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3 Stars - 676 Opinions
Bilmar Beach resort Treasure Island
£70 a night Perfect bedroom view. We could see the beach and sea from our balcony. Large patio doors led onto individual balcony.
We had a small kitchenette with microwave fridge etc.
At first I was a little nervous about going to Bilmar. The outside of the hotel is a little dated - very 1980's. The lobby and common areas are a little dated too but the room are exactly the opposite. My fiancée and I stayed in the larger building which has been completely remodeled. It was incredibly nice. We had a perfect view from our balcony of the ocean. No noise problems.
We only had 3 complaints - parking parking parking. Secondly, the housekeeping was a little lacking. They made the beds and changed out the towels but that is about it. Don’t get me wrong – we aren’t dirty people but they didn't even remove trash. Last, the front desk staff is not the “quickest”. But still pleasant.
We would definitely stay there again.
We stayed at the Bilmar August 15-19th and had our reservations since July. We were a bit worried after reading some of the reviews but made 'back up' plans in case it was a dump. The Bilmar ended up being a very nice place to stay at a decent rate. I have more positive reviews than negative, but will give the negative first. All negative was nothing major, just some tips that may be helpful to those who plan on going.
First, check in is sort of slow, but staff was very friendly. We had a room that was literally right next to the air conditioners on top of Sloppy Joes. However, we called the main office and they gladly switched our room to a higher floor. We didn't hear much being a bit above the air conditioners. While the bathroom is completely remodled, it's pretty tight. They should have the doors open the opposite way. There are no coffee filters for the coffee pots, so be sure to bring your own. If you are a smoker, the only smoking rooms are ground level , however, the main office said it is fine to smoke on the balcony. We respected the room being a non-smoking room and had no problem smoking outside. We just used a plastic cup and water for an ashtray. The TV is really nice being a flat screen HDTV , however if you are in the second bed, it's kind of hard to see it. They should move it more toward the middle of both beds. When you come in from the balcony, be sure to watch your step! The new hurricane proof sliding doors have about a three inch height on the bottom and if you don't watch your step OUCH! We wacked our feet quite a few times. They really need to put a little sign on the window reminding people to watch their step. Lastly, the elevators are NOT air conditioned and are little hot boxes! It was 107 out and we were frying going down to the beach.
Again, these are MINOR issues and would not have any impact on our choice to stay there again.
Now for the good stuff! The view from the balcony is just beautiful! Be sure to bring some binoculars so you can see the dolphins jumping in the morning. If you want to dry your towels or swimsuits on the railing, bring something to clip them on, it does get a bit windy and your stuff could blow away.
The room was completely remodeled and everything was new. When I say everything, I mean EVERYTHING! From the molding on the doors, to the bathroom door, the little kitchen had all new appliances, new TV, new sliding doors, new head boards, new rug, balcony tile, etc. It was VERY clean. The room is not huge but it's a nice size for a family up to 4. If you are looking for something really fancy, this is not the place to go, but if you are going just for a relaxing and fun vacation, the Bilmar is a great place to stay.
The walk to the beach is nice, the sand is packed down so it's easy to walk on. Do bring some type of swim shoes as there are tons of little shells all over the place and you can cut your feet. The water is very clear and warm. They have little outside showers right near the pool so you can rinse off when you come back from the beach. There are no chairs to sit on for free but you can rent the little cabana's for $15 a day. We ended up just laying on our towels as the sand was really clean.
Sloppy Joe's is a nice place to eat and watch the sunset. Some stuff is a bit overpriced there, but it's nice to just grab a drink, sit outside and look at the view.
The pool was kind of small but kept very clean. There are two pools at the Bilmar, one at the tall building (the one we stayed in) and one in the three floor building. We went to both but only one had the hot tub. Personally, I liked the pool right by Sloppy Joes better.
Each room has an electronic safe that is attached inside the closet. This is great for leaving your valuables while you go to the beach. You put in your own code so no one else can get in it.
If you need some items there is a Walgreens right across the street and a little grocery store just up the road.
Parking.......they really should have a bigger lot but we were lucky to find a spot each time. You do get a permit that you can put in your car window that will allow you to park at Walgreens if need be. Personally, I think they should knock down the dump next door (The Terrace) and make that into a parking lot. If you do have to park across the street, its not a far walk at all but if you have luggage, you'd probably want someone to drive you to the door, drop off your stuff, then park across the street.
Places to see while staying there: Ft DeSoto! Beautiful beach! About a 15-20 minute drive from the Bilmar. PJ's Oyster bar has excellent food and service and is located about 10 minutes from Bilmar. Head toward St Pete Beach and you'll find it. Hubbards marina is about 5-10 north of the Bilmar and is a happening little place. Lots of shops, boat rides, resturants, etc. There are plenty of other things to do in that area but those are all we had time for.
All in all I would highly recommend the Bilmar, just be sure to ask for a renovated room as I'm not sure how the other rooms look in the smaller buildings. As long as they keep the prices approx the same, it's a good price and a good value. Staff is very friendly there, maid service is very friendly and helpful, and the place is very clean.
I've included some pictures of the room so you can get an idea of how clean they are. We will be going again as soon as possible!
Just returned from the Bilmar (9/08-9/12) and had a wonderful time. The resort exceeded our expectations and all the staff we came in contact with, were very nice and helpful. The hotel is still going through remodeling, so there were contractors still around, but it was a minor inconvenience. We were given the room type and location (seventh floor), that we requested in advance. This allowed us to have a great view (street side and beach side), and also diminshed the noise from the street and restaurant. The only negatives we had concerning the room was the bathroom door turned inside, instead of outside (making the bathroom even tighter) and the location of the TV, which had serious glare during the day. Since we did not stay in the room to much, these were minor problems. We did not eat at either restaurant on the property (to expensive), so we can't comment on this. We did travel all along the coast and found some nice places to eat and drink. In Clearwater Beach, we had lunch at the casual "Britts" and the food and service were very good. In Maderia Beach, we ate and drank at "Gators" and "Daiquiri Deck". Both were inexpensive and lively. For dinner, we ate one night at "Crabbys Bills" down in St. Petes Beach and found it very good. We had a wonderful time driving up to Clearwater Beach and driving south to Fort Desoto Park. By the way, the nicer beaches seemed to be in the south, where the water is calmer and the sand softer. Lastly, the weather was perfect the entire trip and we did not want to return. We also picked a good time to go to Treasure Island, because it was off-peak and the crowds were light. PS the beaches and the water were nicer, by far, than The Dominican Republic.
When we booked at the Bilmar, we didn't know just what to expect as the Alberta Motor Association didn't have a lot of information on it. But we were extremely pleased with the room we had.
The little kitchen had everything we could have wanted (except a fry pan, but you can make scrambled eggs in the sauce pan). The stove top is really nice as it is on-the-counter ceramic so always looks clean and neat.
No, the bathroom isn't huge, but how much time do you spend in it anyway even though the shower is great. I really liked the vanity under the sink as we could put our toiletries away so they were always out of the way and off the counter. There were lovely soaps and lotions supplied and even if the towels weren't the softest in the world, they were bright and fresh.
The flat screen T.V. is "seeable" from evey part of the room, but we didn't have great reception. We did ask the desk to have someone look at it, but at times it still wasn't the best. However with the view we had of the pool and the Gulf, who cares about that.
The housecleaning staff were exceptional! We had a younger lady called Sherine (I think that's how it's spelled) and she was so personable and our room looked pristine every time she finished with it. A big thank you to her.
Our whole experience there was just wonderful. Sloppy Joes had good food and we enjoyed sitting on the balcony to watch the people come and go in the restaurant. Even on the nights that they had entertainment, it was always quiet by 11:00 and the balcony doors were so sound proof that I don't think it would have mattered if the music had gone on longer.
There were 4 weddings on the beach when we were there and I couldn't think of a lovelier place to get married. I would go back there in a heartbeat and can't wait to see it when the remodeling is complete.
Sitting on the balcony drinking a coconut rum and pineapple juice overlooking the beautiful beach..... what more could anyone ask.
Last week myself and 7 others from our baseball league went to play in the fall classic in Clearwater, Florida. We stayed at the Belmar hotel and condo in Clearwater. According to the web page it had a 3-diamond AAA rating. Our coach thought that would be a pretty good place to stay. Turns out that the amenities that they talked about were not available to us while we were there. We paid a lot of money for 3 rooms with little to show for it. It is very discouraging and made for a longer week than we needed. Truthfully, I was ready to come home on Monday and skip the rest of the week.
Just thought you would like to know how disappointed I was and that I will never stay there again.
Other than the view, this place was so under construction that one pool was closed, no helath club, no restaurant other than attached place. I'd never stay there again.
The drumcircle at sunset on Treasure Island
The sunset on Treasure Island
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Address: 10650 Gulf Blvd.
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