Jessica was a great host and quick to respond to any questions about the property. We've been visiting Dunes Village for the past 15 years. This was our first time staying on the first floor, but we enjoyed the experience. The balcony is still at least high enough to see the ocean; and although the room is by the pool and outside bar, it's on end farthest away from the bar. So it's still relatively quiet.
The property has been upgraded a bit – fairly recently, from the look of i. Loved the grays/blue paint and furniture colors – more soothing than the standard "Dunes pale yellow" used in the regular rooms. Also enjoyed the better use of space within this Studio. (TV mounted onto the wall; long custom surfboard dining table with bar height chairs tucked against the wall) Bathroom vanity and lighting has been upgraded nicely. Still has the usual Dunes not-so-great kitchen and appliances. (specifically the stove and toaster) But hey, they worked – so not really a complaint.
The king sized bed was super-comfortable. The sleeper sofa is another story, but honestly, that's not a negative about the property. Just that sleeper sofas in general are not great, and this one is no exception. (although the sofa itself IS much nicer than the regular Dunes ones.) If you have 3-4 guests in the room, I'd recommend bringing an air mattress just in case.
As other guests have noted: you can't access the room without walking up 5-6 stairs. But you can park your luggage cart at the foot of the stairs, and walk the suitcases up to the room. A slight inconvenience, but the tradeoff is that you don't have to wait on the often-painfully-slow elevators. The location of the room almost feels a bit private, which is nice. But you're still close to everything – only 2 doors down from the restaurant and main lobby. Plus the pool is 5 stairs down, through a gate, and there you are; one more gate by the pool and you're on the short boardwalk to the beach.
Overall, my family and I loved this room and our latest trip to Dunes Village – our home away from home. Would recommend the property, and would definitely book it again in the future.