Just a few thoughts about Pelican.

We had the opportunity to speak to several owners during our recent stay. Dec. 27-Jan. 3. Most are pretty OK with the recent maintenance fees and special assessment. At least 2 that we spoke with are planning on buying additional units and another is working on trading up to the new Marina Residences. They cited the fact that there have been few substantial increases in fees since their original purchases. Most of the ones we spoke with have owned for over 15 years. We found the staff to be even more hospitable than in our first stay several years ago.

Our unit, B259, certainly showed the signs of wear, but was fully functional and quite convenient. Brand new appliances. 4 burner stove w/oven. Fridge w/icemaker. I did miss the pool view from our 1st visit, but other than the 1 rainy day, we spent little time in the room awake.

The really bad part of this unit is it’s proximity to the natural gas supply line for the laundry. That thing produces a whistling sound that is reminiscent of a teakettle. Not just a little one, but one the size of a battleship. I thought I was in a torture chamber each time it went off. It wouldn’t have been so bad had it been quick or short in duration. It went on for hours. The worst one was on Tuesday nite at midnite lasting until 3 a.m. I hardly slept. I finally decided to use my ipod with earphones to drown it out. We will never stay on this side of the building again. An awful annoyance.

I was disappointed that the pre-registration did not work and that they had not responded to the several contacts I made thru the Pelican website. I had to call them to confirm rather than doing it the easy way by e-mail.

The restaurant, Ciao, was disappointing. Lackluster service and average food. My Italian cooking is equal to what we were served. In addition, we were greeted at the bakery, La Pain de Sucre, in a rude fashion and it was apparent that they did not care if we were there or not. If I want rudeness w/my pizza, I'll stay home or visit a big US city.

The assistance of getting to our room with bags and being taken out for a late nite snack was really a pleasant surprise. The driver was quite taken with the small tip I provided after his service and was obviously not expecting it. He really made us feel wanted and appreciated.

The Marina Residences are beautiful and quite expensive. I did not write down the price, but as I remember it was in the $70,000 range. It is also obvious that all their efforts are in promoting this building as they need to pay for it ASAP in order to accelerate profits.

Hollywood casino is attached to the resort. I believe that it is under separate management. Poor drink service, machines that do not work properly, dirty floors and restrooms. Cashiers spent more time chatting w/other employees or were on the phone instead of doing their jobs. 3 in the cage area. Seldom was 1 working. After visiting others on the island, I will spend my money elsewhere.

After all is said & done, we will try to stay somewhere else on our next visit. It was enjoyable, but at a personal cost I do not want to pay again.