South Beach Kings Promenade Hotel

The beds were comfortable, and I slept well. The toilet and shower room were really nice, but the broken blind meant it didn’t feel very private. The room itself is dated and definitely needs updating. They could use a vending machine in the lobby, since the hotel bar is always closed.

The checkout took ages. I returned the key and remote, then waited almost 30 minutes for the £60 deposit. I went back in afterwards to mention the smell, but the woman at reception didn't seem too bothered. This was my second stay; the first was good, this one really wasn't. Room 216 smelled of urine when I arrived. The first receptionist was on only his second day and didn't know what to do. I left the windows open while we went for food, and when we came back Steve was on the desk. He was helpful, got some spray and used it around the corners. The smell seemed to come from the bottom of the single bed, and the spray helped a little, but it still wasn't pleasant. The shower took about 10 minutes to get hot. Then the new towels covered me in black fluff, so I had to shower again to get it off and ended up drip-drying.

We were halfway along the promenade when my partner reminded me I'd left my Gucci earrings behind. They'd put them in another mug so the children wouldn't get hold of them and I wouldn't lose them. I rang the hotel several times, with no answer, so we went back. The owner said the room had been cleaned and nothing had been handed in. We were sure the earrings were there. She called the cleaner and spoke for over five minutes in a language we couldn't understand, then said the maid had put them in the cleaning cupboard without reporting it, and that the owner couldn't access it. We had to return at 3pm, and when we did, she stood up and tipped a white envelope out in front of me, saying they'd been stored away. It felt odd, though she did give them back. They had my number and could have called after finding them, but didn't. I honestly don't believe it was just a mistake, and the whole thing felt unprofessional. I won't stay there again because I don't feel my belongings are safe. On this last visit, staff were rude when we arrived and quick to take the deposit in case of damage, which has gone up. We'd stayed there a few times before without any problems, apart from the lift never working. Even 1 1/2 years later it still wasn't working, but we didn't mind leaving our pram downstairs. We now have another child. On checkout day, I made tea with one of the cups provided in the room. It had a crack and leaked onto the bed. We left 10 minutes before checkout, and the maid and owner were in the corridor waiting to clean. We handed in the keys and remote and waited for an inspection. After five minutes, the owner said she would keep £20 of the £60 because of the tea stains, even though the hotel had supplied the cracked cup.

We loved the ocean view from the freshly renovated, clean rental, and everything we wanted was right outside, from Boardwalk restaurants to surfing. My husband and I came for a conference with our nine-year-old son, but enjoyed the place so much we hardly wanted to leave the unit. It was absolutely perfect, and we'll definitely come back.