Great for active families seeking a clean, comfortable safe place that's way more fun than your basic beach hotel.

You'll be disappointed if you're accustomed to high-end resorts, doting service, and top-notch amenities.

My hubby spent a few days at TradeWinds in the off-season, for a conference, and noticed it had a good mix of things to do for our family - our kids ages range from 8-18.  Five months later we stayed a week for spring break.

Not perfect
We found it comfortable, family-friendly, and overall, very pleasant. As resorts go, however, service and quality could stand some improvement. I suspect most of the shortcomings are operational and procedural (training, customer service).

For example, smiles were in short supply throughout the resort (at restaurants and the bar, of all places!) but there were some terrific bright spots (the deli/general store off the main lobby) and evidently the maintenance and housekeeping staff are excellent, as everything worked throughout the resort and as I've said (and it bears repeating) this place is clean.

Nice neighborhood...
My daughter ran across the street the first day we got here to pick up something she couldn't get on the resort. She's generally pretty cautious, especially in unfamiliar surroundings, and said she felt perfectly safe. We quickly got in the habit of crossing the street to eat at Skidders, a family-owned restaurant with lower prices, bigger portions, and slightly better service than any of the resort's restaurants.

It's also about 45 minutes from Busch Gardens and Sea World, and also the older Clearwater Marine Aquarium with the newer attraction Winter's World (about the rescued dolphin of the movie Dolphin Tale).

Resort packed with fun options
Miniature golf, tennis, beach volleyball, bungee jumping and daily family-friendly activities by the pool are fun and either included in your "amenities" fee or available for nominal fees. It would be smart for management to give guests a clearer understanding of how each works, which could be as easy as training the staff better. In several cases I had to ask more than one resort employee to find out how to use one of the basic amenities - the tennis courts, for example, and getting a schedule of fitness classes seemed to so baffle the staff I gave up. Quibbling aside, my "complaints" really are small, and the big picture is pretty good.

The bottom line:

I'd go back.
 

Recommended: Yes