The Sanderling Resort

Reviews

• SF

  Susan Fincke

  3 days ago
  3.0
  The newly-renovated Sanderling Resort was a huge disappointment and not at all worth the price. The experience began with a lack luster welcome and hurried review of the amenities. We were not offered a cart or assistance with our luggage. Our room was on the 3rd floor of the North Beach House; the newest of the buildings. The room was small and cramped. But that was not the biggest problem. We could not find electrical outlets to re-charge our phones. We located a Belkin surge protector shoved under one of the beds. When we asked about plugging in the coffee pot the next morning, we were directed to extension cords underneath the credenza holding the TV. The light switch in the bathroom is behind the door so you have to enter a dark bathroom to turn on the light. There was no lamp or clock on the table between the beds. Instead, there are floor lamps on the outside of both beds with “step-on” switches on the floor. Great, except to turn them off and on, you have to get out of bed! The four post beds were too large for the rooms and the posts made watching TV from bed a challenge. There was no directory of resort services or how to access them. There was no directions on how to operate the TV or menu of channels. Theodosia was closed for the season, so we ate in the Life Saving Station. Meals were over-priced and service was slow. There were no chairs on the beach so we had to locate them and take them onto the beach ourselves. A small sign by the walkway reminded guests to return their chairs. Not my experience with other resorts. The staff seemed unenthusiastic about the guest experience, almost indifferent to requests. My visit to the Sanderling Resort was not as advertised and certainly not worth the money and all the fees/taxes added.
• NJ

  Nicole Jefferies

  Oct 25, 2025
  3.0
  Appears to be recently remodeled and the rooms were nice by beach standards. Some of the staff were amazing, others not so much. Food was expensive for the quality. Location is a bit remote requiring a car to get to restaurants and activities. I don't plan on returning as I believe there are better options in the area.
• JW

  Jack Weber

  Oct 22, 2025
  1.0
  In a word: Yikes. In as many as Google will allow: First off, I’ll give credit where credit is due and say the staff was friendly enough and the bed was comfortable. Now that I’m finished with the positives…My wife and I got married on a Friday, and we were so excited to spend a mini honeymoon on the OBX. When we booked the room we were asked if we were celebrating anything and obviously we wrote we would be coming down right after our wedding! When we arrived, two of our bank cards (from completely unrelated accounts) were declined and we were told we had to contact our bank. Welcome! After speaking to our bank, we went back insisting it was not our issue and sure enough one of their payment terminals doesn’t work properly and it was a known issue on their end. Then, after a rushed rundown of the very few “amenities” we were given our room. Not once in the entire process were we given so much as a “Congratulations!” We weren’t looking for free hand outs, but why even ask if there’s a special occasion if you aren’t going to do a single thing? I’ve worked in restaurants for 15 years and I’ve given away more to $100 birthday dinners. The entire place gives off a general sense of disrepair. The men’s room at the outside bar was insane. Cracked and empty paper towel holder, no soap, and the bar at the top of the door was literally ripped off the wall with 2+ years of rust damage and preventing the door from being opened properly. The bathroom was locked up before I could get a picture. What I have attached a picture of is the door latch to our back balcony, which room service LEFT OPEN on our second day. Don’t expect to feel safe here. Again, it’s only a $40/night resort fee what do you expect? Don’t worry though, through all this stress you can find comfort in an outdoor solo cup cocktail for the low price of $18-22. One of the weirdest parts was that multiple times that we would head out for a meal, there would be two staff members just standing at the door waiting to open it for us. Really feels like putting the cart before the horse, acting like they’re giving us white glove service meanwhile our thermostat is reading low battery and our back door can’t lock properly. A final word of warning. I spent 5 years of my restaurant career on the OBX, as well as personally dining all over the beach. I can honestly say that the health inspection score of the Lifesaving Station Restaurant on the property is the lowest I have ever seen, two whole points lower than the Kitty Hawk McDonald’s used to be before it was shut down. Dine at your own risk. I look forward to an AI generated response from the new GM, and I hope the time I’ve taken to write this will prevent anyone from making the same mistake we did.
• WG

  Whitney G

  Oct 18, 2025
  5.0
  I couldn’t be more pleased. My stay at The Sanderling was heaven on earth. This is my first time here and I will definitely make it an annual tradition. I stayed in an ocean suite which was gorgeous. I love the decor, the bed is super comfortable, and the balcony with cushioned lounge chairs was my favorite place to hang out. The staff were all friendly and helpful. And the location is picturesque and peaceful.
• MM

  Mark

  Oct 17, 2025
  1.0
  Don't go there, they say #1 rated resort in the south. Over $400 a night for a bed in a room, small table for 2. Nice lobby and polite employees but everything else was horrible. As soon as we got out of the elevator was a pile of dirt and wood chips that had been swept up but not picked up. Get to the room and it's basically a bed and TV. Tried to have a glass of wine but couldn't because of the fruit flies attacked. Later laying in bed to watch TV and just watched the fruit flies fly all around, that's how bad they were. Got up the next morning to no coffee pot in the room, just some kinda tea bag coffee with a electric pot to heat water up. Only 1 cup for my wife and I to drink out of, no cream, no sugar, no utensils. Go down to the front desk and no lights on and no one there, no coffee at 6am. Had to drive 40 minutes to 7/11 to get coffee. Get back to watch sunrise and the windows were to dirty to see out. They should be ashamed, have stayed there several times but will never again and will let all my friends know not to as well. Oh forgot to mention we were woke up by the sewer truck that night as well. Picture's attached!!!