TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

My experience with Sonesta was pretty good. The location is good only about 5min from the airport. The resort was not bad, the service from check in was smooth. The food and bar service was good as well. The drinks were good depending on where you got them from. The problem is the food and room. The food was mid and the specialty restaurants were not good. Mainly ate at the buffet and village tavern. The room design was weird and water sprayed all over the floor and leaked water when you used the shower. Overall the experience was good. Just some adjustments need to be made.

We went to St. Maarten to celebrate my husband's birthday and chose the Sonesta based on the location and all-inclusive option. CHECK IN: The line was so long and a bit unorganized. We paid for an oasis pool-view King room. The person who checked us in gave us a ground level room and told us nothing else was available. He was unfriendly and needs to work on his hospitality skills. ROOM: The room we were given was not what we paid for. Ground level, the bathroom set up was for someone with accessibility issues, the room smelled of mold, and had a view of some plants. We immediately went to guest services to voice our dissatisfaction. Janelle was helpful and was able to give us another room which represented what we paid for. She also mentioned she had set up champaign and a treat to surprise my husband but we never received it. The new room smelled of mold as well. I assume that's an overall issue. Bring something warm to wear at night because the room gets super cold and you can't adjust the temperature. Our fridge was broken the entire time. It's disappointing housekeeping or whomever fills it didn't report it. It also wasn't filled when we first arrived. The room overall needs a deep cleaning. There are stains on the curtains, sofa, etc. POOL: Wake up at 7am if you want a chair. They get filled quickly and there are not enough. The man at the towel stand is not there consistently. At times, people were going behind the booth to get a fresh towel or redeem their towel card. Entertainment was minimal, swim-up bar drinks were ok. FOOD: The Italian restaurant had a nice offering and pleasant service. The buffet had many options. The service was mediocre. There is someone stationed at the fish station but she won't serve the fish. She gives you tongs to get it yourself. Most servers acted like they did not want to be there. At times it was a mission just to get water. The pizza was always a good quick option and the staff there were nice. There is a coffee shop in the lobby and the staff was pleasant and accommodating. MISC: The airport is a 5 minute taxi drive. Go to the beach to watch the planes land and take off, it's an amazing experience. Mimosa skybar is nice for food and drinks (walking distance). You can also walk to Mullet Bay and spend the day. $30 for an umbrella and 2 beach chairs. Give yourself ample time to check out. There's only a few elevators and they get extremely packed!

Ok first the great, Robert at the Bell Captain desk is an amazing credit to this organization, friendly and attentive always a nice smile and a hello. The front desk at check in was exactly what you would expect nothing bad but nothing to write home about. We did the smart thing and hired a private cab to get us from the airport and drive us around I always do that when I go away but I had no idea this time I was doing it to BEAT THE HORDE that was staying at the resort you’ve seen weight loss ads with before and after well these are the models for before and way before apparently all inclusive draws them out. Anyone I interacted with as far as wait staff or bartenders were the most miserable humans on the planet and believe me i tip when I sit down to insure good service but these people couldn’t care less. The bartender at the casino started cleaning the bar top with bleach while we were sitting there drinking at 330pm, the bartenders at the pool hut wouldn’t let you sit there and have something to eat while you were drinking. A lot of the clientele go out of their way to emulate Nene Lekes from real housewives just so you can gauge the ignorance and arrogance. We had to have dinner off property because the meals were inedible and akin to cafeteria lunches at most inner city public schools. On our last night we were eating at Mr Chow across the street and while eating on their patio at 730pm on a Saturday night, positioned next door to a casino on a fight night, 5 “locals” blocked the street with their hatchback car jumped out and used sledge hammers and a ramming tool to smash the glass of a jewelry store and break in to steal 4 knapsacks worth of gold and jewelry (Google Maho Jewelry robbery) while about 50 people on the street watched. We paid for our meals and went back to our room to sit on the balcony and wait out our last night. We couldn’t wait to get past airport security to GTFO. Pictures look beautiful but stay away. Definitely google st Maarten crime spree and pick another island. We will never go back

location was excellent, the room was fine yet only problem was the mildew smell in the room and the dampness in the room was terrible. The atmosphere of the hotel was good for the most part , most of the staff was excellent , nice , and helpful however the hotel had to many rules. The staff supervisors were good for the most part yet some were miserable! The food with the all inclusive stay was average , yet disorganized 6 days out of 7 days we where ushered to a table on the buffet style resturant and 6 of those 7 days we were given a table, and we came back with our food maker day had put somebody else in our same table which was extremely frustrating so we have a search for another place to go sit and eat. It looks like a maître day did not know what the weight staff was doing but the Waite staff were excellent. Overall I placed it as average and not 100% sure I will return back to the same hotel. The entertainment staff by the pool were excellent had a lot of fun. And special kudos go out to all of the Waite staff who are excellent.

The rooms were clean except for a musty smell. The noise level was good. In regards to the service I would have to say the restaurants that were included in our package seemed to be unorganized. We were given tables on several occasions only to come back after receiving our food to find other people occupying it. That’s was very frustrating. Also, as I waited in line for the burger hut near the pool, the person cooking was very rude and argued with one person about her order as I watched people cut in front of me several times just to get two hot dogs. That was also very frustrating as well. Most of the staff were friendly and nice however.