Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa

My boyfriend and I booked a room at Seminole Hard Rock Tampa for September 14–15 to celebrate our anniversary. Unfortunately, the way our stay started was extremely disappointing and took away a significant part of the experience we had planned. I called around 4:00 PM, which is also check-in time, to confirm our reservation and make sure everything was in order. The woman I spoke with told me everything was good and that our room would be ready. We arrived around 6:00 PM, went to the front desk, provided my ID, paid the deposit, and were then told that our room wasn’t quite ready yet and that I would receive a call when it was. At first, I honestly didn’t think much of it. I had mentioned that we were celebrating our anniversary, so part of me even wondered if maybe they were doing something special with the room. We took our dog for a walk and eventually sat in the car because it was hot outside. Two hours later, we still hadn’t received a call. Around 8:00 PM, I called the hotel and spoke with a very nice gentleman who tried to figure out what was happening. He told me their system showed that we had already checked in, which was especially confusing considering we were still sitting in the parking lot waiting for a room. He contacted the front desk again, and eventually I was transferred to a woman there. By approximately 8:45 PM, I was told that we had received a complimentary room upgrade, but that upgraded room still wasn’t ready and they couldn’t tell me when it would be. This is where I really don’t understand what happened. If I called at 4:00 PM and was told my room was ready, why wasn’t it available when we arrived two hours later? And why were we “upgraded” to another room that wasn’t available instead of simply giving us the room we originally booked? At that point, we had been waiting for almost three hours after arriving and nearly five hours after the hotel’s stated check-in time. Our dog was getting anxious, and we didn’t want to spend any more of our anniversary sitting in a parking lot. We finally accepted another room just so we could get settled. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the king room with a balcony that I was told we were getting. It had a pool view, smelled musty, and smelled like cigarette smoke. We didn’t complain or ask to switch again because, frankly, we’d already spent enough of our anniversary waiting for a room. By the time we got settled and finally made it downstairs, it was around 9:30 PM. The stores and shops we wanted to visit were closed, and so was the pool. I had specifically planned our arrival time so we could spend a few hours at the pool, get dinner, explore the property, and then enjoy the casino. Instead, a large portion of our evening was spent sitting in our car waiting for a room that we had been told was ready hours earlier. What makes this especially frustrating is that everything AFTER the check-in experience was actually really nice. Our dinner was wonderful, our server was incredibly sweet and knowledgeable about the menu, and we enjoyed the rest of the property and our evening. I understand that hotels get busy and rooms can occasionally be delayed. What I don’t understand is confirming that a room is ready, accepting the deposit and checking us in, leaving us waiting for hours without an update, showing us as already checked in when we didn’t have a room, and then calling an unavailable room an “upgrade.” For the price and reputation of the Hard Rock, I expected the check-in process and communication to be handled much better, especially when the hotel knew we were there celebrating our anniversary. We weren’t expecting special treatment. We were simply expecting to be able to check into the room we reserved within a reasonable amount of time and enjoy the amenities we paid to come there for. The rest of our experience showed us how nice the Hard Rock can be, which honestly makes such a poor start to our anniversary stay even more disappointing.

I was invited as a guest of a family member to stay a couple of nights. I had never been there before and was quite excited to go. Looked forward to the stay, as I researched the nightly rates, and they were quite high, so I guess I expected more. Room was underwhelming, could have stayed somewhere else for less money and got more amenities. Stayed the first night, second day toured the area. Got back wanted to relax, so I laid on the bed, which btw had no housekeeping service. I was reading suggestions for the following day, and I felt a tickle on my arm, brushed it off figuring it was a loose hair or thread. Again, I felt the tickle, I brushed it away, but got up to check and there was about a DOZEN ants crawling on the sheet AND my pillow. I pulled the sheet away from the mattress and there were MORE ants crawling on the mattress. So, being that there was no housekeeping service, did I SLEEP with these ants all night. Immediately called the desk and they sent up a housekeeper. We showed her the situation, she I guess called her supervisor, who called our room and "offered" to put us in another room, which happened to be right next door, the bed was on the same wall as the ants. Apparently it was a casino comped room and they took off the resort fee. So, I slept in a bed of ants and I was offered nothing. As if I wanted anything except to get out of that hotel. A small stipend of a casino credit, maybe a higher end room, dinner --something. NOTHING. Guess who won't be returning there. ME AND the person who invited me.

I am extremely disappointed with my experience at this property. I was with a friend, and we were standing near a table where several Black American patrons were gambling. Security approached us and instructed us to move closer to the table and out of the walkway. We complied immediately. We have never had an issue moving when asked, and we understand safety and fire-hazard requirements. That was NEVER my complaint. What I dispute is the property's claim that we were asked “numerous times” by management and security to clear the walkway. That is not what happened. We moved when security instructed us to move. We did not repeatedly refuse, and we were not repeatedly warned. After we complied, security came back, requested our identification, and told us we could be escorted from the property. My concern was that we appeared to be treated as though we were part of the Black American patrons who were gambling nearby simply because we were standing in the same area. What made the situation even more concerning was that a Caucasian patron witnessed what was happening, came over, stood with us, and said, “Let’s see how they treat you now.” He had recognized what was happening and wanted to see whether the treatment toward us would change. I later received a response from the property stating that security footage showed we were repeatedly asked to clear the walkway and that we were escorted out because of “disruptive and unsafe behavior.” I strongly dispute that characterization. It does not accurately reflect what happened. I understand safety rules. I understand keeping walkways clear. What I do not accept is having my conduct inaccurately portrayed to justify what happened afterward. My complaint was about how we were treated, not about being asked to move. I am sharing my experience because I believe guests deserve to be treated fairly and because when security footage is used to make a determination, the complete sequence of events should be considered—not simply one version of what happened. This experience left me extremely disappointed and concerned about how we were treated.Extremely Disappointed by How I Was Treated

The East Tower is so much better than the West Tower, so consider yourself informed! Fantastic room with plenty of space, storage, and good light. Spa-like bathroom. Small but well-equipped gym and amazing pool area. We love this hotel. Fortunately, though the casino floors are difficult to breathe in, the rooms themselves are nonsmoking and fresh. Will stay again for another fun experience.

We plan on visiting hard rock on August 23 to celebrate a 64 year anniversary and my Husbands 82 year old birthday which is on august 26. We usually come 2 to 3 times a year given our age and travel. Just reading your reviews and hope you are correcting the negative issues. Embarrassing to have so many them especially the ungiving slots. I certain can attest to that. Nice to ein something once in a while. The comments you received should be concerning. We are not all rich just want to have some fun and wins once in a while. Thanks for addressing the many issues you have received. Good customer service matters