Sandals resorts

Kokobella1

Has anyone been to any of sandals beach resorts? The FI and I couple 23 and 25 do you think that a sandals beach resort would be a good honeymoon option for us? We want fun and romace. If not any suggestions?

[Deleted User]

I have reviews and pics from Sandals Grande St.lucian, Sandals Negril and Sandals Grande Antiguan in the link above my siggy pic. Hth and if you have any questions please feel free to ask.

frantastic12

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_sandals-resorts-4?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:11Discussion:404cc015-089b-4c13-9697-3f44ddbee476Post:c73e7690-a103-49a2-b118-acd086edf2b6">Sandals resorts</a>:
[QUOTE]Has anyone been to any of sandals beach resorts? The FI and I couple 23 and 25 do you think that a sandals beach resort would be a good honeymoon option for us? We want fun and romace. If not any suggestions?
Posted by Kokobella1[/QUOTE]

I've heard great things about Sandals, but we ended up booking with Secrets resorts.  Secrets has very similar amenities, but were a better price, and a little bit nicer/newer.  Either way, if you want variety, your best bet would probably be to pick a resort that is close to another resort by the same company so that you can also check out other restaurants, bars, and amenities at the nearby resort. 

JRitell

I will be going to Sandals Royal Bahamian, and know of a friend who is going to one in St. Lucia (both will be this July)..from what our travel agent has told us they have activities throughout the day.  Royal Bahamian also has a private island, which sounds great! From what I've seen/heard I would say Sandals is the way to go!

Kokobella1

Thanks Ladies for the info Ill also have to check out secrets too if they are cheaper..

MrsGandthebeag

DH and I have been to SAndals royal bahamian twice.  We loved it.  We've also been to Sandals Negril which was nice, but not as nice as the other.  The royal bahamian has 7 restuarants I believe so you can change up your meals.  There's also the island that you can take the boat over to.  There's also the beach as well as a few pools.

lizcarreiro

my fi and are are 24 and we will be going to Sandals Antigua this July!

WVgalinNYC

We've done Sandals and Secrets-- both are really nice.  Sandals is nicer when you do the butler level and is in nicer locations.  But Secrets are much more modern than Sandals.

We've done: Sandals Emerald Bay, Royal Plantation, Grande Riveria, Whitehouse, and La Toc; Secrets: Royal Beach P. Cana and Capri Cancun.

If you are looking for activities outside of the resorts, then Sandals hands down wins.  But if you want plush accomodations and don't care about doing anything outside of the resort, then Secrets.  (There was nothing to do in the Dominican Republic worthwhile.)  We used our friend's travel agent for our next trip who turned us on to Sandals after the DR trip because we were a little bored sitting there all week.  We went to Sandals La Toc in St. Lucia for our first trip with her (after the DR) and haven't looked back.  

Overall, I'd say both have great food and service. 

Osterizer

H and I honeymooned at Sandals Grande St. Lucian.  Having never stayed at an AI, I thought Sandals was excellent.  We enjoyed our stay and thought the food was awesome.  I was satisfied with our room.  While at the resort, we met a couple who had stayed at a Secrets resort.  They said that Secrets was better than Sandals.  They said that the service was better at Secrets than at Sandals.

The majority of the patrons at Sandals were in their 20s and 30s.  I think you'd have fun there.  There were events just about everyday and they definitely cater to those who are on their HM.  You can do as much or as little as you want.  I was absolutely exhausted while on our HM from the wedding and dealing with work stress leading up to the wedding.  So, H and I just relaxed and didn't partake in a lot of the festivities.  H and I plan to go back for our 5th anniversary.

sbelle85

I love the idea of an adults only resort, and I wish it's something that would catch on more in the States.

One of my biggest pet peeves is when I go to a hotel and there are kids in diapers in the pool. Or - even worse - kids who SHOULD be in diapers but the parents take them off and put the baby in the pool without one. It grosses me out so much that I won't get into the pool if I see kids in diapers or babies/toddlers in it. I also can't stand it when I'm trying to relax in the pool and toddlers or kids are shrieking and splashing. Or when kids are going through the buffet line at the hotel restaurant, touching food and putting it back, coughing on the food, etc. I saw a mom at one put her diaper-clad baby's ass on the buffet counter that you slide your tray along and slide it along the line.

I just feel like so many hotels and resorts now are trying to cater to "families" (a.k.a kids) at the direct expense of the comfort of guests who are traveling without them. With the amount of money that you pay to stay in a nice resort or hotel, you should be able to enjoy and take full advantage of the amenities, and if you're an adult at a hotel where kids are running wild, you can't.

I would have loved to go to a Sandals resort for my honeymoon, for this very reason, but my fiance was dead-set on Disney World/Universal Studios, so I conceded to that because I wanted him to be happy. Ultimately, all that matters to me is that we get to spend time together, but if it were up to me, we would have been going to an adults only resort.

goobersinlove

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_sandals-resorts-4?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:11Discussion:404cc015-089b-4c13-9697-3f44ddbee476Post:c05bec0f-ce97-4237-941c-ec5e58d9ba33">Re: Sandals resorts</a>:
[QUOTE]I love the idea of an adults only resort, and I wish it's something that would catch on more in the States. One of my biggest pet peeves is when I go to a hotel and there are kids in diapers in the pool. Or - even worse - kids who SHOULD be in diapers but the parents take them off and put the baby in the pool without one. It grosses me out so much that I won't get into the pool if I see kids in diapers or babies/toddlers in it. I also can't stand it when I'm trying to relax in the pool and toddlers or kids are shrieking and splashing. Or when kids are going through the buffet line at the hotel restaurant, touching food and putting it back, coughing on the food, etc. I saw a mom at one put her diaper-clad baby's ass on the buffet counter that you slide your tray along and slide it along the line. I just feel like so many hotels and resorts now are trying to cater to "families" (a.k.a kids) at the direct expense of the comfort of guests who are traveling without them. With the amount of money that you pay to stay in a nice resort or hotel, you should be able to enjoy and take full advantage of the amenities, and if you're an adult at a hotel where kids are running wild, you can't. I would have loved to go to a Sandals resort for my honeymoon, for this very reason, but my fiance was dead-set on Disney World/Universal Studios, so I conceded to that because I wanted him to be happy. Ultimately, all that matters to me is that we get to spend time together, but if it were up to me, we would have been going to an adults only resort.
Posted by sbelle85[/QUOTE]

I whole-heartedly agree with absolutely everything. For that reason I specifically will be choosing a strict adults-only resort (OP Read: avoid Beaches). I'm sorry you couldn't talk your FI into that.