Villas At Hawks Cay Resort

We had a little house with its own pool, but learned too late that the resort doesn’t own the houses it rents out. It manages them for homeowners, so it’s like Airbnb with access to the amenities. Cleaning is only done before arrival. They say you can request an extra cleaning 24 hours ahead; we did, but nobody ever came. Our house was dirty, with toothpaste on the bathroom door, bits of trash around the front garden, sticky cabinets, and filthy floors. Our feet were black every night, even after showering and staying inside. We ran out of toilet paper and had to use tissues, and it was almost impossible to reach the front desk by phone. The house was outdated, though I’m sure they differ. Ours had a very uncomfortable couch, deck furniture falling apart, stained pillows, and a stiff mattress. The resort is beautiful, the pools are well kept, and the restaurants are nice. Food was good, if a little overpriced, but there’s no room service. The Keys are beautiful and serene, and Marathon is a major hub without being too far away. Key Largo to Key West is over a two-hour drive, so nowhere will be close to everything. It’s a good choice if you’re traveling with kids, but I wouldn’t recommend it for a couple traveling alone.

The pool, lagoon, and sunshine were what saved the stay, and our kids, 6 and 8, had a great time. But the experience fell short of what we expected from a resort at this price. Our villa wasn’t serviced, and the room was outdated and unlike the photos, with loud AC, small showers, and basic bedding. Staff interactions felt transactional instead of welcoming, with no one taking initiative. Food and drinks were a letdown too. The Pilar Bar was never open, the café closed at 5 p.m. so there was no evening coffee, and some amenities weren’t available without notice. It’s a beautiful setting, but there are much better family-friendly resort options in the Keys for the money.

Everything was great apart from the Tiki Grill kitchen. We mostly ate at the bar, where Jacob took good care of us, made sure we had what we needed, and served great drinks. We ordered hummus and a wrap from the kitchen and waited over an hour. The only reason I’m giving five stars is Jacob’s hospitality. The kitchen needs fixing, and we’ve had better food at other resorts.

The room alone cost over $400, and this was the most stressful stay I’ve had in the Keys. I’d heard so much about Hawk’s Cay and was excited to visit, but I would never stay again. We arrived around 3:30 p.m., about 30 minutes before check-in, and were told our room wasn’t ready. That was fine, so I walked the beautiful property with my baby, who needed a nap. At 4:05 they called to say the room was ready. We went up, but it was a double queen instead of the resort king we booked, and there was no pack ’n play as requested. With my baby crying, I called the desk. A woman told me to come down and said she’d take us to the last king room. Why hadn’t we been assigned that one first? We waited about 20 minutes in the lobby before asking for a supervisor. The woman said the person meeting us was on her way. She apologized as she took us to the new room, but there was no pack ’n play there either. The whole check-in took an hour and a half. My overtired, cranky baby was crying as I tried to settle him, and we were interrupted when the woman came back with keys. Ten minutes later a man knocked with a folded pack ’n play and asked if I knew how to set it up. Near tears, I asked him to do it. He opened it and said there were linens to put in the bottom. It looked broken and rickety, with no padding. Since linens are a serious SIDS risk for babies, I don’t understand why a nice resort couldn’t provide a safe, unbroken crib. We didn’t use it. Later, we found an ironing board but no iron; they brought one fairly promptly after we called. The AC was incredibly loud. At 5:45 a.m. the room alarm went off and woke my baby and me an hour earlier than usual, throwing off our whole next day. There were no do-not-disturb tags in the room, and housekeeping knocked loudly and barged in during his first nap. I tried to speak with a supervisor and got an insincere, unconvincing apology. What should have been a relaxing family visit was a deeply disappointing experience.