Hawk's Cay Resort, Florida Review

My family finally went to Hawks Cay for the first time. It was unfortunately quite windy & chilly, but we still had a nice time. There is quite a bit to do; there are activities & games throughout the day & evening. We stayed in a 2 bedroom villa in Sunset Village, nice part of the property with being both on the water & great sunsets from back porch.
My kids & I did the dolphin excursion, which was really an amazing experience.
My daughter went to the spa & had a nice time and all the restaurants were good. TIki bar is great for food & drinks.
The best part of the weekend was the 'tram man', Demitri. What a guy. He totally made our trip. I know this sounds crazy, but he is so much fun. He blasts his music and drives a little crazy and just made us laugh so hard we couldn't breath. Ride the tram!!!

Very pretty place, well kept. Pricey, but worth it. Had excellent service!

Great family resort. Glad we stumbled upon it. We had 8 people celebrating Christmas.

Sadly, this place has seen its hay day. You would think at the rates they charge, they would have the ability to restore their docks with urgency. Everything is still dilapidated from Irma nearly a year later. We were only told partial truths of what amenities would be available when renting through VRBO. We were aware we wouldn t have access to everything but the truth is, we had access to NOTHING since they are in a legal battle with the villa owners. Way to take it out on the guests. Terrible business! I tried to call the front desk but the fist 3 numbers listed for the resort don t work. When I finally got in touch with someone, they seemed annoyed and chuckled when I asked if there was any way to possibly purchase a wristband to access just the pools. The answer was a sharp no. The staff was unbelievably rude and the resort looks completely run down. The pictures are completely deceiving. After 4 annual trips to Hawks Cay, this will absolutely be our final. There are PLENTY of other resorts willing to take your money and show you a far better time, with better restaurants, friendly staff and amenities open to all guests.

Just an ok place. Should be a lot better for the money. Enjoy the $9 cereal

Hawks is back! Hurricane Irma sidelined for a year, so glad it is back !!! #KeysStrong

We stayed in the villas because we wanted the kitchen. Next time we'll probably stay at the resort closer to the pool.

We especially fell for the location: in the middle of the Florida Keys and with its own dolphin training center. With several beautiful restaurants, swimming pools and an activity center for children, you don't have much reason to leave the resort grounds. The staff is extremely friendly and helpful and the grounds are beautifully maintained. The large scale took some getting used to and the prices are also not small. If you step over it, it is a more than great resort.

In its heyday, the 1990s, this was the place to be, unfortunately, a little outdated now.

It is a beautiful location with great staff and so much to do for everyone.

The resort is beautiful and well-manicured and the staff was really nice. My husband and I went for a weekend retreat/babymoon and left relaxed and refreshed. We took full advantage of the activities at the Marina on site and enjoyed snorkeling and kayaking. A lot of the other guests that we met were really lovely people who frequented the resort. My husband and I couldn't help but notice how incredibly quiet and peaceful the resort was. There seemed to be a lot of things to do. We stayed in a Lanai King room which was perfect because it was quiet and private. The only thing I would suggest that might improve the overall experience of the resort is creating an all-inclusive option.

Friendly People, Newly Renovated, Great Food, Great Views...Lots of Pools...

The staff was great, the location was gorgeous. The negatives...the food was WAY overpriced and the resort itself needs a deep cleaning and some renovations. The adult pool should be closed- it needs to be resurfaced badly.

Had an amazing time with my husband and my boys! Breakfast was on pointe, loved watching the dolphins and my boys loved the tidal pool! Will go back definitely!

Chris from 61 Prime was an amazing, kind host and gave excellent service! It s not too often me and my Husband get to have alone time since we have children and work a lot! We were thoroughly impressed with him!
We usually get terrible service back home so it makes us not want to go out and let me tell you Chris was the exact opposite!! Wish we could have him as our server all the time! We will miss this place!! Thanks a lot!

We checked in to Hawks Cay and we were immediately greeted by Nosihle her warm smile and professionalism made us feel welcomed immediately. We had a problem with our reservation through Southwest Vacations and Nosihle and her Manager Jason Boyd assured that we would be taken care of. Jason went out of his way to smooth out the situation and make us feel at ease. Just another reason why we keep coming back to Hawks Cay and will continue to come back!

I booked this hotel to celebrate a end to a very hard year in grad school. We were looking forward to this vacation for the last several months and up on our arrival we were pleasently surprised to find that the resort is far nicer than the website picture show. The entrance from US1 transfers you in to a upscale setting. The lobby is ample and very tastefully decorated. The attendants at the registration desk were very pleasant and willing to accommodate my needs. I appreciate their professional manner handling my needs and request. The rooms have high quality bedding and furniture. I selected a first level room with a Lanai overlooking the pool. The view is wonderful and ease of walking out of the room and directly to the pool is awesome!! The staff is very nice and always smiling and very polite. I used the complementary kayaks and paddle board in the lagoon. The tikki huts around the lagoon offer a very relaxing atmosphere that has water on both sides. The resort puts on activities for the family and kids. They take in to consideration that the families need fun don't want to leave the resort. There is multiple pools and one is an adult only pool. The setting at each one is just as nice. Overall the resort is wonderful and I will definitely come back. I will have to say the I did not eat at the resort and can't speak to their food service but the gift shop is very nice and has Starbucks brand coffee and a few pastries that were very good. My wife and kids enjoyed the visit very much.

Beautiful and different because it's different kinds of cultures here

Pricey, busy place. Not everything restored. Bad luck with the room...

The views are awesome. And Jennifer Tracey was really cool and helped our group tremendously.

Wonderful resort with great amenities. Located perfectly in the middle of all major attractions and excursions. Rooms very nice and clean with great sanitation efforts. Would definitely go back.

Much fun! Great property. Definate inconsistencies with service and food. The little touches, but important are not up kept. Attitudes in staff all over. Hopefully just reopening jiggerters.

AMAZING!Buffet is amazing. Breakfast and Dinner. Chairs at the pool can be hard to fine. Dolphin Connection and Jet Ski and Snorkeling was my favorite. Don't be surprised if you Paul Ryan in omelette line. I saw him! If you want to have fun with your family go here!

Don't stay in townhouses, only big enough for two. Very very small, bad maid service

I was so disappointed in my experience here, I would never return. We spent 3 days and night in a 2 bedroom 2.5 bath Villa. We were given a total of 3 towels for the entire Villa, no wash cloths, no hand towels nothing else. 2 of the 3 Tv's did not work, called no one ever came to fix them. Both showers were missing an entire door also mentioned that along with the TVs. The kiddie pool along with the hot tubs we're all closed due to Covid but they still booked at full capacity so more people in a small area. Also the reasoning for half of the restaurant's being closed so again same amount of people trying to get meals at limited area's. We booked the dolphin encounter still have yet to get our photos after numerous attempts to contact them. The only reason I did not give this resort One star is because it was clean and the view is beautiful but not enough to ever go back.

We love the location and amenities. While booking & check in we were never told the kids water area was closed. This is the reason we go with our twin toddlers! So disappointed. My sisters AC in her room was broken. Called but it wasn t fixed. We understand things change bc of COVID but it would be nice to have been told you aren t getting full amenities despite still paying FULL resort fee !

We went in our boat and stayed at the Marina as other times before, but this time, dont know what is happening there but the Marina has had almost 2 yrs to have a decent office with a little store for boaters and they are still in a trailer after the hurricane. No bathrooms for the use of boaters either, which is essential on an expensive marina that it is. The personnel are exceptional ( specially Levar ), as always but the poor personnel is short and very difficult to keep up with the Marina services. The much needed ice was also missing. Not sure how often they get their delivery, but it was obviously not frequent enough.

When calling the hotel/concierge services, they were so disorganized and misinformed on everything. Always that you talk to a different employee, you would get a different answer. It is also a big shame that the main Restaurant is still closed, not even at 50% capacity like many restaurants in the area. They only have one restaurant open Angler and Ale (apart from the pool hamburger one) so do to the fact that you really need to drive to find another restaurant, you are stock to Angler and Ale for the nights that you are there.

I will say that I am saddened to have to write this review as we have gone to this facility for 15 yrs + and it could be a great facility

The lagoon is very murky and unsanitary. I doubt there is even a way for them to clean it as there are live fish swimming around in it. So just imagine hundreds of people in an out of the pool 365 days with it never be cleaned. Yuck! "Okay-looking"resort with our weekend being ruined by noisy neighbors with terrible kids that ran up and down the hall way. We called the front desk several times and all they could keep telling us was that they would send someone to patrol the floor. That never happened. They did nothing to accommodate to our stay when we explained multiple times the issues that we were experiencing. It made it even worse because we were celebrating our 7th year anniversary and it was very upsetting that we could not enjoy it as much as we would like to with children running up and down the hallway and banging on the walls. I tried calling one last time up front and when I explained my issues to one of the service Representatives, all she could say is that "well, this is a resort" as if this is something that I should have expected prior to booking my reservation.

Absolutely horrible experience. The customer service was worse than a Motel 6. After 9 times of contacting the front desk taking up two days of our vacation to get our air conditioner fixed was told that it was a cheap undersized unit and the next day was begrudgingly offered a downgraded room at the same price a day before we left. 0 stars will never stay here again.

Was a great experience. The hurricane tore the facility up but hope they reopen this year

Awesome atmosphere, restaurants were great and the staff was amazing.

I wished it was great but it was not. Long line ups to check in. Angler and Ale - food was cold, marketplace eggs were grey from sitting in the warmer. We had to call twice to get the toilet fixed. Supplies missing in the room. And with Covid why would they book so much - way too crowded. I am sure they were over 80% occupancy with 50% at the most staffed. The only positive was the kids pool.

Great for family (with kids at any age). There is a good mix of activities. Overall price is ok. Can be a little crowded during peak season.

I highly recommend the dolphin encounter activity, great for kids!

For specific types of fishing your going for is perfect

Even with some areas, still remodelation is a perfect place for the family, but keep the budget in mind.

Villas a bit outdated, but you can't beat the location with dock access.

Just got back last night from Hawks Cay after a 4 night stay. We enjoyed our stay at the resort with some reservations. We stayed in a waterfront, 2 story Villa (5073). The locaton of the resort is beautiful and the grounds well-maintained. They had a great amount of activities to engage in for kids and family, but I would also encourage vistors to look at their off resort options to save $$ or expand their overall experience. For example we chose to rent kayaks at the beautiful, and quite close, Curry Hammock State Park. The price was great and the waters and mangroves surrounding the park provide a more remote and serence environment in which to paddle and spot the abundant wildlife & sealife.

We appreciated that there was a small pool about 200 feet from our Villa, as the main pool nearest the main building/hotel was overcrowded with people and particularly young children. The water cloudy by mid-day with sunscreen and who knows what else. I took note of this because in the morning before the crowds came out the water was very clear. We expected a nicer (larger) and more elaborate, central pool for a resort devoid of a real beach.

The WiFi was atrocious. Connected one moment, impossible to connect the next. I am specifically
referring to our villa, as that was were we needed it and the only place we attempted to use it. Maybe its better elsewhere on the property?

Our 11 year old daughter's memories of the Dolphin experience will be with her forever - do not skip it. I think I would have enjoyed it myself; however, just watching her was priceless to me. If going at a peak season, like Easter....book ahead of travel to ensure a spot. Others at the resort said they couldn't get their kids into the program.

We also took a snorkeling cruise on the vessel, Blue, departing from the resort dock. It was a terrific time and a reasonalbe value for the convenience and the professionalism of the crew.

My other knits with Hawks Cay are largely about our Villa. The steps off the back porch were worn and broken on one tread with exposed nails, certainly a concern with bare feet, as well as a liability risk I would like to think the hotel would be anxious to avoid. The fact that the exposed wood on the broken edge of the step was weathered gray and the nail rusty (Tetnus anyone?) indicated to me that it had been damaged for some time. The curtains in front of the sliding-glass doors were torn from their sliders making them difficult to open and close - unavoidably worsening their condition when you attempted to move them back and forth. The light over our range-top was out, a small but bothersome inconvenience. Additionally, the carpets in our bedroom were horribly stained. Our powderoom toilet would run for about 30-40 minutes to refill it's tank - a simple adjustment to fix - but hey, I didn't bring my tools. All in all, I have to wonder if the resort managment ever took the time to walk through their rooms and villas.

I cannot comment of the food. We never ate a morsel at any of Hawks Cay's restaurants. We took breakfast in our villa, having bought food on the drive down from Miami airport. Each evening we would pick a different restaurant on nearby Marathon - and we enjoyed specatacular sunsets and excellent seafood. We don't do buffets and Alma looked very pricey. There may have been other options but my wife indicated that the reviews were not good, so we voted with our feet & our wallets.

We had a nice time, but to command the rate we paid, we expected more of Hawks Cay. Another guest told me that the resort is planning a refurbishment, and I'd say that it's overdue. Sadly, they'll likely raise their rates.

Good drinks and music. Great doc and Island in the back

As of today Hawks Cat is not open due to hurricane damage.

We had a great time. The staff, in particular a desk clerks Shauna and Josh were outstanding. However the facility was not first class in a few details. Still, very nice.

Beautiful hotel and very acomadating with our bike ride to Key West

This place is the best to stay beats ORCA any time ,any day

Very nice and clean. A little pricey. Food and drinks were good.

Fabulous place great atmosphere beautiful pools and delicious food at the Tiki Grill and fantastic breakfast at the Marketplace staff was friendly and helpful

Every detail has been thought of here. Incredibly nice staff and fantastic amenities.

I stayed with my family at Hawks Cay in a Sanctuary Villa Jan 1st-7th. For our first two days housekeeping did not come and clean our villa. Both days I called in the afternoon and was told they would send housekeeping, but no one came. Finally on the evening of our 3rd night I had to call and talk to a manager (Lisa) and complain just to get fresh towels sent to our room. Our room was cleaned the following day as it should of been, but the last two days we were there, housekeeping again did not come. I called again on our second to last day to request to have our room refreshed and was told they would send someone, but they never came. When I checked out I asked to speak with a manager. I was told that Lisa would be out to talk to me. After waiting for 15 minutes the receptionist said that Lisa was on a phone call and would not be available for awhile and asked for my phone number so she could have her call me, which I gave her. Lisa never called. For such a high end resort that charges $800/night for the room we were staying it, I would expect a much higher level of service. Yes I was frustrated that my room was not refreshed daily as it should have been, but the most frustrating and disappointing part of the whole experience was the multiple times that I called to make a cleaning request and was told that they would take care of it, but then they didn't. This culminated with being told that Lisa would call me which she failed to do. Where the resort itself is nice, the service and reliability of the staff and management is lacking. Based on their inability to follow through on their commitments, we will not be back.

Update & Reply Jan 22, 2019: I would be happy to talk to the general manager. I attempted to talk to someone when I was there and was told Lisa was to busy at that time and would call me but she never did. At that point my best option was to post a review to let others know about my experience and the lack of response by management when given the opportunity to make things right at the time so they can avoid the same experience. I stayed in room 7204 Jan 1-7. Lisa has my phone number because I left it with your receptionist and it is also in your system. If you really care about customer service and want to "make this right", then by all means please take the time to call me. Just like I tried to do before I left, I would be happy to talk. -Rick Molen

Our pool was dirty/cloudy and they didn't send someone out to fix it until the day before we were left (5 days later). The SCUBA shop's boat was undergoing maintenance throughout our stay as well, so we ended up having to leave the resort to get our dives in, even though that was the reason for our stay. They offer golf cart rentals for a flat rate throughout your stay, but despite the resort being very vacant, they couldn't seem produce one until the day before we left, and even then it was at the same rate they had quoted us for all 6 days.

It's a nice place to stay and do your own thing outside of the resort, and the restaurant staff was really good across the board, but we probably won't be going back considering the many available options down there.

Absolutely beautiful location! The kids pool and play area was beyond our expectations. The staff was around and available, but not hovering. Definitely need to go back first chance we get.

I had a great Time. Very comfortable and quiet, an excellent place to find peace next to the ocean. No complaints about the service provided. I felt in paradise...

This resort is hands down the most amazing place I have ever stayed! It has everything you could ever want when trying to relax and enjoy yourself I could sleep out by the dolphins every night and day. I especially want to thank Laura and her manager without them we may not have been able to stay at all. She was wonderful and attentive and helped in all aspects. THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH!! I cannot wait to go back and I will be a customer for life just an amazing end to an amazing time in Florida. :)

Service is excellent here...friendly faces and great atmosphere, but without a doubt the security guards are the ones who hold it down. Doing Houseman, Bellman, janitorial, maintenance, valet, pool attendant, oh and not to mention security on top of that. So next time you see your security guard at hawks cay, know that he or she is doing there best to bring the greatest service and the best stay.

It started out as a 5. Beautiful views and friendly staff. Unfortunately our room wasn't cleaned daily and when it was they forgot to refill the coffee supply. Also, I've never been to a hotel or resort that didn't have a trash can in the bathroom (odd).

Excellent resort with a lot of pools very clean, excellent food and snack bar the only think that I really miss are the huge trees that keeps the pools shade specially in the kids pool Hurricane Irma took them down:( other than that is a very good resort!

I can only judge the Dolphin Encounter which was a present to my mother in law. The organization of it was good and without any problems. The resort looked very nice and despite our riding gear when approaching the staff they treated us very professional without any we don t like motorcyclist attitude.

Beautiful resort went on a family Christmas vacation first time to Florida keys .The major problem we had was our neighboring room they started fighting at 2 a.m screaming man kids crying knocking on our shared inside door.We. called front desk they said they would talk to them .The next night they left their children in the room an went somewhere that night so their children were jumping on the floor and beds hollering and screaming. Again we called down. It was quite the next day till about 2:30 in the afternoon when they came back to their room he started to scream at the children for about 1/2 hr .My son tape it on his phone an sent it to the gal that had text him earlier about the neighbors also went down to the desk the girl at the front desk acted like this was the first time they had heard about this problem when she looked at her computer. We came there for a long awaited family Christmas vacation to enjoy our selves an got a nightmare neighbor. For what it cost to stay at this Luxury resort you think that we would have been taken care of . We have stayed at other resorts throughout our lives an it there is any problem they take care of it an make sure you leave a happy guess.

BED BUG NIGHTMARE!

Management won t answer the phone. Horrible!!! $5000 in expenses to eradicate the pests we took home with us. Do yourself a favor and don t stay here.

Overall had a good experience. Valet wasn't great upon arrival. Got the family room for the kids and the bunk bed was broken. But the resort is very clean and full of things to do for kids and adults.

Worst experience ever! Dirty inside and out, the view was of an oil tank with beer cans in the water. The front desk couldn t care and was well aware that the place is a dump. We packed up and found a new place after the first night. Sooo disappointed

Lovely property, friendly staff, the rest we needed.

Great for kids between 4 and 10. Every possible amenity. Kids.loved the pirate ship.

Very expensive. If you have money then go there. Everyone else is looking for something else ...

It used to be better , maybe 10 years ago. We had bad service at check-in and then had to switch rooms because the first room they gave us smelled moldy.

Do not stay here!! We booked based on the pictures of the two bedroom villa and it is nothing like the pictures!!! I never complain but this is bad. First it looks nothing like the pictures.........the carpets are filthy, the kitchen cabinets are broken, the decor is dark and has marks all on it. Paint is chipping everywhere......please do not stay here.

Been traveling to the keys yearly for the past 24 years. There are so many other nicer, better and cleaner venues than Hawks Cay. After spending $1k for one night on one room and dinner, I will never return. Morada Bay, Pennicamp, Marathon, Key Largo, Islamorada in whole, Big Pine...... all surpass Hawks Kay with ease at a quarter of the price. In addition, Sabre Hospitality and Hawks Cay were hacked any our personal information was stolen. We have spent hours fixing the issues from the poor experience of even being there. Go somewhere else and do better than here.

Do NOT support this resort. They keep dolphins in a small enclosure solely to make money.

Just arrange boat tours or such to see them in their wild habitat instead. In captivity they are tortured by boredom and live short lives compared to in the wild. The year is 2019 and people still keep highly intelligent animals in tiny spaces like slaves. Get it together for god's sake, really unprofessional.

Great place awesome atmosphere and plenty to do. Only drawback was service was slow, good but slow

It is a beautiful location ocean view with pool bar bon fire etc