Sandals Grande St Lucian

We went here for a 4 night stay last year and immediately fell in love with the Sandals experience, the island of St Lucia and this resort so we booked a full week this year. Great view of Pigeon Island and Rodney Bay from the beach. Good balance between the hopping pool bar and quiet spots by other pools depending on your mood. [Details]

The Sandals Grande St. Lucian Resort hotel is worth every penny if you want to be spoiled and pampered. From the moment we arrived at the hotel we were greeted by friendly staff, one whom presented us with a glass of champagne. Guest registration was performed efficiently while our suitcases were happily whisked away by staff to be delivered to our room. We were booked into one of the Deluxe Honeymoon Lagoon Suites (Monchy Building, Room # 6317). Lovely view overlooking the swim-up pool suites (called lagoons) surrounded by palm trees and beautiful manicured gardens full of hisbiscus plants, and other exotics. The rooms are adequately soundproofed as we never heard the honeymooners beside us.(lol). There is even a huge selection of satellite TV channels (although we rarely had the TV on during our stay, we did however catch the last ten minutes of our Toronto FC soccer team winning their first MLS title! That was fortuitous in spite of the fact that we couldn't hear the sound, only had the picture-feed.). There are excellent pathways/walkways clearly marked to the beach, or restaurants, etc so don't worry about getting lost. If you do the staff are so helpful they'll personally walk you to whereever you need to be! And, they'll do it with a smile. Every hotel and beach staff I met went out of their way to inquire if I were "okay?", and truly cared about your happiness and satisfaction. Other resorts I've been to would ask how our day was going, but often didn't wait to hear our answer! Sandals truly cares about their guests. Our room had a 4-poster king-size bed, crisp linen sheets, good mattress, reliable air-conditioning, reliable hot water for showering even at peak-times, nice toiletries, NO BUGS (Im not exaggerating) in our room not even a fly), lots of closet space, and better yet plenty of hangers which is something I appreciate in a hotel room when sharing a closet with your husband). Our room was kept spotless, and the housekeeping staff never seemed to bother us during our entire stay?? She seemed to know the best times to clean our room. I never heard anyone yelling "Housekeeping" even once in 7 nts.(nice touch). On our 2nd evening we were delighted to find a bottle of champagne cooling in an ice bucket on the coffee table with a welcome honeymooners card (we've been married 28.5 yrs so not exactly honeymooners but greatly appreciated nonetheless). Our room fridge was kept well-stocked with cans of cold soft drinks and juices, and bottled water. (Note: we both drank the tap water in our bathroom without problems.). The food was excellent at the following restaurants: Gordon's On The Beach, Toscanini's, Crepe bistro, Dino's Pizzeria, Sandals Beach Bar and Bistro (sorry, I forgot the name but it's beside the Dive Shop), The Jerk Shack, Bombay (note: good food, but service was slow), and Soy. The highlight of our dining experience was the "Candlelight Dinner on the Beach" (note: menu was extensive, but we ordered the surf and turf. (delicious). A resort photographer will offer to take pictures, but he's not pushy. I noticed some young couples having photos taken standing in the surfs edge with the husband carrying his wife in his arms romantically kissing. But, we passed on that idea since I didn't want my husband to end up in traction with strained back muscles (lol). The entertainment in general was fairly good, but maybe could use more variety? Nice sandy beach, no roaring huge waves due to sheltered bay, all-inclusive water sports like sailing catamarans, kayaks, windsurfing, wake-boarding etc all safely organized, as is the scuba-diving excursions. My husband passed the certification for the Advanced Open Water Scuba Diving (PADI) during our holiday by being examined during his requisite dives. He was very impressed with the high calibre of the dive staff, who were cautious, conscientious, timely, organized, and very friendly and jovial.. Outstanding diving team at Sandals Grande St. Lucian Resort. You can trust their knowledge and experience. We took one off-site snorkelling speed boat tour from Charlie's Knotty Girl which was a blast. We were skeptical to buy this tour off-the-beach (not with the hotel), but other guests had done it and reassured us that it's worth it. Yes, it's great. Tour took us to Soufriere for snorkelling, and the mineral mud-baths, drive-in volcano park with a hotspring and waterfall (the tour guide will take everyones camera and capture each persons picture as they cuddle under the waterfall, or smeared with the mineral mudbath goop which looks hilarious on everyone! We did it, and we're over 60. I put doggie paw-prints on my husbands chest with the black mud mixture (funny). Don't worry, the mud mixture washes off easily!! Finally, I must say that this hotel resort was by far the BEST beach resort holiday I've ever had. Sandals Grande St.Lucian Resort (beach and hotel) was in my opinion better than my experiences in Bora Bora, Tahiti, Hawaii, Cuba, Punta Cana, D.R., Florida, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, or Punta Este, Uruguay, or in Fakarava (island) beach in the South Pacific. I would rate the Sandals Grande St. Lucian Resort as a 5 out of 5 experience. even though it's rather expensive. We even booked to return next year. [Details]

Our stay at Sandals Grande St Lucian was undoubtedly one of our best holidays ever! We were located on the 3rd floor in the Club Level with a beach view room so we overlooked the swimming pool rather than the roadway which meant that we could sit on our balcony & listen to some of the evening's entertainment. Overall the room was well laid-out & spacious, the bed was comfortable and there were even double sinks in the bathroom!
There were numerous restaurants located throughout the resort. These ranged from unbelievably fantastic at Toscanini's Italian (the food was to die for & the service from Phillip, Julie & Vibert was frankly unrivaled by anything we have seen anywhere!) to surprisingly mediocre at Kimono's teppanyaki (Chef Ruben's food was OK but his clanging of utensils on the cooking area bordered on ear-splitting while the wait staff seemed disenchanted & inattentive – they even had what almost looked like a group meeting in the entranceway while we sat at our table wondering what was going on!). The view at reservations-only Gordon's pier restaurant was gorgeous and the crab cake appetizers were delicious! We've seen rave reviews for the place but on the evening we were there, the scallops were chewy & the steak was not as good as at Toscanini's, and when we spoke with our waiter about the scallops, she was indifferent. One small restaurant that should not be missed is Josephine's creperie. As with Toscanini's, the staff were wonderfully friendly & served up fantastic, locally-made rum & raisin ice cream. We also had crepes that were out-of-this-world!
One of the highlights of the trip was a hike with “Lou” (a retired school teacher) to Pigeon Island National Park located about a 10 minute walk from the resort. His knowledge surrounding the island was incredible and made for an afternoon of spectacular views mixed with a detailed & entertaining history lesson.
Throughout our week we had the opportunity to interact with housekeeping staff, some of the security people and even one of the gardeners, all of whom were incredibly warm, friendly & helpful! We would definitely be remiss however if we didn't mention the efforts of two unbelievable staff members. Firstly, there was Mariange who seemed to be everywhere throughout the resort checking to see if guests needed anything from the bar! Regardless of where we sat throughout the week, Mariange found us AND always remembered our preferred drinks! So appreciated!! And finally, there was Lance, the Concierge from the Club Lounge, who was always so pleasant, upbeat & anxious to help in any way possible! You would be hard-pressed to find a better representative for the resort!!
In all, it was a fantastic week & a place we would definitely consider going to once again!! [Details]

This was a really nice resort - beautiful grounds, and I loved that they included waterskiing, it was a blast! The one thing I didn't like about this resort is the variety of food seemed to be limited and not as good as La Toc, though at this Sandals i did feel the beach was nicer! [Details]

Sandals Grande St. Lucia is an amazing resort. The pools and grounds are kept immaculate and the beach is breathtaking. I felt like I was in paradise. It is an incredibly beautiful resort. The food is fantastic. Barefoot by the Sea was our favourite restaurant but they were all really good. You can grab lunch on the beach, crepes or pizza and it is all very yummy. The Old London pub is a great, relaxed time with delicious food but especially great because of Raquelle, our server. We love her. She has a big, bright smile, she is so friendly, attentive and great at her job. We also loved the play makers, they all made our stay so much fun, especially Jeva. She is a blast, so friendly and a lot of fun!! All The Sandals staff were so friendly, accommodating and attentive. They will do whatever they can to make you comfortable and if there is something you want or need, they will go out of their way to make it happen. Their motto is "No pressure, no problem." :) The swim up bar was our regular hang out, with Ellen. She was so awesome. They have any drink you want. We took part in several island excursions and thoroughly enjoyed them. We saw the Pitons, went in the mud baths, took the catamaran boat cruise, jet skied & snorkeled but the zip linging, dune buggy tour, helicopter ride & airport transfer ride in a beautiful Audi were our favourites. We had a wonderful time and our honeymoon was everything we had hoped for and more. I highly recommend this resort. [Details]

Impressed from day one until we departed!
We went for our honeymoon and everything was great.
Lots of food selection
large beach
freindly people
weather was perfect
vacationing in a post card
Was a blast [Details]

We had a really great time here, very relaxing. The food was great, nice to have mostly a la carte dining. Service and people great, very accommodating and concerned about your well-being and satisfaction. The grounds were lovely,with hammocks, fire-pits etc. Great for couples, especially honeymooners. Too bad it is so far from the airport, the drive is quite "exciting" and hair-raising, as you cross the island completely and it is extremely mountainous; although it is a beautiful way to see the island. Not for the faint-hearted!!! [Details]

Hotel is older so rooms are fairly clean but didn't feel like a 5 star [Details]

Best all-inclusive we've been to so far (we've been to 4, two of which were also 5-star). Supposed to get welcome champagne bottle and basket in room upon arrival for our honeymoon but didn't. Mentioned it to bell boy who said he'd make sure it would be done and accepted a tip after we asked him if they were allowed to accept...he said they tell u one thing but its up to u if u want to. We felt obligated to at that point even though sandals says their strict policy is not accepting gifts. Not the greatest start to our honeymoon but didn't ruin it either.

Service was hit and miss. For the most part, servers were friendly. Some were not very nice and snarky. Often service was quite slow..but I guess we were on island time.

Food was good for the most part. Beach and scenery were beautiful.

Definitely didn't want to leave paradise :) [Details]

This resort is outdated. We stayed at the honeymoon beachfront room. They were beginning renovations near the end of our trip. Rooms are average, you are not getting value for your $$. They are beginning with the bathrooms. Beach and food was excellent. If you're on your honeymoon make it clear to them or they won't give you honeymoon package even though you paid for it. Yes that's weird. If you want internet in your room you have to pay $42 for the week. [Details]

It was great-the people, the food, the beach and water
The pop/mixed drinks were not to our liking; pop was watery/too sweet/poor carbination [Details]

best of three sandals resorts on this island, for what i saw, and talking to people who stayed at the other sandals and visited ours (grande).beautiful island.local people are wonderful.any complaints i have are minor. [Details]

One of our most favourite all-inclusive vacations in many years. [Details]

We had a terrifice time at the Sandals Grande! Beautiful resort, terrific food, and the best beaches in the world! [Details]

Service goes above and beyond expectations. The food in the restaurants is amazing...top notch. The beach though not large is clean and the staff very friendly and helpful and adhere with no problem to the strict "no-tip" policy of the resort. Highly recommend it to everyone but is geared towards couples. [Details]

Lovely property; fabulous and helpful staff. [Details]

great vacation, very friendly and attentive staff. Will definately be going back. [Details]

This was our third stay with sandals and this stay was a good as any other we stayed at the staff were fantastic and the people there were a lot of fun. It could use a little more night life though. not much going on after 9pm [Details]

We really got a bang for our buck. The resort was beautiful and clean. It was the nicest Sandals property on the Island. The staff was always willing to help and very friendly. I had 2 massages one outdoors and a a haircut with the $250 Spa credit which was great (a must do) They have theme nights (Caribbean night and Street Party) and movie nights (movies that are in the theatres now). the food was great and so was the location (close to the locals street party also a must do- beer $2 USD each and food $10 USD for a big plate) The room was great, it was clean and beautiful. Exactly what you see on the website is what you see when you get there. It is the real deal folks! Also there was a free sunset cruise and snorkelling. I would go back again for sure. [Details]

Everything was excellent [Details]

This resort really exceeded our expectations! The room was absolutely amazing and well maintained. The number of restaurants available gave good variety and the ability to travel for free between the three resorts added to its great value. If you want a nice, relaxing vacation, go to this resort! [Details]

Great Hotel Beach not what I expected. Photos have been air brushed and the beach has been eroded alot since a few storms have gone throgh the area. Dont go to the resort based on the pictures of the beach.
However the rest of the resort is awsome. [Details]

Our vacation was idyllic. Beautiful, tropical location, wonderful food, warm, friendly people. Highly recommended [Details]

I would highly recommend this resort to couples. We met lots of people and enjoyed every minute of our stay. I do hope to return to this resort in the near future. [Details]