Nick N.
Yelp
Let me start by saying that this motel is in a BEAUTIFUL spot right on the beach. Imagine falling asleep every night to the sound of waves lapping against the shore and the feeling of a cool breeze floating through your door. You couldn't ask for a more relaxing setting.
The motel is also centrally located, with plenty of restaurants, bars, shops and a ferry to Martha's Vineyard all within walking distance. It made getting around very easy throughout the duration of our three-night stay.
And now to the real reason for this review - the atrocious customer service we received at the motel itself.
Full disclosure: Six of my friends and I booked two rooms at the motel for a low-key bachelor party weekend. (I understand that a lot of you will want to stop reading right now, but hear me out.) Believe me when I tell you that you couldn't find a more mild-mannered group of guys if you tried. But by the way we were treated, you'd think we had just escaped from prison and were running amok up and down Falmouth with no regard for human life.
When we got back to the hotel after our first night out, we were being a little loud on our deck and were asked to lower the noise level. We immediately apologized to the staff and the guests near us, and we made sure to be quiet inside our rooms for the rest of the evening. I wish the story ended there.
On Saturday night when we returned to the motel from dinner and a night out, one of the owners was WAITING FOR US IN THE PARKING LOT. We were told that anyone beyond the seven people in our original party had to leave immediately. Our plan was to hang out way down the beach so as not to disturb the other guests again, but we didn't even have a chance to get situated. Instead, we just went to bed, which is apparently the only thing you're allowed to do at the motel once the sun starts setting.
And now for the kicker. On Sunday night - our last night in Falmouth - our plan was to grab a bite to eat and make it an early night. We were hanging out on the beach in front of our rooms around 6 p.m., when another owner, who had to be in his 80s, sauntered up to a member of our group and started threatening him without so much as a "hello."
After acknowledging that we had been well-behaved since initially being warned on Friday night, the owner went off on us, saying things like, "You've been raising hell all weekend" and "If you make so much as a peep tonight, I'm going to call the police and have them bus you down to jail."
When we tried to respond to him coolly and calmly, he simply grew more ridiculous. One member of our group asked him if he could understand what it was like to be young and celebrate an important weekend, and he responded with, "I know all about fun, and I probably had more fun than you when I was growing up."
If that's the case, then it's pretty clear that he never hung out at the Tides Motel.
It got to a point where it was pretty obvious that he wasn't going to see eye to eye with us, so another member of our group basically had to tell him that he was absolutely right and we were unequivocally wrong. But before he left, he made a comment about us "trashing the rooms as revenge."
Yes, because that's exactly what seven young professionals are going to do - trash our rooms and then ride off in a blaze of glory, legal repercussions be damned. Spare me.
Before leaving on Monday morning, we cleaned our rooms top to bottom and took pictures of the finished product. The housekeeping team couldn't have done a better job if they had wanted. I asked the workers at the front desk if they'd like to accompany me to the rooms to prove we would never trash their hotel, and they declined. Smart move on their part.
We will all probably look back at this experience and laugh down the road. But for the time being, I think it's deplorable how all young people are thought of as troublemakers who disturb the peace for everyone around them. And until that changes, we won't be going back to a place like the Tides Motel.
No matter how nice the scenery might be.