TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

This hotel has the potential to be amazing, but too many little incidences let’s it down, and they would be so easy to fix. We stayed for 10 nights at the end of July/beginning of August for a family celebration, the family ages were from 5 - 77. Below is an honest review. The rum punch on arrival was delicious and the rooms were spacious and clean, although check in took nearly an hour! Not ideal after a long flight with small children. We had a two bedroom suite and two family rooms which overlooked the beach. The view was stunning, although the two bedroom suite smelt a bit mouldy. The rooms themselves did not have water or shampoo/shower gel restocked. You had to get those top ups from reception which is a bit odd (and really annoying if you’re mid shower!!) An easy fix for the hotel - I don’t know another 4 star hotel that does this. In my eyes this lowers their standard. We had a problem with our shower as the water was cold, but the maintenance staff were so quick to help out. They arrived only 5 minutes after telling reception, which we were really impressed with. The beach was lovely, apart from at the end of the stay the seaweed was everywhere. We did struggle to get towels pretty much everyday, and were sent from reception to the towel area back and forth quite a bit. We did always succeed (in the end!) in getting the towels, but this is something that would be easy to fix if the hotel wanted to. The staff are definitely a mixed bunch. Some of them would go out of their way to help, others would completely ignore you, and a couple were downright rude. We had an issue with one member of staff which I highlighted to his boss, but sadly he didn’t change his behaviour, and it made going to the swim up bar an unpleasant experience. David - you are in a service industry - be nice. The beach staff were great. They would walk the beach handing out vodka jelly or cocktails. The food was amazing. I’m gluten free and had no trouble getting decent food. The buffet has the right amount of choice and it was cooked really well. The steak restaurant was also delicious although very very hot. They really need some fans in there as it became unbearable on one of the nights we went. The sushi was also really good. My only complaint about the food was that my son had cereal one morning and twisted the plastic cereal holder, out popped the cereal…. and a baby cockroach. I was horrified. If you want a cup of tea in the morning, don’t bother. Every day without fail it took at least 10 minutes to get a tea bag, and then another 10 get hot water, and then another 5 to get milk, by which time the tea was cold. An easy fix for the hotel. They have cats at the hotel, which I’m allergic to, and these cats could be seen eating the few cockroaches that were there (shame they didn’t get the one in my son’s cereal) but they were also seen climbing trees and eating the tree frogs. Not great. We hired a catamaran from Elegance which was the highlight of our trip. Definitely worth doing. The hotel staff don’t tell you to use local buses, but if you go out then don’t pay for a private cab as they are insanely expensive - $100 return to Bridgetown. The local cabs pick you up at the side of the road for just a couple of dollars. The entertainment at the hotel was very good, varied and worth watching, although sometimes the seating was damp from the rain, because the staff don’t bring the cushions in before a downpour. Overall I’m not sure we would go back again. One little issue is fine, but when there’s a whole host of them and they would be so easy to fix it makes me wonder why the hotel doesn’t just address them.

We stayed in Sugar Bay for 2 weeks in August. This was our first two week holiday abroad with the children (aged 15 and 11). The hotel and staff were amazing - probably the best hotel we have stayed in! It is a relatively small hotel which suited us completely and it was apparent that many guests and families return and we were lucky to meet some really nice people during our stay. Our son has allergies to dairy, wheat and soya. The hotel accommodated his dietary requirements without any fuss and went out of their way to ensure we had a wide variety of food and meals . He was able to eat in all three restaurants without any problem at all and all of the waiting staff were aware of his allergies and made a real fuss of him. The quality of all the food and drink is excellent and there is plenty of choice. We couldn’t of asked for anymore. The hotel itself is very clean and the beach is relaxing and sea extremely clear and warm for snorkelling. Nothing is ever too much trouble and all the staff go out of their way to ensure you are happy - this is a major credit to the hotel and makes it so special. Even the water sports staff will teach how to snorkel and paddle board or ensure you have an umbrella if the sun is too intense! Barbados itself is a very safe and friendly island and there is plenty to do and see, including the wildlife - we were lucky enough to help collect / rescue baby turtles that had hatched on the hotel’s beach in the evenings which was incredible and monkeys roam around the hotel grounds freely. We will be back to Sugar bay next year for sure.

Just came back from vacation in Barbados. Overall we had a pretty good trip. We did a few things outside the hotel which made for more memories, but my review is on the hotel. We stayed at the Sugar Bay Barbados (all inclusive) hotel. It’s right on the beach and every day we were greeted with the sea breeze as we passed by the front desk to go to the Reef for our meals. Firstly, I have to give kudos to the great staff at the hotel, with special mention and thank you’s to Shamara, Roshana, Samantha and Andrea (Reef restaurant); Nikita and Tiana (front desk) for your high level of customer service, also Shanique and the lovely “trainee” there (without a name tag and whose name I wrote down but couldn’t find ??) for the chats and emails and for all that you did to make us feel welcome every day; to my guy in water sports, Travon, for providing over and beyond level of service to us on the beach setting us up for the day with umbrellas, towels and even some water to keep us hydrated on those very hot days; Trevayne at security thanks for all your help and guidance on events around town and with transportation; Janelle in Karma spa for a wonderful massage. So many more wonderful staff we encountered that I cannot name them all. YOU all make this hotel what it is and I hope that management takes note of it and provide you the continued motivation (i.e perks, wages etc) to do your best. I’m sure I’m not the only guest that appreciates what you do. Thank you! The two restaurants Sizzle and Umi were excellent - kudos to Kathy-Ann for managing these restaurants. Here are the cons…The hotel itself could be better and I understand some much needed renovation and beautification will be done soon. Our room was small but we didn’t stay inside much so not a major issue. The main pool was small and so got quite crowded many days, so was not ideal. The beach had a lot of seaweed on the shore and in the water. You can’t help the seaweed in the water but the hotel could have done something about the collection of seaweed on the shores to keep it cleaner and to prevent the sand flies, smell etc. The mosquitos were endless and my daughter and I ended up with multiple bites per day. Not fun. The hotel should be proactively spraying elevators, rooms and the property as a whole and also looking to get rid of the outdoor plant pots with stagnant water that made it a perfect breeding ground for these pesky insects that carry disease. There were also about four cats on the premises that had free roam of the dining and guest areas (e.g pool lounge chairs) which is not hygienic. I asked about this and was told the guests love the cats. Well if you’re a cat lover I suppose, but if you have allergies, or are not used to dining with pets around then it’s a real turn off. There were also pigeons who had free roam and on one occasion we unfortunately saw a cat attacking/killing a pigeon. Why the hotel (staff) would feed and encourage these birds on the premises I can’t fathom. It creates more work for the staff in terms of cleaning but we found this wasn’t cleaned much also. Lastly, I was curious about what happened with all the food left behind after breakfast, lunch and dinner and asked and was surprised to hear only on one weekday the food is given to those less fortunate. But sad to also learn most days the left over food ends up in the garbage and staff were not provided free meals or the chance to take food home etc. To Management: “food” for thought…provide your staff with this “perk”. Definitely some room for improvement to make it more inclusive for all guests and make for a more positive experience. Despite all of these cons, we had a great vacation in Barbados and a good stay at Sugar Bay, but all the thanks goes to the staff. Management could do better on the items I noted (hence only 3 star rating) and I really hope they do.

Nice hotel. Good clean rooms giving everything you need from a Caribbean hotel. Polite and friendly staff who are informed about the locale and always on hand to help. Water sports beach team are very helpful and keep the beachside guests safe from the sun and armed with the various water sports equipment. One main bar at night so can get crowded. So many flies!!! Need to get that sorted. Daily fresh water in room needs sorting rather than having to collect from reception. It’s not a difficult thing to do and is a level of service which many guests now see commonplace elsewhere. Disappointed that the food was mostly western cuisine. Sunday roast, pasta and very British cultured food did seem a little lazy when the cuisine of the Caribbean is absolutely amazing. Need to sort that. Sushi restaurant was not too bad. Native Asian chef knows his stuff and the concise menu is ripe with good dishes. Would like to see a more diverse range of sashimi and nigiri if possible. Steak restaurant was very good but mighty popular and busy. Very much the food highlight of our visit. Good resort for families Food good but just a bit too British. Lovely beach and lagoon Go see Cuzz for a fish sandwich or two (ask the staff). Rum punch is dangerously delicious. Beach is quieter than pool. Pool bar is usually busy late in the day.

This was our second stay at Sugar bay and 99% of it was perfect. The staff are so welcoming and some of the staff remembered us from last year and we where greeted like long lost friends. The room was big, we are a family of 5 and rooms 343 was big enough to have a double and 2 single beds in for the kids, real beds not folding camping style beds with space to move around the room. It had a separate bedroom and toilet and shower room. All very nice and clean and the room had recently has a kick of paint so was fresh. Bars are fantastic, if you sit at the bar the staff will keep your drinks topped up! Food is great, Reef is buffet style and we had no problem finding plenty to eat even with a very very fussy teenage eater! Collins beach bar does burgers, hotdogs, fried chicken style food and is nice and tasty. The beach is amazing, we where lucky with the sea grass and had none for the 10 days. Water sports team and brilliant and any excuse for a game of cricket against the guests, and they play properly! We hired a car for a few days and reception arranged it all for us. Now….. We flew at 22:45 and pick up was at 20:00. We paid $100 for late checkout. We where informed at 18:30 we would have to pay extra to eat at reef after 18:00. Not happy this was dropped on us at such a late stage. Now, shout out to Tyrese for the biggest smile and always ready to help or play cricket. Romain and the rest of the water sprouts team. Bar team…. David Rashawn, Damon Nicholas, Helen and Joan for keeping us hydrated all holiday! Reception, every time we had a question or wanted something sorting it was Shanique who helped us, local information, late checkout and booking is a rental car all sorted quickly and with a smile Andrea for the amazing breakfast omelettes and freshly cooked eggs and Paul the head chef Dylan for carrying our 5 large heavy suitcases to and from our room!