Isla Bella Beach Resort

Not the level of quality we were expecting from a hotel listed with Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts. It definitely has potential, but is clearly cutting costs and including fees that felt offensive. One of our favorite indulgences when staying at a resort with a lovely private balcony with a...

Not the level of quality we were expecting from a hotel listed with Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts. It definitely has potential, but is clearly cutting costs and including fees that felt offensive. One of our favorite indulgences when staying at a resort with a lovely private balcony with a great view (which we had here) is to order in room dining for breakfast and enjoy a leisurely morning lounging. The room service breakfast options, although limited, appeared fine. Simply getting hold of someone to place our order was a challenge, and when we asked for a small pot of coffee we were informed that was not available. The coffee option included in the room is a small Keurig, which is fine, but the accompanying accessories were very much in line with budget hotels: paper cups and prepackaged containers with plastic stirs with powdered creamer packets. Not what we were expecting at a higher end resort. We placed our room service order and were very surprised to get a knock on the door an hour later with essentially a Door Dash order from the restaurant. The girl just handed me the bag and left. Our cold food was in cardboard takeout containers with plastic utensils. And a cup of coffee in paper cups. And an $85 bill. We felt duped. If we had been warned that this was what room service was like, we would have done something different. Our other issue was the seemingly unnecessary daily parking fee, when everything is self-serve. Self park. Self help with luggage. Not in a super congested area where parking spaces are at a premium. So the $30 daily extra fee just felt like nickel-and-diming. The daily resort/destination/tax fees are $70 extra. We didn't have a problem with that, because the facilities are vey nice. We especially loved the refillable water bottles and wrist band room keys were very handy. The staff was always extremely friendly. The room was large and had a great balcony. We were in the farthest building from the main area, so it was nice and quiet. The bathroom was wonderfully large with a nice bathtub and shower and lovely luxurious bathrobes. Unfortunately, they skimped on the bed and bedding. The linens were scratchy and the pillows truly some of the worst we have experienced, even in budget hotels. Regrettably, we were glad to be moving on after 2 nights in that bed. My husband and I enjoy staying at hotels with a variety of levels of luxury. On this trip, we had booked 3 different levels. Isla Bella being our luxurious indulgent splurge. This is the first time in many stays through the Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts program, that we left feeling disappointed. Isla Bella wasn't a bad place. Just wasn't what we were expecting.

Our stay at Isla Bella was fine but not worth $1000/night. It’s a nice resort, well-appointed for families with children, with plenty of pools to choose from including an adult pool. Despite the positives, our 5 nights here were choc full of minor disappointments. In summary, everything the hotel did...

Our stay at Isla Bella was fine but not worth $1000/night. It’s a nice resort, well-appointed for families with children, with plenty of pools to choose from including an adult pool. Despite the positives, our 5 nights here were choc full of minor disappointments. In summary, everything the hotel did was just slightly off for the premium price charged, mainly having to do with poor service and lack of attention to detail. First, there was no staff greeting us at the entrance upon our arrival, nor any bell service available. We found out later this was because there was a wedding going on that Thursday night so most staff was tending to the wedding, which shouldn’t be the case. Essentially they are designed to be short-staffed. This happened the next night due to another wedding’s rehearsal dinner and the wedding the following day. Next, thankfully our room was upgraded to the top floor (3rd floor) so we couldn’t hear steps above us which I believe would have been a problem. There are no robes or slippers in the room which I’d expect at that price. Also, it was comical how present housekeeping is. We were constantly riding the elevator with housekeeping, bumping into them in the main walkway to the room, and even when we drove out of the resort for our final departure we had to yield to about 8 housekeepers with their carts crossing the street. It didn’t matter what time it was, heading to breakfast, coming in after dinner, housekeeping was riding the elevators with us. There should be a designated elevator or service elevator for them. Next, get ready for the fees. Hotels obviously have fees but this list of fees on the final bill was exceptional. In total there were 9 extra fees and taxes, the most annoying of which were the parking fee ($30), parking fee tax, plus a “destination fee”, plus a “resort fee”. All of the fees and taxes combined added 22% to our nightly rate. We also booked a Two Conch’s fishing charter (phenomenal experience) through the Isla Bella website which they didn’t acknowledge upon check-in or assist with instructions even though the Two Conch’s marina is onsite. 2 more things, bear with me. The breakfasts. Ours were “free” up to $48 through our travel agent. That covered breakfast for the 2 of us, not enough for the tip. That was without getting coffee or anything, the breakfasts are $20 - $25 per person. My husband got smoked salmon everyday and for some reason they brough ketchup for him everyday, and failed to bring him an actual plate for his bagel, it came in a basket, no plate. 2 days they brought him a tea plate and seemed confused why he was asking, then we got more specific with the type of plate we asked for. Also, after we got our breakfast, all 5 mornings, we never saw our waitress again, so ration your water, and hopefully you have everything you need because in our experience they don’t come back to ask if you have what you need or how everything is. Last but not least the pool. There is no waiter service at the pool. You stand in front of a kiosk freezing if you’re wet from the pool waiting to order your food or drink. Then there’s no one to cleanup people’s empty food, drink, or towels on chairs, so whenever we went to the pool in the afternoon there were dozens of abandoned chairs with people’s wet towels and garbage all around. One afternoon there were no chairs available so my husband went to the front desk to inquire about a cabana at 3pm. He left the pool, waited at the front desk to speak with someone, they sent him to The Marketplace to talk to someone, when he arrived no one was there, so he went back to the pool with no information about the cabanas. Also, it was a similar situation as the pool at the fire pits at the bar at night. The fire pit tables were surrounded by empty, dirty glasses until the end of the night so you never really knew if a fire pit was available and if one was, you were in the midst of people’s dirty, used cups and glasses. Like I said, everything was off for a 5-star, $1000/night place. We had a fine time despite the disappointments and overpaying. And the hotel’s responses to other poor reviews on this site reference them “learning” from people’s negative feedback. I find that somewhat frustrating as their learning experience in hospitality shouldn’t come at my expense.

We love to go to the Beach Bar for drinks and dancing every February. For the past 3 years I have come to count on seeing Annie at the bar. She always remembers us from year to year! They are ALWAYS slammed when the Rick Lieder Band is there, and...

We love to go to the Beach Bar for drinks and dancing every February. For the past 3 years I have come to count on seeing Annie at the bar. She always remembers us from year to year! They are ALWAYS slammed when the Rick Lieder Band is there, and she flies around the bar constantly. We'll be back next year. It's definitely my favorite place.

Our favorite winter getaway from Michigan! We always enjoy our time there.Great location, and amazing sunsets! Must give a shout out to ANNIE and REUBEN at the Beach Club bar. They are exceptional and like family to us! Just a great experience overall.

Beautifully designed and skillfullyoperated Isla Bella exceeded my expectations. Me and my husband enjoyed multiple amenities: several pools, the spa, the beach, the restaurants. Our favorite was Mahina for breakfast, we also enjoyed a dinner there once. My lobster crusted mahi-mahi was delicious and cooked to perfection. My favorite cocktail...

Beautifully designed and skillfullyoperated Isla Bella exceeded my expectations. Me and my husband enjoyed multiple amenities: several pools, the spa, the beach, the restaurants. Our favorite was Mahina for breakfast, we also enjoyed a dinner there once. My lobster crusted mahi-mahi was delicious and cooked to perfection. My favorite cocktail was Isla Bella sunset. We also enjoyed the beach bar for lunch or lighter dinner. Both restaurants had a wonderful ambience, great service and the views of sunset were spectacular! Our room was nicely decorated, clean, modern and comfortable. I enjoyed our private patio with ocean view where I witnessed several most gorgeous sunsets. Isla Bella staff was very friendly and accommodating.. It was so nice to be always greeted with a smile. I enjoyed my walks around the property and took a tone of beautiful pictures of sunsets and sunrises. Isla Bella is a very special place and I want to return here soon.

Walls are paper thin you’ll hear everything. Neighbors smoking grass when kids are out playing in front of them. Called the front desk and they said they couldn’t do anything about it unless I called right when it was happening. Tons of noise. Couldn’t sleep much. It’s the equivalent of...

Walls are paper thin you’ll hear everything. Neighbors smoking grass when kids are out playing in front of them. Called the front desk and they said they couldn’t do anything about it unless I called right when it was happening. Tons of noise. Couldn’t sleep much. It’s the equivalent of a college dorm. This isn’t a place to relax. It’s a place for rowdy families. Not great and poor value.

My wife and I are here for a week. Overall a really excellent resort; details below: •Our suite is really nice; bedroom, living room w foldout; 2 bathrooms, lanai with steps down to the sand. Our suite is showing some early signs of wear & tear, but overall very good....

My wife and I are here for a week. Overall a really excellent resort; details below: •Our suite is really nice; bedroom, living room w foldout; 2 bathrooms, lanai with steps down to the sand. Our suite is showing some early signs of wear & tear, but overall very good. There are no overhead fans, either inside or on the lanai. •The walls are paper thin & transmit normal conversation. •The grounds are manicured daily; excellent outdoor maintenance. •The staff are unfailingly nice & polite, although we found housekeeping to be haphazard. •At least 5 pools w ample seating & umbrellas. •VERY kid-friendly; our room overlooks a game area on the sand; quite noisy w happy kids. There is a more remote area that seemed to have fewer kids (& no game area); we would probably request this area if we return (likely). •Food is a mixed bag: ••Mahina (fine dining) is very good; we had a great meal there ••The “main” pool has food service, although ALL food is prepared in the Mahina kitchen. •••Chicken wraps were VERY good •••Pizza was atrocious; store-bought (prob frozen) crust w unsightly & tasteless ingredients; AVOID THE PIZZA!! •••Breakfast offerings are unremarkable. ••There is a sushi restaurant also (we haven’t tried yet). There are lots of activities, esp for kids. I give this place high marks, with some room for improvement.