Poet’s Cove Resort & Spa

Where to begin? Poets Cove is more than tired, it is run down! It is no way worth what they are asking you to pay. The chairs in the room were stained, the towels were bare and had strings hanging from them. The room was stuffy, no air and we had to sleep with our patio door wide open to get air flow. TV is dated, they have a coffee pot in the room but you have to move it somewhere to plug it in. A very poorly planned hotel room.
We had breakfast in the hotel, they had one poor girl serving coffee and waitressing. She could not take orders for Latte’s as she had to go downstairs to make them and that would leave no one in the restaurant. We were lucky being in the Lodge area as the power went off (which apparently happens often) and they have a generator that services that part of the hotel. The rest of the people were out of luck.
We had actually called and spoke to the manager before going to Poets Cove as we had read all the bad reviews. He assured us it was only the restaurant that was the problem and that they were dealing with it, the hotel he said was in fantastic shape! No way!!!

I’ll keep this review short and sweet because I’m confident the poets cove team lacks the sophistication to keep track of a Unilocal profile and will surely not be taking action in response to the many negative reviews sharing a similar tone. The property is nice but this place would be well served by pushing the reset button and firing their entire service staff. The complete disregard for the customer experience is completely unacceptable for a resort charging the rates they charge. Requests such as booking a room, checking into that room or ordering a pub lunch are met with blank stares from the poets cove zombie crew who have all been heavily sedated prior to their shift. With the exception of those possessing a strong «do-​it-​yourself» attitude with regards to their holidays, I cant see how this would make the mark for even the least discerning holidayers.

This review is for the restaurant only, as the setting is perfect, but the restaurants suck! Inadequate staffing levels lead to the slowest and least efficient service we’ve ever had. Too bad because we used to love this place when is was Bedwell Harbour, it was relaxed, great food and a lot of fun. Poets Cove has a lot potential, but needs to sort out their restaurant issues. Won’t go back to eat anytime soon.

We really liked this place, our first time. Gone a little down hill since we used to come by boat. This time we stayed in a villa. Food and service in the restaurant was great. Setting gorgeous. Went to the hot tub 30 minutes before it closed at 10:30… Filled with the guy who checked us in and his friends. A bottle of wine (glass, who cares about the wine) and smoking (blowing right at us). Both against the «rules.» As paying guests, we didn’t stay long. Thinking about coming back but think I’ll consider somewhere else. Not how I would run the place.

We normally like making a stop at Poets Cove, but this long weekend the restaurants were closed, the pool was cold and the hot tub was colder! We had to ask for pool towels three times before they showed up.
Pull up your bootstraps Poet’s Cove! You are better than this!

We chose to celebrate our 20^th wedding anniversary with a quick seaplane trip up to Poet’s Cove on Pender Island. The room was lovely and quiet. The view is utterly amazing. The grounds are pretty and well maintained. We did not use the pool or spa so I can’t comment on those. It’s the service and food I want to talk about…
Service: there is no room service; the hotel had offered to have champagne waiting in our room for us when we arrived. It was not there, but they brought it a few hours after we had arrived — pounding on the door while we were sleeping; Housekeeping did NOT come during our 2 night stay. We slept in Saturday morning and kept the do not disturb sign on the door til about noon. When we came back from a lovely whale watching excursion late in the afternoon, they had still not been to tidy up the room. We called to ask about it and we were told they had gone home for the day. We asked them to at least bring some fresh wine glasses. When we came back from dinner, there were 2 glasses and that is all. Bed not made, dirty dishes not removed… Let me also say the resort was NOT busy while we were there.
Food: This is the most unfortunate part. The food is simply not worthy of the setting. Since we chose a seaplane to get us there, once we arrived we really were stuck at the resort. Options were poor. There is one «restaurant» open for breakfast only (closes at 10:30). It was the kind of basic buffet you might find in a 1 or 2 star motel that offers complimentary breakfast. Cold and dried out french toast; rubbery «eggs Benedict;» bad sausage; mini boxes of cereal… oh — and I think we were charged about $ 50 for that experience.
Lunch and dinner must be eaten in the only other restaurant at the resort. It’s a pub, with bad pub food. The menu is extremely limited. The chicken strips were decent, but that’s pretty much it. A few salads, a few apps, burgers and a few entrees you can order after 5 pm. The soup of the day seemed to be the soup of the week. It was a roasted red pepper and tomato «bisque» for three days in a row. It tasted like warmed up ketchup. I ordered a piña colada from the BLENDED drinks menu, and was told there was no blender. I guess that makes it hard to make a blended drink! The $ 27 steak entrée was lousy — a tough piece of meat sitting on a pile of cauliflower. We considered trying to eat elsewhere on the island. When we inquired about that at the front desk, we were told there’s a resort shuttle we could take for $ 25 EACH WAY to go the few miles into town.
It’s too bad — this place has so much potential to be great, and the prices would suggest it should be. Some simple suggestions — completely rework the food offerings. Hire a chef who knows what they are doing, and let them do it. I found myself wishing we had packed snacks. How about a simple cheese/​fruit/​cracker plate? The rooms are so great with their private balconies and cushy chairs, that it would be really nice to enjoy some wine and cheese there. And/​or, how about offering complimentary wine and cheese at 4pm every day in the lobby? Take some tricks from the play books of resorts who do it right, like Alderbrook or the Willows. How about room service? How about a decent breakfast offering, with made-​to-​order crepes or omelets or waffles? How about mimosas? How about working with Gulf Islands farmers and creating memorable dishes from local fare? How about rotating specials on the dinner menu? How about an actual soup of the DAY so we don’t feel like we are being offered reheated leftovers at a huge cost? Enable your staff to really take care of their guests. Make sure all the rooms have been serviced before housekeeping goes home for the day. How about free shuttle services on the island so your guests can explore and leave wanting to come back?
We have three young kids and so we don’t get to do many trips on our own these days. We are so glad we got away to a beautiful and relaxing place, but this could have– should have — been so much better for what it cost.

My husband and I stayed here recently on our sailboat in the marina. The setting is beautiful, however the resort has lost some of its look and feel over the sat couple of years. The Maria staff are friendly and helpful but the resort staff leave you feeling that you are really not part of the resort. For example we used to be able to use the upper pool and workout area, now this is only for resort guests. The pool and hot TV area marina guests have access to is nice but over-​used and not cleaned on a regular basis. The pay showers are large and when cleaned are worth the loonie they cost. The resort has rental vans which one can rent and tour the island, a great addition! There is a small cafeteria with some sundries available for purchase, but not nearly the breadth of items o e would exoct.
All in all, a pretty lace to stay but not worth the high price they charge for moorage

From the moment the staff at Poet’s Cove greeted us upon arrival at the float plane dock, our stay here has been absolutely wonderful! The service is top notch and extremely accommodating (they even supplied us with a toothbrush at check-​in as we forgot one)! Despite one review, the lodge rooms are quite spacious and are extremely charming with amazing views of the marina! The food in the Bistro was outstanding — so much that we canceled our reservation upstairs at Aurora as we enjoyed the atmosphere and the food so much downstairs. Also, the waitstaff was very attentive and friendly. We loved the hot wings, the burgers and the flatbread. So many options on the menu!!! I would strongly recommend renting kayaks and paddle to Port Browning and walk up to Driftwood Centre & spend some time there as well. The concierge said it would take about 90 mins to paddle there but it only took us 60 mins (& that included a little sightseeing and watching 3 bald eagles up close on a nearby rock)! We’re looking forward to massages in the Spa before our floatplane picks us up. A perfect 3 day getaway to relax and rejuvenate!

We came to Pender for some rest and relaxation and we found it! We arrived around 1 pm and as our room wouldn’t be ready till three decided to have a light lunch at the Aurora restaurant. I ordered the yam fries and my husband got the seafood chowder. The fries were crispy and nicely seasoned. The chowder, on the other hand was very bland and uninspired. It wasn’t horrible but when you’re sitting water front in the West Coast you expect more than «ok» when it comes to seafood — especially clams.
Our room was small but fantastic, I cannot complain and I loved the soaker tub with room for two. It was so relaxing and tranquil. There is a man-​made waterfall just outside which is a nice touch. (We were in room 310, top floor furthest down the hall so only one neighbour)
Dinner was good, the British server named Sam was very attentive and pleasant. I ordered the lamb terrine which was nicely presented with good flavour. My husband ordered the scallops which were a bit under seared and overlooked but good nonetheless. As I mentioned we were just grateful to sit down and share a real mean together, having an eightenn month old toddler ensures that rarely happens! For the main I got the duck breast… What did that poor piece of meat ever do to the cook? I asked if it would be cooked medium rare and was told it was more of a «medium» and was «cooked through» which I should have taken as a red flag… It was horrendously overcooked and I was sad to see it, as a nicely seared duck breast is one of the better things in life. Ah well, the potatoes were great. Hubby got the lamb shank and it was fantastic, tender and flavourful accompanied with surprisingly well executed gnocchi. For desert we opted for some alcoholic coffees and took an order of carrot cake and flour-​less chocolate cake back to our room. Tiny portions for the dessert, carrot cake was very yummy… but the «chocolate cake» was excellent! Wish I had some right now. The service here is great, strangely they do not offer room service but we were able to call our breakfast order down for pickup and had a quiet morning eating it in our room. They even put our coffees in paper cups for us to take back.
I was sad to see that the Café by the marina was closed for the season, but the discounted off season price was worth it. We got the «Romance Package» which included: Sparkling wine (Prosecco) and (delicious) truffles in room upon arrival, a voucher for two, three-​course dinners at Aurora, two nights accommodation, and a $ 100.00 gift card that could be spent anywhere in the resort. A GREAT deal.
We went for a morning walk around the shore of the resort and appreciated the unique landscape and beauty of the Island. We found many Sea slugs and crabs and interesting rock formations. We were lucky to have a sunny day and a slack tide for our excursion.
We are not «spa» people. Neither of us really get the whole «couples massage» thing — but I knew I wanted to try the «eucalyptus steam cave» on offer at Sussarus Spa at the resort.
The «cave» is located beneath the man made water fall I mentioned earlier. It was $ 15.00 each to use the steam cave, relaxation room, and the outdoor hot tub for as long as we wanted. I really enjoyed it, the steam cave was done very well; for being made out of concrete it really gave the impression of a natural location. We switched from the cave, to the hot tub, and back again a few times– it was chilly this time of year but it was still enjoyable. There was also complimentary tea and water on offer to keep you hydrated after the steam cave.
After the Spa visit we opted for a light dinner at Syren’s, the Marina «Pub». It was interesting the menu was the same as at Aurora, not sure if this is the case during high season or not. We ordered hot wings to start (they were amazing, the sauce tasted fresh and was incredibly spicy, I think they just popped some Habaneros into a blender and pureed them!!) My husband ordered the Syren’s burger and I got the Salt Spring Mussels. Every thing was great and more than made up for the tragic duck incident the night prior. We visited the «Upper Pool» which was heated to the perfect temperature for comfortable swimming in February and we had a great time making idiots of ourselves with no one around.
We brought two bottles of wine and a litre of orange juice (I love Mimosas in the morning) which made our trip extra romantic. I would probably bring more «snacks» next time. But other than that it was a terrific stay and we will definitely be going back again.
Things that would have sent this trip over the top for me:
Room Service!
Stronger drinks
Softer bathrobes
Larger desert portions (Come on, we all love chocolate!)
Real cream for the in-​room coffee maker (I hate whitener with a passion.)
Kayak rental available off season too.

*This review is for the spa only*
I was on Pender Island, staying in a cabin, when I decided I needed a massage. Booked into the Sussurus Spa at Poet’s Cove.
The massage itself was lovely. I was looking for a relaxing massage, and that’s what I got. The therapist used oil, and a lot of long, Swedish strokes. The treatment room was clean and dimly lit, and the treatment bed was large and cushy.
After the treatment, I relaxed in the (small) lounge before heading outside to the steam cave. It’s basically a man-​made cave-​like steam room. I’m glad I was the only person in there though, or else it would have been a bit too intimate.
Not the most luxurious spa that I’ve been too — and definitely not a «destination» spa… but it was nice enough, and if I’m on the Island and needing a little «pick me up», I’d go back.

* Rating for the setting mostly *
Pender Island makes a nice quick getaway from Vancouver. It is a pleasant ferry ride over, and really is world’s apart as it only has a bit over 2000 people living on the entire island.
We booked into Poet’s Cove Resort, which has 22 rooms, and some villas as well for larger groups.
This is a semi-​manicured property stuck into some beautiful nature. The room was modern and well kept, and had a lovely view (
) of the Marina. That little cabin you see in the photo is actually Canada Customs (
) for those who arrive by boat or seaplane from the States. There was a man-​made, but pleasant, water feature right outside the room (
) which gave a pleasant sound adding to the peaceful nature all day. But perhaps the nicest surprise of the room was all of the wildlife that wander right by outside the deck. There was a nice variety of birds playing in the water feature, and also some deer that visited semi-​regularly (
).
Wandering around the beach area there is also a VERY friendly cat that frequently greeted us to say hello in between using the trees as a scratching post (
).
There was also a heated pool and hot tub, both of which had a beautiful view.
The spa is simple, and a bit overpriced for what we imagine the quality of the services are — so we didn’t indulge in any extensive treatments. They are charging big city prices and likely don’t have the skills to match that. But we did enjoy the Eucalyptus Steam Cave and the spa hot tub with nice views.
The food at the resort is just ok, nothing to write home about. Service is very friendly, but a bit inexperienced as it seems they were just training up the summer part time help.
This is a place to come for the location, not so much for the fine dining or spa services.
But perhaps the most memorable part of the location was the sunset:
A nice getaway!