Sandals Grande Antigua Resort & Spa

Antigua

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*I was extremely disappointed in Sandals Antigua.* Visited: November 2007
Posted by dreamcrazy
	I visited this resort on a work trip and was extremely disappointed. I had read several reviews, and many of them were true. The one redeeming quality the resort had was the butler service in the Meditterranean Village. They were outstanding! Other than that, the food was definitely lacking; and most of the employees were cordial, but did not have answers to any questions. A large handful of them were very rude and unhelpful. A small handful were above and beyond pleasant and helpful, though. The resort and the rooms were also infested with mosquitoes - who seemed to love the tourists. Also, there were several power outages on the Friday night I was here. The power outages were to the entire resort, which left us in the dark for several minutes. Since I didn't pay for this trip (was work related), I suppose it was acceptable (and beyond my control). However, had I paid upwards of $2,000 to travel across the nation for a wedding or honeymoon, I would have been seriously disappointed. I can't speak for any of the other Sandals resorts. But if you are looking for top of the line treatment and great food - this resort is not the place to be. And yes, the pictures shown of the resort are amazing. However, they are deceiving.

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*I don't recommend this hotel.* Visited: November 2007
Posted by kcdh2002
	I just returned from Sandals Antigua. I thought the service was slow and understaffed. Also, there was no top shelf alcohol. The main pool was closed for a private function, and the guests were never notified. My room never not cleaned before 4:00 pm. In addition, the beach was dirty and not very big (maybe a 1/4 mile long). They advertised it as one of the best beaches, yet I could not even see through the water to the sand. The beach rooms need to be renovated. Fortunately, I was on the Mediterranean side, where you pay to stay at the adult-only hotel. Then, I found out that the beach was public. I feel this hotel is overpriced for what you get.
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*It was horrible.* Visited: September 2007
Posted by caymanbound
	Keep your money and stay at a Motel 6! We went for our honeymoon. We stayed ten days, but wanted to leave after three. I got food poisoning, we had bugs in our room, and rain leaked in window. The food was horrible. We could not get any seafood except fish (i.e. no conch or lobster). The only redeeming quality was the dive staff and a few of the support staff. Most of the guests we spent time with had similar or worse issues.
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*I suggest you stay away.* Visited: September 2007
Posted by ruxl
	I would highly recommend against anyone considering staying here. During our stay, my wife and I were constantly lied to and given misinformation. Our room was robbed, with little effort to resolve by the hotel security manager. They provided a safe, which did not function, and they never showed up to fix it, after multiple complaints prior to the robbery. Management, in general, was completely inept. We spent two to three hours per day complaining about a variety of issues - all of which have gone unresolved. This was our wedding and honeymoon, and the happiest moment of the entire trip was when we finally arrived back home.
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*Beware of the lies!* Visited: July 2007
Posted by joegiggles
	We booked through Sandals. We were called one week prior to our stay, and were informed of some "minor construction". We were told they were going to give us a free week to make up for this. I thought this was great. I was told the stores were just being stocked, and they would open the second day we were there. One did, but it didn't even have bug spray...just some clothes! There was also one resturant that would not be open. I asked, and was told that there was no major construction, no jackhammers, no cranes, no dump trucks...lies, lies, and more lies. We pulled up to see the entire front was still being built. We had a great view of the villas being built, there were only about 15 rooms that were open in the entire hotel. One of the elevators dropped two floors, and the people were stuck for over an hour. There were fire stairs by our room, but the door was locked since it wasn't done yet. There were also spots for fire exit, and hoses but none were there. We lost power every day, and woke up to singing construction workers and the romantic hum of a jackhammer. We had to be careful not to trip over buckets of paint while we walked around. When I complained to the front desk, all I was told was about how nice it was going to be. I agree it's going to be amazing - but for at least three months, please stay away! The old side was very nice, but they didn't have enough staff. Every day we saw people gettng the tour, and no one had a clue what was going on!
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*Why open if it's not done?* Visited: July 2007
Posted by bvenable76
	I planned for eight months to stay at the new Med Village - and even called to make sure it was complete on July 10th. After talking with with the resort, I was told it was at 99%, and by the time I got to the resort it would be at 100%. The resort sould tell people the truth! They only had six rooms opem when I checked in, and the pool was closed!

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*It was definitely worth the money - it was amazing!* Visited: March 2006
Posted by star_mel
	I absolutely loved this trip. I was worried because of some of the reviews I had read. However, Sandals Antigua was great. The tours were a lot of fun. I really recommend the Extreme Circumnavigation. The restaurants were really yummy. I could have done without the Japanese restaurant. But the Italian restaurant was phenomenal. Our room was really nice (we stayed in the Fragipani block). Our bar was restocked daily, and they provided us with a small newsletter daily. In addition, the spa was a definite. Overall, this trip is one not too miss. We are certaintly planning on heading back! We loved it!
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*It was not what they said it would be!* Visited: March 2006
Posted by shanna3000
	We looked into a lot of resorts, and decided to go with Sandals because we could do our wedding and honeymoon all in one. Then, it all went downhill. The wedding went fine, although I did not know from day to day if we would have water or power - that's nuts. Also, we heard nothing but construction all day long. In addition, we were in an upgraded room that apparently was not upgraded at all. We met people who stayed in simple rooms that had more than our room had. The management and staff didn't seem to handle situations very well. The grounds were beautiful, and it was the restaurant, entertainment, and bar staff who seemed to keep it going. It was not the management. They did not seem to be skilled, and it was sad because it was all about our wedding and it was so scary. I wish that we knew ahead about the construction, and how we could have had a better location. But our travel agent never let us know anything. In fact, they tried to upgrade us more after we were already upgraded - and it was not what I thought it should be for a honeymoon room grande luxe. It was not good. All in all, the management just needs to be more educated. If we are asked back for our trip, I will go to another resort through Sandals and re-post my trip.
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*This was my worst holiday experience ever!* Visited: June 2005
Posted by apstarkey
	We were on our honeymoon, and chose Sandals for their reputation. From our arrival, it all went downhill. We were made to wait hours as as room was not ready. When we were taken to our room, the metal handrails leading up the staircase were completely rusty as were the air conditioning units. The wardrobe doors and window shutters were falling off, and there was no view whatsoever as the balcony was overgrown with trees. It was like a dungeon. We went days without hot water, then waited days to be moved to another room where (again) we were without hot water for a further two days. We compalined on many ocassions, and the management did not seem really interested. The general manager's attitude to us was like "if you don't like my resort, then go home". Luckily, the food and the other staff were very good. Sandals Antigua was not worth visiting under any circumstances and certainly not worth the money they charged. All we heard continuously were people complaining.
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*This was the worst four-star hotel we have stayed at - it was well overpriced.* Visited: March 2005
Posted by info8
	We stayed in a honeymoon concierge suite, and we paid a lot extra for this facility. We found the bathroom facilities were pathetic, there was a small bath, the shower didn't work properly, there was no bidet, and the toilet flush handle was hanging off. Also, there were cracked tiles, a very small vanity area one small bowl, and the wardrobe was directly behind blocking access to bathroom. In addition, the mattress was badly stained, the patio area in the front of the room was filthy, the minibar was not filled up regularly, and the reception staff had a attitude problem. We didn't think the food was up to standard - we sent three meals back cold. There was also a poor menu selection - only four main courses which were the same for two weeks in each restaurant. In addition, there were no parasols on the beach - or any other form of shade. The Jacuzzi outside our room was too hot to use (108 degrees). We certainly won't be returning. We found it to be a very tired hotel, and a poor value for the money.
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*Butlins at the Caribbean* Visited: October 2004
Posted by vassotzo
	We stayed at Sandals for five days. We were told that the room we were given was an upgrade to the room we had as our flight had been cancelled and we arrived there a day late. The room which was an improvement on the basic room was adequate in size however, a 5 minute walk from the beach, grimy, with thousands of mosquitoes and we had cockroaches every night! I have been to the Caribbean 8 times and I have never encountered a cockroach in my room, nor had such a huge mosquito problem. The solution seems to be spraying regularly enough to keep them away... Sandals was not prepared to spray near our room to keep the roaches out. Further to the roaches, the shower had no hot water and it was never fixed for us. The remote for the TV broke twice. The air-conditioning leaked in the room and made the most horrendous noise. The staff had their dinner with the guests. The restaurant had cats jumping on guests whilst they were eating and the walkways were hardly ever swept from the falling leaves. The resort was certainly all inclusive, everything was provided for in terms of food and drink, and the standard for catering for such a large number of people was OK. Sandals also offered as part of the all inclusive a number of "couply" type of activities which seem at all times forced and not very much fun. I mean how many couples would you think out of the 400 naturally play ping pong in the middle of the day?? Or pool first thing in the morning?? After 5 days of being there I had consumed all the watered down coke I could stomach, had listened to over 30 guys explain to their wives that they should leave potting the black ball last and I had exterminated over 10 cockroaches. After hearing the last of the worst drunken karaoke I was more than relieved to hear that my flight home would not be delayed.
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*We loved it!* Visited: September 2004
Posted by jlme8
	We had our "weddingmoon" at Sandals Antigua this September. I was almost expecting to be disappointed, since it looked so wonderful in the brochures, but it was exactly as imagined. From the moment we got off the plane in Antigua, we were spoiled. A porter retrieved our bags, and we were whisked off to the resort, and served champagne as we checked in. We stayed in one of the Rondovals right on the beach (at the far end) - it was perfect. We could hear the waves crashing at night. The food was much better than expected (except for maybe the Italian restaurant) and the service was great (once we got used to "Caribbean Time"). The staff was friendly, helpful and somehow with a booked resort, managed to remember our names. I was also a bit nervous about the whole wedding, but it turned out exactly as I dreamed it would be! The officiant was excellent, my flowers were gorgeous, and the whole ceremony and "reception" went very smoothly. Again, I was skeptical about the quality of the photos, but they all came out absolutely beautiful. All in all, it was absolutely perfect, and we're looking forward to our next Sandals vacation, Antigua or another location. We've even picked out our next room in Antigua!
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*BAD MANAGEMENT* Visited: June 2004
Posted by dutchmon
	We stayed here and our wedding and stay was ruined becuase of bad management. It's a beautiful island and the grounds and beach are beautiful. However, when management is bad, the rest of the resort reflects that. Most of the staff were rude. The front desk was horrible. We had one problem after another. Too many to express. I would go to Anigua agian, but I will never go to another Sandals again.
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*We had an awful experience.* Visited: June 2004
Posted by dutchmon
	This resort was the worst travel experience I've ever had. I thought the beach was beautiful and the food was good. However, the service we received was awful! This resort needs new management to fix the other service problems. My wedding was ruined. Our preacher yelled at my father-in-law and my brother. I never saw the CD I made or the wedding flowers. They wouldn't turn off the sprinklers at our request, so I had to walk through the water in my wedding dress. Our server at dinner didn't give us steak knives for our steaks or refill our drinks. This was, of course, just the wedding day (there were many other problems). When I complained, they seemed to brush it under the rug. If I can prevent one person's wedding from being ruined, I'm glad.
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*We had a disappointing trip, very disappointing.* Visited: May 2004
Posted by abyss2020
	After 23 years of Naval Service I was looking for a restful vacation with my wife who works as a lawyer. We work hard for our money and just wanted a rest and have some time away from long hours and the New York way of life. What we got was something more to the tune of what should not be done at a resort, and how not to treat people who pay the big bucks for a five-star resort. We booked on the reputation of the Sandals Resorts and on the advice of our travel agent. But based on our trip, the reputation and what our travel agent told us, were way off by a lot! There was construction and demolition of four buildings right next to our room, loud bands at night, poor service at meals, and no refrigerator in the room. There were also cats running around begging for food and fornicating while we were eating. In addition, dress slacks had to be worn in some restaurants even when the weather was extremely hot, and there were many mosquitoes as dinner guests feeding on us while we ate. Also, there was no ATM, no computer service to speak of and the entire place was in need of a lot maintenance - which went on while we were here! They also had the worst dive gear I have ever seen and I have been diving for 20 plus years. Resort personnel seemed to not care at all with the complaints that we made. We did manage to speak to Joseph Kelly, the resort manager, who stated he would look into these problems. I will not hold my breath on that, and will never use the Sandals chain ever again.
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*It was exactly as the brochure indicated.* Visited: March 2004
Posted by tracy_ba
	I went to Sandals Antigua last week of March/first st week of April 2004. After reading all the reviews on the web that I could find, I was really quite concerned about what it would be like. What a wonderful surprise I had. It was absolutely wonderful from the moment we arrived and were greeted with a glass of champagne to the moment we left. The staff and locals were the friendliest people I have ever met on my travels. The food in all the restaurants was lovely. I especially enjoyed the a la carte in the Bayside and the Italian. We had great fun in Kimonos with DR Love, and the OK corral was also nice. There was entertainment every night. The beach party on Monday was great. You could join in activities to collect points for which you would be presented with prizes on your last night - Sandals necklaces, rum, etc. We tended to stay around our local pool where we made friends with the other guests. The drinks in Sandals were as it read in the brochure, "branded and non branded". If I asked for a vodka and coke, I was given non branded vodka, if I asked for Smirnoff and coke, I was given Smirnoff. The first week I lived on Champagne! You must try Sip Sops, they really cool you down. Our room was upgraded, I assume when they have filled all the basic rooms they give people higher graded rooms. We were in the Flamboyant block. The room was very nice, we loved the bed! It was air conditioned with a balcony overlooking the pool. We could hear the evening entertainment, however the latest it went on was 11 or 12 pm, so it wasn't too bad. A fridge would have been nice. The only criticism I could find was with the Airport. It really wasn't big enough to cope, and we took an hour to get through arrivals. Departure wasn't so bad with the Virgin Atlantic express check out, but the departure lounge was hot and there weren't enough seats. The cost of food and drinks was outrageous there. We went into St. Johns a few times and found a nice bar which charged $1.50 for Wadadli, the local lager, but we didn't eat out. The whole atmosphere in Sandals was lovely, it was very romantic. The weddings looked lovely, too. The beach was gorgeous, and the vendors were no problem at all. There were only a few, and when we said "no thanks", they would ask if we were having a nice day! There was the usual towel thing going on which sadly, we were forced to join or be left without a sun bed for the day. I did move a few towels that had been left on the hammocks, I felt that was ridiculous - reserving a hammock! If you have booked to go, you will have a wonderful holiday, enjoy!
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*We were very pleased.* Visited: March 2004
Posted by ksonnenb
	We went 2/27/04-3/5/04 and had a wonderful time. The grounds of this resort were lush and beautiful. The beach was awesome. We had a few days that were rather windy, so we couldn't do water sports a few of the days. I don't think it was ever below 82 degrees while we were here. Nights were breezy. If you like it absolutely quiet at night, it won't happen. They did have very loud "peepers" (little frogs that "sang" most of the night), only to be followed by the birds early in the morning. We stayed in one of the Roundovals, a small round hut all to ourselves. I loved it. There were a few rows of them on the resort. I would have been disappointed with the ones directly on the beach. You literally walk out of your door and 10 feet away would be a lounge chair that was occupied all day. There was definitely a variety in styles and locations of rooms. If you know of someone who has been there before, it would be a good idea to get their opinion of your room location. There would be a few places on the resort I would not want to stay in. The restaurants were very good. One was a buffet style, which had anything you could want. My favorite was Kimonos. The food was fabulous. I wasn't thrilled with the Italian restaurant, but only because I like more pasta style dishes which they really didn't have many of. The steakhouse was good. You do need a reservation every night except for the buffet restaurant - and you can't make them more than a day in advance. They had three seatings and the middle one filled up fast, so call early in the day to get your seating. The bar service could be slow sometimes, but where are you going? The wine selection was not in my taste, but I did find out after five days, there was a wine list that you could get at dinner if you wanted to purchase another variety. I wish I had been told about that option earlier in the week. They did theme nights every night, so if you want to get into it, find out in advance what they might be doing. (example: Antigua night you needed clothing of Antigua flag colors) They awarded guests "points" every time they did a game or activity and at the end of your stay, you get prizes if you have enough points (little leather sandals necklace, rum). The Spa got a "ten" from me. (It was not included in our price). We had a couples massage, then I went back and got a second one later in the week. Olivia (the masseuse I had) was great! The steam room and other facilities there were very nice and had a relaxing atmosphere. It was definitely worth the money. All in all, I would go back today if I could.
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*Ours was a fantastic trip - for the second time!* Visited: January 2004
Posted by bridge
	My husband and I came here in June of 2003 and could not get over how wonderful Sandals and Antigua were. So, we decided to treat our adult children (26-year-old twin boys) and their girlfriends and go for another trip. We arrived the evening of Jan. 2 and were picked up by the taxi with two other couples. Upon arrival we were treated to the customary cold towels and glasses of champagne. They did ask for a credit card to be on file in case we booked any excursions that were not included. We took lots of pictures, since we wanted never to forget this trip. The kids had beachfront rooms and they loved them. We wanted our old room back and got it! It was on the second floor near the lobby facing the ocean (with a very private balcony). We knew the ropes this time and brought small denominations of bills, they never had change, so we just planned ahead. We did not miss Shirley Heights on Sunday evening, we snorkeled, swam in the ocean, drank at the pool bar, made lots of friends, (with the staff as well as guests), rode horses on the beach, and shopped from the beach vendors (it was way cheaper than anyplace else). All in all, we had a vacation to remember for a lifetime. We did not need to use the a/c in our room on either trip, we just opened the windows and relaxed! The "peepers" at night were like music. Antigua was a paradise I am glad we discovered it. I would not go to another resort, we loved the all-inclusive. Sailing, ocean bikes, it was all amazing. There may have been little problems, but nothing that would keep me from coming back again!
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*This was our best decision!* Visited: November 2003
Posted by rachmuni
	My new husband and I began our honeymoon at Sandals Royal Caribbean in Montego Bay, Jamaica and had a fabulous time. We island hopped to Antigua for the bulk of our honeymoon, and were originally booked at the Pineapple Beach Resort. Needless to say, after only a couple of hours there, we knew it was not the place for us. First thing the next morning, we phoned our travel agent and begged to be moved to Sandals based upon our great experience with them in Jamaica. It was the best decision we ever made. Sandals Antigua was beautiful, the staff and other guests were so nice and warm from the minute we got there, and we could not have had a better time on honeymoon. It was the complete opposite of Pineapple Beach Resort. We even got stuck here for two extra days because the Antiguan Airport workers went on strike, and the management at Sandals accommodated us at 1/4 the normal daily price so we could have a place to stay. They also checked up on us truly demonstrating that a little hospitality goes a long way. The resort was like summer camp for adults, and when they say all-inclusive, they mean it. It was not like at the other resort where tips are expected even though they're included already. Even the jaunts can be charged to your room - unlike the other resorts. Sandals truly takes care of their guests like family and we will never go anywhere else. They live up to every bit of advertising and although I do not work for them in marketing and promotions, I wish I did. I cannot say enough good things about this place, so you're just going to have to visit Sandals Antigua and find out for yourself.
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*We had a great time.* Visited: August 2003
Posted by jfkesq
	We actually stayed in 1998 for our honeymoon. We had a lot of fun. The food was average but the staff was very nice. I am hard to please and I was happy with everything. The room was small but so what! We were not in our room all day long. The beach was nice but we spent most of the time at the resort. The pools were big and clean. They had a nice spa, hot tub, cold tub, massuesse (sp?) we met some nice couples from England. They do take your credit card at the beginning but it takes the pressure off of spending. We were very relaxed at the end of the stay. Drinks were plentiful but they did run out occasionally. 5 restaraunts with good food at some average at others. It was worth it and we would go back again. Its not the Four Seasons but it is a great carribean stay.
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Sandals Grande Antigua Resort & Spa Overview

Sandals Antigua is part of Sandals' "Signature Collection,” and set on breathtaking Dickenson Bay, the island's best and most famous beach. This romantic getaway offers the charm of a quaint Caribbean village accompanied by the refined luxuries of a world-class all-inclusive that has been voted World's Leading Honeymoon Resort.