The Boca Raton Resort May Have Had Too Many Renovations

April 28, 2008 at 9:20 AM | by amandak | Comments (3)

The last time we mentioned the Boca Raton Resort & Club in Florida, it was because Regis Philbin was annoyed that he'd tipped the bellman before he found out tips are all included. This week the New York Times checked it out, and came out with a fairly lukewarm conclusion too. Reviewer Geraldine Fabrikant writes:

The Boca is the hotel version of the everything bagel. It offers whatever you need, but it has no striking personality.

What it does have is 80 years of history, and 80 years of various renovations and rebuilds which enables it to offer different styles of accommodation depending on your vacation needs, so it's suitable for families or couples or groups all at once.

However, all this leads to staff and service being stretched just a bit too far.

Fabrikant says:

Like a woman who does her face, but neglects her neck, parts of the hotel seem to have not gotten the help they need.

What the NY Times failed to mention is that half of the resort is undergoing a major renovation which will see the pool area and some guest rooms closed for up to a year more: the new Pool Oasis with its three redesigned pools and oceanfront bar is due to open in September 2008; the new guest rooms and lobby should be ready sometime in 2009, but they're not game to say exactly when.

If you can live with the renovations, they've got a Mothers Day special coming up from $199 a night including a choice of spa treatments--manicures, facials or Swedish massages, plus breakfast, valid from May 8 to May 12.

Just remember: not all room views are equal. Fabrikant was placed in a room with a view of the parking lot during the two times she stayed there. When she complained, she was given a room with a view of the pool at the same price.

The pool view was also helpful because it allowed her to keep a watchful eye on how the pool chair struggle was shaping up. Unfortunately the Boca resort is one of those places where finding a pool chair is war. If you don't get a chair before 8am, then you're outta luck.

[Photo: NYTimes]

Comments (3)

Return to » The Boca Raton Resort May Have Had Too Many Renovations

can't the hotel just get more pool chairs?

That'd be no fun then. For some people it's all about the thrill of the chase. (ever seen a Spanish resort with German tourists sneaking out to reserve a chair at 4 in the morning???)

thats really funny. at that point, i would probably just sleep outside on the pool chairs. i wonder if you can get some sort of room rate discount for that? uhoh. i think i have a new idea. cabanas by the pool that double as your hotel room!

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