The Driftwood Resort

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

What started as a fine stay soon changed due to loud music on the beach by a group of guests. Resort did not act and so it greatly disturbed our stay. Very unfortunate. Not recommended!!! Only luck we had was the weather, as hurricane Debby visited the west coast and not the east coast.

I have been coming to the Driftwood Resort for over 30 years. I finally wised up and purchased a time share in 2021 in the "E" building. Always a pleasant stay. Reception staff (Charlie, Joe, Lynn) are super. Park your car when you arrive and don't need to get in it again until it is time to go home. Walk to restaurants, shops, and the convenience store. You can't beat a room directly on the ocean!!