Ideal Beach Resort — Hotel in Garden City

This resort has gorgeous views, plenty of fun activities, beach is walking distance, multiple pools and hot tub. Why the 1-star? We stayed in unit 177 which had some safety and comfort issue that made the stay disappointing and frustrating. I cannot, in good conscience, recommend staying here especially given the resort did nothing to correct or resolve the issues. Both stair wells were so dark that you could not see well with no windows and non-functioning lights creating a tripping hazard with our young kids and elderly grandparent. The air-conditioning was set to 50 degrees and every time we raised the thermostat to a more comfortable temperature it would automatically change back to 50. We finally had to shut if off because it was so cold in the condo. We were all searching for socks and huddling under the few blankets that we could find in the unit. When we called the office to get help with the issues the message on the answering machine stated that they closed at 5:00 (check-in is not until 4:30) and they did not list an after-hours or emergency number to call so we had to wait until the next morning to try to get the issue resolved. When the maintenance person came the next afternoon, he changed the light bulbs but the lights still did not work. He said that it was a breaker issue but that he could not access the breaker panel box because the owners had locked the closet where it was nor could he fix the air-conditioning issue because he said that too, was an owner issue yet we had no way of contacting the owner! He did say that he would go see if his boss, Steve could help. Tyler came back to say that Steve said that it required an electrician so it could not be fixed during our stay. I asked him if we could move to another unit or leave early. He informed me that if we checked out early but there was no refund policy. He explained that we could however, fill out a refund request form that would be reviewed in October but no guarantee that we would receive a refund. I went back to speak with Hailey at the office and she acted flippant and said that there was nothing that she could do but that we could speak with the manager on Monday. There were also cleanliness issues. When we came into the unit there was a used comb and towel sitting on the couch. When we pulled the sheets back to get into bed there were stains on the sheets. When we looked for extra sheets to change the bedding, we found the closet in disarray with yellow stained pillows squished up on the shelf and sheets on the floor. The soap bottles were almost empty and when we turned off the ceiling fan because it was so cold in the room there was an inch of dust. On top of all that, in the main living area of the unit, there was a gap between the carpet and kitchen tile where the carpet had come loose and several people stepped on a carpet tack and hurt their foot. It happened often enough that we finally resorted to laying a blanket over the top of the gap. When we checked out on Monday, we asked to speak with the manager, Lexi, who was not there over the weekend and explained our disappointments and frustration. She came across as dismissive and unconcerned basically saying the same thing that we had be told, there were no refunds or compensation for inadequate accommodations, blaming the owners. I felt trapped between the employees of the resort whose job it is to maintain and clean the units but supposedly don’t have the power to issue a refund or find an acceptable resolution to issues and the owner of the unit who will decide if a refund or resolution is warranted but doesn’t have first hand knowledge of the problem. Having to wait several months for a meeting of the owners to decide who gets a refund or some kind of compensation seems arbitrary and a ridiculous way of...

I have stayed at Ideal Beach around 20 times, and decided it was time I would give it an honest review. We love this place, however there is much room for improvement.

The good: The location is wonderful, and just a short walk to the beach. Mini golf, basketball, tennis, and the pools are great activities to do throughout the day. We recently discovered they have a craft station just south of the pool, and we have done some fun crafts with the kids. The little store/lobby they have on the property is nice. It has a sitting area (with Wifi), a grocery area, and they have recently put in a little playpen for small children. We always get a cup of ice cream here as tradition before we walk down to the beach as well. The condo we stay in is slowly being updated, because we have noticed new couches, tvs, sinks, etc. It also fits a ton of people. The grass area and playground are great for playing games and being together with family.

The bad: The condos have no AC so it can become an oven in the middle of the day during summer. The fan does not cool it down enough. Usually there is no wifi in the condos, but we noticed this year they have an option for it. Unfortunately it has terrible service and is very spotty. Although the condo is decently clean, the outdated-ness of it makes it seem more dirty. The pools can sometimes be very dirty but I assume it's because people are in and out of the lake all day. The hot-tub closes at 10, which is super early in my opinion. All the condos are different, so be prepared if you are planning on staying here and do your research beforehand. We always stay on the top floor with a loft, but I know there are some that get different ones and people hate it. The sand walking down to the beach is rocky, and tears up your feet so bring sandals when walking down. This place is also very expensive, so save up!

Overall, we love this place. The kids love it, and there's tons to do so we try to...

We stayed in Unit 469, right above the store.

Pros: -cute place with lots of room! If you put two people on all the full mattresses, you can fit almost 20 people in there! -well maintained, carpet looked almost new. -no upstairs neighbors, only the store under you. -close to activities at the store, central pool, playground, mini golf and beach. -had AC, but some rooms still got stuffy (and we were there when it was quite cool) -came with soap and detergent and shampoo. Had some TP but not nearly enough. Maybe we could have asked for more but we just used our own. -so many fun things to do! We spent all day doing things and still couldn't do it all! Perfect for a family reunion. We loved checking out the games and equipment from the store. And my kids spent WAY more time than I expected playing chess and giant chess.

Cons: -apparently there are no quiet hours. We had neighbors whose teenagers were having stair jumping competitions at midnight. And six am. We called to ask if there was any way to put a stop to that, only to be informed that they don't have quiet hours or noise guidelines. So better hope your neighbors aren't horrible! -the back decks are all one big deck divided by low fencing. So there is no privacy if everyone is out on their own decks. -laundry facilities were kind of a long haul, plus the quarter machine wasn't working at one so we had to go to the other. $2 per load to wash, another $2 per load to dry. Quarters only. But the dryers actually functioned really well, so that's a plus! -to be expected, but the store was ridiculously overpriced. We needed Ziploc bags and paid about $5 for something that was $2-3 in a regular store.

Overall, we had a lovely stay here and are definitely considering it again for future...