Westgate Resorts

Not up to Westgate’s usual standards. Will not go back.

Horrible customer service and management at front desk.

Called ahead to be sure our utility style golf cart would be allowed on the premises. Was told “Yes”. However, on the sixth day of our stay we were told by security that it was not allowed. Also, signing in as Westgate owners, we were given a map, and a couple printouts about the rules, etc. Unlike other Westgate resorts, we were left to find our way to our cabin on our own.

Nowhere were the Owner’s discounts or benefits listed or told to us. We were told at the end of our stay that we could have had mid week room cleaning. Really? We were also told at the end of the week, that the $60/day charge ($50 for successive days) for the onsite rental golf carts was discounted for Westgate owners. Had we been advised of that, we would not have brought our own (apparently non-permitted) cart with us. Also, if you do rent a cart, be advised that every road other than the one main paved road in the resort has a sign on it that says, “Rented Golf Carts Not Allowed.”

They boast 1600+ acres, but you don’t have access to any of them other than via the Swamp Buggy Ride or the Horseback Ride. I would have expected some hiking trails or even some groomed golf cart trails through some of that acreage, but I did not see any. There are several nicely fenced pastures with horses, emu, buffalo and long horned steers, but guests have no interaction with the animals other than those in the petting farm. I guess the rest are basically eye-candy. The Swamp Buggy ride and the Air Boat ride were okay… but can get very expensive if you have a family of 4 or more… there was little else to do during the week.

Every activity costs quite a bit and if you book in advance, they will still cancel the activity when you show up, if there are not enough people signed up. Hard to plan your day around that. They boast a rodeo and a Saloon, but Saloon is only open on the weekend. Also, it gets very crowded with the locals who come for the rodeo and line dancing, etc. So good luck with that. The General store was not well stocked and expensive. Stopped in to get some bottled water upon our arrival and waited more than 30 minutes in a line of about six people to check out. The pizza there was not very good, either. We drove the 20 miles to the local Walmart (which surprisingly had Publix quality produce and inventory, at Wally prices).

Filled up our fridge with that and cooked for ourselves most days because there is ONLY ONE restaurant at the resort and it is not always open. Also, it would have been nice to have had that restaurant’s menu in the room. The food there was acceptable, but fairly standard fare. I passed on the horseback riding as it was, in my opinion, an expensive adult pony ride in the hot sun.

I found cheaper better riding activities outside the resort. Having been at Westgate in Orlando and Tennessee, I expected to see at least a couple of nice pools, but there is only one tiny pool.

On the good side, our cabin unit was clean and comfortable, but the kitchen was poorly designed – hard to get into cabinets- top drawer of dishwasher partially unusable because it is set under the sink, etc. If you stay in the cabin units, you can see 8 buffalo roaming in the field behind the units which was nice. However, I noticed they were panting heavily and there was very little shade for them in that field. They were also in the process of shedding their winter coats and looked as though they needed some serious grooming. Their water trough was not very clean, either, but I did see them being fed regularly. Left early. Will not go back.

The Westgate Hotel

Barf Smell and Stain & Shockingly Poor Service

We came here for a great weekend with friends and reserved two rooms that were connected by a small hallway.

One room was fine, but the other room’s window was open upon arrival which we thought was odd. As we walked in, the smell of barf overcame all of us and we realized there was a slightly dark area on the carpet.

The hotel had left the windows open hoping that the smell of the barf would go away but it was still clearly there.

That already put a damper to the special weekend. It was also disappointing that the front desk knew about the barf but continued to book us that room regardless. We then asked for another set of two rooms and they put us on a higher floor but the rooms weren’t connected by a small hallway like before, but through a door awkwardly positioned right next to a bed so that we always had to squeeze through to visit each others’ rooms. It was difficult to manoeuvre around so we all ended up in one room most of the time.

Then another problem came up. One of us had left her toothbrush at home. We simply requested one from the front desk, and they said they could only give us a dental kit for a $5 non-negotiable fee.

We asked them just for the toothbrush and that for the level of this hotel, we expected that a toothbrush would be complimentary. There are Holidays Inns that gave them out without charge so we didn’t understand why this was such a problem.

We tried talking to them multiple times but they countered so many times, and their responses became ruder every time. They just kept saying that this was non-negotiable.

For a hotel whose top priority should be exceptional customer service, we just could not understand why they found their stance to be more important than to give out one toothbrush.

The effort was exhausting.

They made us feel terrible about asking and it made me not want to stay at Westgate again nor recommend to anyone. I accepted their non-negotiable toothbrush policy and let them know I will write a review that would reflect this policy and their customer service.

The front desk let me know that they will take this as a threat and respond. I didn’t mean that to be a threat but their defensive attitude really shocked and disappointed me. I’ve never been treated by hotels of any level like this. I will not be coming back. Show less

Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa

Terrible, Horrible and Outdated

I checked into Westgate Lakes Resort and Spa and was so excited because of all the excellent reviews I read about the accommodations and staff. As soon as I got into the elevator I already knew that there was a possibility that my room may be slightly dated, but was not prepared for what I walked in to. When I got into my studio room I was very disappointed.

The carpet was old and dark. The bathroom didn’t have any large towels but had two hand towels that had hair on them. Also, when the cover was pulled back on the bed there were stains and spots on the sheets.

I called the front desk to ask them to change the sheets and provide us with towels and no one came. I called back and asked if they cannot come to change the sheets can we have another room, and was told that the hotel was booked and they couldn’t do any room changes.

I got fed up and decided to leave West Gate to go to another hotel because I was disappointed and disgusted. When I checked out the front desk then started to offer me another room, after someone had told me it wasn’t possible. I do not recommend this hotel to anyone!!!!

Westgate Branson Woods Resort

Westgate seldom delivers

Made a reservation for our unit bldg 3000 on the top floor. Your reservation is made by those working in Florida and I guess they never talk to the resort at Branson. Management informs us we are staying in building 1000, the building where you check in and the most crowded area.

You don’t get the top floor as requested but you later learn others who don’t own at this resort are staying on the floor you requested. Westgate is like the IRS, they promise you everything, take your money, your annual maintenance fees and you get little return.

We purchased another five-bedroom unit in Florida just being built and was supposed to be available for use in 2017. We had to pay 2017 maintenance fees but the building is still not finished.

Can you get a refund on maintenance fee, their answer is NO.

Do they have another five-bedroom unit available at this resort, their answer is NO. Wish we had stayed clear of dealing with Westgate period.

Westgate Myrtle Beach Oceanfront Resort

Worst Westgate experience

Westgate owner beware. I’ve been an owner for Westgate in Orlando for the past 5 years and I’ve visit many Westgate resorts in the past.

Westgate Myrtle Beach is by far the worst of the Westgate chain. I was place in the motel side of the facility where it was worst than Motel 6.

The room smelled like a wet dog and the carpet was dirty.

The whole room was old and dilapidated. I asked the reception to move to a one bedroom at the tower and they told me the upgrade fee would be $100 per night. I checked Hotel.com for the other resort nearby, for a one bedroom and it was only $50-70 per night.

The receptionist further said the price for the update is fixed and not subject for negotiation.

It’s hard to even consider to purchase extra week from Westgate when their people refused the accommodate us to move to a better room for a more competitive price.

Westgate Palace Resort

Worst Vacation Yet

While the rooms were nice and the location was very convenient, this has been the worst resort I have ever stayed at.

There are 6 handicapped parking spaces for the entire resort which consists of two 19 floor towers. The parking is ridiculous and on weekends you sometimes have to walk from the end of the opposite tower to your tower just because there was no parking.

They also failed to call us ahead of time to tell us that we were being “walked” to a different Westgate property. After 17+ hours of travelling, this was unacceptable. It was 30 minutes from our original property.

Hard to believe that two 19 floor towers were full. Wifi is “free” but you are unable to stream any online content and it is very slow to load anything else. If you want to stream online content, you pay an extra fee every day.

This has been the worst experience I have had.

Westgate Leisure Resort

Please read this review BEFORE securing your stay… SAVE YOUR MONEY!!

We are avid travelers who are familiar with most Westgate Properties. Do NOT book at this locations the area is great, but property is dated, old and not that clean. We had to purchase cleaning products before unpacking, call several times to have the engineer department replace light bulbs.

We called, they were supposedly sending someone, they never showed after 3 hours we went to the front desk. They finally came and the engineer was quite frustrated. The headboard, TVs, remotes, dressers all were full of dust.

When we recieved a text the next morning after check in to rate them for our stay so far, we were very honest. Once submitted, the manager on duty the morning of 4-28-18 called the room supposedly expressing her concern, and offered to reimburse us for the cleaning supplies purchased. She apologized and said she wanted to make it right. She asked us for a good time to come by so that we could discuss my feedback. We gave her noon as the time. She said great we will see you then. I said ok. She never showed.

Instead someone from housekeeping came around 11:30 and handed us a blue bag with extra towels, tissues, and toilet paper. Yes- I said handed us those items in a large blue trash bag and left. Not sure why that was the case but that was the first knock at the door. The second knock was someone that said they was coming to replace the mattress sponge egg carts. She checked both rooms and said “nevermind, you don’t need” Yes “you don’t need” is what was said, that is not a typo. We never mentioned towels, bed sponge or any of that in our feedback form so I’m not sure why those two people came by the room.

The manager never came instead she called a few hours later, around 3 PM, and told my sister she’s sorry she missed the appointment as she had “forgot” but I could call her when I returned if I wanted to. In my experience if you are a manager and commit to resolving a situation forgetting is not an option. We were only there for 2 nights and thank God that was the case as it was horrible, and certainly not worth over $90 per night, we paid double that – 2 nights was $394.00 Save your money. The pools are small as is all on site activities.

The gym equipment had to be wiped down completely before use and some didn’t work. The volleyball court is a sandbox the size of an average dance floor. If you do not care about a price or property and basically need a place close to Seaworld, go for it.

Again, in my opinion this is NO place for families unless you are retired or have toddlers. Even then you have to decide what your standards are – if cleanliness and customer service is not one of your standards, then this is the place for you.