More about Waterstone Calypso Resort & Towers Panama City Beach
Poor Customer Service - Will Never Stay Here Again
by TripAdvisor Member squirrelgirlRN
Our family has been vacationing in Panama City Beach Florida for about 7 yrs and we have stayed at several different places - all very good experiences except for this year at Calypso. Let me start by saying the place is beautiful - the views are fantastic and the rooms are very modern (granite countertops, down comforters, dvd players, tile floors, etc), BUT all this CAN NOT make up for poor customer service and rude employees/management. FIrst off our air conditioning unit was not working properly and we called to the front dest to request that someone come and see about it - no one to answer the phone ------- YOU HAVE TO LEAVE A MESSAGE???? I left a detailed message and of course - no phone call back, after about 3 - 4 hours with a loud clanging noise coming from it my husband went to the front desk and made a request for repair. Later that day someone came to "fix" it, well it was "fixed" for about 2 hours and then started all over again. Then, our sink/garbage disposal backed up - it was about to overflow into the floor so I called to the front desk and spoke with someone who said - "I will TRY to find maintenance" - her tone was very rude. No one ever came for about 4 hours so when I went down to the beach I stopped by the front dest to again let them know it was backing up and again I was confronted with attitude - the employees seem to really not like their jobs at this place! It is not what they say but they make you feel as though you are bothering them. Then............... we were trying to find the extra blankets and pillow cases for the bed for the fold out couch - no such luck - none to be had! So again we called to the front desk - NO ANSWER, so my husband went down to the desk and asked for one, the response from the employee was - "well, I am the only one here and it will be a while". Again we felt we were being a nuisance.
Then, there are the people who assign the chairs - we went to get our beach chairs assigned and the girl working the desk said you can have the chairs on the third row -well this is very far from the ocean - I explained to her I have a 6 yr old child and I can not see her from there - she then went on to say "well, you can get your own chairs and take them where ever you want" Again, ATTITUDE. I got my chairs, along with 2 bags, a child, towels and a cooler - after struggling for about 5 minutes another male employee came over and helped me carry the chairs. I really am not that picky when it comes to traveling/accomodations but I will not tolerate rude attitudes toward me and my children. Needless to say, we will not be vacationing at Calypso resort ever again and I will never recommend this resort - all because of poor customer service!
Not the greatest....
by TripAdvisor Member WisconsinBarbara
My family and I stayed at Calypso for Spring Break 2007. The resort claims to not rent to anyone under 25, but there were a lot of college kids there. The heater in one pool broke and everyday the front desk would say it was fixed but would take a couple of hours to heat up. The pool heater was NEVER fixed, and it was so cold. A heated pool is mandatory at this time of year. My kids never swam in the pool. The outside walkways are so narrow it was hard to walk side to side with anyone. The rooms are nice - new, but on the small side and again, VERY narrow. The outside balconys are also extremly narrow. The resort is clean, but offers no hot tub. If you need more than a new, clean place to stay, I would look elsewhere. There are too many new places in PCB and this one just does'nt cut it. No game room, hot tub, restaurant on site, no heat in pool. Also, if you book thru VRBO, make sure beach chairs are included, otherwise plan on spending $25.00 a day for 2 chairs and an umbrella. Resort also is right on the street - small area to pull up in front but very close to street with 15 minute parking in front. Hope this helps.
Best Place I've ever stayed at!!!!
by TripAdvisor Member ma2va2fl
We had the best family vacation ever! My husband and I and our 3 kids fit nicely into the 2 bedroom and bunk condo. All of the rooms were very large (the master bedroom has direct access to the patio and a sitting chair) and had extra towles and wash cloths. The beds have down comforters and pillows. Each room has a ceiling fan. My kids enjoyed that each room had it's own tv. The condo was wonderfully decorated and included all the comforts of home. It smelled "Brand New". There were games, dvd, beach toys and even a little book that each person who stayed could write a little note with recommendations. The view was the best. The emerald green waters on a LARGE patio (6 outside chairs) was wonderful. I booked through American Express travel but followed up with a phone call asking for a room high in one of the 2 towers. We were booked on the 17th floor. I found the customer service very helpful. I was greated with a smile and given many recommendations. Parking is accross the street in the parking garage and they have a skywalk on the 3rd floor so you don't have to cross traffic. The parking is free! I read some of the other reviews and some are not so true. If you book through the Water Stone Resorts website or a different travel group such as American Express - the chairs and umbrellas are included. I did not find it hard to get chairs each day. What I like most about this resort was that the beach was not jam packed. Believe me..I went on a busy weekend - Thunder Beach week. My family and I didn't realize it was 'Bike Week' but also didn't mind. We had such a wonderful time. My kids kept telling me over and over again..."This is great Mom! What a great vacation!" I would definitely recommend this resort. I know that we'll be back...soon!
Fabulous Gulf Views
by TripAdvisor Member PaxTerra
We stayed in a one-bedroom condo that also had a pull-out queen and two bunk beds. The kitchen was great, and fully stocked with dishes and utensils. In addition to the usual, they supplied a can opener, a toaster, a microwave, and a dishwasher. The balcony was spacious, easily fitting 4 chairs and a table. We ate breakfast there every day. The only small problem is that we had no hair dryer and it took a while to get one.
I've read other reviews and I have learned what dissatisfied some other visitors. We were not told about the fitness center, but it was small, and this is the beach, so we had no intention of using it anyway. On the beach, each room gets free access to two chairs and an umbrella because that's the norm down there, the seats have wooden frames and the chairs and umbrellas all go together, and are lined up in rows.
The location of the hotel is quite out-of-the-way, requiring longer drives for dinner, but during the day the beach and the pools were not at all crowded--very nice! We saw lots of families and couples, not too many teens and college students.
Overall--beautiful new hotel, well-landscaped, with great rooms.
Loved the Calypso!!
by TripAdvisor Member luvcarribean
My family and I enjoyed 5 days at the Calypso. We were very pleased with what we found. The resort was exactly like the pictures. We had a 3 bedroom, 3 bath condo - very nice - almost too nice for the beach. There is plenty enough room so everyone can relax. The beds were soft, the only place we have stayed that seemed like home. Kids enjoyed the free DVD rentals. The beach chairs and umbrella was great also. We will definitely visit again. Our only complaint which has nothing to do with the resort, is that the people next door to bumped the walls until 2:00am then every morning by 7:00am moved chairs around on the balcony, metal chairs make alot of noise. Other than that we had a great week.
Wonderful Stay!
by TripAdvisor Member Beach_Lover29
My husband and I just returned from a 6-night stay at the Calypso. We had a 1 bedroom/1.5 bath condo on the 9th floor, and it was fabulous. The condo opened in 2006, so the unit was very new and clean. We had a well-stocked kitchen, and the bathroom had a garden tub and separate shower. My favorite part of the condo was the balcony, which was the entire width of the condo with a table and several chairs. The oceanfront view from the balcony (which opened from the living room and bedroom) was incredible.
We really didn't have any complaints about this condo. We reserved the free beach chairs with an umbrella several days, and we also took advantage of the free DVD rentals.
I definitely recommend this condo for couples and families with children. I am fairly picky about accommodations, but I was very pleased with my stay at the Calypso.
Great
by TripAdvisor Member Keith6
This was a great place to spend a vacation.
The room was beautifull and the view was incredible. We had a 1 bedroom on the 16th floor.
Included with the room was 2 lounges and an umbrella on the beach (reserve them early each day at the beach shack) and 2 free DVD rentals per day.
Things that could have been Better: The room balcony is narrow. and they didn't allow any floats in the pool.
The Calypso Cafe is located a short distance from the parking garage. It is a good close by place to eat, the Bar has an outside area with live entertainment in the evenings.
Go early they didn't handle a large crowd very well.
There is a target and a brand new theater located close by and the rest of a large shopping area is under construction. This will be a great location when this is complete.
I can't wait to go back!
Incredible stay at Calypso!
by TripAdvisor Member mobileboy
When booking, you think this is just another condo resort but when you stay there, you realize just how incedible the experience really is! We had a 2 BR condo which worked well with the kids and was a great price- There was great personal attention after we checked in to make sure we hade everything we needed, and our questions were answered promptly. The location and commercial development/ activities/ restaurants around the resort area make this a great place to stay now and the future! We definitely plan to return!
Great Condo, great location!
by TripAdvisor Member buckeyejill
We made it into PCB on Sunday the 10th, we were early but thought we would try to check in early. The room was not ready, however the gal at the desk did give us our parking pass and our card so we could go to the beach and get 2 beach chairs and an umbrella. They were very accomodating and called us to let us know when the room was ready.
We stayed in a 1 bedroom with bunkets (bunk beds in-set in the hallway), with 2 full bathrooms( a nice feature for a one bedroom condo), # 1803. A great view, a wonderful king size bed that was very comfortable. It was everything we expected and then some. The kitchen was stocked with all that you would need. The washer and dryer had small samples of detergent and fabric softener as well. The pools were very nice and a little crowded at times, but no harm done, I would just lay by the pool until a chair opened up while my son swam. If booking the room through someone like Hotels.com or Expedia, and etc. you get 2 beach chairs and umbrella for free, which was very a nice feature! Oh and the 2 FREE dvds are a very nice feature that we were able to take advantage of one day while we were there.
The Calypso Cafe across the street had very good food and our server Blake was an awesome server. Fattys Sandwich shop across the street as well has great deli sandwiches and brownies!!
Calypso is a must stay in my book! The only thing I would have changed about my stay is, I wish we could have stayed longer! So glad we chose Calypso and PCB!!
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