Reviews of Castle in the Sand 3 stars

Our waitress at the outside restaurant was excellent she went above and beyond!!!

The location is ideal

The pullout bed was very uncomfortable

The location of the property was great for me and my daughter who I traveled with. I wanted to be close enough to the beach without having to cross the busy road and this was good enough for us. I got us a cottage and although it was at the end (basically right on Coastal Highway), it offered a straight bath right to the beach. Parking was provided and I was able to get a spot in their lot very close to our cottage. The cottage itself was small, but clean. And I like that it had a separate bedroom from the living space. A full kitchen was provided with your basic conveniences - silverware, some pots and pans, dishes, cups, toaster, coffee pot, full fridge and gas stove. Which I loved the gas stove! It was kind of old school and lit up easily. Everything worked well. The bed was comfy enough - I read that another guest found it uncomfortable so I prepared by bringing a mattress pad, but didn't use it since I found the bed easy to sleep on. As for the bathroom - the best thing about it was that the shower was nice and hot. I had no problem setting the temperature. There were several activities going on and some for kids which I didn't get to use. But, we did go to their Coconuts restaurant and I found the food either good or plentiful. It's your basic menu of American fare and I really enjoyed the burger I got one night. The other food I got out of convenience and it was just meh, but still good. Most of the staff was nice, but I wouldn't say the front desk was overjoyed lol. They checked us in and checked us out fine. I would assume the waitstaff at Coconuts is part of the staff and their energy was pretty much the same - nice, helpful, but not overjoyed. But I would preface this to say that the place was BUSY - so I think I would just be doing what needed to be done as well. However, getting our food was fast (mostly within 10 mins). So it appears they got that process down.

What I didn't like too much was on our first night, there was an abundance of "smoke" smell (IYKYK). Mind you it was supposed to be smoke free, but I guess not all the guests got the message. I let the front desk know, they got the message, and seemed to take care of it, because the next night it was better. Now I know this is not their fault, but this goes with what I found to be the walls very thin, because the smell was inside, not out, so it seemed to seep through the walls. Which brings me to my next point - the walls were so thin that we could hear our neighbors doing everything - walking, talking, laughing (fortunately nothing else lol). But, getting rest when we wanted wasn't always an option. The other thing was that the bathroom could definitely use some updating. It's pretty small and basic. It would be nice if the shower was updated to some tile as the plastic shower pan was creaky which each step. Also you can clearly see the wear and tear on the bottom - worn down and a bit moldy. The sink is small, and the toilet rocked (yes, rocked if you leaned too much to one side :-D). It also bubbled on occasion (don't ask). Also, the air conditioners are the type that are situated in the windows and are pretty old. Probably because they don't make too much of them anymore. So, they made a lot of noise when in use. Which, for us was all the time. Fortunately, we were tired enough and me being from NY originally, I got used to the noise from not only the AC, but also the street noise. You also don't get your room cleaned while staying at a cottage, making it similar to an Airbnb style. Which is fine for a short stay, but still - would be nice. They will just sweep, empty trash cans, and replace towels. However, they ran out of washcloths the last day we were there, so yeah. Other than these things, I still found the stay fine and may do it again for a short visit.

View and size of room

The door to balcony was broken and would bang in the wind

Close to the beach, great hotel for adults and older teens, not so much for young kids, pool was great only wish they kept it open longer when they turn on the lights at night, the kiddos liked that.

Only one elevator took a very long time to use, windows on beach view very dirty hard to see out of, never saw anyone that worked at the hotel except when we checked in, room was booked for 4 people only had 3 towels, with the bar/restaurant attached to the hotel a lot of drunk people falling downstairs and a lot of noise (not kids friendly). Would not recommend booking with smaller kids.

The closeness to the beach

Parking Needs updated rooms

staff being rude

Location great

The diving board was broken

Coconuts - Happy hour Staff was great / always pleasant Parking was convenient

Only one elevator

We were on the top floor with an oceanfront balcony! It was ideal to come out on the balcony to see the sunrise and/or the sunset. There was partying but not disturbing!

The restaurant on the property did not have enough variety of choices. Perhaps more of suggestions for delivery options should have been made available!!

Absolutely loved our room overlooking the ocean and the beach bar. Great spot!

The only negative thing I will say was that it was very pricey for 3 nights but kind of understandable because you can’t beat the view and location! The free wifi was very spotty and wouldn’t work at times but otherwise it was a great experience!

room, attached tiki bar, location

Location, bars , music , convenient access to the beach. Food and drinks at the beach. Umbrella and chairs charge to room.

There is no cleaning mat outside the room to clean the sand. Front desk personnel was not friendly when I checked out.