Grand Beach Hotel Surfside West

The property was beautiful, but the service didn't meet what I expected for the price. Housekeeping missed our room multiple days, leaving it uncleaned and without towel service on several nights. When I raised it with management, they said that since I booked through a third party, I had to wait until checkout to request a partial refund. After our stay, the hotel told hotels.com that I had needed to make the request before checkout, so they wouldn't refund us. I feel management misled me, and the service was a real disappointment.

The main hotel has pools, hot tubs, a big seating area, and a pool deck with cold water, sun bum lotion, and towels. There's also a bar, restaurant, small gift shop, and beach access with free lounge chairs, umbrellas, and towels. The west side has a rooftop pool, but its bar was closed, so drinks had to be ordered from the main hotel and brought over. Several seats had no cushions, and that area wasn't as clean as I'd expect for the price. The rooms are spacious, but not soundproof. I could hear everything from next door and the hallway. Some staff didn't speak English, which made communication hard. Our shower wouldn't drain, but maintenance came up right away and fixed it. Grand beach hotel surf side has a main hotel and a west side across the street. It's a nice enough spot for a quick getaway.

I'm staying at grand beach Surfside west now, and this has been a shocking change from the favorite hotel I remember from a couple of years ago. The area, beach, and pool are great, though the wind and rain meant I couldn't enjoy them much. The hotel isn't very clean: the floors, bathroom, and porch were dirty, and the porch smelled like drugs from next door. There was no crib or pack n play for my baby, no bathtub, and no useful customer service when we needed things for the room. To store milk, I had to empty the fridge the hotel had filled and move its items somewhere else. They said there were no spare fridges during busy season. We asked repeatedly for sheets and blankets so we could use the sofa bed. Hours later, at night while I was falling asleep, a staff member came into my room without permission, switched on the lights beside the sofa bed, and set it up. My husband usually puts the do not disturb sign on the door at night, but he hadn't because he was at sinagog. I hadn't put it up myself. Jewish ladies, if you request something for your room, be sure your hair is covered and you're properly dressed. Staff may come in at night after a delay, or knock and open the door if you don't hear them, and see how you're dressed. I was upset that someone walked in without permission. I contacted Mira and waited about a week for her response. After hearing it, I think Grand beach should be ashamed. I told people about my stay, and two canceled theirs. One said lots of people have recently complained about their stays, with some reporting stolen items, including wigs. Another said room service came in at 2 a.m. after leaving their key in the room. The service is horrible, and the hotel doesn't offer refunds for these problems. I also found the hotel dishonest about cribs. The front desk told me none were available when I asked. Then someone standing beside me asked to book a room and requested a crib, and the employee simply said, "Okay, I'll write that down," without mentioning the problem. The woman seemed terrified to tell him that, since she saw me there and knew it was wrong to leave him with the impression he'd get one.

If you want a view beyond dirty generators and industrial rooftops, this isn't the place. The ocean views shown in pictures belong to the sister hotel across the street, and can make it seem like you're staying by the beach when you're not. The west side feels like a residence. The restaurants, pool, beach, and other hotel amenities are across the street, which is inconvenient with children, especially getting to the kids' pool. The listing didn't make this clear. Our check-in was supposed to start at three p m. We were told to grab something and come back because the room was nearly ready. At four, the standard check-in time, we returned and found the room still wasn't ready. After waiting around with the children until five, I demanded someone speak English and learned from people talking in Spanish behind my back that the air conditioning had been broken all day and engineering was still trying to fix it. I'd spent an hour at the desk while staff whispered to each other about the situation. The manager stayed on the phone instead of coming to the desk. She promised free valet, waived resort fees, and complimentary breakfast for our two days. The next day I had to chase her for confirmation. The breakfast wasn't on my record, and people told me she hadn't promised it. They eventually found a note, but no vouchers. She then offered breakfast for just one day and went on her days off. The next manager also hid behind calls and emails and didn't respond. I've seen Grand Beach Hotels deflect responsibility and make verbal promises they don't keep by the end of a stay. If you stay, get any promises about compensation in writing and make sure they honor them. The front desk staff were rude, disrespectful, inattentive, and didn't seem interested in solving anything. Management also seemed to do the bare minimum to quiet people down, then block, deny, or mute them if they kept pushing. Hospitality doesn't seem to be the priority here. I'm sad I spent $2,000.