Business ProfileforHolly Bluff Marina

This business is TERRIBLE! Rented a roach invested houseboat for a full week. 20+ roaches and not a SINGLE apology from anyone anyone at the marina. Not the apathetic woman at the front desk who was very RUDE. Every concern was met with excuses or casual dismissal. They indicated they had sprayed for roaches and the smell was so bad they had to wash it down again. That smell was with us the whole trip. They scammed a 'service visit' to fix something that could've been addressed at the marina. The maps of where to camp were marked incorrectly and as a result the prop blade was damaged. Again, NOT A SINGLE "we are sorry, or what can we do to make this right with our customer. The grill was so caked with grease and food from prior tenants that it nearly caught the propane take hose the grease fire out the bottom. Understanding what a customer says about the trip and having no empathy is ridiculous. For $400 - night we would not have stayed in a roach 🪳 infested hotel. We took good care of the boat and if it weren't for renting from Holly Bluff it would've been an even more lovely time on the St John's River.

My name is Jennifer ********* and I am the General Manager at Holly Bluff Marina. I'm sorry you had challenges during your timeshare houseboat vacation and that I was not available on Sunday to speak with you in person. I was here on September 1st when you stopped by 3 days into your cruise to re-fuel and I wish you would have said something at that time about being dissatisfied so we could have immediately worked to rectify the cleanliness issues you claimed to have, but unfortunately you made no mention of anything so we assumed you were enjoying your cruise with no issues.

I have done some research to address the complaints you mention in your review.

Regarding the boat being infested with roaches.... I'm sorry you experienced this and we work hard to prevent any infestations. We have a monthly pest control service that was onsite August 21 to thoroughly spray that boat. After the service and prior to your check-in, our housekeeping crew cleaned and inspected the boat and did not find evidence of any live insects. That being said, it is Florida in the summertime and pest control is always a battle this time of year on the St. Johns River. Often if windows and doors are left open, palmetto bugs, roaches and other insects can get in. Though you stated upon check-out that you never had a window open during the entire week, when we boarded the boat immediately following your departure there were six windows open, including the kitchen window that did not have a screen. We did find 2 live bugs, and have had our pest control company come back to further investigate and rectify this situation.

Regarding your service call on your day of check-out... At 8:45am when we noticed you were still at Lungren Island (more than 2 hours north of our marina), we contacted you via phone to see if there was an issue since you were due to return by 9am. There was no answer so we left a message. You returned our call at 9:40am stating you were missing a propeller blade and were just going to go slow to return to the marina. You cannot drive a boat with missing or damaged propeller blades without risking damage to the engine. So we sent our mechanic to meet you. He ended up having to replace all three blades, which were damaged due to hitting something in the river. In your houseboat handbook, which you showed to us, there were hand-written notes on how to properly enter that area. We have 13 other houseboats that visit Lungren Island regularly who are given the exact same instruction yet do not need propeller service, so we are not sure how, where or when you hit something to damage the prop. Based on the almost-double fuel consumption you had during your trip versus other week-long guests, our experience tells us you likely ran the boat for days without notifying us you had damaged the propeller.

I have spoken to my Dock Crew about the grill being unclean. Though the preparation checklist was marked as the grill being cleaned it is certainly possible they missed it and for that I apologize.

Check out time is 9am, which is clearly noted on your Charter Agreement and was reviewed during the one-on-one orientation and signed off on by you, yet you stated you thought check out was at 11am. I spoke to my crew member who checked you out and she said she was empathetic and did apologize in the beginning of the check-out process when you were already agitated. After reviewing your charges, including a late fee (also noted on your contract), you became further agitated, stated you were not responsible for the service charges and would dispute all charges and contact your attorney, but he ended up contacting your mother who paid the check-out balance due (as well as the User Fee in advance of your check-in) over the phone. You then walked out telling my crew member to "*****************.

We pride ourselves on customer service, and the majority of our customer reviews make mention of how courteous and helpful our crew is. Not only when things are going well, but also when there are challenges. I'm sorry this vacation did not go well for you and would encourage you to look for other lodging options if you ever return to the St. Johns River.

If you wish to contact me direct to discuss any of these issues further, you can do so by calling me at 386.822.992 or via email at ***********************. Thank you.