Jason

My fiance and I are planning our honeymoon. We're l eaning towards the Sandals Halcyon in St. Lucia, but are concerned that the beach doesn't look too wide in the pictures...what's it like? Is it wide enough to lay on an not be up against a sea wall? Are there hammockis/palm trees? Any comparison and/or description of the beaches or any other aspects of these 3 resorts would be VERY welcome...

Howard and Ann Marie

Jason <BR>Howard and I have been to Negril, Antigua and are leaving for ST.Lucia in 4 weeks (Sandals resort for all of them). Here's a summary of what we've liked so far. We'd be happy to let you know about St.Lucia when we get back. <BR>Negril was nice, the people friendly at the resort. There is a vendor day when the natives come to the resort and you cna but nice things. I would not recommend renting a car and going out on your own to see the sights on the island. We went shopping in town but cut the trip short (it was too stressful). The beach was fine but people from other resorts nearby would come along the beach. Some were families with kids. There are palm trees but no hammocks. <BR>Antigua is absolutely beautiful. The beach is small but there are no tide changes like we are use to in the States. The amount of beach never really changes (about 50 Feet from beach wall to ocean). The employees are friendly the food is good (also at Negril) and I would say it's more romantic than Negril. We made friends with a couple from Canada and Neufoundland (we're still in touch 5 years later!) and all of us rented a car and went on the island by ourselves. The island people are friendly, you cna't get lost (12 sq miles) and the main road will eventually bring you back where you started from. We went shopping in town and had a wonderful time. Out of the 2 of these (Negril or Antigua) I'd choose Antigua. <BR>The rooms are just like the photos in the brochure and everything was wonderful. <BR>We'd be happy to share Halcyon with you in a couple weeks.

Karyn

Jason: I have stayed at Sandals Antigua and Sandals St.Lucia, and have visited for a day Sandals Halcyon in St.Lucia. Although all 3 are very nice, Sandals St.Lucia (not the Halycon) is by far the nicest!

henry

We returned from Sandal's Negril in late January and had a fabulous trip. If you would like a full trip report, please email me.

leslie

Hi, we spent our honeymoon at Sandals Halycon in Sept. Loved IT! We felt, although it is not as 'splashy' and fancy a resort as the other Sandals in St. Lucia=it was superior is the most important ways. (SERVICE, ATMOSPHERE, ROMANCE) Don't get me wrong, Sandals Halcyon is a beautiful resort and when I say not as 'splashy' this is a good thing in our opinion...Sandals Halcyon offers more of a 'beach resort' experience...and if beach is important then definetly choose Halycon over the larger Sandals (Larger Sandals is known for red flag beaches, non-swimable/ currents - I've read many reports lately of people who went to this larger resort and were not allowed to swim at the beach for most of their wk there.) At Sandals Halcyon there is plenty of room on the beach, never feels crowded and there was always a lounge chair when we were there. (plenty of room between surf and seawall.) Ocean is always calm and no current, and no sign of seaweed also/ or jellyfish (when we were there). <BR>If you want a travel report of ours, outlining our stay/ food/ beach/ likes and dislikes let me know and I'll email you. <BR>[email protected] <BR> <BR>Leslie.

PattiGA

Hello Jason. We just got home from Sandals Halcyon in St. Lucia. was pleased to see Lesie posting above, as she was the one who swayed our minds to stay there instead of the bigger Sandals. Boy, are we glad we did! (thank you so much Leslie for keeping such a beautiful record of your stay). From the moment we were greeted with cold moistened towels and a glass of champagne, to the time we checked out, everyone was superbly helpful, friendly and more than accommodating. We met lots of people that were staying at the other place, and expressed regrets that they didn't pick the Halcyon. I took lots of pics with my digital camera, so if you would like to see a few, email me. The grounds at the Halcyon are very lush with lots of tropical plants and palms...and yes, lots of hammocks too!

Leslie

PattiGA; <BR>Hi, Leslie here. I am so happy you guys had a good time at Sandals Halcyon. Please email me and tell me all about the highlites of your stay! We really miss St. Lucia and hope to return someday! (Maybe our 5th anniversary!) I'm so glad that my accounts of our honeymoon have helped others in making the hard decision of where to go. We simply loved the place, and I'm happy you did too. <BR>Leslie <BR>[email protected] <BR>

Anna

We just returned from Sandal's Halcyon and had a great time. The beach is definitely wide enough to lay out on even when the tides come in, there are hammocks on the grounds, but not on the beach. The beach was definitely better at the Halcyon than at the St. Lucia. The grounds at the Halcyon were very lush with lots of palm trees, flowering vines and bushes, it felt very tropical. We were glad we chose the Halcyon over the larger Sandal's St. Lucia, and that was the general feeling of the others we met. I would highly recommed the Halcyon, we would not hesitate to go back.

Julie

Of these Sandals I've been only to Negril. The beach there is long but not very deep. <BR>I love to swim and unfortunately when we were there (it's been 4 years) the beach was not well taken care of. The seaweed had been allowed to get out of hand (this is in contrast to other resorts where we've been where it has been cleared out periodically, e.g. the Grand Lido where my friend Barry says "they go after it with tweezers!") and the raft was in desperate need of a powerwashing. It was so slimy I had trouble getting on it, and I'm in good shape! Others gave up. <BR>These things may have been remedied. Perhaps a more recent visitor there can address them. <BR>