Boardwalk Cottages — Hotel in Long Beach

I really wanted to love the Boardwalk Cottages after staying at Adrift and not liking that property. Previously we were allowed an earlier check in because we were staying at the sister property and the front desk staff at Adrift/ Inn at Discovery Coast were so helpful and accommodating. That was not the case at the Boardwalk Cottages. While it is another sister property, it is run by different staff. The front desk receptionist was icy at best when I requested an earlier check in. She was a bit more pleasant when we were finally allowed to check in to our room. ||We were located in cottage 11 which is right next to the largest cottage, occupied by a very rambunctious family with small children. For the next hour or so as we tried to rest, we were inundated with the sounds of pounding feet running up and down the stairs and squeals of delight. Probably very nice for the family itself; not so nice for us: the older couple next door trying to rest. ||The lighting situation was strange. The lights in the room were very dim. Though there was a sky light, it was too dim in the room to eat dinner or even read a book. The bathroom, however, was lit up like the sun. Evidence of wear and tear were prominent. Tiles off the tub, paint missing from the walls, privacy sheeting over the bathroom window was peeled off so anyone outside could look in. The lower levered blinds did nothing to protect privacy of a taller person. ||In the bathroom was a locked door and sounds came from this closet at odd times. I came to the conclusion that it was an on-demand hot water heater, but was shared with the next door property. Every time they ran water, our quiet was disrupted by this sound. ||This was not a quiet room. ||There were dishes provided, a microwave, and a refrigerator made up the "full kitchen". There were even dish towels and dish soap for cleaning up...in the bathroom sink I presume? ||Thankfully in-room coffee service was provided and we enjoyed the scones which arrived at our front door sometime around 9 am. ||Do note that early check-in or late check-outs incur an hourly fee ($50) and may not...

We visited here mid-autumn and it was a lovely experience! We visited with our dog which was only a $30 flat fee the entire stay he was with us. At first when we went to check in at the cafe it seemed a bit confusing since there doesn’t seem to be a sign with a designated “cottage guests” or something along those lines. After a bit of a wait we were helped and checked in. The staff is nice and especially the housekeeping was very helpful. What’s nice is that the cottage we had reserved had a kitchen with fairly new appliances and a fancy refrigerator that looks like the modern vintage ones. The bedroom didn’t have its own heater but we had the door open and the heat from either the gas fireplace or the living room heater was enough to keep us warm through the night. The place was overall nice and clean. Just like a hotel you have kitchen utensils and plates available for use and you have bathroom supplies such as shampoo, hair dryer and towels. My only complaint for the room is the kitchen window wouldn’t stay open so I needed to prop it open with a bowl when I was cooking. They have a nice barrel sauna that seems small from the outside but has lots of room. It is owned by the same people who own the hotel down the street so we were able to visit the heated pool and the large barrel saunas there as well. Even though we visited during what should have been a rainy and cold time we were blessed to have sunny days most of the time we were there. Something else about the cottages is that they have a room with bicycles and board games/puzzles/jenga. We used both games and the bikes and it was fun. Would definitely visit...

I’d give the service less than zero stars if I could. We have stayed at adrift a bunch and love their facilities. This visit to Boardwalk Cottages was by far the worst stay I’ve ever had at the coast.

Check in was ridiculous, the room we ended up in, not the room my booking site said, was not even listed on the property. Building is newer so of course it’s nice, but the fire place didn’t work the whole time, maintenance request was ignored, and only received cause the was someone downstairs at the diner, had it been after “hours” there is no way to get a hold of anyone. So when the power went out in just our room, I had to fix it myself.

Getting basic amenities like towels, which I requested at the front desk took 5 to 8 hrs and only after I found the house keeper cleaning the other rooms did I actually get towels. No extra trash bag or toilet paper, had to get our own. Basically ruined our Xmas, so that’ll be how this stay will be remembered. 25 dollars an hr for late checkout, always get an hr free at adrift.

Keys stopped working 3 times so I got locked out a couple times, at least 1 time there was someone at the front desk, but when there wasn’t, I was lucky my wife was up in the room. We love love love Long Beach, but this might be our last visit, it was that bad.

Yes, great location, but no one is out walking the strip or swimming or bicycling in December. We wanted easy access to our room, was the exact opposite, a working fire place, it didn’t work, thank God for the working HVAC. I actually looked forward to going home, probably easily the biggest waste of me and my family’s...