*Wyndham Ocean Blvd. the second time around

I was at this resort once before and because of my experience, which I wrote about here, I booked the same place this time. It was not the same experience. First of all, I was here at different times of the year. The first time was October and the place was not packed. This time was spring break for MANY people and it was crowded. We were told it is worse in the summer.

Note to Wyndham resort owners: Avoid coming here in the summer.

Secondly, I was in a different tower. As a VIP member, I am able to request a certain unit. I have never done this, but if I ever return to this Wyndham I will request Tower 2. The rooms are larger and more spacious. We were in Tower 3 and it was the most narrow unit I've ever had, and I've been in a unit in Star Island Orlando. Oh, and the Wyndham in New York where you expect small.

Madison said that I wasn't correctly remembering our time in Tower 2, and maybe because we were coming from such a large three bedroom in Santee I was thrown off. Or maybe it was because there were four of us, but this unit made me think of a cabin on a cruise liner. Not that I've ever sailed on one before, but still. It felt small.

I thought maybe I had to sacrifice space to get the ocean view. The view was incredible. That was a plus. It would have been more of a plus if the master had had a way to get out on to the porch. Hearing the ocean at night would have been lovely. But I suppose due to hurricanes and safety codes that isn't feasible.

Some other noticeable differences between my visits:

• There was not a ceiling fan in the second bedroom. The master had one, but the other did not. SueG was not happy with that.
• It was noted that the trash could be placed outside our door for pickup between certain hours. People put it out at all hours. That was just gross. We walked past trash, after trash, after trash. The people next to us kept putting their trash bags outside our door where it leaked gross liquid that we stepped in any time we exited. I'd prefer the trash can placed somewhere where we can then dump our bags. Placing them outside our units was like walking up and down the streets of New Orleans.
• The sales desk guy was good. His name was Julian and he was nonchalant. He gave the aura of I-don't-care-whether-you-go-or-not and it hooked me. He told me the breakfast was not a one on one, but a presentation. He also told me Wyndham was about to split and I should learn about that and what would happen to my points. I agreed and signed up. Sucka. I have no idea whether or not he would have hounded me had I said no, but he was at least nicer than the people I dealt with a few years ago.

The presentation itself was fine. I went to the owners and my friend went to the visitor one. The breakfast sucked like always, although they did have flavored creamers. The first hurdle was checking in to the presentation. The girl wanted a credit card besides my license (which I had been told to bring that morning with the early phone call reminder) for "identification purposes". I didn't have a credit card on me and she wanted me to go get one. Seriously? I checked in yesterday with all of that. My license has my picture, albeit not a good one. Who in their right mind would want to impersonate me at one of these sales pitches? 

I had to hike back to Tower 3 to get more ID. I somehow got lost exiting and entering the different garages. I brought back my AARP card. She accepted that. But really, the two front desks need to get on the same page with that. Everyone who came in after me had to hike back too. Definitely, did not make me happy.

The presentation, which took 30 people and was "filling up quickly" according to the girl at the desk the day before was in a small room and there were only 5 families for a total of 9 people. Uh huh. We each had a representative who sat with us during the presentation. That was a tad weird, but my guy, Michael, was a hoot. I was still annoyed at the ID situation and when he arrived I was more annoyed since there wasn't suppose to be a one on one. Michael asked me if I any issues and I immediately started in on the ID. By the end of my grousing, I used a naughty word.

Me: "And sorry about that. Let's keep that between us because we have a cuss jar on this trip and I'll have to feed it if my friends know."

Michael: "How much?"

Me: ".10 cents"

Michael: "For that word? That should be a dollar. That's the big daddy of cuss words."

The presentation started and Michael gave me a sheet of paper to jot down questions I may have or for taking notes. I started listening to the presentation and Michael leaned over and wrote on my paper. I thought, "What the heck?" He pushed the paper toward me. He had written in capital letters NO SWEARING. Okay, Michael was the bomb!

The presentation was so-so. Brandon did a good job, but other than telling me about the split I learned little that I didn't already know. Well, I learned that La Quinta has just been bought by Wyndham so that was a plus on my side since that is where I stay in Chapel Hill, NC. I told Michael that Brandon needed to throw out more trivia questions and give away Wyndham merchandise during his presentation. Liven it up a bit. I went to one like that in Lake Lure and it was great. 

Michael and I retired to his desk after the presentation which would have been more annoying if I didn't like Michael. He and I talked a bit about my ownership and he answered questions that I didn't really have, but I too know how to play the game. My "twenty-minute presentation" ended up being an hour and twenty minutes.

Michael: "Time you will never get back."

SueG was across the cubicle with her sales girl and all was good with her so we ended up getting $225 in dining dollars that we used at a Brazillian Steakhouse called Rioz. 

Lastly, this time around we paid for the valet parking. Highly recommend that after my last fiasco with parking. It is $10 a day and unlimited coming and goings. We only had to text when we wanted our vehicle and the van was waiting for us when we got off the elevator. Huge when the resort is crowded.

Also, this resort did not go overboard with the Presidential part of my ownership. In New York they give you gifts. I received a bottle of wine, crackers, cheese, and nuts. In Santee, I received a bottle of wine and a gift bag with lots of tasty goodies. Here, I received nothing. Nada. Not sure if it was just me or if that is just this resort, but I missed my wine.

I like North Myrtle Beach and this Wyndham is probably as good as it gets. I did learn about the new one that they are opening up so if I'm lucky enough to venture back I'll check it out.

*I am a Wyndham Resort Club owner and review my experiences of the resorts I visit. This is only my opinion as an owner.