Jodi S.
Yelp
We were totally pumped for our two-day getaway to celebrate our 25th anniversary (we haven't had a weekend away in nearly 8 years!), and we felt we have earned a couple nights away in luxury! H2O is definitely a splurge at nearly $1800 for two nights, which is why we were shocked at what we experienced. When we checked in, we were given champagne. There were anniversary balloons in our room. Those 'little touches' were most definitely not lost on us. All that said, though, we were surprised to find our private plunge pool wasn't private at all - anyone walking by or staying in the rooms next to us could see in. We were also shocked to find our pool was as in disrepair - peeling paint, weird (and gross) 'floaties' in the pool, and the bottom of the pool contained a good amount of sand and was badly stained. The entire pool just looked dirty and didn't look anything like the photos. Our first night at H2O was spent on a broken bed which resulted in almost no sleep. We alerted the front desk first thing the next morning and we were assured that our bed would be tended to. When we got back to the room later that afternoon, we could see that housekeeping definitely came, but he bed was not fixed, and the door to our room was left OPEN. Yes, you read that correctly - the door to our room was left ajar. We then noticed the bed was still horribly broken. In the midst of a downpour, two men came to assess the bed. Despite a bit of a language barrier, we were able to get our point across and explain what was wrong - and sure enough, it was determined there was a problem with the box spring. Unfortunately, in having to fix the bed, the clean bedding was pulled off and placed on the floor. When housekeeping returned to remake our bed, they wanted to remake the bed with the sheets that had been removed and put on the floor. The staff literally argued with me and insisted it was clean - and it was before being put on the floor. Ultimately, housekeeping agreed to remake the bed with fresh bedding, but not without making us feel like our request was absurd. Also, the comforters are not washed or replaced between guests - they are wrapped in two sheets, but are re-used between guests (I specifically asked two different people from housekeeping who confirmed this). Further, when our room had been tended to earlier in the day, the robes were removed and not replaced with clean ones (we did not expect replacement robes, so we had them hanging on a hook to dry). There was a sign that the robes were available for purchase at $75/each. How could I prove we didn't take them?! We requested two fresh robes and housekeeping ultimately complied, but again, it wasn't without hassle at that point. We were made to feel like we were being difficult customers when so much had already gone wrong already. The last straw for us was when we requested a late checkout (checkout is at 11, but we were told during checkin that if a request is made on the day of checkout for a later time, it can be extended until noon). We called around 8:30 a.m. on our checkout day to find out we could not checkout at noon; we were told they had "given away all of the late checkouts" and we were expected to leave promptly at 11. No adjustments were made to our enormous bill for the mishaps that we experienced. Extending our check out (even if just one hour later) would have been easy way for us to leave feeling a little bit better about the amount we spent. Nope. Bottom line? If you have low expectations with regard for cleanliness and room upkeep, this is your place. If you feel like spending nearly $900/night on a hotel room should afford you the luxury of what the photos look like? Save your money and stay elsewhere. I can see how people love this hotel because the attention to detail IS impressive. But so many little things were missed during our stay, it left us with buyer's remorse rather than the buoyant feeling we expected to feel after such a big splurge. We wanted to truly celebrate our 25th anniversary, not walk away feeling like H2O was a bait and switch. We will not stay at H2O again - it simply wasn't worth the cost (for us). But, if you have a disposable income and $1800 for two nights is your speed, your expenditure will include two muffins and two chocolates every evening, you'll receive frozen chocolate Dove bars, and your fridge will be restocked with bottles of water - like I said above, these little touches were absolutely appreciated. But the minute details like having a bed that's not broken, or having a plunge pool that isn't in disrepair, or having the robes and slippers removed without replacements, or the door being left unlocked and open by housekeeping were completely overlooked. H2O nee a facelift and a customer service overhaul.