We recently booked a 4 day stay at the Acacia read alot of great reviews from other trip advisor travelers.Would love to get some recent feedback from anyone who has had the opportunuty to visit.Our other choice was the Armada By The Sea. We would also love to hear suggestions on some fun things to do.Haven%26#39;t been back to Wildwood since 1978.
Thanks,Mikeyv.
Acacia Beachfront motel
Hi Mikey,
Brace yourself.
The Wildwoods changed very little from 1978 to 2002. But since 2002... whoa. At last count by people who know what they%26#39;re talking about, 85 motels have met the wrecking ball thanks to a surge of condomania, spiked by the 10,000-sq-ft convention center they plunked down right on the beach by the boards in %26#39;02-03. It%26#39;s going to look pretty different from what you remember. The boards have their problems too, with a couple of piers just sitting there, lifeless (including Hunt%26#39;s). If you want to know more about what%26#39;s been going on, see http://www.doowopusa.org.
That said, it%26#39;s still the wonderful Wildwoods and I still go back every year, with the occasional skip because I%26#39;m too broke to go anywhere :). I stayed at the Acacia for a couple of nights last August. I wanted an oceanfront room and I was booking at the last minute, so of course they gave me the one on the ground floor, where the area in front of the door to the room is a high-traffic passageway from their pool to the coffee shop at the neighboring motel (that coffee shop is very sweet, by the way--you may enjoy it for breakfasts). If your family likes to sit by the pool, you might not like the Acacia, where the pool is quite small and not particularly festive. And I%26#39;d try to make sure they don%26#39;t put you on the first floor (but I%26#39;d give that advice for any motel in the Wildwoods due to noise considerations as well as the lack of view). I remember thinking I probably would have been very happy in one of the oceanfront rooms on the second floor or higher, which have private balconies. But there are only a few of those--most of the rooms have the typical sideways view of the beach.
Have fun!
Acacia Beachfront motel
P.S. I meant to mention that the Acacia is no longer a true motel, it%26#39;s a condo being operated as a motel. And I thought I could feel the difference, in terms of the attitude of the front desk staff. Nothing terrible, but they just weren%26#39;t friendly.
I stayed at the Acacia last summer. It was fine -- nothing great but nothing really bad. As ninaromeo said, all units are privately owned (condo), which we did not find out until after we checked in. But it is still operated like a motel, with daily maid service. However, I do remember the maid service being performed quite late on some days of our stay which really annoyed me! There is no ground floor because the parking is under the building, but there is an elevator. There%26#39;s no free ice either, but you can purchase a bag of ice from the front desk. Oh, and the pool is really small. On the positive side, the beach down in this area of the Crest is really nice -- not as wide as it is closer to the boardwalk (this is a good thing!).
Jerseygurl, thanks for clarifying about the ground floor. There are two or three ground floor rooms on the narrow oceanfront end of the building, one of which I occupied last year. But other than those rooms, you%26#39;re correct, the ';ground floor'; consists of lobby and parking space.
Jerseygurl, thanks for clarifying about the ground floor. There are two or three ground floor rooms on the narrow oceanfront end of the building, one of which I occupied last year. But other than those rooms, you%26#39;re correct, the ';ground floor'; consists of lobby and parking space.
Ninaromeo, you%26#39;re right. I forgot about those oceanfront ground floor rooms by the pool, probably because I did not use the pool at all while I was there.
I stayed at the Acacia 9 times between 1990 and 2000. It was the only place my wife and I would stay. The rooms were clean, decently decorated, management seemed to care about the place. Never seemed to rent rooms to unruly teenagers during Memorial weekend. The 2 room efficiency was a good room.
Daily management seemed to change in 2000, had a bad stay there Memorial Day weekend that year. I do not know who management is now.
We visit Wildwood Crest 1 or 2 times a year and I am willing to give the place another try, but wife and children say no. The pool is small which my kids do not like.
We just got back last night from a week at the Acacia. Loved it. The room was spotless, the maid service thorough (if we were still not ready to leave the room and said we didn%26#39;t need anything, they still left us towels, etc. in a bag by the door), and the front desk helpful. The kids had a blast in the pool.
But, yes...as someone else posted, good ol%26#39; Wildwood is changing. Condos are the norm, Duffinetti%26#39;s is gone, and more and more old do-wop places are being plowed under.
Enjoy it while you can...
