Mandalay Beach Club appears to be a "Rolls Royce" quality place, but in reality it seems more like an above-average hotel.
PROS:
1) If you want to stay "close to the action" at Clearwater Beach, MBC is a great location. You're walking distance to MANY restaurants, Pier 60, and the Clearwater Marina. The sand at Clearwater Beach is some of the best in the U.S.
2) The MBC has some nice amenities: pool deck and pool, grills, workout room, and pool table.
3) This condo unit is essentially a nice condo. Comfortable beds and decent living space. Good view of the pool deck, Pier 60, and the Gulf.
CONS:
1) The Condo needs some maintenance. Two of three sliding doors to the patio wouldn't open (they are VERY difficult to open even when operating normally). The kitchen faucet is held together with tape. The window blinds are pretty cheap and have slats missing. TV remotes had backs missing and missing batteries.
2) The Condo has very little storage space for you. The owner has much of the closet space and drawer space already used. So, you end up storing several of your things on the floor in corners.
3) TRASH SMELL IN THE HALLWAY. We pretty much knew what day of the week it was based on the hallway smell. It got worse and worse leading up to trash day.
4) The "condo rules" are pretty much over the top and inconsistent. I totally understand in a complex this large you want rules to have a place where people aren't offended by others, but the pool rules seem over-the-top and are not evenly enforced.
5) Pool area needs more umbrellas. For the 40+ pool chairs, there are only 3 umbrellas. There are 4 tables with 4 umbrellas.
6) This "con" may seem a little petty, but the condo unit has WAY too many decorative pillows. There were 20+ pillows around the condo that pretty much makes it practically impossible to use the beds, couches, and chairs. Overall, not a big deal, right? You just move them. However, when you move them, I mentioned above there's not much available storage space for you. So, you have to figure out where to stash the pillows in space that you need to use for your own stuff.
7) Construction. There was NON-STOP construction from about 8:30am until the end of the day, every week day. Very noisy.
So, overall, the place is fine. However, for the premium price you pay for a spot on Clearwater Beach, you'd expect to get something more than just an above-average hotel quality.