User Reviews for Don Cesar Beach Resort and Spa

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Jun 7, 2009 by Rebecca from Prairie Grove,IL
Overall Rating: 8

• The location is great, the food is good.
• The beach service is snail slow. Worst beach service we have had. We gave up and ate at the pool everyday. They also do not clean the beach.

“I think the hotel is nice. I think their location is great being right on the beach. They need to focus more on that aspect. The beach needs to be raked at night including under the chairs. There is too much garbage etc. in the sand.”

Sep 4, 2008 by Morgan from Tampa, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Ambiance.
• NA.

“Nice place to stay. Good location and friendly staff.”

Aug 26, 2008 by Rick from Perrysburg, OH
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] •

• Great service.
• Resort fees.

“Overall the resort was great.”

Aug 19, 2008 by Jim from Millsap, TX
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[9] • Location:[10]

• Service, friendliness of staff, & facilities.
• The fitness center belongs at Motel 6.

“The rooms are small but typical of early 1900's style. The facilities are excellent and the staff exceptional. The parking is tight as you might expect at the beach. They are in the process of upgrading the workout facility which is a bit of a joke at this time. You will get over it quickly. Try the Yoga on the beach.”

Aug 14, 2008 by David from North Lima, OH
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• The staff is extremely courteous and friendly. The structure and decor are beautiful.
• On-property meals and drinks are more costly than surrounding restaurants.

“We loved our stay at the Don Cesar and would return each time we are in St. Petersburg. It is a luxury beach resort and met all of our expectations and then some. It is well staffed with highly trained, courteous and friendly employees whose only job is to see that you are happy. I would recommend it to any discerning traveler.”

Aug 13, 2008 by Carol from Frostproof, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Great service from everyone, nice location on the beach.
• Did not like the per day resort fee. Just raise the price.

“The Don Cesar is a wonderful hotel with great service. The drink prices were outrageous, so we just used a cooler on the beach. The rooms are small, but truthfully we spent almost no time there. I would definitely stay there again if I got a great price like we did this time. We enjoyed it very much!”

Aug 6, 2008 by Phillip from Davenport, FL
Overall Rating: 4
Cleanliness:[5] • Staff:[7] • Location:[8]

• Friendly staff.
• Allows smoking.

“Without asking or giving us a choice, we were placed on the smoking floor so our room reeked of cigarette smoke and each time the neighbors smoked our room filled with smoke. I was not aware you could still smoke in hotels. Housekeeping had to keep spraying our room and bring us a purifier. Still all of our clothes smelled like smoke. Walls were very thin, we could hear everything the neighbors said and did.”

Aug 5, 2008 by Terry from Ormond Beach, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Very friendly staff. Beautiful hotel!
• The beds were not the most comfortable.

“I would highly recommend this hotel. It was very nice and met all of our needs and than some.”

Jul 31, 2008 by Melissa from Lakeland, FL
Overall Rating: 1
Cleanliness:[2] • Staff:[1] • Location:[1]

• The pool chairs.
• Too small for number of guests.

“Pretentious but small. Historic qualities. Too many children. Good food, but unfriendly staff.”

Jul 25, 2008 by Byron from Ormond Beach, FL
Overall Rating: 4
Cleanliness:[8] • Staff:[2] • Location:[10]

• Location was nice.
• Treated differently.

“This hotel was built in the 1920's and has great history and is lovely to look at, but the rooms at the hotel were not to the level of a 4 star. The bathrooms were very small and the furnishings in the room were a mishmash. The bed was not very comfortable and the hinges on the door looked like it came off a barnyard door. There was a lot of noise that could be heard through the walls, to include other guests and creaking water pipes. In addition, we were treated sub par. We were told that our room wasn't ready and to come back after 4 pm, while there were people all around us checking in and getting their keys. The following morning at 8 am housekeeping was in the hall wanting to clean our room, so I can't imagine it takes 8 hours to clean a room. They also charge $26 resort fee which includes the free self parking, internet and 24 hour shoeshine. You never know when you might need your shoes shined at 3:00 am. Maybe, in the past the Don Cesar was an elegant hotel, but in my opinion she is past her prime.”

Jul 24, 2008 by Nicole from Oviedo, FL
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[9] • Staff:[10] • Location:[9]

• Historical and elegant.
• Showing its age in some of the public areas; rooms a bit small.

“The Don Cesar Pink Palace can be summed up in one word: elegant. Both public spaces and private rooms were tastefully decorated and evocative of the days of yore when this palace was a destination in and of itself. However, once the rose colored spectacles are carefully placed on the bedside table, one can see that this lovely establishment, while aging gracefully, is nonetheless showing its wrinkles in some areas. The rooms are certainly on the small side and the hallway carpets seemed rather worn. I would have expected a bit more attention to detail from a four-star establishment. Despite the rather minimalist size of the rooms, the marble bathrooms (also small-larger patrons beware) were lovely and very clean. Given the age of the property, I was somewhat nervous about the state of the bathroom in particular, but all is modern and luxurious, with top of the line bath products for your enjoyment. The beach area was clean and well maintained and it was a real delight to frolic in the calm waters of the Gulf while gazing back at the behemoth Pink Palace. On a slightly negative note, however, the pool areas, though lovely, were packed to the brim (particularly toward the evening hours) with what can only be described as drunken revelers, tropical drinks in hand. This wouldn't have been such a problem, were it not for the fact that these guests strayed into other areas of the property; while staying at such a refined and graceful property as the Don Cesar, I would not want, nor would I expect, to encounter tipsy people clutching beer bottles and sloshing the contents of their plastic cups dangerously close to me and my young child while taking the elevator. Unfortunately, this was the case. The children's program is also something that I would not recommend; it is not particularly cheap, at $80 for a full day and as far as I could tell, all the counselors did was plunk the kids in front of a TV show.”

Jul 23, 2008 by Maria from Tampa, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Good location and excellent services.
• The bathroom is very nice and clean, but it is too small.

“It is the best resort in St Peter area. It is very nice resort and staff provides excellent services.”

Jul 21, 2008 by Troy from Cleveland, TX
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[9] • Staff:[9] • Location:[9]

• Beautiful hotel right on the beach.
• Elevators were sometimes slow.

“Excellent hotel, steps from the beach. You would never have to leave if you didn't want to.”

Jul 15, 2008 by John from Concord, OH
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• The hotel was beautiful and our room was lovely and very well appointed.
• I can't think of anything that was not fabulous.

“I would highly recommend this hotel to any traveler or anyone local that wants to plan an event. It would meet and exceed all expiration.”

Jul 14, 2008 by Joann from Valrico, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Great location. Relaxing.
• Nothing.

“A great getaway for my husband and I for a few nights!”

Jul 11, 2008 by Greg from Denver, CO
Overall Rating: 8
Cleanliness:[8] • Staff:[9] • Location:[8]

• It was beautiful.
• They had a twenty two dollar charge that essentially will be added to everyone there.

“Beautiful well staffed hotel. We enjoyed the room even though it was very small.”

Jun 8, 2008 by Noelle from Bergen County, NJ
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[7] • Location:[10]

• Amazing beach! Amazing food!
• Room temperature a little warm.

“My boyfriend and I needed a few days to get away so we chose the Don Cesar and we were SO happy we did! The minute our cab rolled up to the hotel we knew we were in paradise. The hotel itself is gorgeous! For me, the beach is what matters the most when staying at a destination, and for my boyfriend its all about good quality food. Both the beach and the food were AMAZING! I have never had such delicious meals, especially the breakfast! We ate the cinnamon custard French toast all four days we were there because it was so good, ha-ha. The beach is so beautiful with the white powdery sand and crystal clear teal waters that from pictures my friends couldnt tell whether I was in Aruba, Jamaica, or Florida. It truly looked so tropical. The room was small but very nice, with a huge television (that my boyfriend jokingly made me take a picture of) and although we were rarely in the room, we were slightly disappointed with the air cooling unit because we couldnt seem to get the room cool enough. There are only really two restaurants at the Don, one being fancy (no jeans, shorts or tees) and one where you can sit porch side by the beach or inside. Overall, we LOVED this vacation. If you go, look into going Downtown to a little town called Pass-a-grille. The shuttle at the resort will take you there for free.”

Apr 9, 2008 by Rebecca from Land O Lakes
Overall Rating: 8
Cleanliness:[9] • Staff:[9] • Location:[10]

• Staff.
• Spa.

“I stayed at the hotel the night before my wedding, which was also held at the Don Cesar. Everything was absolutely amazing! The catering manager was wonderful. The staff was very accommodating and nice. I loved the location, the food, and the hotel. I did however hate the spa experience! I brought several pictures with me and had a very specific style in mind. The lady who did my hair never once looked at the pictures, and even seemed annoyed when I brought them to her attention a third time. As she was doing my hair I would point out what I didn't like and she would say "Oh it would look like that, I'm still working on it", but it did look like that! My hair looked like a 1950's prom queen! After having a panic attack outside the spa my Maid of Honor had me go back in for them to "fix it". Needless to say it was terrible. I am not a "Bridezilla" but I expected better service.”

Dec 23, 2007 by Cris
Overall Rating: 10

• Superb customer service.
• It met all of my high expectations.

“Would love to stay their again and would like to try other hotels when I travel in the future.”

Oct 23, 2007 by Evan from Boca Raton, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Nicest hotel in Tampa Clearwater and ST Pete.
• Extra $10 per day resort fee is bologna.

“It was clean, pretty and great! I loved it!”

Oct 23, 2007 by Anthony from Delray Beach, FL
Overall Rating: 5
Cleanliness:[7] • Staff:[5] • Location:[7]

• Convenient
• Restaurant needed to be friendlier.

“I love this hotel overall the only thing I didn't like was the restaurant was dirty.”

Oct 16, 2007 by Sue from Lake Elsinore, CA
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[7] • Location:[10]

• The atmosphere.
• Bathrooms too small.

“I loved every aspect of the hotel, but the bathrooms were small.”

Oct 2, 2007 by Katherine from Atlanta
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[9] • Location:[10]

• Wonderful stay. Gorgeous property. Will return.
• Some of the staff was not aware of check in requirements read my review; this could happen to you too!

“First off, we loved this hotel and will probably return. We had a rocky start but a wonderful stay. My fiancée' and I are just under 21 and planned this vacation as a weekend get away. I know how some of the age requirements are different for different hotels so I made sure to call each one and verify. When I called the Don Cesar, they told me the age requirement to check in was 18. That night, we booked our flight tickets, and 3 nights at the Don Cesar. The next day, my father received a call from the resort saying that the check in age was 21. I was absolutely furious. I told them who I talked to, what time I called, and everything they needed to know. They would not make an exception. I thought that was ridiculous. They had the idea of having the driver of the taxi come check us in then leave? That sounded out of the question especially since he could use our bill to charge things. My mother ended up flying down there and checking us in then leaving. We had a wonderful stay after that. We went to the Maritana Grille on both nights. The food and service is great. Andy's ice cream parlor is also good. The sea porch cafe' has wonderful breakfast. The pool has too much cigarette smoke (neither one of us are smokers/drinkers) so we spent most of our time at the gorgeous beach. I've read past reviews about the rooms being too small. That did not really bother us. I thought they were fine. The don Cesar was a wonderful vacation for us in the long run. The only complaint I would have would be the check in issue but thankfully, we got it resolved!”

Sep 6, 2007 by Brian from Tampa, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Beach, friendly staff, no extra charge for parking or fridge. Did not nickel and dime us.
• No balcony.

“Class all the way. Met a few people who came all the way from California just because of the friendly staff and wonderful beach.”

Aug 2, 2007 by Matt from Merritt Island, FL
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[9] • Staff:[9] • Location:[10]

• Gorgeous hotel! We loved the beautiful beach and sunsets.
• $11 charge for each 24-hour period of wireless internet is absolutely absurd.

“We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Don Cesar. It was close to everything and had a magnificent beachfront. The staff was very helpful. The only drawbacks were a few extra charges that seemed unnecessary. There's a great ice cream parlor in the hotel as well. You can cancel your daily newspaper and save a few dollars.”

Jul 2, 2007 by Heather from Orlando, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Totally fabulous.
• Construction going on!

“From the moment I saw the hotel as I crossed the bridge to the moment of checkout, my experience was great. The hotel was clean, rooms updated, and staff all very courteous and eager to help you in anyway. The food at the casual restaurant was good, both breakfast and dinner. The beach beautiful.”

Jun 27, 2007 by Dawn from West Palm Beach, FL
Overall Rating: 7
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Very friendly staff. Great location.
• Not enough restaurant choices for breakfast and lunch.

“The purpose of our trip to the don Cesar was to relax while our daughter attended a local camp. Unfortunately, we were not told that the hotel spa was under construction. Our room was next to the construction also. All we heard, in our room, at the pool or at the beach all day was bang, bang, bang. We called the manager and he was sympathetic and sent us milk and cookies for our daughter, a bottle of wine for us and gave us breakfast the next day. It's too bad that we were not able to really relax as we paid for and expected. If we knew about the construction we would have chosen a different hotel. We would go back but only if we new we would not hear the banging.”

Jan 20, 2007 by Tom
Overall Rating: 10

• The hotel was beautiful with friendly staff.

“The hotel is gorgeous. The room was lovely and the staff very hospitable. I highly recommend this wonderful resort.”

Jan 3, 2007 by Chad from Daniel Island, SC
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[9] • Staff:[8] • Location:[9]

• Excellent service and location.

“Excellent resort, friendly staff, everything is overpriced as typical fl resorts and their internet is not good.”

2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Nov 6, 2006 by Casey from Lakeland, FL
Overall Rating: 5
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[9] • Location:[9]

• The beach.
• Beds are made of concrete, never knew where we were or where we were going.

“Very friendly and helpful staff. No direction as to where things were located inside of the hotel. Rooms were very small and beds were awful. They charged 19% service charge for using the mini-bar! Service charge? I made my own drinks!”

1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Aug 20, 2006 by Louis from Melbourne Beach, FL
Overall Rating: 4
Cleanliness:[7] • Staff:[2] • Location:[6]

• Nice pool & beach.
• Front desk people snotty (Jason) - not friendly at all.

“The hotel is a beautiful building but the staff is not friendly at all. Front desk clerk Jason actually snickered when I asked for a king sized bed. Room was not as described, had only a partial view of the water. When we wanted to relax around the pool, they decided to sand to fence area. Poor service in restaurant.”

Aug 10, 2006 by Catherine from Seguin, TX
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• It was so beautiful and grand. I felt very pampered.
• The elevators were a little slow, so we exercised and took the stairs.

“This hotel even exceeded my expectations. It was absolutely beautiful and full of history. Service was great and the rooms were spotless. Right on the beach with two nice pools. We really felt like we were living the life of luxury. I cannot wait to go back to the Don.”

Aug 10, 2006 by Jennifer from Houston, TX
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[9] • Location:[10]

• Beautiful beach.
• Couldn't check in until 4 pm, although other guests had to wait even longer.

“Loved the hotel and beach. Gorgeous sunsets.”

Aug 2, 2006 by Kathleen from Palo Alto, CA
Overall Rating: 7
Cleanliness:[9] • Staff:[6] • Location:[10]

• The location was wonderful.
• The staff at the hotel were not motivated to help unless you tipped very generously.

“While the rooms were nice, they are small. The breakfast at $17.00 per person was ample and appealing. The most annoying aspect of the hotel is the staff's expectation that all guests should tip generously. In particular, I had negative experiences with the pool staff. The hotel has a wonderful location on a spectacular beach, but I will not stay at the Don Cesar in the future unless the staff issues are corrected.”

Jul 29, 2006 by Katie from Marietta, GA
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• The hotel and location were very pretty a picturesque. having 2 pools was nice and kept one from being over crowded.
• It was a bit crowded and the beach could have been cleaner.

“Overall, our stay at the Don Cesar was great. Everything was beautiful.”

Jul 28, 2006 by Chris from Florida, FL
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Service, outstanding, location outstanding.
• Too much seaweed at the beach.

“One of the best beach locations I've ever stayed at. Loved it and had a great time..... Would go back in a heart beat........”

Jul 8, 2006 by Amanda from Tampa, FL
Overall Rating: 9
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Beautiful view, great outdoors.
• Bartenders seemed very busy and not very interested in their job.

“This was an amazing hotel. The room was immaculate and the staff was very helpful in trying to accommodate to my needs. The pools and beach were like a dream come true. I was disappointed in two of the bartenders. After I had waited 10 minutes to close out my tab an older gentleman (I'm only 21) came up and he was waited on within a minute. Other than that it was perfect. I'm very satisfied.”

Apr 3, 2006 by Tammie from Powell, OH
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Very nice beach, good location, staff very friendly and helpful.
• Room was not cleaned until 5-6pm way too late.

“Very beautiful well kept up hotel. The lobby was beautiful. The beach was beautiful. The rate for food at the hotel was very high, $7.00 dollars for an ice cream bar. But if you avoid the food. Very good value!”

Feb 26, 2006 by Ted from Rockville Centre, NY
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Location:[10]

• Well appointed rooms, excellent service, great food.
• Bell hops can be a bit too attentive! Obsequious, really.

“Great location, lovely lobby, beautiful rooms, wonderful beach and pool, generous drinks and excellent food. Stay at the Don, you can't go wrong.”

Feb 14, 2006 by Liz from Washington, MO
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Lovely hotel with a feeling of a by-gone era.
• Extra $20.00 per day charge.

“Room was comfy and large enough, with a nice view of the Gulf. Staff was more than helpful. Off-lobby bar made us feel as though we were in an earlier era, though the price of drinks was certainly "today"!”

1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Feb 14, 2006 by Tamaki from Mclean, VA
Overall Rating: 7
Cleanliness:[7] • Staff:[7] • Location:[7]

• Upscale look and feel.
• No coffee maker in the room, small room, ants in the bathroom sink.

“The front desk lady wasn't very nice when we checked in.”

2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Feb 13, 2006 by Stan from Austin, TX
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• This hotel has such great architecture and style, and the service was top-notch.
• It was a little awkward getting from the parking lot into the hotel.

“The "Don" is a wonderful hotel. We felt like we had found ourselves at a resort in Mexico instead of the business stop-over we had arranged. The architecture has a style not seen today, the hotel was built in 1928 but is fully modernized. The service was impeccable.”

Aug 2, 2005 by Chris from Valley Stream, NY
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[9] • Staff:[10] • Location:[9]

• Service was great
• Starting to show age

“My time at the Don Cesar was well spent. The staff was excellent and the room was clean. I look foward to going back soon.”

0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Jun 18, 2005 by Jeanne from Cortland, NY
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• It was a beautiful hotel and we had a marvelous time!

“The staff was pleasant, the room and all facilities were clean and top of the line. We had a very high opinion of this hotel and would recommend it to others! It was an amazing bargain!”

May 14, 2005 by Kristina from New Providence, PA
Overall Rating: 10
Cleanliness:[10] • Staff:[10] • Location:[10]

• Clean, classy, pretty, top notch

“We enjoyed our two-day stay at the Don Cesar. Our room was really nice overlooking the Gulf, the hotel was beautiful, the beach was perfect. We can't say enough good things about it.”

Dec 26, 2004 by Jami H. from Omaha
Overall Rating: 10

“The hotel staff was very helpful. The beach was beautiful and the whole facility was clean and relaxing. The location was easy to get to.”

Sep 30, 2004 by Kristin U. from Arlington, VA
Overall Rating: 6

“Considering other places I have stayed, it did not compare. Overall, not impressed with the staff. Had the feeling that some of the staff had no desire to be there. However the location was fantastic!!”

1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Sep 23, 2004 by Catherine D. from New Baltimore
Overall Rating: 10

“My husband had a wonderful time at the Don Cesar in St. Pete Beach. The hotel was lovely and the staff was the best I have ever encountered on a trip. We will be back!!!!!”

Sep 23, 2004 by Justin C. from Duluth
Overall Rating: 9

“The hotel definitely met and exceeded all our expectations.”

Sep 13, 2004 by Susan R. from Belle Vernon, PA
Overall Rating: 10

“First class all the way. If you want to be pampered this is the place to go!! A gorgeous beach and two large pools with a super beach bar!”

1 of 1 people found this review helpful.