Montage Palmetto Bluff

My wife and I recently stayed at the Montage Palmetto Bluff for our third time (the previous two were prior to Montage's management and expansion of the property). The Montage is very good, but sadly, I would no longer characterize Palmetto Bluff as excellent. We stayed in a River View Cottage Suite, which in my opinion, is by far the best accommodations at the resort. The whole cottages area is separate from the main building and is truly a unique destination. The newly constructed accommodations, e.g., Inn rooms, Guest House rooms, look much more generic and are similar to accommodations that could be found anywhere. The gem of this property is the May River frontage. Why Montage created a generic colonial looking main inn away from the river is beyond me. And closing the River House's restaurant, which had wonderful 4 star Southern cuisine, is a big mistake. The Inn's restaurant and bar (Jessamine, Octagon Bar) are weak. They really feel like some generic country club bar and grill. Nothing special. The Canoe Club and Buffalos are still very good. The River House lounge/veranda is wonderful. We tried to eat at Cole's one evening, but the Montage would not provide transportation to this Palmetto Bluff restaurant. Very strange. We didn't have a car and it's 3 miles further in the property. It was suggested we ride our bikes! Ha!! 3 miles in the dark after some wine. No thank you. Speaking of the complimentary bikes provided at the cottages, the glorious Sun cruisers have been replaced by awful utilitarian and uncomfortable bikes. Bummer. What was a great feature of the resort was significantly lessened by the daily discomfort of riding those things around. Too bad. We hired a car and did go off property one evening to the Bluffton Room in Bluffton about 20 minutes from the Montage. The cuisine and wine list were both excellent. We used the fitness centers daily and the spa a couple times. The fitness centers are good, not great. Relatively small for this size resort. I liked the aerobic equipment (bikes, treadmills, elipticals) but the weight machines were very limited. We found one foam roller at the Inn's center and none at the adult pool's center. We did a yoga class and the instructor was great! The spa has changed since our last stay. The new spa is nice, though not as pleasant as the previous one. The interior color scheme is very white. Modest in size. And could be anywhere USA. The old spa was on the lagoon and you had a very strong sense of place and uniqueness. Our spa treatments were very good. The main pool is at the inn and has an adjacent bar. Service was so so. Food was lame. Not sure why Montage placed a kitchen that obstructs the view of the lagoon. The spa pool was great to swim laps. The best pool is the adult pool adjacent to the RIver House and a lagoon and looking out over the May River. The setting is lovely. The new guest room building there is an eyesore that diminishes the pool's setting a bit. And you can not get food at the adult pool! Ridiculous. The pool attendants would not let me order room service out there either. Dumb dumb dumb. Overall service was a let down. Pool side at the main pool and bar and at the adult pool was blah. Main inn bar and restaurant service was bad. Service at the Canoe Club and at Buffalos were very good. Housekeeping was decent. Laundry screwed up the dry cleaning. Too many service golf carts left on paths and not parked appropriately, and one guy nearly killed us with his terrible driving every day. Who's overseeing the staff? I would only stay here again in a cottage on the May River. The other accommodations are situated poorly and look very generic. The river view cottages are unique and beautiful. That said, I still rate Palmetto Bluff much higher than The Sanctuary on Kiawah or the Cloister at Sea Island. Hopefully, Montage will change the Octagon Bar and Jessamine...those are weak. I also hope Montage will leverage the beauty of the May River and re-open the River House restaurant with something special.

We visited 6 years ago and returned to Palmetto Bluff this year. When you arrive at the entrance gate you will be handed a CD that describes the area while you drive to the hotel. The whole area is very peaceful and natural. Rent bicycles and enjoy the paths and all that there is to do on the property. Watch the dolphins jumping in the river and the alligators in the lagoon. Take out a kayak and explore the marsh and lagoon. Kenardo will set you up and make sure you have fun. Visit the treehouse near the market and the treehouse in Moreland. Enjoy the pool and the some iced tea, lemonade, and cookies porching at the river house. At night they light the fire pits and have smores available. There is so much to explore and do. Service is fantastic all around. Architecture of the homes is very charming. it is located not far from Savannah, Hilton Head, Beaufort, and of course old Bluffton. We certainly hope to return again.

My wife and I spent a weekend at Palmetto Bluff to celebrate an anniversary in August and must say that the hotel met and exceeded every expectation. The service was excellent, the food was great and the staff uniformly responsive to our every request. It was a very relaxing weekend that we hope to make a tradition!

Without doubt, this resort is a beautiful location & the staff are extremely well trained, always courteous & nothing too much trouble. We had a cottage suite that came with bikes that are very desirable if you like to be independent as the resort is completely car free although golf buggies will ship guests around on request. Not all accommodations come with bikes included in the rates but they are available at additional cost from bike rental. Check before you book. Be aware that school & public holidays render the resort exceptionally busy & we found the main pool area on Labour Day weekend a bit of a bun fight although there are 2 other pools that are adult only & provide a little more peace. However if you wish to eat on site at these times, I would advise pre-booking well in advance of your stay. There are 4 restaurants on site but all are not open every day of the week & for additional choice it is necessary to make a 20mins drive to Bluffton, the nearest town or onto Hilton Head Island, about 30mins away. My only real gripe is that their pricing is not transparent enough. There is a mandatory valet parking of $25 per day (& you cannot self park) plus an additional $35 per day added as a 'resort fee' (which with tax adds up to $46) - a total of an extra $60 + tax on top of the quoted daily room rates. They also add an additional $1.00 per day as a 'conservancy donation' without requesting the guests' approval & you need to deduct this at check out if you don't want it charged. Nowhere in the literature does it state exactly what the 'resort fee' includes or explain why it is charged as a mandatory supplement to the main room rates. In my opinion resort fees are just a sneaky way for hotels to bump up their income - why not just be open about the room rate & state it as it is?? And if you can't self park, add that in too. I understand that the Federal Trade Commission is concerned about this issue & Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri introduced a bill to Congress in 2016 to end this invidious practice but in the meantime, just be aware of the extra costs that Montage levy before you book. We also found gratuities added to our meals bills that we had not authorised which I considered fraudulent. So, just watch the final charges on your account!

We were marred a little because our car broke down resulting in a pricy repair. So that sort of clouded our vision about this place but the food and staff were amazing. I guess I was surprised how rude people were to such nice staff. The spa massage I had was great and I thought they were very professional with all of their services. We enjoyed the food and the kayaking on the property tremendously. I guess I could only critique the fact that things close early which didn't work well with our schedules and I think that the bicycles should have been complimentary (not that we complained about the kayaks being free- that was great). It just seems like something that should be thrown in there. Overall, I thought the food and service was top notch set against a beautiful backdrop.

You Won't Need to Go Much Further If You're Looking to Explore the Old South & New. This One Time Plantation Sits Graciously on Over 20,000+ Acres! that Meander Throughout Through Low Country Pine Forests, Streams, Lakes and The Gracious May River. We Arrived at Savanah's Relaxed Airport and Had a Driver Ready to Whisk Us to this Magical Resort. Flying in From California the Lushness was Almost Overwhelming... We had Booked a River View Cottage, After Being Hand Delivered to Our 5-Star Suite and Shown Around... We Poured a Glass of Chardonnay and Strolled Down to the River's Edge to Watch the Sun Put on Brilliant Light Show Before Opening Up a Starlit Sky... In the Morning We Hopped on the Easy Cruiser Bikes that Were Parked Outside our Room and Started to Explore this Amazing Island of Tranquility. Between the Smells of Fresh Brewed Coffee, Fragrant Roses and Honeysuckle, the fluttering of Multi-hue Butterflies the Sly Smile of a Sunbathing Alligator and the Tail Waging Welcome of the House Golden Labradors We Quickly Felt at Home... Between Indulging Ourselves in the Stunning Spa, Relaxing Patios, Multiple Restaurants, Challenging Golf, Boat Rides into Eclectic Bluffton and Never Having to Drive Anything Faster than a Golf Cart... It was Hard to Say Good-Bye after 5 Glorious Days and Nights!

Children and Pets...not a plus for us... When we get away we want peace and tranquility... we don't want to see dogs on the sofas and deal with screaming children in the hallways. When my wife and I walk into the lobby looking for a relaxing seat...we do not want to see a woman allowing her dog to lick it's ars on the sofa but we did...twice. I could only imagine a woman in a black dress on her way out for the evening who sits down on the sofa covered with dog hair, she stands up and notices...then what, back to your room to remove it… Hopefully you brought a lint roller...could put quite a damper on an evening. When my wife and I are out with another couple on a Saturday night we would love to sleep in Sunday morning... but not at the Palmetto Bluff...we were awakened by two screeching little rats outside our door. The mother allowed her two children to use the hallway as their playground. The facility is beautiful but the South Carolina humidity and bug infestation at this time of year is ridiculous. The rooms are spacious and clean but do not forget to put "the little foam alligator" out on your bed if you want your linens changed...for they failed to tell us that and we were inconvenienced due to housekeeping needing to return to our room.

Just returned from a magical stay at Palmetto Bluff. From the moment we pulled up, the resort took our breath away. Our trip was spectacular, and we have high standards. The service was top-notch. We stayed in a lagoon view cottage and it was incredible. Wish we had stayed longer, but already planning our next trip back. Other hotels should take notes from this place. Truly 5-star, no detail went overlooked. Can't wait to come back.

We stay in one of the rental villas very spacious a beautiful house. Lot of activities we rented bikes and went everywhere. Nice restaurants delicious buffet breakfast. Nice gardens very well maintained a few alligators on the water and lots of snapping turtles so fun for the kids to see.