Sonesta Maho Beach: Very disappointed!!!

We are family of eight, a family vacation to Sint.Maarten. The Sonesta Maho Resort that we stayed was really outdated. It is located on very congested area although super close to the airport. So, your only entertainment is (if you're interested in plans) watching air plane lands and takeoffs so closely. The beach is not recommended for any age because it was so rough with big waves. They have only one pool and Dad found out the pool water was bit cold. Drinks and cocktails were very good and go [... read more]od quality. The food variety is very limited at the buffet. You have to be there ASAP it's open. They do not refill very often. A'la carte restaurants are even worse; you can only reserve on only that morning. The service and food of "Point restaurant" and "zing's restaurant really bad. 90%of the staff of the hotel are not friendly and do not smile. One day we were hungry and tired after excursion. I asked my family to stay at room and I bring pizza for all from their pizza place. Since I saw the server gave a box for a another guest, I also asked a box to carry pizza for 8 people. That server's answer was unimaginable! I never experienced these kinds of service anywhere. I have been traveling a lot. He and his assistant told me that they gave box for ONLY their favourite guest. The zing's restaurant put out a small dish of shrimp , it was empty as soon as we seated. Since we don't eat meat asked 2 different waiters that if that dish will be refilled. Both answer were so hideous. They told us it is up to the chef. We were there almost an hour and it never got refilled. Finally, there are 2 coffee machine at lobby and buffet area. 70 %of the time it didn't work. Very disappointed 😣

Sonesta Great Bay Beach & Casino: great resort

The resort was fabulous the pools were emaculate. The food was fresh and well prepared , The room was not new but well kept. Hotel reservations desk helped us to see the island a heads up to Rene thanks girl. The nightly entertainment kept us dancing,5 out of seven nights. It is well worth your while to book ocean view very less noisy and great view. Staff was super friendly noticed they assisted elderly guests to enjoy there stay I used to read reviews and question there authentisity but mine a [... read more]re authentic thanks natalie Ps stay away from the flyer we used Sunwing very very bad.

Sonesta Maho Beach: St Maarten

The hotel was in a great location. The service was excellent except for when the big rush came in Christmas week and service was a little slower. The pools were great and pool bar had great service at all times. Enjoyed the access we had at the other sonesta bay in phillsburg. The service was great there as well and we were always welcomed. Great selection of alcohol. The maid did not leave us any towels on the nights we did not leave tip. The people were very friendly.

Sonesta Great Bay Beach & Casino: Relaxing Resort

The room was great - bit musty at time - the bathroom was tiny. Food was fantastic, staff were great and the weather divine. Walked to the shops on my own when the cruise ships were in - felt completely comfortable. The pool deck tiles were very slippery and saw several people slip. Likewise, going up and down the main staircase in the hotel could also be trickery - saw very few women in high heels. The entertainment was also very good - both during the day and the evenings.

Sonesta Great Bay Beach & Casino: Needs upgrading badly

The location , beach , and overall layout of the hotel are nice but the hotel is showing it age . The air conditioning was not working for the last 4 days of the trip and as of our departure it was still not running. The other major issue that was magnified by the AC issue was the lack of concern by the hotel staff. One employee , Renee in customer service was very nice and helpful. She was the only bright spot in an otherwise dismal staff. Service at the bars was the slowest I have ever seen [... read more] in any resort.

Sonesta Great Bay Beach & Casino: Nice Resort

Hotel was fine, close to town which was really nice. Food needs a lot of improvement. Mostly Fish and some chicken and the same menu most days. A lot of the food was over cooked.The pizza restaurant was excellent and the new sizziling grill was good. Rooms were clean but need some upgrading.

Sonesta Maho Beach: Fantastic vacation

Loved everything about this resort. Top notch staff, great food, beautiful grounds and great access to amenities. The Palms Grill offers a fabulous dining experience with the hot volcanic stone option. Will definitely be returning.

Palace St. Martin: 4 Star advertised as a 5 star... needs improvement

A friend and I stayed at this resort from Oct 20-Oct 27 2016. While the resort was clean and beautiful, there were definite issues during our stay. We found the staff was dismissive of us as we spoke English and catered more to the French speaking visitors. It was evident that we were "visitors" and not so much "guests". I felt this was an obvious interaction during the entirety of our stay. On our first full day at the resort, we visited the spa to book massages for mid week. Upon arriving  [... read more]on our scheduled day for our appointments, the staff at the front desk of the spa advised that they did not have our appointments and no record of us ever being there to book massages. We were obviously upset and the male worker said there was nothing we could do but re-book for a later date. We re-booked for the end of our trip but due to their mixup, we could not even get our massages at the same time. We were very disappointed and after having a lengthy conversation with the staff, the worker finally advised he would give us 50% off if that would make us happy. We were treated like we had done something wrong and he was bending over backwards for us. It was very unprofessional and unfair. The saving grace was that the massage therapists (when we did get our massages) were very good at their jobs and very kind and attentive. After the fact, we also realized they charged me more for my massage than my friend without us knowing and we both received the same treatment. We were very unhappy about this but let it go. The pool area was well kept but the tiles in the pool were coming off and no one was doing any type of maintenance to fix or at least keep the pool clean. The pool area had lots of chairs and umbrellas which was nice but since there was no swim up bar, there was minimal opportunity to get drinks besides walking out of the gated area to go to the small side bar. Two days out of our seven day trip, for an hour or two, a female worker travelled the area around the pool offering drinks but there were minimal options on her cart. In her defence, she was lovely and very energetic and very good at entertaining the people around her. She did a great job when she was around. By the pool, were two small individual male/female washrooms. They were poorly lit and rarely stocked with toilet paper and paper towels. There was another bathroom attached to the lunch buffet restaurant that was better maintained. A few days into our trip, we went to the front desk to inquire about extended check out hours and the cost as our flight wasn't until late evening on the day of our departure. The staff advised us it would be $40 American to stay in our rooms for the day and to return to the front desk the day we were leaving, early in the morning, to request this extension. On our departure day, we arrived at the front desk at 8:30am and asked to pay for our extension at which time a female worker, advising she was the manager, said the cost was $90 Euro. We were both shocked and asked why it had changed. She said it was never $40 American. We advised her we were told that and she was not responsive. We had no choice but to pay the $90 Euro as we had planned our day accordingly. We were very upset and felt scammed out of our money. Further, we spoke to other visitors later who said they did not have to pay that much to extend their stay. The food was average and well made. The staff advised since it was their "off season" that some things would only be available certain days which we understood and planned for accordingly. The a la carte restaurants were first come first serve but were poorly managed. People would show up at 6pm waiting for a 6:30pm seating only to find out it was full. They said they didn't take reservations in the "off season" but somehow the a la carte's were always full. We managed to get in to the Krystal restaurant but the food was bland and not well prepared. We ended up going back to the buffet afterwards and every other night we were there. A bit more attention could have been paid to the availability of plates, forks, spoons etc as I found it hard some days to get my hands on a spoon for ice cream. It was obvious that all the restaurants were under staffed and I felt for the workers as they tried their best to make each experience worthwhile. Our rooms were clean and well kept but needed updates. Bar fridge did not work, we were missing blankets, tiles were falling off the tub surround and lights were burnt out. We did call to get more blankets which came after 3 calls to the front desk and about an hour and a half wait time. The cleaning staff did a great job of cleaning the room daily. It was always done by 3-4pm and towels, soaps and toilet paper were restocked regularly. The beach was nice but small. It was well kept and there were a good amount of chairs. Though we only spent one day our beach, there were no complaints in that area. Very nice and the water was warm. Overall, I would say this resort was a 4 star at best on its way to becoming a 5 star. I am a regular visitor of Riu hotels and it definitely was not up to par with the others I have visited in the past. (Jamaica, Costa Rica) I would not charge such a high cost for this resort as it still has a lot of upgrading that needs to be done. I would not recommend it to others wishing to visit this island until it gets the maintenance and love it so needs. St Martin is a beautiful island and I would definitely visit again but maybe next time, I would stay on the Dutch side and explore its options.

Sonesta Great Bay Beach & Casino: Paradise at Sonesta

Another amazing week at Great Bay Resort in St. Maarten!! Beautiful views, good food selections with a unique Lava Rock cooking experience! Rent a car to see all angles of this incredibly beautiful island!The carefree experience started with Sandy at Trip Central who will be sure to see that your vacation is all that you want!

Sonesta Great Bay Beach & Casino: Great Resort in Saint Martin

We have visited this hotel many times and will return again. The oceanview rooms are worth the price of the upgrade. It is an intimate, friendly hotel. The food is good, service is good and close to all those wonderful jewelry stores in Phillipsburg. The hotel is an easy walk to Phillipsburg and has 3 wonderful pools and a great swim up bar. If you get tired sunning, swimming and shopping then take a high speed boat tour to beautiful Anguilla with Billy Bones Tour. It was an awesome day of sn [... read more]orkeling, swimming and seeing a beautiful location.

Sonesta Maho Beach: Lovely Resort - Good Value

We love the hotel and location. However, this past visit we were disappointed with the lack of variety in the food and room cleanliness. (Pests) We are hoping this review will help change the resort back to the way it was with higher quality food and cleaning.

Palace St. Martin: Ok resort

The hotel was ok but I wouldn't say it's a 5 star. The pool tiles were falling off , the food was just ok, entertainment was weak. The staff at the front desk were not friendly. We needed to have a late check out in our last day and they charged us $90 American to stay an extra 4 hours. I think that was ridiculous. Also when we had booked massages they lost our reservation and we had to book a completely different day. I wasn't happy

Palace St. Martin: Beautiful Resort

The beach, grounds, and pool were great. The food and drinks were amazing. The staff was fantastic. The spa was good. The rooms were clean and comfortable. The entertainment was very poor. The advertised resort credit are coupons.

Sonesta Maho Beach: Awesome Island vacation

Lots to do, great food, amazing drinks, great service. This place has something for everyone. Plane watching right from the beach is amazing. Being able to take local transit from the front door to another part of the island is not only fun but gives you the freedom to explore and we felt safe. There are beautiful beaches all around the island. Loved Mullet Bay and it was only a short walk from the resort, just beautiful!! Being able to visit the Sonesta Great Bay in Phillipsburg after a da [... read more]y of shopping is great and you have all the same privileges as in Maho. Check in is incredibly quick and easy. Cant wait to go back!!

Sonesta Maho Beach: Great resort

This resort had everything that you need to have a great vacation. Rooms were spacious and clean. Food was wonderful. A lot of variety at the buffet and 3 other restaurants to chose from. The Ascot sports bar was great! Grounds were beautiful and very clean. Great value for the price! Only complaint was our room location....we had a great view of Mullett Bay, but couldn't enjoy being on our balcony because we were located on the same side of the hotel as the sanitation plant. It was quite lo [... read more]ud and had a bit of an odor. Overall a great resort and would definitely recommend it.

Palace St. Martin: Not a 5 *

Food was excellent. Grounds seemed to be under construction- lots of wasted space with grass, many lights were not working at night. Staff was friendly. It service was not stellar. Entertainment crew was amazing during the day but lacked in evening. Evening entertainment should not be volunteering from the audience. Hotel itself is secluded and for night entertainment outside resort is a 20 min cab ride. Only shuttle service to casino on Friday.

Sonesta Maho Beach: slow season let down

the caribbean is beautiful, there's no question. It wouldn't matter where you stayed, however, if that is important to you than maho is perfect for families. I wouldn't recommend it for couples or adults only. Go to the sister resort (great bay). The marketing spin on the planes flying over, is just that- a marketing spin so that you won't be annoyed by the noise. If you wouldn't want to live by an airport, then vacationing beside one is just the same. Fortunately, the planes stop flying around  [... read more]10pm but start up again around 6:30am. The resort is very nice. Most of the shops aren't open by maho but life is buzzing at the sister resort-great bay, but be careful of that too, cuz it's geared to the uniformed traveller. Know what you're buying cuz there's a lot of garbage out there being sold at top dollar. The staff is fantastic at Maho. I would highly recommend the resort on that point alone! Everyone is super friendly and truly are concerned about your stay on the island. The food was also excellent. Book all your excursions at the hotel. Don't do it on the flight (sunwing). I found that to be a rip-off. I booked two excursions and was supposed to receive a 10% discount on my second tour and didn't receive it. I was also supposed to get snorkelling included on my guided tour to St. Barts and didn't receive that either. But i digress. The picture at the left is also deceiving. There is only one pool. The long one shown in the picture isn't there, it's now a walkway. The pool is clean, but is closed more than it's open (the swim up bar). And they treat the pool at 10pm and it's recommended not to go swimming at that time. Again, this is very family oriented. The view that i had from my room was pretty lousy, but somebody has to stay on that side of the hotel i guess, but, i wouldn't pay the upgrade for a different view. I'm not spending a lot of time in my room, so it didn't matter much to me. Maho would be smart to utilize the back of the hotel for a roof top lounge complete with gardens. I think that would have been amazing and would give those with or without children a nice place to go to relax.

Sonesta Great Bay Beach & Casino: Sonesta Great Bay Beach and Casino

The resort was in a great location and most of the staff were very helpful and pleasant.The rooms had a very strong musty smell but somehow you seen to get use to it.We went with a group of 6 and we all seemed to enjoy ourselves after initial shock of room quality.Were disappointed when member of our party had left their money hidden under pile of close and knapsack on the first full day of vacation(landed and went to resort approx. )Next day Oct7 was first full day.Party left room and went sw [... read more]imming from 10am to 4pm.Went back to there room and found close and knapsack moved and also luggage bag was moved. Checked around there room to find 650 dollars us missing.Reported to front desk security came but did nothing but blame party and wouldn't even check who scanned to get in the room and told party to go to local Police department to file a complaint. They went and spent 4 hrs there. nothing happened We had a suspicion of who took the money because the person was friendly and nice toward everyone in party but after incident wouldn't even make eye contact or even look are way.That person tried very hard to ruin our vacation but we wouldn't let them .lWe Feel when you pay that much to stay at an all inclusive resort things left in you room should be safe.P.S (WAS NOT cleaning staff they were all nice and the cleaner on the floor were vacation money was stolen was searched.The Front desk person who also stocks fridges with drinks was not ask if the were in room to stock fridge.They could of just checked key lo.g entry to room.Overall St.Maarten is beautiful and everyone in party would love to go again just not to this resort.

Palace St. Martin: Riu? maybe not

When we arrived at the hotel we were greeted with a cocktail drink which was warm. The grounds were dark we arrived at night they could have used more lighting around the premises. This hotel is still undergoing renovations it was another hotel (I believe, Radisson, so I heard) and Riu acquired it 2 years ago. The pool is at the very end of the property right next to the ocean. There is no swim up bar, and it makes it inconvenient for those in the pool to get drinks. The ground were okay, n [... read more]ot that many flowers it could have been the time of year we went in late Sept.-early October. The service in the buffet restaurants was slow. We had to wait almost every day to get a drink; the food was great, the selection was good. The employees area all awesome people, very friendly and almost always happy. I would rate this hotel 3.5 to 4 star at max. No way it is a 5.

Sonesta Maho Beach: Downtime

We chose this location for downtime. We were not looking to be entertained. If you are looking for quiet time to kick back and soak up the sun this fits the bill. There was no nightly entertainment. The season hadn't wound up and most of the surrounding area was closed. The room had been refurbished and bed was super comfortable. The staff in the restaurants were attentive and went out of their way. We often asked for things not on the menu or that we had had from a different restaurant. It  [... read more]appeared with a smile. Not 5 star but would give 3.5 to 4.