Martin Cowan

Review of The Omphoy Ocean Resort Palm B...

Discovered the Omphoy Hotel in 2014 as part of a J...

Discovered the Omphoy Hotel in 2014 as part of a Jet Blue promo,, and loved it. Thought it was a 4 1/2 star hotel and 2 1/2 star costs. Returned this year under new management (Tideline Ocean Resort), now it's a 3 star hotel with 4 star fees. The costs are almost double last year, and some of the negatives have begun to weigh more in my evaluation.

For the positives, we found the staff very friendly and helpful. The beach is grand. Everything is kept neat and clean. The lobby, outdoor pool and other public areas are very attractive.

Negatives: Bad lighting--bring flashlight with you. Not enough outlets in room-- only two for charging phones, laptops, Ipads, Kindles, etc., We had three occupants (a granddaughter) in our room--had to create spreadsheet schedule for rotating devices. Bathroom small and not very elegant; water closet was dingy--Motel 6 quality. No outlets or lights on balcony. Door to balcony extremely difficult to open or close. Beds were creaky--if anyone moved at night while sleeping, everyone else is the room woke up from the noise. Mattresses uncomfortable. Only one chair in room to sit on, and very uncomfortable. . Dining facilities inadequate--menu in main dining room much too limited, and everything overpriced (after tips and tax, close to $50 a person for buffet breakfast), so we generally went elsewhere for meals. Worst: music piped into all public areas, including pool, dining areas, lobby, valet parking waiting area, locker rooms, was horrendous, intrusive and distracting. Mostly just repetitive percussion sound, over and over and over. Impossible to tell what genre music--a mix of minimalism and punk? Perhaps you can stand it for an hour or so, but after 3 or 4, you need a valium.