Ramada Hollywood Beach Resort

My letter to RCI and Ramada about my vacation says it all: "Dear Sir/Madam:I want to inform you, in writing, of the unsafe, hazardous and frightening experience me and my son had at the above referenced resort and date. For your information, I am an Emergency Room Nurse and I was vacationing alone my 22 month old son, Danny. This is a Ramada Resort, which I thought would be okay.The parking was attached to a building that was being knocked down. See attached photo of not only the View from my room but you can see all the demolition going on.

Demolition began at 7:00 a.m. outside my window each morning. This included cranes, plows, jackhammers, etc. as you can see from the picture. Besides being unable to sleep in the morning, trying to access the garage meant walking Underneath moving heavy equipment. I literally ran on one occasion carrying my son because the cranes moved over top of our heads. The resort was dirty. My suite smelled of cigarettes. The smell of pot drifted in the hallways. The stores that use to be in the resort had moved out. The resort is depressed, run down and has clearly seen better days. I came to find out that this resort is low income temporary housing. This was discovered when on my third day, when the loud fire alarms went off at 9:00 a.m When I looked out the window I saw firetrucks in front of the resort. Being on the 6th floor, I grabbed my baby and we ran down the staircase in our pajamas. The stairwell doors were locked from floor three down. I thought we were trapped. We ran back up to the fourth floor where I was able to get out of the stairwell and ran into people who advised me that this is a routine drill and didnt Ramada tell me about the drills when I moved in there. When I advised them I was a guest at the hotel they told me they were permanent residents on rent subsidy and that the front desk should have told me they were having a fire drill, since I was obviously in distress thinking a fire was occurring. [If you look at the attached photo you will see the fire trucks, I took this picture before I checked out]A resident walked with me to the front desk, because I had locked me and the baby out in my rush to escape our room. After waiting 10 minutes on line, I was embarrassed because people were looking at me in my pajamas. A representative finally came to the front desk and said oh, it was only a drill, sorry, dont be afraid. They gave me a key to get back in my room. I asked why the firetrucks were there and they said it was routine. When I asked how I would have gotten out if there was a fire and the doors were locked from three down I was told to take the elevator. I was than advised that the doors were locked because of problems with security. Needless to say, I went to my room, called the manager of the Ramada (Mr. Sean Marchessault) to complain of my experience (he did not return my two calls to him even though the receptionist told me he was there) and packed and left. I enclose a copy of my check out on Tuesday morning, October 21st. I lost all the food I bought because I could not carry it, my baby and our bags. Oh yeah, no valet service was available. So, in summary, this is the first complaint letter I ever wrote in my life but felt compelled to tell you about my vacation from Hell. Please see your Exchange Information letter. Under the Special Notes section it should have stated that this resort is under construction/demolition, stores have moved out and is affiliated with subsidized low housing living. I look forward to a response from you. I am,

This hotel was nothing like the picture. Once me and my best friend arrived, we couldnt even see the hotel for all the construction. The customer service was terrible. They didnt even want to fix anything.

The window in our room was broken the wind blew it all night long, the floor was slippery from it being ceramic tile...no carpet whatsoever.

The ceiling in the bathroom leaked, there was no hot water. We asked for two beds, they gave us a bed and a futon. The hotel looks deserted, there was more space in there for lease then there was actual things to do. The conceirge was no good, he doesnt tell you things to do until the night before you check out and then you get your package. My recommendation is do not stay in Hollywood Beach there is nothing to do.

Great Beach Location!

Pool area nice and very clean, attendants very helpful and courteous.

Pool lighted nicely at night but closed at 8:00 pm.

Rooms: smallest ever stayed in except for cruise ship! Virtually no view. A/C noisy, power shortages for short periods, noisy due to maintenace and renovations.

Concierge very helpful going out of their way to accomodate and assist multiple times.

Parking is a daily expense.

Can see true potential of hotel when all renovations are completed!

Very nice with the best location!

Continental breakfast was more than expected and very good.

We got a great deal and would absolutely do it again!!!

The location, right on the beach and the broadwalk is great, and the price is right. There is no doubt about it, it is an old property, built in the 20's, but there is alot of history about it; built of imported Belgium brick,I understand it was the only building in the area to survive the great hurricane of '29! It is true the rooms are not gigantic, but we don't spend much time in the room anyway. Not many of the maids speak English, however when not enough towels were available, or a light bulb was burned out, I left a note in the room about it for the maid on my way out to the beach, and when I returned it was taken care of. There are good, inexpensive, restaurants within walking distance of the hotel.All in all, a good place to stay for someone on a budget. I will go there again.

I read the reviews and I am glad I went to experience the place for myself. I had absolutely no problems, the room was recently renovated, the breakfast in Club Atlantic was great and O'Malley's Ocean Pub served the best seafood I have ever had. I strongely recommend this place to anyone.

The staff was great, especially John & Debbie at the pool. The hotel has a great pool just steps from the beach.

The location is spectacular. It has everything you need right there. The employees were very friendly and helpful. You have the beach steps away, and if you would rather sit by the pool they have that too. It was not a "busy, tourist" area when we went in early May, which was nice. The restaurant / bar "O'Malley's" was great, there was good food and entertainment every night. It is an old hotel, but that added to the atmosphere. It was clean and the kitchenette was very convenient. I would recommend this hotel for it's price, service, and accomodations.

My girlfriend and I stayed here in Spring 2002 for 4 nights. The pictures made it look kind of nice, but in reality it is very run-down. Surprised that a condominium/rental complex is in this kind of shape.We did not experience any major issues, but in general was not even worth the relatively affordable price for this area of florida. We did like the location being right on boardwalk,etc. However, the front desk was rude and lucky if they even spoke english! plus the kitchenette consisted of a tiny fridge, a tiny microwave, a couple dishes, and the general feeling you were staying in a firetrap did not help. Beware...

Brought kids (ages 11,7,4) They were approached by a woman who attempted to send them off searching for a lost piece of jewelery and offered them $100.00. The hotel smelt like urine. The main bathrooms were locked. The restaurant in the hotel had been closed down a week earlier. The ceilings and walls were in decay with plaster falling off and stained. The tub was stained. We awoke with the electricity off on our last day and were unable to take showers because there was no hot water. It was the worst lodging I have ever had. Never again.

Bar none. Absolutely the worst customer service in travel I've ever dealt with. Hotel refused to honor printed, confirmed and held by credit card reservation rate. Refused to let me speak with a manager.

Then, to beat all, refused to honor rate after Ramada corporate headquarters called and told them to honor it.

Terrible, terrible, terrible. Will never deal with Ramada again. I realize this is a franchise, but they were awful. DO NOT STAY HERE.

The room we had did not feel clean. The bathtub did not drain. Even though it was obvious two adults were occupying the room, the maid service left only one bath towel.

Some of the folks arriving looked like they were reserving a room for an hour - one "lady's" dress was open to the waist with no underwear visible. When she turned around, the dress was split to the waist - again with no underwear visible - three small gold chains.

We we totally unhappy with this resort. It is a disgrace to both the Ramada and the RCI names.