Sir Sam's Inn and Spa- Ontario's Cottage Country Adult Resort — Hotel in Dysart et al

Our entire stay at Sir Sam's was wretchedly disappointing. Upon first arrival, we received two keys for the door of our suite, which was located outside of the main building. Neither key worked. I walked back to the building, and was given another key, which the desk person wasn't sure would work, either. Luckily, it did.

The building we were in was quite rundown on the outside, but I hoped the inside would better. It was not. The suite was ramshackle, with rusted electric baseboards, grungy walls, and the smell of cigarette smoke. The bathtub had been clad in wood boards at some point in an effort to spruce it up, and those boards were waterlogged and moulding. Everywhere we looked, there was evidence of DIY reno's, all very poorly done. In the kitchenette we found a melted spatula and a disgusting cutting board that was split in several places, so I would strongly recommend you bring your own kitchenwares if you plan on cooking.

The water tasted weird and was brown, so we decided to ask at the bar for bottled water. Alas, evidently the entire facility was devoid of water save for one single small bottle. In the evening, we began to hear a persistent electrical alarm beeping, and this continued the entire night; I believe it was a UV water filter or similar, but we couldn't find it to silence it.

The smell of smoke in the suite was strong enough to keep us up all night. I don't know if the neighbour was smoking, or if the suite always smells like that, but it was also very musty so I assume the latter. I also was disgusted to find that the linens were stained with what appeared to be old blood or coffee.

At this point you may be wondering why we didn't leave. We were in need of the kitchenette, for one. Secondly, you really are in the middle of nowhere up here--so there isn't really another hotel you can hop over to. Thankfully we were only staying one day so we did our best to get through it. We lay in bed and stared up at the remnants of the smoke detector, which at some point had been unceremoniously dismantled.

I did try to reach out to the front desk for support that evening, but no one answered the phone despite several calls. The next morning I emailed them, but have received no response.

For those who are thinking they may stay in the main building with more success, I suggest you consider carefully. When I was in there, I noticed that the indoor pool was causing a lot of pool smell and extremely moist air. In fact, the front door glass was 'sweating' with the humidity. I doubt I'd have had a healthy and safe sleep in the main building, either.

If you're going to stay in Haliburton, I think it's wiser to search out...

I’ll get right to it:

The good: The property itself is gorgeous. Beautiful view of the lake with lounge chairs all around to sit and watch the sunset. Lovely trees and a view of the lake right from our room. Very comfortable bed/pillows Huge jet tub (fits two people) in the room with nice wooden features Room was clean with coffee maker inside the fireplace in the room was just lovely walk out room with table and chairs to enjoy a private morning coffee Food in the restaurant is no doubt delicious and perfectly prepared! Hats off to the chef! (Food is expensive but you get what you pay for) The water spa is beautiful with a large window and view of the lake The massage we received was great

The bad: We were left wishing there was a little more direction provided for our stay. Staff were sparse (we waited at the front desk for about ten minutes before somebody greeted us, and that was only because I poked my head around the place and called out a “… hello?”. We didn’t know, is the water potable? How does the spa work? Where do we go for our massage? Are we allowed to use the tennis courts? The canoes? Are we allowed to use the fire pit by the lake? How do we start the fire in our room with only large logs provided (no kidding, paper, or matches). We were sort of left to guess everything which was a bit annoying. I feel like we probably missed out on things because we didn’t know any better. A small handout with information about the place would have been very much appreciated. The water smells like fish. This includes the water served in the restaurant and the water in the tub. I realize it’s lake water but, it certainly is off-putting. Maybe provide some essential oils by the tub? We had to buy our own water to drink. The water spa could use a little TLC. The blue benches looked like they were dirty so we didn’t want to sit on them. Also half the jets didn’t work in the spa. The common areas of the main building could use a facelift as well. The chairs and tables in the screened-in porch were all in disarray and the games room things were sort of just… askew. A quick tidy up and modernization would make those areas a lot more inviting.

Overall, I feel it is a beautiful place to get away. It is quiet and serene and if you love being close to nature this place is lovely and relaxing. That being said, greater attention to detail and the guest experience could really take this place to the next level and turn a “meh” into a “wow!”…. that’s the kind of place that gets recommended...

This was our 5th visit and as we love the drive there and the beautiful location and scenery , it will be a struggle to justify a repeat visit as there were many disappointments. This makes me sad because there are so many wonderful things about this place too. |Firstly, the houskeeping was lacking pathetically. Our room was NOT clean. There were hairs left in the tub,. the toilet needing cleaning, the ceiling fan was filthy, and there were dishes outside our room from our neighbours that were there when we arrive and still there whan we left. We did not see one housekeeper the entire time. I had to voice a concern and because there are no phones to call the desk I had to call the outside line to get someone . Our little deck , with dirty patio chairs and table needed staining 7 years ago and has not changed and in fact gotten worse with cobwebs and peeling paint. The cutains were dirty and dusty and the shelf over the firplace had so much dust on it I could write my name. ||Secondly, the breakfast were terrible. Both mornings. And I never complain about food but the second morning my sandwich was unedible. I ordered the BLTCE sandwich and the toast was burnt and the lettuce had brown edges and the bacon was half raw. . How do you screw up breakfast when there are two other tables to cook for? I should have caused a fuss but didn't want to disrupt the peace of the dining room. I did mention it quietly to the waitress the first morning that the homefries were cold and she hopefully told the cook but it was the same the next morning. How dare they charge 30 dollars for this and two of the smallest eggs I have ever seen. Also the complimentary continentinal addition of a fruit cup and yogurts was a nice touch but why only one cup of fruit, There are two people , shouldn't each one have their own . For that price there sure should be. To be fair though the suppers were very nice and the wine selection was great. ||The staff are lovely and very friendly but it just seems that there is no one to take the reins and get this place up to snuff. I am sure that a lot of these things have been brought to the attention of the staff and I know that there are still things to recover from since COVID and I realize that costs have gone up everywhere. But if the standards are not increased up to our expectations and justification of spending over a 1000.00 dollars to stay there for two nights then we will be sad...