The Sands Barbados All Inclusive

This review is a tad late, but we have just been reminiscing about our 2 week holiday at The Sands for my birthday.. We have visited Barbados on numerous occasions & have enjoyed them all.. However, The Sands holds a special place in our hearts & we have already booked to return in November. This hotel is a little gem.. The beach is beautiful. We stayed in a super saver room which was clean, tidy & has all you all you need. Food was great.. You’re right near The Gap with plenty of lovely restaurants.. Just a special mention for the wonderful Ricardo, Chad & Stephen.. These guys are a credit to your hotel.. Ricardo especially who gave us a great welcome & was always on hand to answer any questions we had.. We cannot wait to return x

We just visited The Sands Barbados resort and have concluded our vacation that we booked through Air Canada Vacations and it is important to provide a detailed review as a seasoned traveller to the Carribean staying at all inclusive the amenities felt like a 3.5 star property my detailed review is as follows: CHECK IN- was a total gong show, into the tight small lobby area no smiles upon arrival, instead staff guiding you to a seat to fill out a online checkin process, via a QR code to scan! Never have I had to do this arriving at a resort, and then having to wait for the customer service rep to come back for you to waive them down to say “I’m finished” basically what next in the check in process, we then had another delay in check in as they were taking there slow sweet time this was a total turn off arriving at the property ROOM- we arrived to our room to find a queen bed and a single bed when we booked our reservation via air Canada we requested 2 single beds!. We asked the manager Renee if there was anything she could do for a different room as we had booked the Sands Signature Room Air Canada advertised and it didn’t meet the specs! The bathroom was the size of a closet you couldn’t fit in unless you shut the door!… Renee was no help to the situation of how we were hating our room, and how it wasn’t working for us, she brushed it off and only said we can maybe move on the Monday and have 3 nights in this other room after she shows it to us, we declined as we were not moving for just a couple of nights to receive the same size bathroom she also advised we would need to take up our concerns with AC just bad customer service CLEANING/TOWELS- room cleaning was good but the situation to get a good amount of towels is terrible we got one bath towel each and had no hand towels all week! Every other place has given me 2 bath towels per person!! They need to look at getting more towels and be consistent with what they are giving wash cloths were rare! MANAGEMENT- Management is not fully present on the resort talking to guests making sure they are taken care of. Rebecca smiles and seems pleasant , where Renee doesn’t and I feel she hides and doesn’t care about the guests she is not management material! And Coffy he didn’t say anything more to us when we first talked to him about addressing our room issues to be moved BAR STAFF & AREA- this area needs major improvements bar glasses are piling up all day and night on the edge of the bar!! There’s no bus staff to take them away and disinfect and clean them properly they were all being washed by hand in the tiny sink by the bar! I found this concerning! As I didn’t see any disinfectant they need an industrial strength machine that cleans glassware! the bar staff are not trained bartenders some don’t know there cocktails very well there’s no aperol or even Prosecco 1 kind of vodka option! The bar is not organized nicely bottles aren’t on display nice And the don’t consistently provide garnish! The drinks also lacked ice they were being cheap with ice and the plastic cups they use for beach and bar drinks aren’t big enough!!I feel the bartenders all needed to be trained and take a course This all needs to be looked at! As some didn’t know there drinks! COMMON OUTDOOR SEATING- the common area by the bar seating for entertainment and before dinner cocktails needs some attention there needs to be better rows of 2 seats in 1 row and then the larger tables at another! There was such a mix match and 2 people were sitting at a 4 person table! They need to get some better outdoor furniture! BEACH STAFF- the beach chair staff are disinterested and grumpy, Orion is one of them! Never smiled made eye contact or a good morning! Always looked like you were inconveniencing him for your beach chair in the morning! And I found for the remainder of the day they would go hide at the other end of the beach where it is public off the property to “hang out” so you couldn’t find them if you needed some thing FAMILY RESORT- if you are looking for this to be an almost kid free resort it is not it really caters to small children and families and children’s activities and the pool is very congested! NIGHT ENTERTAINMENT- they had singers at night some nights it would just be nice to hear music then live entertainment as some kept singing the same old songs and it was repetitive and too much Bob Marley!! And love songs!! I loved my trip to Barbados but I don’t think I’d return to this resort again unless something g majorly changed with the brand, offerings & management style where it’s about the guest experince hopefully mango bay group can review this

Well, let’s start with the positives (there are not many). It is a great location and the beach is beautiful. I really wanted to like this resort but it was a nightmare from the beginning. Check-in was a grueling process where Sherman at the front desk and his immediate manager, Sherice, are very cold and try to nickel and dime you. We arrived at 1:30pm, they explained that check-in was at 4pm and we would be able to use the facilities sooner if we paid $150. We had two adults and two children and they charged us for four adults. It was by far the worst check-in experience and the manager, Sherice, proceeded to get into a verbal confrontation with us. The majority of the staff are not friendly. This does not feel like an all inclusive. The food is mediocre at best and very small portions. No top shelf liquor. Entertainment is poor, they do have some events for children but they neglect to tell you that you will incur a fee for participating. It also doesn’t feel safe. When we were there, a local homelesss man was able to walk right in past security. He wasn’t tackled until he made it to the pool where the children were playing. Do yourself and your family a favor, book Sugar Bay.

We had a superb holiday at The Sands Hotel in Beautiful Barbados. The location, staff, entertainment, food/drinks, were all first class. The atmosphere was relaxed & easy-going & the hotel had a “happy” feel. Wish we were still there enjoying their Bajan hospitality & sunshine !

The Sands is a great size friendly hotel. The staff on reception are friendly and extremely helpful. The bar staff are funny, kind and work extremely hard to make your holiday fantastic. The cleaner and maintenance staff are incredible. The restaurant staff are friendly, helpful and work tirelessly to give you the best experience. The beds are comfortable. The rooms are better than expected as you get a lounge and kitchenette. The pool and beach are beautiful and it is in great location. Highly recommend it. We spent 12 nights here and are leaving today.