We first checked in at the last available Bay Room, for a rate that seemed at least as high as the years before ($360/night with tax for a standard room with shared bathroom). For that price however, we did get unlimited access to the gym, which had been moved to the back of the hotel building – although the gym attendant had not apparently been made aware of this new benefit that hotel guests could now enjoy (given the limited attention span of the said gentleman, one could even suggest that any island visitor could enjoy free access to the hotel’s gym…).

From the gym, we could easily make our way to the new pool deck, which is probably one of the main highlights of the ongoing renovations. Never mind the rather cloudy appearance of the pool’s water, the pool deck now provides a new center of gravity for the less fortunate vacationers who don’t have a share or haven’t yet managed to get themselves invited to a house. As early as 1 PM, rotating DJ’s begin blasting the current Top 40 hits by the pool, drawing boys from across the island for an early afternoon poor man’s pool party. Fortunately, even though an open bar is of course out of question, drinks are still priced at a reasonable $10 (by the island’s standards). With our budget conscious mindset and our insatiable thirst, we opted to purchase liquor and party favors at the nearby stores and enjoyed the pool party from the comfortable, elevated viewpoint of the Hotel Ciel’s balcony.

Soon enough, it was time for Low Tea’s festivities to begin. The only notable difference is that the bar was moved to the middle of the Blue Whale’s deck, which makes for a better flow of people and faster drink service. Other than that, the music was the same fluffy and cheesy dancy pop tunes that the children seem to be into these days. Don’t expect to hear cutting edge house music or driving techno on Fire Island this season – on the contrary, the new owners have asserted their commitments to bring lighter music back, as if the soundtracks of the previous seasons was not cheesy enough. But whatever, after the 5th planter’s punch, we were almost ready to timidly start doing the Single Ladies choreography.

Moving on to High Tea, we were pleasantly surprised to find out that the upper deck previously known as Glo Lounge had its inner wall removed and was now one huge room, which made for a better flow of people and a more engaging dancing experience. In addition, there is now a staircase next to the main bar of the High Tea deck that goes down into the Pavilion club, where Middle Tea takes place. It makes it very easy to move from one room to the next, and god knows by that time we are prone to drifting around and moving along with the ebb and flow of the crowd. The Pavilion itself has benefited from some noticeable enhancements, such as a mesmerizing light show supported by gigantic screens hung all around the dance-floor where trippy visuals are projected.

Other than that, Bay Bar has been rechristened “Canteen”, but still doesn’t quite look from the outside like the sleek computer generated renderings of its future facade. The menu has changed but still offers the same kind of casual comfort food, only they are now served with no side. There is a good assortment of excellent and healthy, ready-to-eat salads and sandwiches. The logistics will probably need some adjustment, because it was cause for long lines and confusions.

Note that unfortunately Blue Whale is only open for dinner, which makes Canteen the only spot where to get breakfast or lunch, causing long lines to form there in the morning.

Overall, we liked the new Pool Deck and the enhancement to the Pavilion and the High Tea deck, but we were a slightly bit let down by the transformation of Bay Bar into Canteen. The atmosphere on the Island, however, is still incomparable and unique, and we can’t wait to be back soon for another summer in wonderland.