Honeymoon- Sandals Reviews?

So my fiance and I are trying to decide what to book for honeymoon. I personally want to go to Mexico but he doesn't, he'd rather do Caribbean. I'm not opposed to Carribean though. Anyway... he found a website online for Sandals. They have one in Jamaica and St. Lucia and other places, but Jamaica and St. Lucia were 2 places we talked about considering looking into.

Does anyone have any feedback about either of this 2 sandals resorts? I am concerned mostly like is it young people or a bunch of old farty couples? Anything you know about these places would be much appreciated. Just trying to see if we should look elsewhere other than sandals- TIA! :)

Re: Honeymoon- Sandals Reviews?

FH and I are looking to go to Sandals in St. Lucia. There are 3 by Sandals in St. Lucia.. La Toc, The Grande, and another one which i forget the name. As far as I know, I know it's only adults. I'm pretty sure we are going to do La Toc. They were the only ones that gave a good price to have a private pool outside your room.

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I am reading that the nightlife is not so great. We're not huge partiers, but I am reading that it gets dead after 8pm, no one does anything but hang out in their rooms...that's what the reviews are saying on the Negril one.

I know it's noly adults, which is awesome b/c I hate being on vacation with tons of kids running around...but I'm curious if it's younger couples or older-middle age ones?

Do you know anything about the age group they cater to?

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My FBIL and his wife went to the one in St Lucia for their honeymoon. They loved it. They ended up going to the one in the Bahamas I believe for their year anniversary. I think there's younger couples too bc they did make some friends there.

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Thanks. I just don't know what to think- the reviews are kind of mixed... not outstanding but not horrible either.

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I know what you mean. The reviews for Sandals are mixed, its so hard to make a decision about the honeymoon! We were thinking St. Lucia too, but I can't find one that I absolutely want to stay at. I keep thinking about bora bora and tahiti

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I know so many people who went to Bora Bora and Tahiti and loved it!

My FH is set on all-inclusive, which honestly I am not a fan of those kind of places b/c I like to get away and explore the city and eat at local restaurants, shop, meet local people etc etc. I get bored being cooped up for too long and I'm not crazy about snorkeling or scuba diving.

He and I have very different vacation styles. he could sit on a beach for a week straight. I get bored and I live on Long Island- i don't need to pay thousands of dollars to sit on a beach when I can do that here.

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if you like Jamaica..there's couples swept away in Negril..it gets great reviews for a AI especially in Jamaica ...this is our back up if we don't go to Italy...

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if your thinking of St. Lucia..there's Jade Mountain..totally unreal...just way out of our price range

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I had a friend who went to Sandals Jamaica for their honeymoon & loved it... but they are really into the activities, they did lots of snorkeling/jet skiing etc

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Jade Mountain is suppose to be amazing, FH and I looked into it, but it's wayyyyy too expensive.

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Jade Mountain is gorgeous and so is Ladera, and they are both really expensive!

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We stayed at Sandals La Toc for our honeymoon and we loved it so much we are going back NEXT WEEK! for our anniversary!

I posted a review, i think on the Honeymoon board recently.

Sandals La Toc is one of 3 resorts on St. Lucia. We chose St. Lucia because we wanted a mix of a nice beach, a beauiful island, cultural sights and rainforest. We totally fell in love with St. Lucia! We loved the island and its people. From the majestic Pitons to Marigot Bay, the drive throgh volcano and mudbath which were so much fun, to just meeting local people. We LOVED it.

We took the Joe Knows tour which everyone raves about. It's an island tour by speedboat and van with funny, rowdy 20-something locals as your guide. Not to mention free-flowing rum punch! It was a blast!

As far as whom is caters to, Sandals caters to all types, and each resort has a different personality. The Grande is the larger resort with the bigger, nicer beach. It seemed to cater to a lot of young people, party types. We were there at night and I can tell you it is NOT dead after 8pm. There was live music playing in the lobby area with people dancing and costumed dancers. They also have events like the beach party and street parry. They had the same at our resort, but at the Grande it seemed like more of a party atmosphere. The Halcyon is small and very flat. It's really about the secluded gardens more than the beaches. Since it's so flat (easy to access) and quiet, it definiitely catered to an older crowd. We saw a lot of senior citizens there.

Our resort, La Toc is kind of in the middle. It has 2 parts= the main resort with the regular and concierge rooms. It's VERY lively down there, and you'd see younger couples (20's) playing volleyball and games and and partying. Up on the sunset bluff, where our room was, were all of the buler only rooms. It's also home to the sunset pool, which is a much quieter pool with a stunning view, softer music, and a relaxing atmosphere. Up on the bluff we saw more couples celebrating 10th and 10th anniversaries, or older honeymooners, it was more 35-45 age range. I guess those are the people who are established and can afford the top suites and prefer the quiet. Anyway, we felt La Toc was the best of both worlds. It also has the best dining and some of the restaurants were really delicious. Some of them, like he main restaurant were prety blah, but I did have some of the best meals of my life at La Toc.

Let me know if you have any questions

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FH and I are not looking into sandals resorts- they do not seem to be our style (somethine about the commercials has always turned me off...lol i'm weird). but we know many people that went to them and had a great time. from what everyone has told us, the private butler service (?) is a must though. hope this helps!

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Butler service is AMAZING! It totally made our trip!

It spoiled us though. I don't think we could go without it!

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I'm trying to convince FH about Sandals too! I thought the commericals were always chessy but many people that have gone have raved about it. My boss went to one of the Sandals at St. Lucia and loved it!

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We went to Sandals Antigua in May and we loved it sooo much we are planning a trip to a different resort for our 1 year! I definitely 100% recommend upgrading to the butler service it was soooo worth it!

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My FH and I were steps away from booking Sandals Halcyon Bay - St Lucia until I called off the wedding...when we got back together we decided to take our honeymoon anyway even tho we are taking it slow with the wedding planning...we booked the best room with Butler service (only bcause we dont have a wedding to worry about just yet not that we are rich!) and im super excited...I got the idea for Sandals - St Lucia from reading reviews on this site so good luck!

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It's really not at all a cheesy as the commericals. Very laid back, as active as you want it to be

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I went to the Sandals Royal Caribbean in Jamaica last year and it was AMAZING! I'm not much of a party person but they had stuff going on at night that was always fun, there was something different every night. I'd go back in a heartbeat! The Royal Caribbean wasn't the biggest resort Sandals had, we actually went to that one for a day and it was a bit too big for us. They would also transport you between any of the Sandals resorts for the day for free, so you could always go somewhere new. It's definitely worth it!

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I heard one of the I think sandals resorts will be opening up in 2013 in St. Lucia with the huts over the water like in Tahiti. Check the boards here. Someone was talking about it.

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OMG that is amazing!! I might have to book the anniversary trip there LOL

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The Grande St. Lucian will have them.

DEFINITELY book an anniversary trip! We're going next week and we're so thrilled. Once we have kids we won't be able to

ETA: I see that you're not married yet. if you do your honeymoon at a Sandals resort and then want to book an anniversary trip, book it ON SITE. You'll get the best price along with room and spa credits. You might also get perks like triple Sandals Select rewards that can be used on the trip (We're getting $700 off our room and $325 in credits because we booked at the resort). it's a $400 deposit and you can always cancel it or change the date and you can attach it to your travel agent when you get home so she gets credit and can help you plan.

Message edited 6/13/2012 11:11:14 PM.

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Hey, i was just curious, when your booking your honeymoon for Sandals, are you doing it directly thru they're website? Or are there cheaper ways to go? just wondering on whats the best deal option about planning! thanks

Re: Honeymoon- Sandals Reviews?

Sandals has a price guarantee, so the best price is always going to be through their website or a travel agent. There are no discount sites for Sandals. I recommend using a travel agent. It's going to cost you exactly the same as booking through the website but you have someone who is an expert to handle all of the details and give you advice.

You can FM me if you want more info.