Colony Club Hotel - Barbados

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This place was fun. Visited: February 2006 Posted by macafees My whole family loved this hotel. The staff was great, and the beach was fantastic. We even saw some baby turtles and lots of monkeys. 3 users found this review helpful. 2 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? I thought it was overpriced and overrated. Visited: November 2005 Posted by whorip This hotel seems to try too hard to be something it is not. It lacks warmth, charm, and class. I suggest you avoid it at all costs. 0 users found this review helpful. 2 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Beautiful hotel, shame about the service! Visited: June 2003 Posted by sizzlingsarah We spent 10 days at the beginning of June at the Colony Club. The hotel really is beautiful - the grounds, pools and beach are all immaculately kept and we found it to be a perfect base for a relaxing, peaceful holiday. The rooms were lovely - we paid for a pool / garden view room - this in fact consisted of a marble floored room with king sized bed, with steps leading down to a living area with sofa, arm chairs and rocking chairs - by far the biggest room we've had in the Caribbean. The bathroom was again marble, with a large sunken bath - with room for 2!! For the cost and 5 star rating of the hotel however, the service was really not up to scratch. Service was indeed very slow, beyond that we've ever found in any other caribbean island we've visited, and everything seemed to be a bit of a chore for the staf, particularly at Reception. The other downside is the expense. We expected Barbados to be expensive and had budgeted for it, but we did expect a certain level of quality for what we paid for and we did not feel we got this at the hotel - at just over £30 pp for a set 4 course dinner, it wasn't an awful lot more expensive to venture out of the hotel to one of the nicer restaurants on the West Coast for a much better offering. Also, be warned, a 1 litre bottle will cost you £5 in the hotel and with the nearest supermarket a £5 taxi ride away, remaining hydrated is a costly business!! A final word of advice...check your bill before signing at check-out!! we had a mysterious item which found it's way onto our bill for over £50 and came up against some resistance when querying it and having it removed!! All in all, an enjoyable holiday - we got quite a bargain so can't complain but had we paid the going rate for this hotel and expected 5 star quality in return, we would have been sorely disappointed. 8 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A good quality hotel for a relaxing stay. Visited: May 2003 Posted by rich_walker We stayed two weeks in the Colony Club, the last week in May and the first week in June. The weather deteriorated in the second week, but we still had a great stay. The rooms were basic and could do with a touch-up, but they were clean and well-presented with large balcony area, king-sized beds and a big bathroom with bath/shower. Food at the hotel was good, but pricy. Service was generally slow, but we got used to it. I wonder when Barbados will realize that five-star hotels need to provide five-star quality service. They are falling behind Mauritius and the Far East in this respect. Management at the Colony Club was friendly, and so were all of the staff. The pools were small, but pleasing on the eye. We liked the swim-up pool bar which we used for happy hour cocktails. Entertainment was very low-key, which led us to try other restaurants - Tides in Holetown, The Mews, The Cliff and Lone Star were our favorites. The beach was excellent and the sun loungers were thicker than our mattress at home. We took the water taxi to the Tamarine Cove, and the beach there was overcrowded, and they got no mattress on their sun beds. Overall, I would rate the Colony Club as a quality, peaceful hotel - one of the better hotels on the West Coast. 2 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was a courteous and peaceful vacation for adults only. Visited: March 2003 Posted by ngrncr We were guests at this very peaceful hotel for 10 days. The service was exceptional and the food was very tasty. However, we have two suggestions to make this the ideal place to stay. The fitness room was deplorable. For those of us who need to exercise prior to breakfast, the fitness room was so small that you could not perform any floor exercise unless you wanted to run into a treadmill. Second, since we exercise prior to breakfast, we had to get up extremely early or we would miss the 10:00 am breakfast schedule. We are on a schedule at home, and we don't want one when we go on vacation. In summary, we would return to Colony Club if they could accommodate us on these issues. 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It has a subdued elegance, but could use a touch-up. Visited: February 2003 Posted by dbasek I just returned from five days at The Colony Club with my wife. We were here from February 27th to March 4th, 2003. The hotel had a complete makeover in 1996, but was starting to show a bit of wear and tear already. The layout was quite nice; whitewashed walls combined with British elegance. Our room was quite nice; on the ground floor right next to the ocean. The bathroom could have used a painting touch-up, but overall it was clean and pleasant. The reason I rated it four stars was that, at $650.00 U.S. per night, it was not cheap (and coming from Toronto, that was $1,000.00 CAD per night). For $1000.00 per night, I guess I expected something quite special. The Colony was quite nice, but not really special. However, that's Barbados! We had a drink and checked out Sandy Lane. It was totally different, but spectacular. Additionally, next door to the Colony Club was the Coral Reef. Although it looked quite nice, I met a couple who spent one night, at $500.00 U.S. and said the room "was a dump". This is Barbados, so don't expect $650.00 /night to be the same as $650.00 in North America. The service was good, and the food was fine. However, if you are looking for fine dining, try Carambola, The Lone Star, Pieces and The Cliff (all were good, but the Cliff was a bit pretentious; we thought Carambola was the best, especially the 6:45 P.M. nightly feeding of the stingrays!). 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? It was very relaxing and tranquil. Visited: February 2003 Posted by gilescha We just returned from a trip to the Caribbean which included a brief three-night stay at the Colony Club. The hotel was beautifully presented, and generally well maintained. The rooms were well laid out around an attractive pool area, and were well equipped, but with a little bit dated bathrooms which seemed to have been updated with minimum cost. The food was generally very good, but pricy , with excellent service. The bars were somewhat lacking in atmosphere, with no real social area in which to meet and socialize. "Top Secret" Happy Hour (5:00 pm - 6:00 pm) was not advertised at all, serving half price drinks by the beach. To summarize, it was a very quiet and very relaxing hotel, serving good quality food to a generally more mature customer. I recommend it. But if you want to party, this isn't the one for you! 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A beautiful and relaxing environment. Visited: December 2002 Posted by gwilli1 I've been to Barbados four times now, and this was the first time at an upscale location. It was well worth it. The room was simple, yet very comfortable. We had a nice small deck to drink a cold beer and watch the sunset from. The room also had a king size bed with cable tv. The cold beer came from the hotel provided mini fridge which I self-stocked. From the moment we arrived, the staff was courteous and helpful. The grounds were neat and clean. Security was present, but out of sight. We did a package tour which kept the price down and we felt that it was a good deal. I believe we were the only Americans staying at the resort. We liked that. The English seemed more quiet and did not invade our personal space. While dining at the resort, we ate the seafood brunch buffet for lunch. This was quite expensive ($50 each without drinks), but there was more than enough to eat including lobster tail. Breakfast was included in our plan and it was very good. Sometimes it took a little while to get service though. The highlight was definitely the beach. It was absolutely beautiful! The hotel provided new cushioned loungers. Get them early though, as the better positions will be taken by noon. Take a swim to the floating dock about 50 yards out. Water skiing was free, as was kayaking and windsurfing. We took a long beach walk and looked around at most of the other properties in the area and felt the Colony was the best location. The restaurants in Holetown were very good, but expensive. Most of the finer dining on the island was expensive. It was a very relaxing and enjoyable stay. We can't wait to go back next year. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Mixed Impression. Visited: November 2001 Posted by pitt My wife and I spent 2 weeks at the Colony Club right after reopening in mid November of 2001. The hotel grounds as well as the rooms (we had a Poolside Luxury Junior) are very nice and in good condition; the beach and services both in the room as well outdoors are very good. The quality of service specifically in the restaurant needs to be improved. The breakfast (approximately $22 US per person) is not even close to what you can expect from a 5-star hotel. Applying Barbados standards, dinner is very expensive and of average quality. We attended a buffet dinner (approximately $50 US per person without drinks) that was of very low standard. The good news is, that there are many restaurants at various price levels a short taxi drive away (or even in walking distance in Holetown). Lunch at the Colony Club is of average to low quality and it’s expensive again; unfortunately there are almost no alternatives. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A wedding and holiday in paradise. Visited: July 2001 Posted by murray_carol We were married at the hotel this summer and can highly recommend it to anyone thinking of getting married. The grounds are lush and very well maintained and our wedding photos looked wonderful. The wedding coordinator attended to every detail and is very accommodating. We were given a choice of location and were the only couple to marry during our fortnight stay. The newly appointed chef Phillipe prepared a beautiful meal for our wedding party in the Orchid Room, which had been decorated with flowers from the gardens. Spectacular! Our photographs were very professionally done. The hotel staff is very friendly and the meals are delicious. We stayed in a pool view room, which has its own private lagoon pool with waterfall! It was very spacious and cleaned everyday. All in all our wedding/holiday was wonderful and comes highly recommended to anyone. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Best hotel in thousands. Visited: July 2001 Posted by elskanko66 We stayed at the Colony Club very recently, and were extremely impressed. The new French chef, Phillipe, had only been there for 2 months and was really proving to be a worthwhile addition to the staff. The prices for next year have rocketed from this year's prices, probably because of the best food we have ever had abroad. You usually get the sort of food you ate at school, in a canteen-type atmosphere, but this food is better than many very pricey restaurants. Also, on certain deals, you will get to eat at the sister hotels' restaurants, which is definitely worth anything extra you might have to pay. Our family's favorite restaurant of all time is Sasso at Tamarind Cove. For no extra supplement, we could have had lobster and many, many other expensive dishes. It was a three-course meal, which we thought was going to cost a fortune, but it actually came as part of the package. We also saw monkeys! The green-tailed monkeys lived by the river, which looked very good in our holiday snapshots! There is a vast array of flora and fauna, the snorkeling and scuba diving is very good and the water sports are also good fun (although you have to book early). We couldn't find a fault with our rooms. We enjoyed Holetown (only a local yellow bus ride away) and we thoroughly enjoyed our holiday. Just so you can scale this review, we usually stay in 5-star hotels and sadly some of these 5-star hotels have wilted in comparison to Colony Club. A friendly atmosphere is present, and we have made friends who we are still in contact with. The gym now has new equipment, and although the swimming pools are slightly murky and the beach loungers looking their age, we will be back! Definitely worth booking for 2002! 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A laid-back but dignified resort. Visited: March 2001 Posted by rms800 I think we were the only Americans staying there, a fact that enhanced our getaway experience. The clientele was mostly British while some Canadians were rumored to be amongst us. There was no outlandish behavior or a lot of kids. Our room had a small refrigerator and a patio that had a round picnic table with a thatch covered umbrella. (I was hoping that there would be a coffee maker, but no such luck.) Our room was about as far from the ocean as you can get, but that didn't bother us. Walking by the pools and gardens to the ocean was a pleasant experience. The maid service was very good. In fact, the entire staff was friendly and helpful. There was a TV wired with cable (HBO included) and there was no towel deposit. I can't comment on the hotel's two restaurants because we didn't eat there. There were plenty of restaurant choices in Holetown, which we drove to most nights even though it is only a ten-minute walk. The hotel had half-price drinks at the outdoor bar between 5:00pm and 6:00pm. They also had a musical act every evening. The beach had nice, soft sand and it was a beautiful setting. The umbrellas and beach chairs were top notch. We didn't go for any of the water sports even though there were plenty to choose from. Take care swimming though. When you get to knee-high water, there are many rocks that you might hurt yourself on. Overall, an enjoyable experience but it is pricey. I don't know whether it is as expensive as their neighbors, but it was definitely in the same league. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? One of the best hotels on the West Coast Visited: June 2000 Posted by mdemott We have stayed at The Colony Club twice. We were married here in February, 1999 and went back in June, 2000. We highly recommend this hotel in general and for anyone planning a wedding, the wedding coordinator, Karene takes care of everything for you! The grounds are the perfect setting. The moment you walk into the lobby you are greeted by a fish pond and the sound of trickling water, it is so serene. The rooms are very nice, all have a private balcony with views of either the pool or ocean. The grounds are immaculately kept and the staff is impeccable. The only area that they need to work on is the food. We strongly suggest that you not go with the meal plans and dine at the many fine restaurants located on the West Coast. 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? A perfect first impression! Visited: May 2000 Posted by LwC When I arrived in Barbados, being new to traveling overseas, I was very apprehensive about what to expect from this hotel. When the taxi arrived at the Colony Club, I was very pleasantly surprised. From the open-air lobby full of greenery and the lagoon-like structure of the pool garden, to the great beach access, I was grateful. When I entered my room, I was not bothered by the absence of a television. The bathroom with Jacuzzi tub and marble fixtures made up for the television. I loved the king-sized bed and the wicker furniture in the living area. And the patio, with cobblestones leading to the pool, topped off my impression of these wonderful accommodations. I stayed in a Junior Suite. I did not mind coming back to my room after a long day of tourist activities. The staff was very friendly and accommodating. Not knowing much about the West Indies or having much experience traveling outside the continent of North America, this hotel made a perfect first impression, to say the least! 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Lunch Bag Let-Down Visited: February 2000 Posted by gaynia Although the grounds are lovely, I was extremely disappointed in the work-out area (a joke!!) and there are no T.V.'s in the rooms!! Even the cheapest hotels in Barbados supply satellite T.V. I found the staff to be less than enthusiastic and overall very slow. We have been traveling to Barbados for 10 years...I doubt very much we would ever return to the Colony Club!! 0 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? 3 star, at best Visited: March 1999 Posted by ATraveler Stayed for a week and was very disappointed. Since the hotel went "chain" a couple of years back, even the die-hards we met here were considering alternatives. The quality of service and facilities no longer give this hotel the snob-factor appeal most people book here for ("elegant" would be stretching it). You'll probably only eat at the hotel once; then you'll be finding much less-expensive and better quality meals nearby. Most who stay here are older, monied vacationers, who are regulars and know each other; yet the hotel charges guests a towel deposit ($130 for two) upon arrival, which we find insulting. 0 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Bajan style may be quaint, but not at $350 per night Visited: December 1969 Posted by ATraveler Even though the Colony Club is the pick of the Elegant Hotel chain on Barbados, things really need a lot of improvement to justify the ratings and brochure hype. The pool layout is particularly good and the beach one of the best, though the latest Hurricane, "Lenny", has deposited a lot of it up the coast. Our major complaint was the attitude of the staff and general level of service. In addition the fitness centre had a lot to be desired with only 50% of the machines working. Our air-conditioning unit continually broke down, no TV in the room (not that that's a bad thing but there should be a CD player or something). 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? An excellent hotel equaled by its staff Visited: December 1969 Posted by andrew_braden I recently spent 14 nights at the Colony Club and was extremely impressed. We stayed in a luxury ocean view room (with Four poster bed) which was very nice. The food was very good. The breakfast could have done with more varieties of fruit and the weekly buffet was very disappointing but lunch and dinner were excellent. I was disappointed with the "health suite," it was very basic and the weights and bench were as old as me, this definitely needed upgrading. It was also disappointing that although the tennis courts were available at no charge you had to pay to hire rackets and buy tennis balls. Last but not least, the staff were excellent, very friendly, helpful and genuine. 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? An excellent resort Visited: December 1969 Posted by ATraveler We recently spent a week at the Colony Club and all in all, we were very impressed. We had a very good room towards the back of the property which was well furnished and had a spacious balcony. The hotel had a series of lovely pools which were beautifully laid out. We only dined a couple of times in the restaurant. We would describe the food as very good if not spectacular. Overall, the general level of service in the hotel was excellent although the reception desk was sometimes a little slow. The Colony Club is a resort that we would highly recommend. 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful? Overall excellent, but could do better on the food front. Visited: December 1969 Posted by ATraveler We have visited the Colony Club frequently over the years and enjoy staying here so much that it will be featured on our honeymoon itinerary. The hotel was remodeled about five years ago, and to be honest could already do with another lick of paint! That said, the guest rooms themselves are great; we stay in a "junior suite" as they are large and include a sort of lounge area. There are 2 main reasons for the Colony Club not getting a 5-star rating from us. Firstly, the so called "gymnasium" is a joke with its' knackered old equipment, and secondly because of the food. Having stayed at other hotels on the island, we know that the Colony Club could do much better with its' catering. All-in-all, the hotel is terrific and offers a great base to experience this friendly and beautiful island. 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. Did you find this helpful?

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