Huttopia Southern Maine — Restaurant in Sanford

This is just my honest review from my POV and I am going to go into this with a lot of caveats (I noticed there aren't any reviews since Aug 2024, hopefully they aren't out here deleting reviews). ||Caveat 1. We aren't "campers". We don't do tent camping or rough it as a family in the wilderness, if you do you probably won't care about some of this stuff. If you do, the accomodations are probably more than up to par! We do campgrounds though, I have since I was little all over CA, KOAs, and in the mountains of TN the past two summers, and the accomodations are always up to par (I don't think I expect too much) 2. We went with small children. 3. It was hotter than blazes the week we were there.||PROS: Like to start with the good first- :)|1. Pond- AMAZING, loved our days there. Kids had a blast, clean, no boats, felt like a lake, shallow for littles to play, great views, dock for bigs to swim to and jump off of. Bring floaties or noodles (for adults too) and beach toys for kids. They have canoes and paddle boards for rent at a reasonable price. This was the best part of our trip, hands down! |2. Activities- Huttopia is really great with the copious amount of activities for kids (and adults) to enjoy-a big part why we booked here and I understand goes into the cost (s'mores, the magician and the live band were universally loved!) However, during the day it was too hot for us to bring our toddler over to the cafe, which is not air conditioned either, to partake so we missed a lot. :(|3. Playground on site, it is simple but our kids loved this in the evenings when it cooled off and played until dark. They made friends and it was super memorable for them!|4. I will say they provided almost everything in the tiny house we needed for cooking or cleaning the cabin ourselves. |5. The cafe area is clutch for a hang out- with tons of games, big Jenga, table hockey, plus the cafe itself for cold drinks (free ice water!) and snacks and close proximity to the playground. We only ate breakfast there once, but the crepes were decent.|6. The people who work here were accommodating and the manager Margeaux(?) was very helpful! ||CONS: |1. NO AC/NO Cieling Fans even- Now, this part is entirely our fault, but will say it pretty much ruined our stay. I say it is our fault because we overlooked that there was NO AC when we booked, what a colossal oversight! It was 90 degrees in July and the 1 stnading fan for the tiny vista house's 2 bedrooms they provided didn't do a dang thing. We were sweating all night, the windows being opened provided little relief unless you were right under it. Lack of good sleep, is the downfall of a good vacation IMO, I don't think I hit REM sleep the whole time. ||If I can say one thing to Huttopia it is abandon your "open-air layout" marketing campaign and put in AC units in your cabins!! Your guests will be so much more comfortable. ||2. This has to do with cost for what you get: We encountered cleanliness issues—dead and live spiders and other dead bugs under the bunk beds, a steady trail of large black ants in the bunk room (which made our youngest child refuse to sleep there thus she ended up in the queen bed with me and my husband), and visible dust bunnies and piles of something being eaten away at by some insect in the wall, under the beds. Pine needles weren’t just near the entrance—they were layered behind the bathroom door as well. Cobwebs in the corners, a sink that clogged and a toilet that was faulty. For $450 per night, we expected a much higher standard (especially because you also have to clean up before you leave and drive your trash out to the entrance every time the tiny can gets full) . At that price point, we could’ve stayed at the Four Seasons, with AC, a spotless and bug-free room, daily housekeeping, and premium amenities. Huttopia didn’t come close to matching that level of comfort, cleanliness or care. It would have been totally worth it for about half the cost. ||If I can say something to Huttopia, you need to revise your prices to match the quality of accommodations you are providing.||3. To go into the above a little more- there were also a few just kind of annoying things- like when we arrived one of the bunk beds had no sheets. We had to walk to the reception to request it - then the person working has to golf cart over somewhere to retrieve it. We also stayed in a 5 person vista- but had 4 towels. When we discovered this the first night bathing the kids- we went to request it but they said we would have to wait until morning. It just felt like we had to keep going up there to get anything we needed- and if you are an introvert you may not like that. |Also, even though we paid extra for the sheets (yes they charge for that) - there is not a single top sheet, just a fleece blanket or heavy duvet (in Summer, in 90 degree heat, in a cabin with no AC). If we are paying for sheets - at least do a bottom AND top sheet. ||Bonus- Walmart is very close- but we spent $200 on sheets and fans just to be a little more comfortable. When you pay over $2K for something -you shouldn't have to do that. ||Overall, if you are true campers this would feel like luxury with four walls, beds, a runnning toilet, and hot shower. If you are a family with small children, you may want to consider bringing a portable AC unit for each room if you are going in the Summer and your own sheets. (Which we could not do because we flew from out of state). ||Another hot tip: We went to Old Orchard Beach one of the days to escape the heat, it was about 40 mins away and that was a...

I went to Huttopia in Southern Maine with just me, my son (7), and our dog. We paid a lot of money for a long weekend. Despite the website, Airbnb listing, this trip advisor page specific to this location, showing dogs in and around the water, dogs are not allowed anywhere near the water and I was not made aware of this until after I checked in. Dogs are not even allowed at the beach. They also cannot be left at camp site alone. So, my entire trip was ruined because of this. Since it was just me and my 7 year old, we were unable to utilize any of the facilities with water, or the kayaks or paddle boards or even play in the sand at the beach. We played on the playground and at our tent site. That was all we could do. I mentioned this issue twice to the staff and was only told “we’ll relay your message to marketing to update the sites”. This doesn’t help. |I ended up calling around and paying extra for some random doggy daycare to take my dog for a while so we could utilize the water for a few hours.||Otherwise, tent sites were clean and cute. This place has the potential to be great. |Additional thoughts: events are at 8:30,3, and 6. While we were there the events changed from a scavenger hunt that my son was excited for to bracelet making, then last min. Just to bookmark making. I would recommend enhancing the events! Only 1 family went to the 3pm event. So we chose to just stay at the playground/ping pong area||They have board games to play but no water toys, the badminton and other lawn games were missing pieces or broken. Kids often take the lawn games and hide them/leave them around. I know this isn’t the sites fault, but maybe keeping some games behind the counter that you need to sign out to play!?|You can bring your own fishing pole and fish. But it’s on the beach or dock which is off from the beach. This made swimming a bit concerning as kids were casting their lines near us swimming. Maybe a dock specific for fishing away from the swim area? |If dogs are going to be allowed but not at the water, maybe spend some money to add dog specific areas where we can hook the dogs up nearby on a run or something? Maybe a doggy daycare area on site? I don’t know… ||I will not return here… especially with a dog. I was not the only one...

I went to Huttopia in Southern Maine with just me, my son (7), and our dog. We paid a lot of money for a long weekend. Despite the website, Airbnb listing, this trip advisor page specific to this location, showing dogs in and around the water, dogs are not allowed anywhere near the water and I was not made aware of this until after I checked in. Dogs are not even allowed at the beach. They also cannot be left at camp site alone. So, my entire trip was ruined because of this. Since it was just me and my 7 year old, we were unable to utilize any of the facilities with water, or the kayaks or paddle boards or even play in the sand at the beach. We played on the playground and at our tent site. That was all we could do. I mentioned this issue twice to the staff and was only told “we’ll relay your message to marketing to update the sites”. This doesn’t help. |I ended up calling around and paying extra for some random doggy daycare to take my dog for a while so we could utilize the water for a few hours.||Otherwise, tent sites were clean and cute. This place has the potential to be great. |Additional thoughts: events are at 8:30,3, and 6. While we were there the events changed from a scavenger hunt that my son was excited for to bracelet making, then last min. Just to bookmark making. I would recommend enhancing the events! Only 1 family went to the 3pm event. So we chose to just stay at the playground/ping pong area||They have board games to play but no water toys, the badminton and other lawn games were missing pieces or broken. Kids often take the lawn games and hide them/leave them around. I know this isn’t the sites fault, but maybe keeping some games behind the counter that you need to sign out to play!?|You can bring your own fishing pole and fish. But it’s on the beach or dock which is off from the beach. This made swimming a bit concerning as kids were casting their lines near us swimming. Maybe a dock specific for fishing away from the swim area? |If dogs are going to be allowed but not at the water, maybe spend some money to add dog specific areas where we can hook the dogs up nearby on a run or something? Maybe a doggy daycare area on site? I don’t know… ||I will not return here… especially with a dog. I was not the only one...