Susan

Hi! We are going to Barbados for a week in March! Need help choosing hotel! Turtle
Beach Resort sounds good but wld. like to hear comments from those of you who have stayed there. Specifically, are rooms
really 'oceanfront' or merely 'oceanview'?
Are Jr. Suites nicely appointed? Is the beach great for walking & watersports? How far is beach from rooms? Are rooms carpeted or tiled? Would you describe it as a 'top-of-the line-luxury-hotel' or trying to be? It is
AI so I wld. like to hear a bit about the quality/variety of the food. Anything else
you can think of? Good place for young teens (age 13)? Oh! Nice balconies?
Thanks!!

Nope's Wife

Hi, just driving by, the Turtle Beach looks to be an excellent, beautiful property, great location. I don't have specifics, but do know that they had some sort of trouble a couple of months ago, I think a water problem? Salmonella in a water tank?? We heard that many fell ill & the place was closed, perhaps briefly to isolate the problem?

I hate to post such a nonspecific warning & of course an entire year can make a huge difference, but do feel you should look into whatever happened & make certain the problem's been addressed & solved before booking. If the property is professionally run, all should be well. Better safe than sorry.

Mrs. Nope

steve m

We stayed at small inexpensive hotel near Bridgetown, The Asta. Many places to stay and at good rates, but we had beautiful Carribeanfront room. Regardless of where you stay, I would highly recommend Josef's as a restaurant. Had a beatiful table at sunset with waves crashing into rocks at our feet. We were told it was second rated restaurant in Barabados, behind the Cliffs restaurant (which we thought was overrated and very pricey). Other than that, hard to go wrong picking a hotel.

liz

Hi Susan...My husand and I stayed at Turtle Beach last December. The property was very well maintained and the staff was attentive, with some exceptions in the restaurant near the beach. Our room was very well appointed - yes, with tile floor, and clean. We had no water problems at the time. We had a 3rd or 4th floor Ocean Front room with balcony on the end with a beautiful view. The beach is just beautiful and there is plenty to walk on as it continues to other properties. The rooms are practically right on the beach so there is virtually no walk. The water is rough so lends itself to sailing activities. For snorkeling you'll have to go the West Coast. We are very much into water sports and were disappointed by the lack of equipment and variety. There are plenty of beach chairs to be had but the beach can fill up quickly. The food was very, very good but variety was lacking (except in The Chelonia)and between meal snacks were non-existent. We would have appreciated a popcorn machine or fruit bar. We are glad that we left the kids (ages 6,8 & 16) behind this time. The resort (when we were there) had a very quiet and refined atmosphere. The kids would have been bored as we sometimes were. We went into the Gap a couple of nights for our excitement fix. It all depends on what you like and are used to. We have stayed at other all-inclusive resorts which had a more "happening" atmosphere and had much more to do with a greater varity of activities. If you're into quiet and pure relaxtion, Turtle Beach will do it. Also consider their West Coast Property - Crystal Cove. It is gorgeous! We went for a day - much different layout on calmer West Coast. The food was excellent and the cave pool is great. Quiet atmosphere seemed in order here as well.

Joan

Someone posted that it's hard to go wrong with any hotels on the island? Boy, is that wrong. Barbados has a ton of substandard, beaten up, tatty hotels that are highly visible with recognizable names to anyone who looks at the Barbados websites & some of these are in good areas. Others are okay hotels in awful locations (like Worthing Court Hotel). We were appalled at the condition or location of some of the places that were recommended by travel agents, presented as prime properties on the net & even included in airline vacation packages. Unfortunately, crime is on the increase, too & tho we mostly enjoyed our trip we are in no hurry to go back. Turtle Beach is one of the few places I'd consider staying if we did.

Nope's Wife

I've seen some posts about the samonellla outbreak being at another hotel, made a couple of calls & learned that the talk we overheard at dinner was incorrect, and that it was the Barbados Beach Club and NOT Turtle Beach where everyone was sick & the hotel closed for awhile. I apologize for the misinformation.

I don't recall seeing the Barbados Beach Club but apparently that's where the outbreak occurred.

Mrs. Nope

Kelly

Hello,

We stayed at the Sandy Lane Hotel. Lovely. Expensive, but lovely. Food excellent, beach even better, service good. Don't bother with diving. They do not protect their reefs. Grab your snorkeling gear and save your $.

felix little

i would recommend trying out a villa - we've been renting with www.caribbeanway.com for the past couple of years and find it much more relaxing and luxurious than a hotel

Lynn Wilkerson

I stayed at Turtle Beach for a week this past October. I was in an oceanview jr. suite. This room had a good ocean view, but was definitely not beachfront. The balcony was large enough for chairs and a table where we enjoyed our room service breakfast every morning. The room was clean and nicely decorated with tile floors.

We enjoyed the beach, nice soft sand, amazingly clear water, and big waves. Organizes activities and watersports were not as abundant as other resorts we have stayed at <i.e.: Sandals>, but we really enjoyed the atmosphere and didn't find this to be negative. We also left the resort and did a number of tours. These were not included but really a high point. Our favorite was the island safari.

We were also impressed by the evening entertainment. The menu at Chelonia was creative (we still laugh about the far fetched names given to some of the dishes... the funniest was the "katiff of the 14th moon" <sp?> I'll mail a dollar to anyone who knows by name what that really is -- it was tasty by the way.) Overall food quality was ok. We have seen better and we have seen worse.

I wouldn't call Turtle Beach a "top of the line luxury hotel" but would say it's a very nice all inclusive, one of the nicest all inclusives on Barbados. I would definitely return.

E.C. Sandorf

Now, I heard that a place called: Turtle Bay in Barbados was really excellent. Is this the same place we are talking about here?