Bayview Wildwood Resort, an Ascend Collection Resort — Hotel in Severn

My recent stay at Bayview Wildwood Resort in Port Stanton, Ontario, was an experience filled with both highlights and disappointments, making it a somewhat confusing review to give. Let's break it down.

The shining star of my visit was undoubtedly the food service. The culinary offerings were a delight to the taste buds, with imaginative and delicious dishes that left me eager for every meal. However, it's worth noting that the descriptions on the menu occasionally fell short of accurately representing what was served. Despite this minor discrepancy, I thoroughly enjoyed each dining experience.

In addition to the aspects mentioned earlier, it's essential to highlight a rather frustrating aspect of our stay. Prior to our visit, we had called to inquire about the included meals, and we were explicitly informed that they encompassed breakfast, lunch, and dinner. However, upon our arrival, we were disheartened to learn that lunch was no longer included as part of the package. This unexpected change left us with limited choices: either purchase lunch from the resort's snack shop, which came at an additional cost, or venture out of the resort to find lunch options, which were roughly 30 minutes away. This was a notable inconvenience that tarnished an otherwise enjoyable experience.

Moving on to the accommodations, my room was a picturesque haven. It exuded rustic charm, offering ample space and a level of comfort that one would expect from a reputable resort. However, my satisfaction with the room was somewhat marred by a few inconveniences. Surprisingly, I found myself having to call for additional toilet paper during my stay, which seemed unusual given the daily room servicing. Furthermore, while the air conditioning initially worked perfectly upon my arrival, it mysteriously ceased to function properly. Despite my attempts to remedy the situation, I eventually had to seek assistance from the front desk. Unfortunately, this hiccup prevented me from enjoying the cool, comfortable sleep I had anticipated. It was disappointing to have to resort to opening the balcony doors and relying on a ceiling fan to regulate the room's temperature.

When I brought these concerns to the attention of the front desk during check-out, I expected a more empathetic response. Instead, I received a rather stern look and a suggestion that I should have reported the issues earlier. Perplexed, I explained that I had indeed brought them up during my stay, but my comment was met with an awkward silence. This lackluster customer service was a letdown and an area that could use improvement for future guests.

On a brighter note, the natural surroundings and recreational activities provided some enjoyable moments. The waterfront location was lovely, and the kayaks, though not top-tier, were suitable for leisurely use. The highlight of my evenings was undoubtedly the heated pool, which offered a serene setting for stargazing under the milky way and bright night stars. It was a tranquil and memorable experience.

Lastly, I must mention an additional activity – the cocktail-making class. While there was an extra charge for this experience, it didn't quite meet my expectations. Instead of a hands-on lesson, it turned out to be more of a demonstration. We watched someone craft delicious cocktails, took it upon ourselves to note down the formulations, and then enjoyed consuming the creations. Admittedly, the end result was delightful, but it left me feeling that a similar experience could be achieved through YouTube tutorials without the added expense. The cocktail class also provided a delightful opportunity to experience the bartender's sense of humor. We met new people we might not have encountered otherwise.

In conclusion, Bayview Wildwood Resort offers an overall pleasant stay with several notable highlights, including exceptional food and a picturesque setting. However, it falls short in terms of consistent room maintenance and customer service responsiveness. There's room for improvement, and I would rate my experience...

This was our third year visiting. We have always had a great time. This time was a disappointment mostly as related to food.

The meal plan, it doesn’t make any sense that you pay for a meal plan that would logically cover 3 meals a day but that you don’t get lunch on the day of arrival nor the day of departure. This meant spending $130 on lunch for our family of 5 at the store, which also took over an hour to receive and arrived wrong this afternoon. The staff in the store also had no idea that the dinning room wasnt going to be open today and were completely unprepared for the influx of guests at lunch.

Dinner on Friday was so below the quality of anything we have previously experienced af the resort that it was embarrassing to have previously raved about the offerings to the other 2 families we had invited up. Stale hamburger buns at the table, which were just heated and returned to the table when we asked if there were any fresh buns. The buffet was just plain pasta with tomato sauce or “pulled” meats with a strange variety of rice/corn and tortilla but no toppings to make burritos/tacos or buns as you would expect for a pulled meat sandwich. For those of us who ordered off the menu the chicken pastina soup was full of flavour, but contained no pasta at all, which is within the name of the soup. Most of our adults ordered the “garden risotto” which was a bowl of boiled quinoa (no rice, not creamy and zero flavour) with a very small amount of vegetable. The “risotto” description did state that there was quinoa but not that it was the primary ingredient or that it wouldn’t be as a standard creamy rice dish.

The biggest annoyance this year as related to food however was the lack of readily available gluten free options and the understanding of the staff to ensure they were made available. My daughter (9) can’t have gluten, because almost all of the buffet items were not GF regularly she had to order off the menu and/or ask for things to be made. We have never had any issue in the past with this however, this year, there was a clear language barrier with some of the staff and willingness to accept requests directly from my daughter (she went to the staff herself in the buffet more than once to ask for items - GF pancakes at breakfast which she has ordered without issue the last two years, or ice cream as all the deserts available were pastries, was was told that they couldn’t accommodate until I went to speak with the) This morning she ended up having to wait over 30 minutes for breakfast this morning because the staff didn’t understand me when I request for French toast with GF bread be made prior to her arriving so that she wouldn’t have to wait and instead just refilled the regular French toast and then I had to speak with someone else to request again while she was...

There were many issues with our stay. Cleanliness. Service. Amenities.

Room cleanliness and condition there were cheerios and a garbage wrapper on the floor upon check in. many broken baseboards and trim pieces bathroom heater broken door had many scratch marks and exposed wood visible water damage in areas of room one of the lights (controlled by remote control) would randomly turn off and on, as well as the fan.

Service no front desk staff was friendly. Just monotone and doing the bare minimum ordered food from market on first night. Was told I’d have to pick it up at front desk as the market was closing in a couple of minutes. She asked for me to write phone number incase we weren’t there when it was ready. 40 minutes later my husband went to the front desk where they apologized and said they didn’t have my number … I stopped at front desk one day to ask for more keurigs. I explained we were on our way out for a drive. I was told they would bring them to our room. 2 hours later, no keurigs. I called about an hour after that and they said they would get some sent up. An hour after that, my husband went to the front desk to get some himself… not sure if the room was supposed to be serviced daily. But the first day it was, however the second day it was not. And we had run out of soap and needed clean towels.

Hotel condition the pool room is not properly ventilated. The few toys there were moldy, broken or deflated. The water was cloudy. the outside of the property is in terrible condition. Broken signs, crumbling trim and deck boards. Mold and water damage everywhere.

Food extremely overpriced. You have the option of an overpriced buffet, or a small takeout menu which was insanely expensive! No other information for restaurants nearby were provided.

Amenities there were lots of activities to do, which was great! tv had only a couple channels - none of which were suitable for kids.

After checkout when we arrived home I noticed I had forgotten my usb drive in the back of the tv. I emailed them that night to request they have a look. They responded right away and said they’d have someone look the next day. I didn’t not hear back that day. I emailed later that night and they responded the next day saying they did not find it.

Overall our stay was alright. Our kids had a great time. The room was otherwise clean, hotel seemed clean in general. The food we did eat was good. The supervised children’s program and the indoor play area was great!! The kids want to go again. But I’m not sure we’ll...