Bottom line: By the time we left The Dunlin (a day early), I was convinced it's a money laundering operation. How else to explain the weirdness we encountered?
First the pros:
1. Beautifully decorated.
2. Food was excellent, other than my husband's burger at lunch, which upset his stomach.
3. Staff, with a couple exceptions (see Cons) were excellent: friendly, helpful, professional. Some of the best service I've had in awhile.
Now the cons:
1. This place swims in a sea of concrete. It's at the back of a tightly packed development, with houses everywhere you look (except the river/marsh). Not at all conducive to a relaxing, quiet getaway.
2. Hotter than Hades. We live in the South Carolina Lowcountry and know heat. You beat it with shade and trees. This place had none.
3. World's smallest pool. Could barely swim.
4. Nothing to do. This was especially galling, as we got charged a $52 resort fee for ... nothing. My husband went through a hassle to get into the "gym," which was on par with a Hampton Inn, at best. We didn't see the spa, as we decided to leave early.
5. Weird layout. Check-in "lobby" is smaller than my living room. The only place to sit is on the tiny porch, which in Carolina heat or thunderstorms would be uncomfortable and unsafe. The "fine dining" restaurant (more below), Linette's, is up a steep flight of stairs. The suites had a large living area, but tiny a bedroom.
6. Suite bathroom lacked enough towel bars or hooks for towels, had only one bathmat for sink and shower, needed a makeup mirror, and the sink vanity area was so small that everything got wet when I washed my face.
Now the biggest con: We were there for our anniversary and the Dunlin kindly put a split of champagne and a small cake in our room. So nice. Then we had lunch at Linette's -- and realized that was it for "fine dining." The place looks like an ice cream parlor, has a noisy and smelly open kitchen, has a bar taking up lots of space, and it was too hot to eat on their balcony. However, the downstairs bar/lounge is beautiful and very quiet. Surely they'd let us eat there....
We check in for our dinner, greeted by a nearly deaf hostess who was so unresponsive I feared she had a medical issue. No smile, no greeting. The manager was there and did greet us. We declined a noisy two top next to the bar, in the center of the room, where EVERYONE had to walk past us -- not romantic. Too hot to eat outside. So we asked if we could eat downstairs in the Willet Room (lobby bar). Yes, we could. Yay!
Super waiter (Darren? Daryl?) was very professional, friendly and welcoming, then broke the bad news: We only could order bar bites there: dips, shrimp cocktail, etc. NOT an anniversary dinner. We asked if an exception could be made, but the waiter said he couldn't. I could see how uncomfortable he was being the bearer of bad news, and it wasn't his fault. So I went upstairs, collared the manager, and explained the situation. After a moment, he got it, and we had a delectable meal served to us, along with two glasses of Champagne.
But c'mon, people: You're in the service business. I formerly was a convention planner, working with some of the finest properties in the US. I've stayed at legendary properties in the North America, Europe and Central America. NO ONE should have to pull rank to be served a meal in the bar. It's not just bad policy, it's indicative of the main problem at The Dunlin: It's masquerading as a fine resort, but needs a real service-oriented heart and soul behind the mask.
US