The Driftwood Resort

Dingy, dark, cramped, old & sad studio room 105 in building B. Avoid it at all cost. Housekeeping is doing its best to put lipstick on a pig. Don't be fooled by the 4 and 5 star ratings as they are for the restaurant, not the resort itself. This staff (best thing about the place) boasts that it was built in 1935 and is on the historic registry. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like anything has been updated to the room we stayed in since then. Yes there are newer buildings and suggest you stay in one of them. Folks who stayed in the villas and the Breakers all seem to be pretty happy. The main parking lot is a challenge. It is a public lot, so you're on your own trying to find space near rooms around it. We exchanged through our time share and now understand why the studios are always available.

i'm hard pressed to really call this place a resort. it more like a historically iconic hotel, on the beach, that has kept most of it's laid back, dive-y charm, then added 2 more modern buildings on the back side that don't reflect the beachy lifestyle look. we were in one of the original buildings, our room faced a parking lot which is shared with waldo's restaurant. parking can be difficult to find a spot near your room and they encourage you to park in the back lot and walk around to your rooms, which sucks when you're trying to unload or load your car when coming or going. many of the employees park in this tiny lot and tie up space for most of the day, seen a lot of restaurant patrons leave their cars in the lot overnight, without a dash pass identifying you as a hotel guest. our room was tiny & weirdly laid out....teeny tiny kitchen without a dishwasher, so i had to put all the dishes, glasses & silverware in the sink, boil water and rewash everything because i don't know who washed the dishes before us & what their hygiene habits are. only 1 tv in the living room, which you can't see from the "bedroom" which is actually a small room with sliding panel doors, THAT DON'T WORK, for privacy if needed. the linens, bed & pillows were all clean, soft and comfortable. the amount of broken closet doors, tiles, lamps is crazy. i get the whole dive charm that they want to display, but for pete's sake, at least get a handy man in there to fix all the broken crap. if you are a stickler for perfection & posh details, THIS PLACE IS NOT FOR YOU. if you can dig that lazy, laid back, dumpy divey charm, then come here. we never used the pools. the 1 pool was attached to the restaurant and all you can smell is cigarettes and listen to loud drunks & music, the other pool called "the quiet pool" was over by the newer buildings, never saw it. we don't come to the beach to swim in a pool. front desk people are so laid back & cool. this is the first time a hotel didn't ask for a credit card to be put on file for incidentals, they just said "we trust you". AND i was really surprised & chuckled at the fact that our room keys were actual metal keys & not key cards. they do push the "rustic charm" to the limit, but as long as i have a comfortable bed, a place to shower, sh*t & shave, i'm good, not on vacay to hang out in a hotel room all day, i'm there to experience the area. ***the only complaint i have is that this place considers itself a NON SMOKING RESORT, but puts ashtrays on all the tables outside of the rooms, so you're always walking through the stink of cigarettes someplace on the property

Good: Staff- super friendly Location- Downtown Vero, next to park, shops a night club, cafes abound, walk down a set of stairs right to the beach. Lots of other things to do within a 20 minute drive. Amenities - nonexistent except for 2 pools & a decent restaurant/ bar with beach access. 1 Pool is squished amongst the restaurant/ bar. Kind of weird layout but not terrible. Activities- overall engaging & ok. Trivia night at the bar was fun. Ice cream, wine & cheese, breakfast socials... Shuffleboard This is an old school motel on the beach. I wouldn't call it a resort per se. Not so good: Stayed in a studio. Long & narrow, weird layout. Bathroom door hit the vanity cabinet when opening. Loudest AC unit I've ever heard. Clean on the surface but missing details like sand under the sofa which was revealed when the shoddy pull-out was opened. Both beds were pretty terrible in terms of comfort. Smoking is allowed on the property, just not inside the rooms. Made for some annoyance at the bar area. Even ashtrays on tables right outside of each room. I mean, who does this anymore? VERY minimal facilities to speak of--no gym, no lobby or indoor hanging out area, no beach chairs for use or rent, no bicycles available (except from local rental shops that are outrageously priced. Trek shop for example, charges $50 to deliver on top of super expensive rental cost. The store is about 7 minutes away.) Pool at the bar was small & just in an awkward spot. Not sure I'd return but some folks would enjoy it more. Heard lots of folks say they come very often.