Pools at Hilton Head Resorts

[brego]

We are looking at visiting Hilton Head in mid November. We are trying to make a decision between Grand Ocean, Barony Beach, and Surfwatch. I am trying to find out which of these resorts keep their pools heated in November. I have called all the resorts several times and have got conflicting information from the front desk staff. The responses vary between all the pools are heated, none of the pools are heated, or one of the pools is heated in November. Can anyone provide more clarity on the pool status in November? Thank you so much for any assistance you might be able to provide.

 

[jme]

We are looking at visiting Hilton Head in mid November. We are trying to make a decision between Grand Ocean, Barony Beach, and Surfwatch. I am trying to find out which of these resorts keep their pools heated in November. I have called all the resorts several times and have got conflicting information from the front desk staff. The responses vary between all the pools are heated, none of the pools are heated, or one of the pools is heated in November. Can anyone provide more clarity on the pool status in November? Thank you so much for any assistance you might be able to provide.

I still trust only the front desk people, specifically the front desk manager. I would always ask for that person.
I called all three resorts for you this morning.
Grande Ocean has three heated pools---- South pool, Lap pool, and Indoor pool. They will be heated in November.
(The Dolphin pool and the North pool are unheated.)

SurfWatch has three heated pools, the one mid-resort (in-between the middle Oceanside buildings), the one out near the ocean,
and the indoor pool.
The one near the ocean will be under construction in November, so that pool will not be available for use at all during that time.
The one mid-resort and the indoor pool will be heated in November,.

Barony front desk girl had no clue....said they haven't made a decision as to whether they'll heat them in winter or not (What?).

FYI, all the "Big Three" resorts of GO, Barony, and SurfWatch have very nice heated indoor pools......
IMHO, SW is best, Barony second, and GO third, but all are very nice----SW & Barony are just more recently constructed,
with SW being last, and they did a beautiful job. All are over a decade+ old, GO & Barony close to 20+ and 16+ respectively.

As for the resorts in general, any would be great.

 

[jd2601]

Barony has the indoor pool, outdoor pool next to the indoor pool, and the Garden pool heated. Garden pool was the most recent to be heated. If they choose to heat these pools in November is a valid question. The Ocean pool is not heated last I spoke with Manager.

I agree all three resorts GO, Barony, and Surfwatch would have options and all have nice indoor pools that are heated.

 

[jont]

I agree with jme in that Surfwatch has the best indoor pool, but the outdoor pools are somewhat removed from the indoor pool building, which is a stand alone building. Barony has an outdoor right outside the indoor pool, which is part of the check in building and is more centrally located that surfwatch. If your main concern is the swimming options I would choose either SW or barony. If location to other activities is your priority I would select Grand Ocean which has at least one heated pool. I used them in Janurary a few years ago.

 

[RLS50]

SurfWatch has three heated pools, the one mid-resort (in-between the middle Oceanside buildings), the one out near the ocean,
and the indoor pool.
The one near the ocean will be under construction in November, so that pool will not be available for use at all during that time.
The one mid-resort and the indoor pool will be heated in November,

JME, curious if there are any additional details on what is being done to that pool at SurfWatch? Just normal maintenance / resurfacing, or are there other changes / enhancements planned?

 

[tschwa2]

Keep in mind that just because Marriott is heating certain pools doesn't mean that they are heating to a comfortable temperature. We stayed in Myrtle Beach over Easter a few years back and even though the pool was heated it was still quite cool in combination with the air temperature.

 

[jd2601]

With Covid cutbacks at Many Marriott properties you wonder if heated pools might be additional cutbacks. Many sites have closed Whirlpool spas closed due to Covid and social distancing. Agree that just heating a pool does not mean it is heated to a comfortable temperature in November.

 

[jme]

Barony has the indoor pool, outdoor pool next to the indoor pool, and the Garden pool heated. Garden pool was the most recent to be heated. If they choose to heat these pools in November is a valid question. The Ocean pool is not heated last I spoke with Manager.

I agree all three resorts GO, Barony, and Surfwatch would have options and all have nice indoor pools that are heated.

did not even think about Garden pool...when I called they didn't mention it, but that's good to know as traders usually end up there.
Thanks

 

[jme]

JME, curious if there are any additional details on what is being done to that pool at SurfWatch? Just normal maintenance / resurfacing, or are there other changes / enhancements planned?

Have no idea..... Front desk would know......(843) 363-3400

 

[jme]

With Covid cutbacks at Many Marriott properties you wonder if heated pools might be additional cutbacks. Many sites have closed Whirlpool spas closed due to Covid and social distancing. Agree that just heating a pool does not mean it is heated to a comfortable temperature in November.

November at Hilton Head is usually very temperate, seldom cold.

Hilton Head Island, SC
Weather averages

Overview

Graphs

....................MonthHigh / Low(°F)Rain
September..............85° / 68°........8 days
October...................77° / 58°........5 days
November...............70° / 49°........5 days
December...............62° / 42°........7 days

 

[LUVourMarriotts]

Great thread. We will be at Barony for Thanksgiving, so I called a few weeks ago. I didn't even consider that the one person I spoke to, at the front desk, may have no idea. The woman I spoke with said the only pools at Barony that are heated will be the indoor pool and the outdoor pool directly behind the indoor pool. No mention of the garden pool, which would be really great if that is true. I will have to call back again to see if I get a different answer.

 

[LUVourMarriotts]

OK, so I just called Barony again. I spoke with a woman named Bailey. I asked her to confirm with the manager on duty. This is what she told me.
"The indoor pool is always heated. As for the other pools, we determine when to heat them based on the air temperature. When the air temperature is consistently, 3-5 days straight, below 60 degrees, we heat the outdoor pools. The pools we are able to heat are the pool directly behind the indoor pool and the garden pool."

HTH and hope that's the real answer.

 

[brego]

I so appreciate all of this helpful information! JME, thank for making those calls for me! I really appreciate your help. We had to cancel our late Spring trip to Grand Ocean due to Covid. I I feel that we need to getaway before winter hits but feel a bit apprehensive about traveling, even though we are driving. Again, I greatly appreciate your help!

 

[jme]

I so appreciate all of this helpful information! JME, thank for making those calls for me! I really appreciate your help. We had to cancel our late Spring trip to Grand Ocean due to Covid. I I feel that we need to getaway before winter hits but feel a bit apprehensive about traveling, even though we are driving. Again, I greatly appreciate your help!

Not sure where you'd be driving from, but I'd say being at Hilton Head can be as safe a trip, and as safe a stay, as any.
The Marriott resorts do a fantastic job of keeping it that way, and since you have a full kitchen you can cook in 100% if you like,
or do take-out at dozens of great restaurants, or even use delivery services.
There are several excellent grocery stores and they all deliver, too. When we were there at HH in June, we didn't venture out at all,
but we still thoroughly enjoyed our vacation, going to the beach and pools as often as we wanted, enjoyed biking and walks,
and even walked around Harbour Town and South Beach for a while.
Then in August when we went back, we did venture out a few times, even dining-in at a couple of our favorite places,
and those did an outstanding job of having everything very safe, and we felt fine at all times.
The places we visited seemed very strict about it all----had proper spacing and mandatory masks.
The island was and is still under a mandatory mask directive all over, so for us it ended up being wonderful to get out,
and should be the same for anyone returning.

 

[brego]

We are traveling from Southern NJ. Our plan is to just enjoy the resort and do some biking and long walks. We plan on cooking for ourselves. We were at the Fairway Villas in NJ in late July and had a similar itinerary. We found it really rejuvenating to be away for a week. My husband and I are both mental health professionals and are doing therapy via telemedicine. It can be difficult.

As much as I love Grand Ocean, I am now leaning towards Barony or Surf Watch. The biking options are better at Grand Ocean but they have started their major villa renovations. When I called, the gentleman I spoke to said that there might be 2 buildings going through the process in mid November to keep on schedule. It sounds like it could be disruptive to the type of getaway we are looking for which is just to relax and enjoy the resort.

Thank you again for all of your helpful input!

 

[jmhpsu93]

We'll be at Barony for two weeks in November, driving down from Maryland. Looking forward to starting on Marty's restaurant list, socially distanced and masked of course!