My husband and I and our two young children (2.5 years and 7 months), just spent 7 nights at Pompano (late Feb) and it was truly amazing! We HIGHLY recommend! Key points below:
Other guests reviews: I read every review beforehand, and felt most were very positive and accurate. I will say a common theme seemed to appear in that the decor was noted as not being exceedingly current. I thought the decor was tasteful, in good condition, and the fact that the room was immaculate way overpowered the slightly dated decor.
Rooms: spotless and spacious; all rooms have ocean front views and private balconies with tables and chairs/loungers. A large bathtub was a big hit with the kiddos! The bed was very comfortable. A short walk to the two on-site restaurants was convenient. Umbrellas are provided in abundance for the few rainy days. The bathrooms are large and the shower was lovely. The dual robes were a fun touch!
Cleanliness of rooms (needs its own section): I am a clean freak, like the kind that cleans and cleans and inspects the floor. Walking into our room after housekeeping to the faint smell of bleach was such an unexpected comfort. Not that I find it necessary, but the staff did wear masks when we saw them clean rooms.
Crib: The hotel not only provided a complementary Pack n' Play crib for us to use for our infant, but the care and detail to ensure it was kept clean was impressive and quite unexpected. There was a fitted sheet, and under it was a waterproof mat, and under that was a thicker small blanket for comfort. It could not have been better! We felt totally at ease that our daughter was safe, on a firm-flat surface, and in a clean environment.
Food: incredible! Wow! I am a bit of a particular food/health snob and I was very impressed by the cuisine. There was a lovely assortment of menu options and courses. I didn't realize it was fine dining but the staff went above and beyond to make our family feel comfortable and welcome. They would place our 2.5 year old's meal order first so it always came out quickly and they would even bring bowls of strawberries or other fruits to help entertain her. It was so kind. They worked so hard and were never too busy to interact with her and you could tell they really cared about the guests. Sidenote: fine-dining every night with two little kids was a bit intimidating as we work hard to ensure our girls are courteous, polite and well-behaved, but we are also realistic :). We brought a small backpack of books and toys and they did great. It was super helpful to have entertainment on hand because the meals did take about an hour and a half or so.
We were proud to have permitted screen time for our toddler and ourselves (the entire duration of our vacation) only on the airplane rides! We were grateful to be fully present and enjoy the beauty and serenity of such a tranquil and pristine resort and island without the distraction of our iPhones. If you can, turn off your phone, it was so nice to enjoy Bermuda without it! *exception made to take pictures
Birds: I am a bit fearful of birds and was quite apprehensive about what the restaurants would be like. I recall having a bird land on a table I was at in Hawaii and take a dinner roll, which was appalling, unsanitary and quite unpleasant. This was not the case at Pompano whatsoever.
Admittedly, there were birds present (during breakfast only) but they were not an issue. They respected personal space much more than the Hawaiian birds. We didn't have any land on our tables, although there were a few flying around and eating crumbs off the floor. They didn't get close enough to touch us which I was very grateful for. I also noticed the staff took exceptional care to ensure no droppings were present. From a cleanliness perspective, that was much appreciated.
Restaurant staff: went above and beyond to make sure we were WELL taken care of! Always had our table complete with high chair set up and ready when we arrived. Truly wonderful people. So friendly, helpful. courteous, sincere, efficient, and happy. A well-balanced team of personalities. Really a highlight of our trip!
Sidenote: if you purchase the breakfast and dinner plan, the hotel will compensate you for any meals you eat off-site. I thought that was a lovely and quite unexpected touch.
The van driver and front desk were great too! We especially liked the young gentleman who shuttled us to and from the bus stops. He was laid back and delightful.
Beach: the pictures do not lie. It is even better in person. Even in the off-season! WOW. We had the beach to ourselves every time we went. It was idyllic. Even with wind and cooler water temps the water was still so fun to play and splash in. Sidenote: while we were there we did see a few Man o'War's that had washed up on the beach. Coming from a landlocked state in the US we were not terribly familiar with them but I was grateful I packed a small bottle of white vinegar just in case, as when we visited the neighboring Horseshoe Beach (lovely!) there was a posted sign that indicated how to best treat a sting and it included applying vinegar immediately. It wasn't a big concern of ours, I was just glad we had the necessary antidote with us, especially because Horseshoe Beach was without lifeguard (again during the off-season).
Pompano Spa: First and foremost the spa, like most of the resort, is oceanfront, in the most picturesque setting! I can't quite put it to words, but the room in itself was 3 walls of windows (yet very private) and all you could see was the most beautiful blue ocean! Next, JERMAINE, has a true gift. He is so talented! My husband and I both got 2-hour relaxation massages from him and, especially as a busy mom, it was the most relaxed I have felt for a very long time. He was incredible. I was so grateful. I also am breastfeeding so lying on my stomach is not the most comfortable, but surprisingly I was extremely comfortable. He told me that he was trained in massage by a Doula and has done a considerable amount of prenatal massage so any of you pregnant ladies considering a massage while you are here. JUST DO IT!
Activities: Touring a pristine tropical island in the off-season was still excellent! Late February is considered the 'off-season' and really the only issue we had with that during our whole trip was that we didn't realize most of the shops in downtown Hamilton would be closed on Sunday. We found plenty to do and did not have any trouble entertaining our toddler. We visited the beach on the resort several times. The sand was like walking on flour! The water was cool so our infant wasn't super into it, but our toddler was having the time of her life! The pool was a bit chilly but we did see people swimming one warm day. There were an abundance of chairs, and towels. We brought sand toys and had a blast! They were actually adding sand to the beach while we were there, so there was a pretty awesome sand mountain to climb on as well.
Away from the resort, we visited BAMZ (Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo), played in the water at Horseshoe/Baby Beach, caught a local football (soccer in US) game, toured the Royal Naval Dockyard, took a ferry from Downtown Hamilton, and visited the Crystal Caves. All super easily accessible and affordable by bus, and no we didn't take carseats. We felt perfectly safe!
In conclusion, we were so delighted with the Pompano Beach Club. It was a lovely place to stay. 10/10! We enjoyed meeting some of the other guests as well. Everyone was so friendly and courteous, I wished we could have spent more time together! We look forward to another trip!
US
BM
CA