Sandals Resorts Comparison Guide

Which Sandals Resort?
All 13 Sandals Resorts are popular romantic destinations for couples of all ages. Each resort has its own unique atmosphere and individual set of strengths. All resorts include the luxury all-inclusive package, wedding services, and the complimentary honeymoon package. All resorts offer luxury accommodations, full service spas (exception Sandals Halcyon and Sandals Inn), water sports, land sports, nightly entertainment, swim-up bars (exception Sandals Inn, Sandals Royal Plantation), and fitness centers. While keeping in mind that each resort has its own strong following, this article will provide the differing amenities of each resort by presenting unique strengths and attributes.

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Antigua
Sandals Grande Antigua (Reviews), known as the “Honeymoon Capital of the World”, is located about 15 minutes from the Airport in Antigua’s Dickenson Bay region and is considered one of Sandals most romantic getaways. Two resorts in one with a large selection of accommodation choices, the resort offers the traditional Caribbean section featuring lush gardens and the newly constructed Mediterranean Village section. The Caribbean section offers the Rondoval suites which are stand alone villas with private garden area and plunge pools. In addition, the Caribbean section offers standard room categories from the entry level deluxe through scenic oceanview categories. The Mediterranean Village features a 7-story building with a variety of oceanview suites as well as luxurious 1BR Villas with private pools and whirlpools. Both sections are fully open to all guests. The resort has 10 restaurants and offers 24-hour dining coverage. Along with 5 pools and 5 whirlpools, Sandals Antigua has one of the best beaches in Antigua and throughout the entire Sandals brand. Adding another dimension, a casino has opened next door with a direct walkway from the Sandals property.

Bahamas
Sandals Royal Bahamian (Reviews), located on Cable Beach near Nassau Bahamas, is one of the most popular Sandals destinations. Its airport proximity, airline availability, and lower ticketing cost make Sandals Royal Bahamian a very convenient and higher demanded resort. Considered the most elegant of the Sandals Resorts, included is complimentary Rolls Royce airport transfers for Butler level guests. The dining at this resort is exceptional with such favorites as the French cuisine of Baccarats, white gloved service of the Crystal Room, and 7 other restaurants. In addition, the resort features its own private offshore island with private beaches, pool & swim-up bar, and Café Goombay featuring traditional Bahamian Cuisine. Accommodations are available in the highly demanded Windsor block with many rooms overlooking the ocean, the Manor House with many of the entry level room categories, and the Royal Gardens with intimate garden villas.

Sandals Emerald Bay (Reviews), located within the Exumas Bahamas, the resort is the newest Sandals as it was renovated and opened up as Sandals Emerald Bay during January 2010. Known for its secluded and quiet location, guests enjoy its relaxed and elegant atmosphere. The resort features among the best beachfront rooms in terms of close proximity to the beach. Emerald Bay has the largest spa among the Sandals brand. The resort is also a golfers destination as it features a championship Greg Norman designed 18-hole golf course. A nearby marina supports up to 150 yachts.

 Jamaica
The Montego Bay area offers 3 Sandals Resorts – Sandals Montego Bay, Sandals Royal Caribbean, and Sandals Inn - all 3 have exchange privileges with each other utilizing the complimentary shuttle.

Sandals Montego Bay (Reviews), the first Sandals resort, is considered the liveliest of all the resorts throughout the entire brand. Best described as a high energy atmosphere, Sandals likes to say the fun never stops at Sandals Montego Bay. Featuring the best talent in Jamaica as well as a very fun and outgoing staff, guests can be assured of having a very spirited vacation. In fact such enjoyment that the resort has the highest customer return rate throughout the brand. With the exception of a quality beach, the exceptional service, and fine dining, the resort itself is relatively mediocre as it is older, cramped, small pools, and considerable flight noise from the bordering airport. In terms of accommodations, rooms have been upgraded to Sandals luxury standards and the Roc Bay Villas are exceptional. The Villas are located on the quieter end of the resort and offer large relaxing patios bordering the beach. It is difficult to find accommodations any closer to the beach as the Bay Roc Villas were constructed before the newer zoning laws pushing construction further back.

Sandals Royal Caribbean (Reviews), located about 5 minutes up the road from Sandals Montego Bay, offers a more refined atmosphere while utilizing some British traditions including afternoon tea. Similar to Royal Bahamian, the resort also offers a private offshore island featuring a Thai restaurant. Another unique feature of this resort is it provides Continental Breakfast in Bed by request basis. Living up to the trend of swim-up rooms, the resort has recently added a new pool and converted several building into river suites. In addition to the Thai restaurant, the resort offers 3 additional restaurants including the intimate Le Jardinier, an authentic English pub, and a beach grill. Similar to Sandals Montego Bay, the resort design is older in nature and the pools are relatively smaller in size.  

Sandals Carlyle Inn (Reviews) can have the feel of an intimate Bed & Breakfast setting. Located at end of Montego Bay’s Hip Strip, it is the least expensive of the Sandals resorts and lacks many of the amenities found within the other resorts. The inn does not have a beach on property although some guests use the public beach across the street. Other guests will utilize the beaches at the other Montego Bay Sandals resorts. Along with exceptional service, Sandals Inn is the only Sandals resort to offer room service to all guests (all other resorts offer room service to only Butler and most Concierge room categories).

Sandals Negril (Reviews) is one of the highest demanded Sandals resorts due to its setting on  Negril’s world-class 7-mile Beach. A luxury beach resort by nature, Sandals Negril taps into the Jamaican laid back casual atmosphere while also presenting some of the most unique suites within the Sandals brand including luxury beachfront swim-up suites. Sandals Negril is a smaller but fairly active social resort with a lively entertainment staff leading the way. The main theme and focus of Sandals Negril is the beach with all accommodations just steps away along with some located right at beach edge. Six restaurants are featured including dining right on the beach at the casual Barefoot by the Sea. The main center of Negril is a cab ride away down south along the beach and offers additional activities and nightlife options.

Sandals Whitehouse (Reviews), located about 90 minutes away on the secluded Jamaican southern shore, is the newest of the Sandals Resorts in terms of construction date (Sandals Emerald Bay is the newest Sandals Resort but was another resort before Sandals). Utilizing modern resort design and construction principals, Sandals Whitehouse is a product of a perfected Sandals formula. With 3 clusters of 4-story accommodations and a main central center, the resort actually can have appearance of a beach condominium complex. The major strengths of the resort is its large span of secluded beach stretching over 2 miles, very large and attractive pools, its modern luxury design, and fine service and dining. Sandals Whitehouse is also the only resort to offer ocean views from every room and suite. Sandals Whitehouse is not the cheapest resort, but offers fantastic value and has quickly emerged as one of the most popular resorts within the brand.

Sandals Grande Riviera (Reviews), located about 1.5 hours away from the airport and is the largest Sandals Resort in terms of number of rooms with 529. Known mostly for its lush Jamaican gardens, the resort meanders up through the hillside with over 45 acres of gardens, streams, and enclaves to explore. For golfers, guest of Grande Riviera can take advantage of the complimentary green fees at Sandals Golf & Country club just minutes away. The resort is actually 2 resorts in 1, the Riviera beachfront section and the Hillside Great House section across the road. The resort provides an efficient tram system to assist moving guests between sections. As both sections were once individual resorts, each has its own set of resort facilities including restaurants and pools although the largest pool is located in the Great House section. Unique to this resort are the Hillside villas with both semi-private and private pools. The resort does have good size pools and the recently finished Beach Club has added to the resort's appeal as a beach destination. Besides Sandals Inn, Sandals Grande Riviera has the least expensive deluxe category rooms among the brand. With 15 restaurants, guests have plenty of exceptional dining choices. This is a fun resort with plenty of activities and entertainment. We generally recommend this resort for younger couples who have the energy and desire to spend a good amount of time in both sections in order to utilize the full offerings of the resort.

Sandals Royal Plantation (Reviews)
Located in Ocho Rios, Royal Plantation is a small retreat of just 74 rooms and the only all butler resort within the brand. Each room/suite includes butler service as well as ocean views. This resort is known for its pampering service featuring such items as a complimentary pillow menu. In addition to exceptional dining, it is the only caribbean resort with a champagne and Caviar bar. With an old world charm and elegance, cigars will be prevalent and english style afternoon tea is offered on a daily basis. This resort is quiet and relaxing, nice beach, and has a very small pool with no swim-up bar, a spa, 3 restuarants, and an english style pub. Also notable about this resort is it has considerable steps and we would not recommend this resort for anybody with mobility issues. Royal Plantation guests also have full complimentary access to Sandals Grande Riviera located directly adjacent.

St. Lucia
All 3 Sandals St. Lucia resorts are located approximately 2 hours from Hewanorra Airport and 15 Minutes from Castries Airport. Only smaller planes can land at Castries and usually involves a connection through San Juan. All 3 resorts are within 20 minutes of each other and have full exchange privileges. St. Lucia is a spectacular island and all 3 of the Sandals resorts have very unique settings.

Sandals Grande St. Lucian (Reviews) is the most luxurious of the 3 resorts. For this reason, it is generally the most expensive resort. All rooms at the resort, including the basic Deluxe category entry level room, are all very similarly designed with luxurious décor, and all have balconies or patios. The difference in price is determined by they type of view, service category, and special amenity. The swim-up rooms offered at the resort are highly demanded and truly spectacular. Also offered are the Rondoval suites with private plunge pools, and are actually the closest accommodations to the beach. The resort has a very traditional atmosphere with an internal focal point on a large luxurious lobby with surrounding restaurants. The resort buildings are all on level ground and almost all internally connected. Outdoors is a very impressive pool area along with a beach overlooking magnificent Rodney Bay. The resort is located on a peninsula with the Atlantic Ocean on the other side and in walking distance to historic Fort Rodney.

Sandals La Toc (Reviews) is the most active of the 3 resorts. It tends to draw a younger more adventurous crowd along with a bit more nightlife. Constructed along the St. Lucia Cliffside, it has a very rustic mountain resort feel. Comparing the 3 resorts, it involves the greatest amount of step climbing as it is constructed on a varying terrain from the beach level up into the hillside and cliff edges. The resort also has a very wide range of accommodation types in terms of furnishing, amenities, and location. The premier accommodations, located in the bluff area up along the cliffs, offers spectacular ocean views along with luxury suites and villas with private pools. Also on property is a scenic 9-hole golf course. Large pools and an attractive beach complete this well rounded resort.

Sandals Halcyon (Reviews) is the smallest and most intimate of the 3 Sandals St. Lucia resorts. Simple and tranquil in nature, the resort is best known for its exceptional personal service, well maintained lush gardens, and local crafted Caribbean architecture. The accommodations are a bit more simple and very in tune with St. Lucia’s environment providing guests a surrounding outdoor feel at night. The resort features a series of 2-story accommodation buildings surrounding the central lobby and restaurant area. As a smaller resort, all accommodations are in close proximity. Sandals Halcyon is the least expensive of the 3 St. Lucia resorts and the highest accommodation level is Romeo & Juliet Beachfront Walkout Butler Room, the only category with butler service. The resort has excellent dining led by the signature Pier Restaurant over the ocean as well as 3 other dining options. The resort offers large pools and a quality calm beach facing the open Caribbean Sea. The resort attracts couples throughout the age spectrum but has a slightly older crowd on average, and is the quietest at night.