Islander Hotel & Resort Reviews

Carol was absolutely amazing! We had the perfect wedding and she constantly checked on us to make sure we were having a good time. I would recommend The Islander over and over again!

Great venue to have your ceremony and reception. The venue is very accommodating and Carol was great to work with. The ballroom looks really nice and the venue is reasonably priced.

The Islander was our hotel of choice for our wedding guests. They were very friendly to work with in setting up our block of rooms. Everyone we worked with was so nice. When one of our guests had issues with flights and arrived very early in the morning the hotel was very accommodating to them.
Being right on the beach was great and they even have beach chairs that can be used for free!
Various room styles are available for you and your guests!

The Islander Hotel & Resort
I have been high level employee for a Fortune 200 company, in the pharmaceutical industry for 20 plus years. In that position, I attended many corporate sales meetings, executive conferences, and new product launch meetings all around the USA. In addition, I had our corporate meeting planning group reporting to me for a period of time where I was exposed to many vendors in this space across the US.

I most recently hosted a Rehearsal dinner for my son’s wedding in Emerald Isle at the Islander Hotel and Resort.

The service, the professionalism, the overall experience was second to none. I have never been so satisfied with the whole process, from walking into the faciality for the initial discussion, to paying the billing at the conclusion of a wonderful event.

Carol Mortensen who was the event manager, from the beginning to end was outstanding. Her guidance was focused, detailed and overall exceptional. Carol recommended an outside caterer “Class Act Catering”, which was just as awesome. The food was exceptional, as well as the bartenders who served the rehearsal dinner for 75 people were just wonderful. My wife and I received so many compliments about the food, the bar, the service and the facilities.

I would highly recommend this venue to anyone. If this review seems a little over the top! Well it is, and so was the service!


Respectfully,

Mike Schreier

I

We couldnt have picked a better venue for our wedding! Emerald Isle has always had a special place in our heart and The Islander was the PERFECT location to spend our special day. Not only is it absolutley beautiful but Carol and the entire staff were always extreme helpful and overall just cared about us and making our day so special. We cant thank them enough. It was perfect!

Couldn’t have asked for a better place for a wedding. Carol was absolutely phenomenal! She was super helpful in the months prior and was even more amazing the day of. Had a mishap with the DJ and she handled it all for me and made sure that everything went as smooth as possible. Thank you so much for such a beautiful day and all your help Carol!! We love the Islander and staff!

I cannot say enough good things about the staff! They were amazing at every point of our experience! I felt like I left with new friends. I would highly recommend them for any event you plan to have. They are truly the best place to book an event. Thank you staff you went above and beyond to make our event the best ever!

Everything was absolutely perfect! Everyone was very helpful and nice. I'm so happy I went with Islander Hotel for our wedding day! The ballroom was perfect for our reception. Rooms were also very nice!

They went above and beyond to help us with anything we need. The day of our wedding it forecasted a chance of rain and Jess was on it all day and I didn't have to worry about a thing. It ended up raining and without hesitation the team was on it on decorating the inside and going with the plan B. I highly recommend having your wedding with the Islander.

Exceptional communication and friendly service. We communicated with Jessica from afar, yet she helped make our destination wedding go so smoothly. The new ballroom was breathtaking. Our bar tending team was absolutely the best there. Other staff at the hotel made us feel so welcomed there. Our wedding weekend was made even more special because of Jessica's work on coordinating the details, the welcoming staff, and the beautiful facilities.

Regarding the Wedding Planner: I officiated at a family wedding for my grand-daughter. The Wedding Planner was Jessica Guesno, who is a gem. Patient, helpful, and making sure all goes right. In the months leading up to the wedding, my grand-daughter relied on Jessica for continuing advice to resolve many planning issues. When the event arrived, Jessica was on hand to deal with family, facility and other vendor issues--smoothing things over and resolving many matters. She ensured that the reception tent with tables and chairs and the wedding area on the nearby grass with chairs and trellis were all assembled well ahead and properly decorated. She worked continuously on ensuring that the Wedding Ceremony and reception, the photography session, and other related activities went well. She is a smiling and cheerful person, very professional. It was a pleasure for my grand-daughter and I to work with her. I do not have information on the cost of the event.

Regarding the Venue for the Ceremony and Reception: The Islander Hotel and Resort facilities are excellent for an outdoor wedding with a grassy area for the ceremony in front of the ocean and a location for a large tent. They likely have completed a new building for indoor receptions and weddings and other events. Our group occupied a lot of rooms and there were other weddings the same weekend. The staff was available 24 hours a day and everyone was very nice and very helpful -- from the office staff to the housekeepers. Lots of help about where to eat and get groceries. It helped make the several days just lovely.

As the wife of a CEO living just outside of Washington, DC, I have been called upon for years to host and plan entertainment for guests from around the world. We returned to the Crystal Coast for a third time in August and I was challenged with once again planning a weekend of events for 21 people from 12 countries including Asia, Europe, East Europe and the Middle East. Since the group was young, I wanted to include a beach party with games, dinner and entertainment. My largest challenge was finding a venue and someone that could understand my vison for this event. I did flounder and was feeling very discouraged until the Islander was recommended. As I explained my ideas to Jessica Guesno, the Venue Coordinator, she quickly grasped my vision and never once said that she could not accomodate any request that I made! She suggested setting up a tent with lighting for a buffet dinner, recommended a terrific caterer and floral designer, offered to set up the rental of beach umbrellas, purchased volley balls and bocce ball sets. My mind was totally at ease as Jessica quickly took charge of co-ordinating the smallest of details. When we arrived at 4 on the day of the event, my breath was taken away by the lovely setting, the white tent with lights and tables for dining, a totally stocked bar and tables with appetizers, the beautifully manicued grounds and all the games out to begin what had now become the first ever TA Olympics. Kelly, who also works with the event planning immediately took charge. She became my savior in terms of describing the games, organizing teams and scoring so that at the end we could give out Olympic medals. The terrific bar tenders worked their magic with a number of specialty cocktails that were a huge hit! No detail was left unattended by the staff. This event was the highlight of the weekend. I received numerous compliments when in fact all of the compliments go to Jessica and her staff. Thanks to all, we will return.

I had my wedding at the islander. We had the wedding on the beach and the reception under a tent on the lawn. I couldn't have asked for a better day. Everything went off without a hitch and it was a fun evening for everyone involved!

I recently had my ceremony and reception in the courtyard at the Islander and I could not have been more pleased. It was everything I could have wanted and more. You can tell just by looking at their courtyard that whatever you plan there will be beautiful, but what really blew me away was Chelsea, the wedding coordinator contracted through The Islander. She was SO great and took care of absolutely everything. I don't know what I would have done without her! HIGHLY recommend The Islander and Chelsea!

They are very helpful. The staff are very friendly. Jessica helps any way she can to make your special day perfect!

Our wedding at the Islander was perfect. Everyone stayed at the hotel, wedding party and guests. Everything was set up beautifully and coordinated just how we wanted it. The whole day went very smoothly and our guests complimented our choice for weeks following the big day. I would definitely recommend a wedding here, and look forward to going back on our anniversary for years to come!

Beautiful venue!! Staff were helpful and accommodating. The wedding had to be moved inside because of the weather but the ballroom was beautiful.

The Islander was the perfect venue for out wedding. They were very helpful with the day of event and the amenities were great. They even had an extra room in case it rained that day

I loved having the beach front bridal suite since it was so convenient for pictures, getting ready and everything. The floor was very dirty and sandy when I checked in though. I understood we were at the beach but walking around my room barefoot made my feet black. Plus the bed was pretty hard. Location was AMAZING though! So beautiful and worth everything! Best day of my life!

They were very accommodating and did their best to help in every way. However, they are not quite a resort, not sure why they have that as a title. They dont have a lounge area, room service, or kitchen. But they were great and so nice and willing to helo in any way they could. Jessica is awesome.

We recently had our daughters wedding at The Islander Resort in Emerald Isle. They both wanted a more laid back wedding where they could spend lots of time with their loved ones, and The Islander was the perfect place! We so appreciated the beautiful setting and the accommodating staff. Guests enjoyed the great amenities including the beach, pool, and games on the lawn. Although during summer
months the rooms are rather pricey, overall, we feel having the wedding here was a great value for our money and allowed us to plan the wedding of their dreams.

However, when planning an event here, I would highly recommend you stay on top of things to ensure follow through on decisions agreed upon. Although we really appreciated the flexibility and willingness to work with us during planning, it was frustrating when decisions already made changed or were forgotten. But in the end, it all worked out and it was truly a wonderful wedding.

The location was beautiful, but how hard can that really be on the Crystal Coast. Working with the staff was on the other hand, not a smooth process. They try to get you to pay a couple thousand more to hire the "wedding planner", which we did not. So we really got left out on our own, but at the same time they had so many restrictions that you had to communicate with them, yet they were very unresponsive. They have a great place with great potential, just need to really hire someone to handle banquets/weddings/etc so that the bride/groom have someone to communicate the essentials with and not just force them to hire their "planner" to do the whole thing. I am going to check that i would recommend The Islander to a friend, but i do so with caution.

I had my wedding on Sept.1st, the tent was really pretty and everything but the service and help wasnt great at all. Jessica is very lovely but she shouldn't have trained new girls on that day. Seriously the coordination was horrible. My parents and fiancé had to put everything up so they basically got no help. Which was very irritating just to see how careless they were with the stuff I had brought for decoration. Plus they broke 2 mirror boxes. And all I got in return was Oh I apologize for the inconvenience. Seriously wish I could of gotten a different venue!!

Would give ZERO stars if I could. Carol, the venue coordinator, did not show for our appointment that we set and when I emailed her upon arrival she did not respond and none of the front desk staff had her contact information (red flag #1), However another employee informed me while I was waiting (over an hour!) that she was texting Carol and was telling Carol I was here and waiting and to call me. Carol responded to the employee via text stating she would call me but I never heard from her. Piss poor and unprofessional behavior for a venue that charges $5K+. Would NOT recommend. Waste of a trip considering I was from out of town and drove 2+ hours to view this venue and get a tour.