager on Duty and told her that we had given this resort a second chance after the first trip started out so poorly also, but felt this island and my family deserved a second try. How disappointing! We were able to move and upgraded to the Oceanfront DELUXE cottage and my, oh, my....what a difference. From what I was told, the oceanfront Standard cottages rent so frequently that most cottage owners do not take the time to renovate them, as they know they will continue to book. The DELUXE however have upgraded appliances, HW floors, granite countertops, very nice. And amazingly no roaches. My kids still LOVE this place, and so do I, even after the trips were both a bust the first 24 hours. To the Hotel Management's credit, not only were we given different accommodations each time, but the second time it was actually our 20th wedding anniversary and they comped the ferry ride and made dinner reservations for us. (by the way, no more water taxi to & fro to Hilton Head, you actually have to take the big boat over, but was actually quite nice and private that late at night.) We actually enjoyed the golf course and the spa the second time, and the kids met some other kids --lots of young people, all friendly--to hang with. This island is truly an AMAZING experience all-in-all as you know you are somewhere special. We will continue to go to Daufuskie now that we have learned the true ways of booking for our large family.

Parting words of wisdom: pack your own groceries, rent a golf cart, take a mud bath at the spa, cruise the golf course after hours with your kids, go eat ice cream at the only grocer on the island, watch out for alligators and all sorts of creatures between the Sandy Lane Villas and the Melrose Inn, spot a bald eagle's nest.....but MOST importantly, rent ONLY Oceanfront Deluxe cottages or the Sandy Lane Villas. Go Deluxe, Never standard!!!

I recently stayed on the Daufuskie Island Resort (DIR) with family. The resort was very pretty and I enjoyed exploring it by bicycle. However, I've stayed at many resorts around Charleston and in the low country and DIR definitely wasn't worth the time, effort and money it took to get there. First of all, it's an hour ferry ride each way ($80 round-trip.) After calling the transportation office for directions, we were given the wrong ones and only found the embarkation site on Hilton Head by accident, where we were told luggage was limited to two bags and a golf bag. Having not been made aware of this fact before we got there, we weren't charged. But this points out a huge problem, especially if your stay is longer than a weekend. Dining is limited on the resort and it is expensive, as is the grocery store. (Most of our luggage was for groceries, primarily because we didn't want to be dependent on resort fare, which can be iffy at best. In my mind, spend the additional $5 per bag and take your own food.) I did eat at the Beach Club, which was fine. Curiously though, on both occasions when I paid in cash, I was told they didn't have coin change (close to a dollar in both circumstances.) I thought this may have been standard, especially at poolside. But when I picked up an order at the bar, the bartender told me the same thing. A manager was there and asked him if he needed change and he seemed very flustered. (Most guests seemed to pay via charging items to their rooms. If you're going to do that, I would be very careful in keeping tabs on what you're spending.) We rented a golf cart ($25/12 hrs) which is plenty of time to see the resort itself. However, if you want to leave the resort and explore the island, you have to rent a GEM cart for $100. In my mind, this makes DIR a bad neighbor and certainly not supportive of the other stores, artists and businesses on the island. (The road quality outside the resort didn't seem to require a different mode of transportation and apparently the resort used to provide free transportation around the island.) We had maintenance issues with our housing and had I not kept calling about it, I doubt it would have been resolved before we left. The island is pretty, as is the beach. I was surprised when I saw hardly anyone using it, other than brief strolls. I soon discovered that due to the location of the island, the beach is more of a tidal flat and that if you walked out a few feet, you would sink into tidal mud. This was very disappointing for family members who were used to enjoying the sand and surf. The pool is nice, but noisy. On our last day there, a wedding party full of hard-drinking, loud young people took over, obviously being catered to by staff. The entire place is noisy, so please don't be fooled by the use of golf carts. Vans, trucks, and large trolleys are everywhere. The area seemed poorly policed against rowdy guests and one evening there were people yelling, racing carts down the main road and through private yards until almost 2 am. Another evening bright cart lights were shown in a bedroom window, waking a family member with a start, and didn't leave for almost 30 minutes. Despite making advance reservations for the return ferry, we only caught a ride because we flagged down a trolley in front of our cottage. They had already picked up our luggage and had our names, but not where we were. This didn't make sense nor did the fact we nearly missed the ferry because the trolley driver was told to pick up a guest who didn't need a ride in the first place. The ferry staff gave us dirty looks when we boarded late. (We politely told them it was not our fault.) Once you're on the island, you're not going anywhere easily and the service reflects that attitude. In conclusion, it's a pretty place, but given the lackluster service, the challenge in getting there and the lack of easily accessible amenities, you'd be better off spending your time and money elsewhere in the region.

I was disappointed with the general up keep of the property.

The inn is situated in a great spot but windows, exterior walls and trim were either dirty or in bad shape. Give this place a power washing and some TLC and they could double their price.

Staff was predtty inexperienced and lacked the savvy and service you expect at high quality resort.

The golf courses are great and the beaches are clean and uncrowded.

Food at the restruants was great but the service and speed were only OK.

Room are huge but fixtures and linnens are dated.