Crown Resorts at Hickory Hills

The condo was roomy, clean, and very nice. It could use some updating, and you’ll want to bring kitchen basics like dish towels and soap. We enjoyed the nice pool and quiet surroundings, and the staff were friendly. You’ll need a car to get around, and the bumpy entrance road could use repairs, though all the rain may have caused that. We drove past the entrance at first because the sign said Hickory Hills Golf, with no resort name. A sign showing the resort name would help. We arrived two weeks after Hurricane Ida and two days after Hurricane Nicholas, so after reading some reviews we weren’t sure what condition the place would be in. It turned out to be a pleasant surprise, and we’ll be back.

Our family developed respiratory infections after a couple of days here, and the place felt filthy and in disrepair. The walls, floors, chairs, beds, and just about every surface were dirty. Our socks turned black after an hour on the carpet. We found it especially unsafe for kids: the gaps between the second floor condo railing slats were wide enough for an adult to fit through, so a child could easily fall. We bought gates to prevent an accident. There’s no maid service, so you have to clean the condo and take your trash to the dumpster, which is far away. The dumpster was so disgusting and frightening that I vomited taking out the trash. Fresh towels are only available three days a week, excluding weekends. There’s so much wrong here that I could keep going. It should be condemned and demolished.

We left early Tuesday morning, even though we’d paid through Friday, and Interval International never responded. We didn’t stay. We arrived at 2:00, were told check-in was at 4:00, and that they were still cleaning. The carpet was so dirty it turned white socks black. After I used a paper towel to wipe up spilled water and brought it to the office, the response was to tell me where to find a mop. Nothing was provided, and there was only one washcloth for four people. It looked like no one had cleaned in weeks. Never again.

The pool was just okay, with some chips, and we picked several rocks out of it. There was no staff around over Labor Day weekend to handle problems. The place reminded me of spending a weekend in grandma’s double wide. It was decent enough, but dated and clearly hard to maintain. The main living area had AC vents in the floor, the TV picture was always grainy, and the Wi-Fi was awful. None of our six devices stayed connected longer than 10 minutes. Staff said they’d reset the internet when we finally reached them, but it never got fixed. There was a dead roach in both the dishwasher and microwave, and pots were still dirty from the previous guest, so we had to clean most things before cooking or eating. Two patio chairs were broken, slats were missing from the second floor back porch railing, and the front door seal was broken. Some wood on the front porch steps was splintered, and I had to remove several large splinters, about 6-8 inches long, so the kids wouldn’t get hurt. The room sleeps six but only came with four sets of towels. They wouldn’t provide more under their posted policy. That was the most aggravating problem because it would’ve been easy to fix. I guess they expect people to share. Still felt like grandma’s double wide.