Hero Beach Club

Hero Beach Club is like holding up a mirror to what's gone wrong with Montauk the last 10 years or so. This is our second time staying at Hero Beach Club (first time in 2017, their opening summer), and the property has not aged well. It's time to re-invest some money back in - and more than slapping on a coat of paint. Montauk used to be a relatively affordable trip for families, but now exists as an unapologetic money grab. HBC is Montauk in a nutshell - outrageously expensive for what it offers. THE GOOD To their credit, the room was clean on arrival. Kudos to their cleaning staff. HBC partners with fitness instructors and others to provide activities on the lawn. Beach staff were helpful. Outdoor common areas are nice, and most everyone working there was kind in their interactions with us. THE BAD The property photographs well on their website, but look at anything up close, and the veneer falls apart. HBC has sacrificed functionality for the 'gram. No proper seating options other than some heavy stools scattered about. No counter space for toiletries in the bathrooms - the sinks are like tall skinny flower pots with a 1-2" ledge. No towel racks other than those standing ladder things (unsecured to the wall). Bathrooms had no door locks, one of the bathrooms when closed blocks the bedroom door from being open. 50/50 chance on whether towels were ever available by the pool. Food marketed as being available by the pool was absurdly expensive ($10 for a slice of less-than-mid pizza, $18 for a tiny pan kid's size pizza), if available at all. Sandwiches were never in stock. THE UGLY The room is $2500 per night, and that is INFURIATING for what you get. The rooms are in dire need of serious maintenance. Mold by the patio door, shower door seals are broken and turned into spear-like edges. Barn door to separate bedroom was half off the track and was missing the lower guide so could swing wildly below. Shelves in the bathroom were improperly secured and about to pull themselves out of the wall. Bathroom grout was absolutely disgusting - many tiles were loose and "crunchy" as we walked across them - the entire subfloor needs to be re-done. Water was turned off for about an hour to the building with no notice - you simply can't do that. I get that work needs to be done, but some effort needs to be made to guests that something as critical as water is going to be off for a period of time in the middle of the day. Service - most everyone quite friendly and accommodating, but there's not much anyone can do other than apologize when things run out. 50/50 on whether pool towels were made available at all. HBC advertises a lunch menu by the pool ($18 for a simple kid's sized pizza!), but the vast majority of the items were never in stock the entire weekend. Activities - probably the shining spot here. HBC has made a few partnerships

Overall, The Hero Beach Club is an old motel from the 1960's. It was previously called the Oceanside Motel. We came for a one night stay in May. When we booked, the following nights were already fully booked so we just planned the single night. Interestingly, these other bookings disappeared upon our arrival and the rooms were much, much cheaper than what we had already paid ( $1,102.00 AUD). When we arrived the weather was blisteringly cold with a strong, icy wind. The Manager/Proprietor checked us in. Due to the cold weather, I asked if the USD$97.00 (approx. $160 AUD) resort fee could be waived as we were not using the pool or any other item that the fee covered. There was a discussion and he agreed not to charge it. I told my wife this when we got to the room. We went to dinner locally and went to bed. We left the following day after a tiny breakfast offering located on the premises bar. I was called by my bank about a charge from the Hero Beach Club and rang them to ask whether this and the deposit would be returned to our Mastercard. He had had a change of attitude and insisted that the Resort Fee would still have to be paid and had been charged to my card without my consent or approval. This is an important lesson to be learnt as some Resort Fees can easily be a scam that the Premises inflicts without providing a service. The pool is part of the premises and to have to pay extra is a scam.