Hawks Cay Resort

Absolutely beautiful location and pool! Stayed for a charter with Captain Dylan Bryan on the B n’ M out of Islamorada (I’d highly recommend btw, look him up on Google/Instagram). Pros: The staff were all super friendly and helpful! The rooms were clean and very spacious! Cleaned and restocked daily. Nice balcony, and views were beautiful even out of a standard room. Golf cart transport for getting around the property. Small water play area with water slides for the littles was a big hit! Mini golf, volleyball, and kids activity center was a nice bonus. All the food we had on property was excellent and a great variety of options! If you’re looking for a real resort feel this is your place! Cons: Pool closes at sunset. The Tiki Grill and Pilar Bar stop serving food at 5. This leaves the Angler and Ale or Salt & Ash your only option for dinner without going to Marathon or Islamorada. Both of which require reservations or you’re going to end up with an hour + wait if even possible. Must plan ahead for dinners. No fishing allowed, and we were not allowed to launch our personal paddle board from site, but there’s plenty of places you can close by. Also, you trade out some of the authentic keys feel for the resort vibes.

I have been coming to this resort for decades but sadly this will be my last trip. The resort is in beautiful surroundings but it just simply isn’t maintained. There is no doubt a major sewer problem that has yet to be repaired and has been an issue the have been “working on” for years. The scent is overpowering. Can’t miss it. When asked about it - the girl at the front desk said she would send housekeeping to spray air freshener. The air freshener they are using is so strong I can taste it. The staff has some amazing people that try so hard but some that are just clueless and overall they are understaffed. Room service was not an option this morning and all ordering services that are advertised through their site with the menus around the property say it is unavailable at this time. For the prices they charge- you expect more. It is just sad what has happened here.

There are lots of nice amenities for kids , pools lagoon etc . Service however sadly lacking . Not sure where the breakdown occurs . I called three times for additional towels due to family group of 10. Finally went and got them myself at front desk . Everyone who answered phone or I met at desk very pleasant but no action . Also requested first night someone to come and vacuum as floor was gritty in bare feet . Requested three times as well / no one came . The villa we were in - the Sanctuary was advertised as 4 bedroom . Was really a 3.5 as one bedroom was a connector room with no closet . Furnishings are in sad need of replacement as almost threadbare on chairs and sofa . Lastly electronic key system always breaking down. I had to get the bracelets re keyed several times . This is a lovely property but needs t be updated and service needs to be attended to . There was one great employee at the bar named Jason who was very kind and helpful . Others at the bar not so much . We won’t return sadly until upgrades occur and service improves .

This is not out first time visiting Hawks Cay but after reading reviews on TripAdvisor and the unveiling of a January 2025 enhanced experience, we felt it was necessary to review. We stayed at two 3 bedroom villas next to each other and traveled as 4 adults with 4 kids. Being that presidents week is peak travel, our rooms were $1000 each per night. Our rooms were dated and not maintained. We were told we had to purchase paper towels for the kitchen and soap. As stated, the carpet on the steps was beyond filthy, cabinets not maintained, etc. Room service does not come unless requested and to have daily service it is an additional fee. The breakfast options were new and anything but kid friendly. There is no sit down waitress service but rather a long line at the cafe, a full menu to order and then you are provided with a number for them to bring food out to you. If you would like a refill on a coffee during breakfast, you have to wait online to order another. Additionally, it took 55 minutes to get our order out. This was not the case in past years and we were just told “this is the direction the property is going in”. Most breakfast options were $25+ for entrees and with no service, it became obvious that the resort is trying to cut costs while maximizing profit. There was an active wasps nest at our entry and service arrived and handled us bug spray- Also unacceptable when we are coming and going with 4 children under 5 years old. We travel to the Keys 2-3 times per year from New York and are sad to say this resort has gone down hill and we will not be back.

Absolutely amazing family resort that is also adult friendly. If you're looking for a family trip don't pass Duck Key up! Fantastic pool (both family pool and an adult pool), tiki bar centrally located so you can still keep an eye on the kiddos and more. If the sights and pure beauty of the views isn't enough, no worries the list of amenities is endless. This resort has seven dolphins on site. That's right, seven. You can walk straight over and watch the dolphin play anytime you want, they provide a brief dolphin show daily, yes - free! You can also pay to have a private experience with the dolphins. There is also a private lagoon where the kiddos (or adults) can grab a kayak or a paddle board, a floating swim pad for the kiddos and the depth of the lagoon is very low so the kiddos feel very safe and secure. The entire resort is spotless. We had a great room overlooking the water. Everything is so close together you don't have to worry about a thing. Want more? Ok, well they also hold a Mermaid show once a week at an adjacent site. Want more? Ok, if you want to get to any of their other sites or their great restaurants they will drive you for free on a golf cart, which is available at your whim. There is an absolutely wonderful fire pit area that we largely enjoyed in the evenings sitting around the fire drinking some cocktails while the kiddos played. The only issue at this resort would be service. In these times it's hard to get help at all, especially good help. The service really lacked. Front desk folks hid in the back room and were not very helpful. The folks at the tiki hut were really bad, stood around in huddles most of the day chatting at the bar while you nearly had to beg for any service. I traveled a long way and a few cocktails at the pool would be nice, the only way to get one is to go to the bar and approach someone. The menu at the tiki hut really needs changed out. The restaurant for breakfast was also an issue, too many people who barely understood English forget speaking it. We ordered oatmeal and was given oat milk and when we asked where the oatmeal was we were told for 20 minutes that it was coming. Only to find out by a manager they have no oatmeal and the order taker didn't know what we were speaking of when we asked for oatmeal. This is a resort in the US, I *think* oatmeal is pretty standard? Their breakfast menu was extremely limited and again no real service. I agree with other reviewers the breakfast was hugely overpriced, especially expecting me also to walk over and get the beverages we asked for from their extremely overpriced and limited 'convenience' area. They did just open a new restaurant on site, we ate there one evening and did enjoy the meal. The happiest and nicest folks there were actually the gentlemen who drove the golf carts and the bellmen. Mostly everyone else didn't really care if you were there and not engaged in their job. STILL, I plan to go back!!! We are definitely going back again as a family!