Christopher M

Review of Fern Resort

I had been to Fern Resort multiple times in the la...

I had been to Fern Resort multiple times in the late 80's - early 90's as a young teenager. My memories of it are VERY fond and I guess as a child who doesn't know better, it definitely can be a great environment as it is very family oriented with lots sports and constant activities to keep children busy.

As an adult who recently returned after many years, I have to say my opinion of it has been somewhat tarnished. It looks exactly like it did 25 years ago (which I guess for some, is part of the appeal). With the exception of the dining area which seems to be very different when I was a youth, many of the accommodations and grounds are exactly the same and look like not a penny has been spent in upgrades since 1990. I think they're still using the same green 'sliding tab' bingo cards they had when i was a child.

This place is NOT cheap either. For over $600 for a single night for a room you would expect to get a high quality experience, but this was far from the truth. The food served in the restaurant was of low quality, the help staff, while many were friendly and well meaning, were also VERY young and seemed like it was their first day on the job - they didn't provide thorough answers to questions, or help appropriately and just gave the overall impression that this was just a summer gig to help pay some bills.

I don't doubt that Fern serves a niche for those with young children or looking for an active week away with kids, but the whole grounds is due for some investment to bring it into the 21st century. If you can afford it, this could be a good place for a family vacation if you want a time warp back to 1990. But for a younger couple looking for a weekend away, I would recommend to keep looking until they've invested some of their high costs back into the resort.