Poets Cove Resort & Spa

The hotel was like something out of the 1950’s. It needs a complete update and apart from the views, it’s got nothing going for it. The carpet in the room was stained, we had peeling wallpaper and ripped cushions for the outside chairs. 3 times we had to ask for the room to be cleaned. The restaurant menu is basic to say the least, the food was probably not even at average level and ‘The Tapas’ was basically deep fried frozen calamari and potato slices. Restaurant staff were lovely in fairness and John is a character, giving us extensive knowledge about the driveways, mailboxes, house sizes and steep slopes! I read some of the reviews in disbelief…. How can anyone give this place 5 stars and call the food good….they need to get out more. Lovely views, don’t go.

The reviews seem to be a tad outdated but definitely a mixed bag of ratings. Many, I note, were in the height of the pandemic. Having said that, when we arrived, they had a booked for January and not Dec 28th. But reception found us a room and we were booked! Our one night stay was without flaw. We didn't use the spa, nor kayaking. We were simply here for a quick getaway from the hustle and demands at home in Victoria. We were also interested in Poets Cove itself. We began with lunch in the Aurora Dining room. The service from our young waitress was excellent. We should have gotten her name but long dark hair, tall, slim, and very attentive. Worthy of the 25% tip we left. The menu was not extensive but included enough for everyone to find a tasty treat. We ordered the vegetable club on foccacia bread. It was delicious along with the generous portion of yummy fries. My husband and I shared the plate. Quite enough for a lunch. Our room was lovely, the fireplace was on when we entered making it warm and cozy on a cool/cold Island night. We had to request house coats and a few other items but they were brought to our room quickly. We planned wine and cheese in our room then donned our house coats and went to the hot tub. Lovely. Just the right temperature. We had a nice visit with a couple also from Victoria. All in all, we were not disappointed. A couple of recommendations however would have given it a 5 plus rating. We tea drinkers love our tea, but not from a Keurig. No matter how many times you try to cleanse the machine, it still tastes like stale coffee. A small kettle or microwave and a nice selection of teas would be appreciated. Also, there's a fridge in the room. Placing a small amount of 'dairy milk' would be soooo appreciated. The coffeemate edible oil option didn't go well with my tea. Oh yes, glass cups, not disposable ones. Pender Island strongly promotes reusable products. One last item might be a small lotion from your spa, may have enticed me to book in a session. Thanks for the lovely, relaxing stay.

If this review was completely based on the spa treatment from Jill it would be a 5 star review. I was going to book a stay. However, the place was dirty and obviously care was not taken by management to oversee the cleaning. They didn’t provide the spa front desk with an appropriate credit card machine so she had to find one which didn’t work either. Off to the front desk to pay an invoice. Needless to say I am not motivated in staying in a place that doesn’t even try to hide the dirt or support their staff and services. It should be mentioned that the waiter in the pub was very pleasant as well.

Waiter very uninterested in his job. My three sisters went there to celebrate our birthdays. We left after we ate. They had problems with wasps inside the restaurant and one was flying around by me. I asked for help and his response why you want me to kill it. He said just move to another table. Patio doors wide open and you look on the floor dirty with dead wasp. My dinner was not that good to boot. I would not recommend going there again. Ruined my birthday and so disappointed! We were out of there in 30 minutes.

We went to Poet's Cove marina early this summer. At one point we heard that the dock was booked out so were disappointed. When we arrived, we thought we'd take our chances and speak with the dock office person and the other dock staff. We found them so helpful in helping accommodate us as they updated their bookings (i.e. some boaters don't show up). We were impressed with how they went out of their way to help us - the communication was key, efficient and very professional. Because of this, we booked Labour Day weekend, which just happened to be our special anniversary. We so appreciated the very personal, warm welcome from all the dock staff. They are so hard-working and so approachable. Communication has been top-notch - especially from the office manager - thank you CL!! This is a very popular marina and we can see why. Please know that you truly made our anniversary special. We will be back!!