This place is terrible!

My husband and I stayed here on our honeymoon in 2003 and we thought the place was absolutely horrible. The staff was rude, the room was dirty, housekeeping was all but non-existant, and any request was met with "No" and a sneer. We would recommend that anyone thinking of staying here think again. It is very expensive and not at all worth it. And, if you are going to stay there and get the meal plan, keep in mind that there is only one restaurant where you can have dinner. We would however highly recommend Cap Juluca where we stayed for the first part of our honeymoon. That place is paradise, as opposed to Guanahani which is a total nightmare.

My stay in this hotel was a total disaster!

We just returned from our 2nd visit to St Barths. This island is great. Beautiful beaches, friendly people, excellent restaurants. In our 1st visit we stayed at Le Toiny (great) and Isle de France (ok). This time we wanted to try another hotel, and we decided for Guanahani. What a big mistake! Our room (the most expensive - EU$ 1370 a day) was supposed to be an oceanview suite with private pool. It had a pool, but not private, because there were people working in a new construction near it. They could see us and we had no privacy. Besides that, there was another construction just behind my room. One thing i got for sure was a lot of noise. I requested to move to another room, but it didn´t help much. Our new room had the same problems with the noise of the new constructions. I couldn´t sleep after 7:30 AM!!! What a vacation!! After that i decided to leave this hotel and go to a peaceful and much better place: Le Toiny (I strongly recommend this hotel). If Guanahani can´t deliver a quiet room with a pool for EU$1370, they shouldn´t offer it. It´s bad for their reputation (I presume they worry about that). I´ll never return to Guanahani. I wasted my money and 2 days of vacation there.

Truly Paradise

This is one of THE best and most beautiful hotels I have ever stayed at in my life. This is no exaggeration either because I have traveled to many places including France, Spain, the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Italy, England, and the Netherlands--not to mention the fact that I am 18 years old. The French staff at the hotel are extremely welcoming and very accomodating to say the least. I have been to this hotel for the past 5 years and upon arrival have never had any problems. All meals are out of this world--absolutely delicious, including the wine. The waiters are intensely hard-working and are efficient. In the past there have been language barriers, but nothing major. The beach is so relaxing and is raked frequently throughout the day to remove the seaweed. The water is crystal clear and so refreshing. Drinks are brought to you on the beach as well as towels under your cabana. What could be better? And, if one feels like shopping--stroll over to the boutique that is located right on the beach. They have great "stuff!" Or, if you're feeling more active go wave running with a guide and explore the island. Perhaps get a massage before heading to the beach or after working out at the gym! The spa is wonderful and the ladies there work wonders. In addition, the journey from the airport to the hotel has always been a pleasant one and stress free. The man was on top of everything, knew where our bags were, put them in the car, and already had bottles of cold water as well as the air conditioning pumped up for us. Every year is truly an amazing experience and I look forward to it every time.

Nice but not great

August 2004

This was our second trip to the Guanahani, and our third trip to Saint Barts. Saint Barts is a wonderful island and we have fallen in love with this island.

We stayed at the Guanahani three years ago and thought the hotel to be nice,and very helpful,looking for relaxation and pampering we headed back to this hotel. opps our mistake.

This is a lovely property but they lack the special care of a few years ago.

Upon arriving we were told your upgrade has been approved we were thrilled,except our upgraded room had a view of the 'ocean bay' not a full ocean view.

After much discussion and un happiness with the hotel we were moved after two days,[out of our vacation] when we tried to talk to Marc he was not available, although we saw him twice at lunch[not being rude we didn't bother him with other people present]but would once again go to the desk and Marc wasn't avialable!

The front employees always had an attitude as if we were bothering them sorry !

We know we were not in our correct room because everybody at the hotel kept saying aren't you in room 75...no68 with the bad view.

The restaurant staff at Indigo is lovely hard hard workers, the hotel front staff should learn from them on service.

We know we weren't alone on our troubles after talking to people at the beach and restaurant[one couple had sewer water in the shower and once again Marc wasn't available.]

Is the guanahani nice yes, will we come back no.

This island is far to nice for this hotel to become so relaxed with their guests, its a La Toiny for us or the Carl Gustaf the next time.

Tranquil, rustic

The Guanahani is a lovely hotel. I stayed here in late May 2004. I went with a friend and because she's in the travel industry and works a lot with this hotel we were given a two bedroom suite with a private pool (no view of the ocean but I didn't miss it). The room was every nice but I do want to point out one design flaw. The bedrooms (each with its own bathroom - shower, no tub, plenty of towels, Hermes toiletries) were right next to each other separated by a door, which means that its fine for parents with kids but bad for two couples travelling together. The couple in the back bedroom would have to walk through the other bedroom to leave the room. Not really conducive to privacy but I guess if you want privacy you don't share a room in the first place. It would be much better if the rooms were on opposite ends. But anyway, I digress. The private pool area was very well-maintained and secluded. The hotel itself struck me as classy and rustic. I know some people think rustic is bad especially for the amount of money being charged but I don't mean it in a bad way. Its just not glossy, if you know what I mean. Very laid back and casual like St Bart's itself. The staff were friendly, I met and had a conversation with the General Manager. Very charming man. Housekeeping was very efficient but our maid didn't speak English so she couldn't understand why I was putting my toothbrush in the minibar...which brings me to my complaints:

Ants. All over the place. In the bathroom, by the bed. Not enough to freak out over but definitely more than a few. Granted, I know I'm on an island and islands have bugs. But obviously the hotel knows its a problem too because they provide cans of bug spray in the room.

The biggest disappointment had to be the restaurant, Bartolomeo. I can honestly say that the dinner we had there was one of the worst I have ever had and I've travelled and eaten out quite a bit. Nothing tasted good. The appetizers and main course were bland. Desserts were mind-boggling. One of the desserts was listed as a milkshake. When it arrived it was not a milkshake at all, but some weird chocolate mousse-like concoction. A very underwhelming culinary experience. I think it was supposed to be eclectic and experimental but it failed terribly.

The other restaurant was very good. Excellent buffet breakfast. I can't remember the name of it but you can't miss it if you stay here. Its by the pool. The beach is nice, plenty of chairs and space to spread out.

So, in summary, I would stay here again. There are better hotels on St Barts but I don't think anyone would feel cheated by staying at the Guanahani if they did their research and knew exactly what to expect.

Lovely, with bumps

Idyllic setting that you never have to leave--everything (pool, tennis courts, private beach, restaurants, salon, etc.) is there. Rooms have understated, elegant decor. Breakfast buffet is vast. Poolside lunch is delicious. Service is surprisingly non-French (i.e., warm, friendly, professional). Only a couple of mishaps: the formal dinner restaurant is over-priced & overrated; a maid lifted $20 from our wallet (which was, of course, denied--I suppose she felt she deserved the 'tip' & we wouldn't miss it). Disconcerting mishap in otherwise very pleasant stay.

Cesspool

A few years ago, my wife and I paid for a week at the Guanahani. When we landed in St. Bart's, the boy sent by the Guanahani not only refused to put our bags in the car, but he even refused to tell us where to find them at the airport. Once at the resort, things went downhill. The room was not ready. The staff had no interest in supplying towels or snorkling equipment: not as big a problem as it might seem since the beach was clogged with weeds and no good for wading or swimming. We had lunch waiting for our room. How does one get bad food on a French island? Not to worry--the Guanahani can handle it. The room was ok. The staff had no interest in helping with excursions or sightseeing or any form of activities. Apparently, the Guanahani gets its staff at the morgue. Speaking French doen't help much either--if the staff knows exactly what you want, they can be more precise in not supplying it. After a long and extremely unpleasant talk with the manager, my wife and I left (this after one day) even though the resort refused to refund any of our money, and the Guanahani even reneged on the promised round trip transportation to the airport included in the cost of our reservation. We had to call a cab to get out of there. If there had been no cabs, we would have walked. My wife and I have travelled the world and never ever been treated so rudely; I have stayed in half-way houses for felons with better ambience and service. Letters to the Guanahani corporate headquarters demonstrated that the French have learned to type "drop dead." Anyone going to this cesspool would be advised to bring a gun, a large dog, and a lawyer.

Exceptional Resort

We stayed at Hotel Guanahani in February 2003, our first trip to St Barts, having traveled to many other islands in the carribean over the last 25 years. The hotel ranks at the very top of our list. The service was near perfection. The room was exquisite, breakfast is included and may be taken on your terrace or in the Indigo Restaurant. The exercise facility is adequate, the grounds are well maintained, the staff is friendly & helpful, and the dining was some of the best we experienced on the island. Highly recommended!

Been here every year for ten years.

We have been coming to St. Bart's for 30 years and have stayed at LeGuanahani for ten years. My wife and I love the accommodations (we stay right on the beach - same unit , same time every year. The furnishings are lovely - the staff so very accommodating - the beaches extremely well kept and the water is waist deep out to at least 100 yards. The restaurants are outstanding - the Indigo for breakfast & lunch is al fresco and borders the pool and the beach. A full breafast buffet including eggs cooked to order is included in the price of your unit. Dinner is served in the alfresco dining room with an outstanding ala carte French menu. The resort is easily walked around though it does go uphill from the beach - they have a beauty shop, gym and boutique right on the beach. From our point of view - Guanahani is truly paradise on earth.

Divine

Just returned from a week's stay at the Guanahani. All I can say is that it was divine. We stayed at a Garden Cottage which was beautiful. The details inside the cottage were superb..robes,slippers, Hermes toiletries,..too many to mention. The hotel is beautiful...cottages spread out in this beautiful property. Two beaches, wonderful buffet breakfast.Suggestions..rent a jeep, there are some amazing beaches and places to explore.