Bed bugs

My girlfriend and I went down to what we thought was going to be our greatest vacation ever because of the great reputation that Sandals has advertised. Second night stay we found red spots on our legs....we spoke with other couples and they too found the same problem...bed bugs. The one couple we spoke to we lucky enough to pull back the bed sheets to find little black critters @ the foot of the bed. The deluxe rooms were also dissapointing, small and mildew in the bathrooms. Food was o.k., nothing to rave about same with their drinks. Some staff could be friendlier.

Dont expect 5* Luxury

My husband and I stayed at Halcyon in May 2003, we expected 5* Ultra luxury as advertised in the Sandals brochures, its not!!. Our bathroom was grubby,rooms very small, the food was adequate,best restaurant was Marios. It was a pleasant holiday not special and although I saw a lot of weddings if only those couples knew they could get a better package cheaper and at a prettier hotel at Couples in Jamaica....that's where we got married and very pleased that we did rather than at Sandals!! The staff made up for the average surroundings, they were amazing always friendly and always seemed to be on duty!! The following staff were particularly wonderful and deserve a mention - Glenda,Benia (Bayside), Sophia (Marios) Vanessa (Concierge Rooms) all deserve a big pat on the back. We would not return to this hotel and would not book another Sandals holiday as we did not find it at all worth the thousands of pounds we paid for our 2 weeks there.

Closest to Paradise

We went to Sandals Halcyon for last 2 weeks in March this year and even after 8 weeks being back in UK I (and my hubby) still have wonderfull memories from the place, like we came back yesterday... If you are after piece and quite, don't like big hotels and too many people, and you enjoy good food and personal aproach, Halcyon is the place to go. It's big enough to find quite corners or be by the main pool where all the actions are going on, the gardens are bueatifull, it has gorgeous beach about a mile long with gold sand, food and drink available 23 hours and all the employes are ever so nice to you. Some of them know you by your name in a few days and you'll get to know some of them as well. We enjoyed the water sports as well as you never had to que for anything, could take hobie cat out for as long as you wanted, my husband tried water skiing first time and after 15 min of lecture he got up first time! and stayed up for a whole go! We also went on snorkling trips and must say, the gear for snorkling and diving + boats are very good equipet. As there are 3 resorts on the island, we had 14 restaurants to choose from! And must say, the Japanese rest. - Kimono is must try! Also French one - both in Golf resort and don't give a miss to Italian and The Pier in Halcyon. Ohh, and BBQ nights in Halcyon - is must go (they are on Monday nights). Also we were a bit disapointed from organized trip to Peatons, I'd rather rent a car next time...as people on island are ever so friendly and we never feel unsafe, especially when we went to the local 'Jump Up' as they call it. It happens on Frd night, they just shut a whole street, put massive speakers out and everybody dance together, eat and drink. Truly authentic! Weather is just amazing too! So definetly it was experience of my lifetime, closest to the paradise I could imagine. We went and had a peak to the other 2 resort, but one of them was so big you had to take a bus arround...and the other one was far too modern and clinical with no natural shade aroun Halcyon and we will returne one day.

Nice....but.......

This is a great island with great locals. The Sandals idea is also great...stay at 1 play at 3....but, the food is decent (salty, but, we didn't get sick). The drinks are OK...Heineken...Popov vodka? Bacardi and I know that juice isnt made from real oranges is it? The Halcyon has great employees who do try. The place is small, cute and comfortable. Dont pay the extra for the suite concierge, it just isnt worth it. The beaches are nice and the activities are enough to keep you busy for up to 10 days. Overall we rate it a 6 or 7 out of 10....bottom line ....would we go back?? maybe.

More than we hoped for!

My husband and I and another couple just returned from a glorious week at Sandals Halcyon. We had one of the best vacations ever and we have traveled quite a bit. This was our first Sandals visit and we have to say it was a class act all the way. The property is absolutely beautiful, the rooms are small (we booked a deluxe and got a one class upgrade to a Premium), same room but maybe better location) but very clean and updated. If you want to feel like you have more room ask for a second floor, they have cathedral ceilings and makes it seem bigger. The maid service was prompt and efficient. Most of the bartenders are great, a few could use a little help but they were in the minority. The beach is not the greatest I have been to but we spent little time there so we didn't care. You can go to the other two Sandals on the Island and they are both much larger and more crowded but still beautiful hotels. They will take you by bus and all hotels offer courtesy rooms to shower and change if you want to stay for dinner. Kimonos restaurant at La Toc is great, Toscanini's at the Grande is great. We tried the Pier at Halcyon twice. We didn't like it the first time but the second made up for it. Take the Land and Sea tour it is great fun and you really do learn a lot about the island and the people. Estelle at the Grille is a trip she learns your name when she meets you and never forgets the whole time you're there. She calls you by name every time you see her. Tell her Lou & Eileen said hello. The food was very good and although the service could be a little slow we didn't mind waiting as most of the restaurants are beautiful and that is how the islanders operate. Slow down and relax. No Pressure, No Problem is the motto and they mean it. Beach vendors will try to sell you every time they see you but you just have to be firm and say NO thank you. They get the message. If you visit the mall across the road, be careful if you walk it's scary with the traffic, take your passport and the Castries Market on Sat. morning if you can, it's a trip. All in all we had the best trip ever and would go back in a minute. One more tip, bring lots of small bills for shopping at the market and for buying from the locals. Have a great time and remember, No problem, No pressure!!

Simply Wonderful

We just returned from a wonderful week at Sandals Halcyon. I can't think of one negative thing to say. The food was absolutely wonderful!!! The staff was bette than the best. The rooms were very clean as were the grounds. It was worth every penny. Truly a fabulous vacation. I can' wait to go back.

Our wedding at halycon

sept 12,2002 my husband and i went to sandals halycon for a week. we got married there in a gaziebo, right on the beach front. it was just like they said it would be. very professional and beautiful. they even through in more surprises. we brag about how perfect and stress free our wedding was. the people from st.lucia loved their island and were happy. that made me happy. the resort was clean, and the food was great. especailly the buffet resturant. i would highly recommend halycon. you could walk around the whole resort, teh golf resort was a bit too big to walk around. halycon was more (at home). plan your wedding there. francine and chris, massachusetts

Food lacking

We just returned from spending Christmas and my husband's 40th Birthday at the Halycon resort. We both were very pleased with the staff and the room. The property was very nice and well maintained. The only negative thing was the quality of food. My husband is a chef and we are both in the resturant business and therefore maybe expecting more.... During the Holidays the turkey and ham were terrible. Mario's was a total disappointment. We did enjoy the two days spent at the spa at the new Spa resort. Overall, it was not worth the money and mostly due to the "food".

What a trip!

Unbelievable! That is the word that comes to mind to describe our week at Halcyon! The room was perfect, the food superb and the staff went out of their way to make us feel that we were the only ones staying at the resort.

We took full advantage of traveling between the 3 properties and feel that Halcyon is the most romantic of the 3. It is also the "friendliest".

We will return!

Best Staff in the Carribean but diving dissapoints

We have Just returned from 10 days at Sandals Halcyon an feel its important to express my views as in our past we used to act in a consultantcy capacity for the largest leisure operator in the UK. The operation is extremely well run and managed and lived up to expectations in most areas of the 'all inclusive' holiday experience. After being diverted to Halcyon because the Grand did not meet its opening deadline, we were a little apprehensive as to what to expect at this smaller of the Sandals sites in St Lucia. What we found in the staff ( I will no doubt miss some one off so apologies in advance) -Jamella, Teddy, Della, Miguel, Christy, Julian, Matt, Antonia, Vernon, Cecilia, Estelle,& Mr Jean St Rose & Mr Lennox Dupal the Duty and General Manager respectively was a level of professionalism, participation and a genuine approach to make our holiday extra special. Both my wife and I have travelled extensively in the area and believe that the Halcyon Staff are without doubt the best we have seen in our 20 years of holidays in the Carribean. As final comment on the Halcyon team in summary 'FANTASTIC'.The rest of the holiday areas of interest are as follows -

Food - Very good especially the Pier Restaurant, good choice and quality with weekly menu change service levels high

Grounds and Public areas - Extremely well kept, More shaded areas needed around the pool areas and the smaller quiet pool looked to have a chemical imbalance

Beach - Small area of public beach clean and well kept give that this is a public area

Watersports - Equipment and safety of the highest standard, Need to improve dive operation as currently there is no planned schedule of dives,I planned on taking a Padi advanced course but there was no organised structure for this and if your wife does not dive she is not allowed on the dive boat with you as a matter of sandals policy, most of the dive sites are some distance from the hotel towards the south of the island and you actually have to be transported by minibus to Point Seraphene some 10 mins away in order to access the dive boat, all in all a 35 minute dive takes about 3 hours to excecute and as a result although Sandals offer the best boats and equipment I would point you to Scuba St Lucia in Anse Chasternet if you are serious about diving. Sandals could have an island beating operation but to achieve this more focus needs to be placed in this area of their business. In summary I have scored this holiday at 5 in reality maybe 4.75 would be more jusitfied due to the disapointment regarding the diving.