Sandals Negril

The most AMAZING Vacation we’ve had in years! It was Our 25th wedding anniversary and Sandals Negril made it memorable! Thank you! The only downside was the food! But everything else was spectacular. – via

What a great time we’ve been having! Totally worth the short trek to Negril!!! – via

This is our last time here. Food is subpar. No food authentic to island. Same menu every night. Poor entertainment. No night life.Need new pool sticks and back up sticks. Fans in lounge areas don’t work. Booking put us in economy, so we had to check carry on bags and didn’t get to sit together. The bathroom ceiling leaks through exhaust. This place was too expensive for what it offered. Horribly disappointed. I would have saved $4000 going to Florida. Water doesn’t work at particular times of the day. I was glad to leave – via

After 13 yrs or more…we are done. – via

Gorgeous views with so much to offer. – via

Our experience was overall great. The food and drinks were good and the resort was really clean. Just we’re not a huge fan of how pushy the staff are to get you to pay for extra services. – via

We just completed our 6 days 5 nights stay at Sandals Negril. Overall experience was a positive one. The beach is very nice, the pool is very small. Food is decent, sandals Antigua had better cuisine in my opinion. We would have preferred more authentic cuisine like oxtail, curry goat, curry chicken, festivals etc, i don’t want to go to Jamaica and have wraps and salads as a buffet option. The crowd is mostly older folks, so if you are looking for nice vibey youthful Jamaica experience, this is not the place. It is very relaxing, too relaxing. Nothing to do at night, the night time entertainment is not good, except for the drumming group! The only reason I am giving this hotel a 4 stars is because of the STAFF. They make this resort wonderful, from front desk, bartenders (shout out to Tyrese and Miguel) , the servers, they are the most pleasant nicest human beings. Always smiling and greeting you in passing. 7.5/10 – via

Rooms dated and quality of entertainment and food barely rates a 3 star. Very disappointing and would never spend the money on a Sandals frustrating vacation again. Not all inclusive make sure you ask lots of questions when booking with the company not all pricing is all inclusive. – via

This was our first and last time at a Sandals resort. Sandals brand promotes “luxury” which is not an accurate description of Sandals Negril. The resort is underwhelming from start to finish. The lobby is dated and doesn’t exude anything close to luxury and is not welcoming.

We waited for approximately 45 minutes after check-in as our room wasn’t ready even though we had completed all the check-in requirements on-line several days before arrival. We waited in a small room with 4 other couples and had no clue what was going on. Finally, we were shown to our room which was in the oldest building on the property. The room we booked was the Paradise Beachfront Grande Luxe Club Level Room. The entire journey to the room was underwhelming; the stairs were in need of repair and paint, the staff was not friendly or inviting. Any staff we crossed paths with were very unfriendly and uninviting. The vibe was one of annoyance. The room was very dated and nothing like the photos online. The lamp shade on the desk was cockeyed, the floor lamp was broken, the aged deck was missing the cocktail table and towel drying rack, one of the deck chairs was broken, the restroom door didn’t shut all the way and the safe worked intermittently to name a few of the issues. The water in the restroom was not hot and stopped running in the shower for no reason, the restroom sink was cracked and had no stopper in the sink, the toilet water ran until the handle was jiggled. We spoke with several other guests and they all commented about the water issues and staff issues.

We reported the issues to the front desk and asked to speak to a manager. We requested to upgrade our room and we’d pay the difference. The manager on duty talked to reservations and advised they were completely sold out and had no available rooms. They told us to check back the next morning to see if anyone may have canceled or they would try to move us to another room. When we checked back the following morning, we were told that any room they moved us to within the building would have the same issues we were already experiencing as this was the oldest building on the property. The manager on duty this day told us the water had been fixed and we shouldn’t have any add’l issues. That was not accurate – we continued to struggle with cool water or scolding hot water, no happy medium along with random water pressure. The room was not as advertised and did not look like the room we booked online.

The first full day we were on property, we decided to eat breakfast at one of the restaurants that was made to order and we waited over an hour for our food. We found that the restaurants ran out of menu items or we were told items were out of stock. When we ordered a steak dinner, the request was that the steak was cooked medium. When the food arrived, the steak was so tough it was not able to be cut and was not edible. When we ordered an Espresso Martini, we were told that they make their Espresso Martini’s a bit different – it was just Bailey’s & vodka, no espresso.

Regarding guest experience, this was the most disappointing Caribbean experience we’ve had. The staff appeared to be annoyed with our presence and frankly, annoyed they were there to do a job. The housekeeping manager (I think) was about 3 doors down from our room checking on the housekeeping service in another room. As he was leaving, I asked him if he knew if the housekeeping cart had extra washcloths on it. He told me I needed to go ask the housekeeper and he walked away. The best service on the resort is the beach vendors that ask if you want to buy something every 5 minutes.

There were a handful of positives: the sand was soft, the ocean was pretty and the sunsets were amazing. The ceviche at the Perla was good. The crème brulee was good. The massages were fantastic. The team who hosted the wine tasting were friendly and had a good time with the guests.

This was the first vacation that we both wanted to go home the same day we arrived. – via

Review will be a mix of good, great and bad. Immigration was a nightmare with agents that were sometimes just nasty. Airport was terrible as were some of the people working there. Transportation people were super nice, hard working and pleasant. Ride to the resort was miserable but allowed you to see life in Jamaica outside of the controls of the resort. Once we arrived we were greeted by awesome people, just very welcoming and urgent to help. Concierge girls/ladies were outstanding, quick to help and quickly forming great relationships with us. I can’t say enough good things about them, they are an asset to the resort. Front desk was also super helpful and friendly. Our room was great, kept clean and well stocked. The ladies in room service were super friendly and eager to meet and greet us, and speak with us. They went out of their way to make sure we were satisfied often handling our special requests quickly and eagerly. I didn’t find room service to be anything special and found it easier to just walk somewhere and get what we asked for rather than wait for them to eventually get there or not at all. Food was everywhere, always seemed fresh and cooks and servers always very happy to handle our requests. Again, all the ladies and gents in the food areas were outstanding. The food, while nicely prepared was mostly flavorless and lacking any salt or spices. The desserts were also bland. Even the jerk seasoned food was blah. But, they have to prepare food that meets the needs of hundreds of people so I guess it needs to be that way. Bartenders were generally rude or indifferent. In particular, bartenders at the piano bar were rude. The bartenders at the main swim up pool bar were generally pleasant. The ladies taking drink orders on the beach worked hard and were super friendly. The wait staff at the Sun downer restaurant were fantastic. Went on a snorkel trip and other than the man taking pictures the crew was rude. In closing, it was a fantastic trip, one that we would do again and all because of the employees. Almost every employee at Sandals Negril made us feel welcome and they are what makes this place great. At every level from concierge down to room service and wait staff, they were just amazing. – via

Chris the piano man, the bartender, the ultimate Jamaican laid back vibe is our favorite man! He’s friendly, professional and attentive. A great guy!
We truly love this resort in every way. Weve been twice!
❤️ ❤️ – via

This email was sent to Sandals Negril General Manager

The purpose of this correspondence is to inform you of the cat attack at the Sandals Negril Resort.

On January 29, 2023, I had just finished my meal at Barefoot by the Sea and the table had been cleared by the staff. Suddenly, I felt something brush my hair and then claws digging into my shoulder and back. I screamed and threw my arms up. At the same time, I heard someone say, “a cat jumped on her.” In the end, I had 5 puncture wounds on my right shoulder and back and one scratch on my shoulder.

I was escorted by management to the nurse who cleaned and dressed the wounds and administered a tetanus shot. A doctor was also called to examine the wounds and prescribed an ointment to be applied twice daily to the wounds. When questioned, various staff kept saying that some of the cats were vaccinated and some were not vaccinated, but the only way to know was to catch the cats and look at the vaccination tags. This does not make a guest feel comfortable because you need to be able to identify the cat who attacked you, catch the cat and check is vaccination tag. Knowing that a cat is vaccinated provides little confidence in the animal not becoming aggressive. When asked about the possibility of rabies, the staff responses in summary where they wouldn’t worry about that. I never received a true answer to my question of whether I should seek treatment for rabies. My husband and I have never interacted with the cats on the resorts.

As a point of reference, my husband and I have been vacationing at Sandals Resorts for 22 years and are currently Diamond members. At this moment, we have two more trips booked for 2023, but based on this incident we are carefully considering any future bookings to Sandals Resorts. By not posting signage stating, “Do not feed or pet the cats”, Sandals Negril is encouraging guests to interact with the cats. Such interaction further encourages the felines to wonder about the outdoor dining venues and increases the likelihood of guests being injured by the feral cats.

I’ve read about The Sandals Foundation’s work to control the feral cat population in Jamaica, but the resorts must take action to protect their guests. The cat situation at Sandals Negril Resort must be addressed before other guests are injured by the feral felines. – via

I left the below review about the Sandals Negril location with several issues we experienced following our wedding. I have yet to be able to resolve any of those issues. I have called, emailed, and left messages for our wedding planner, the photo office, and the wedding team. We still have not received any correspondence regarding our photo print, our photo book, our slideshow, or our “Bells and whistles” addition of the gift card for HitchSwitch name change service. We spent over $3000 on our photo and video package and it has been nearly 11 weeks since our wedding with no follow up.

While on site for our honeymoon, we booked another stay for 2023 and the experiences we have had since we left are making me reconsider wanting to come back to one of your resorts. I have been repeatedly told that someone will follow up with me but I have had to reach out numerous times and nothing has materialized.

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Our stay was good. We had our wedding here and the ceremony itself went exactly as planned. The wedding team is fantastic.

I will say that as someone with dietary restrictions, this resort is not accommodating. Every menu says to ask for options but nearly every restaurant was out of said options and most of my meals had no protein at all. They also do not accommodate large groups at restaurants (despite said restaurants being nearly empty each time we requested – we even did so days in advance and still had the issue).

Despite the no tipping policy, some staff still ask for tips or try to charge for things that are supposed to be included – this happened to multiple couples in my group.

Contacting the resort since our stay however has been pretty frustrating. We spent thousands of dollars on a photo and video package and have received absolutely no updates in 4 weeks despite the website stating we would receive our slideshow within 10 days and the link to our finished photo album within 2-3 weeks. – via

My husband and I just spent his birthday there. We are so impressed with the resort and the staff. Thank you for an amazing trip. We will be back – via

Absolutely beautiful place! My daughter got married at Beaches just a short walk or drive away, we stayed at Sandals because we had no children with us. It was amazing! Loved every minute of it!! Highly recommend!! – via

Where to begin the resort itself is brilliant. So much to do if you want too or you can simply just sit back quietly if you wish! Excellent vibe about the place. We stayed over New Year and one I will never forget. The Entertainment Team are phenomenal full of energy and enthusiasm and so great with all their clients. A massive shout out to all of them truly brilliant. Plenty of water sport’s activities which is included except for scuba diving. The housekeeping team brilliant rooms always cleaned to a high standard and a special mention to Nadine who would see if we required turn down service always took time to see if we needed anything and ask about our day. Very kind and caring. Downside is journey from airport to hotel really was too much especially having travelled from England but we found there is a small airport in Negril where you can hire a small plane and journey to airport is only 15 mins! If you are a drinker you will love this place but if you are not a drinker not many options at all. – via

I was very dissatisfied with our week stay at Sandals Negril over Christmas and New Years Holiday. We were uninformed information at the Club Level due to my gluten free allergies. It was 3 days into our stay when we made reservations to a restaurant they responded rudely to my gluten free request as I was supposed to put in an order at the culinary desk prior. My husband and I were never told of a culinary desk as this is our first time at a Sandals. Going forward, with meal requests – the remainder of our meals together were the two of us taking turns eating as our food never came out together. Not the honeymoon we anticipated. There were multiple days we did not receive services in our room to where we had to call for towels/turn down. We paid for an extension of our trip as flights were cancelling and hard to rebook with the frequent cold weather. It took 3 days for the workers to all get on the same communication to answer our questions. My husband was called from our room multiple times to come to the front desk, to be told “never mind, come back in an hour/tomorrow.” On our day for check out, I was not feeling well and asked for something to drink to settle my stomach. The three ladies working told me no. I was displeased that our all inclusive resort could not handle getting me so much as a water while I waited for the shuttle to take me to the airport. We met many amazing guests at the Sandals Negril but overall we are very displeased with the lack of communication and hospitality we received in bits and pieces each day of our stay. – via